Betrayal at House on the Hill is one of those quintessential board games. Look it up on Amazon or other retailers, and you'll find it listed with good ratings and among other popular games like Codenames or Mysterium. That said, it's not the most family-friendly game. The box says it's good for ages 12 and up, as young children probably wouldn't cope well with a game that literally tests their sanity. That seems to be why Avalon Hill made Betrayal at Mystery Mansion, a streamlined variant that uses Scooby-Doo to lighten things up.

From the moment you open the box of Betrayal at Mystery Mansion, you'll see how it scales things back. Vanilla Betrayal supports six players, all with their own painted plastic miniatures. Mystery Mansion sticks to cardboard tokens of Scooby and the gang. Where the original had 50 scenarios, Mystery Mansion has 25. They are all based on beloved Scooby-Doo episodes and movies, so that's a plus.

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This isn't some sinister plot to be unmasked, though, it's designers' intent. “We couldn’t be more excited to introduce a younger audience and new Betrayal players to the spookiness and mystery that the series is known for with a game that can be played time and time again," said Rob Daviau, a Betrayal designer who consulted on Mystery Mansion. And at $35, it's clear that this is meant to be an entry-level board game.

What does that mean as a player? Expect shorter games with less people. The regular Betrayal experience takes around an hour, but can go way longer. Mystery Mansion promises 25-50 minutes. You'll go over time if you are teaching young ones to play, but there's still a general quickness that isn't seen in other Betrayal products.

A big contributor to that is the way the "betrayal" happens. Usually players roll a die and let fate decide when one player becomes a baddie, and which one. Mystery Mansion gives guidance for a player to opt into the monster role rather than have it be decided randomly. This is probably so parents can take on the role of "GM" and so one kid doesn't feel ganged up on when the roles suddenly switch. The adult can also keep things moving so kids don't get bored.

Also, there isn't much betrayal. Obviously there was never an episode where Shaggy turned out to be a cultist, so the game doesn't have a scenario where one character turns on the others. Instead the haunts always feature the gang uniting against a baddie, and things seem to be somewhat balanced in their favor.

Via: avalonhill.wizards.com

It's best to think of Betrayal at Mystery Mansion as a teaching tool, a way to get children into board games. It shines in that role, as it allows kids to team up and therefore always be the winners. The 25 scenarios also afford enough replayability to keep young ones delighted and parents from going crazy.

If you've got kids at home and are running out of ways to entertain them during shutdown, Betrayal at Mystery Mansion is a good buy. A group comprised solely of adults will want to stick to standard Betrayal, or the D&D variant Betrayal at Baldur's Gate.

A copy of Betrayal at Mystery Mansion was provided to TheGamer by Wizards of the Coast.

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