脱走名人 (Escape Master)

脱走名人 (Dasso Meijin) is a game from Japan about escaping pet lizards. Each player is a different pet lizard which has got free from its tank in the game designer's home (the game title means 'escape master'). They run around the rooms and try to catch insects. The first lizard to get a set of insects is the winner. The game designer (who breeds pet lizards) describes the game as a mix of roll & move and Old Maid, in that the lizards follow paths around, and steal cards off each other akin to Old Maid. However, the game does not use dice. Instead, players choose a numbered card from their hand in secret, reveal it and advance as far as they wish up to the number. The lowest numbers go first. Players follow paths around the different rooms in the home, and try to catch insects in the rooms or collect useful objects (by drawing cards). If a player gets into a room with another lizard, they can steal a card from the other player's hand. But some cards are also traps. The pet owner is also moving about, and if a player ends up in the same room, they cannot move or they will be caught. So being able to predict the movements of the other players and the owner matters. The first lizard to secure a hand of four cards of one type of insect is the winner. user summary