SCOOBY-DOO! BETRAYAL AT MYSTERY MANSION is a Fantastic Game for Families

Betrayal at Mystery Mansion is now out and it’s a lot of fun to play. If you read my interview with the game’s designers, Noah Cohen and Brian Neff, than you’ll know that it’s a game set in the Scooby-Doo universe (or is it a multiverse) that uses the Betrayal gameplay system. The big thing is that it takes the system, simplifies it so that kids can play, and delivers an exciting game that adults can enjoy.

Just like in Betrayal at House on the Hill, players can explore the mysterious mansion by flipping over new tiles to create a new board every game. The difference for Mystery Mansion is that the house only has one level and you can explore the outside with each set of tiles set up in different stacks instead of combining into one. This helps the game feel like it’s a little bigger of a space and not so claustrophobic in my opinion.

Also, the characters are all pretty much the same. Each one has a special ability that’s unique to them, but their traits are all pretty identical. This was a deliberate choice by the creators to allow fans to play as their favorite member of Mystery Inc. without worrying about any mismatch between a player and the character’s play style. I found this to not be a big deal as there’s no real combat at any point and this is meant to be a simpler game. I did appreciate the little character bios on the back though with canonical little factoids like the fact that Velma enjoys lifting weights.

Each of the haunts is designed after a different episode or Scooby-Doo film, typically from the first few seasons of the show. Funny enough, the first haunt I played was the What a Night for a Knight haunt based on the very first episode of Scooby-Doo, Where Are You!.

Because the game is simplified, this means that the game plays a lot faster. This is a good thing when playing with smaller children, but can be sadder when playing with older kids or adults. However, that just means you can play multiple times, right? The haunt can trigger pretty quick which can make things very difficult for the good guys (sometimes seemingly impossible), but isn’t that the point?

Overall, I have greatly enjoyed playing Betrayal at Mystery Mansion from Avalon Games and I highly recommend it to anyone who enjoys Scooby-Doo or other Betrayal games, especially if you want to play with your kids.