Escape from the Hidden Castle English Version

- Game in English
 
- Number of players: 2 - 8
 
- Duration: 30 min
 
- Suggested age: 8+

Although presented as a children's game, Escape from the Hidden Castle, aka Midnight Party or Hugo, is in fact a light and fun game that can be enjoyed by adults. Each player controls a number of guests at a party, the number of guests depending on the number of players. These guests start the round in the gallery spaces on the game board, one guest per space; this initial placement is a major part of a player's strategy.

The Phantom (or "Hugo the ghost" in earlier versions) starts in the basement, then climbs the stairs to the gallery where the guests are circling. The Phantom's movement mechanism is simple: On a player's turn, they roll a special die. If they roll a number, they move their pawns; if they roll a Phantom, the Phantom moves. This means that with more players in the game, the Phantom moves much more frequently, so you need to adapt your strategy accordingly.

Once the Phantom has reached the gallery, guests can start taking refuge in rooms adjacent to the gallery to avoid him, with only one guest per room! Some rooms have the particularity of adding or subtracting additional "fright points" to your score. When the Phantom catches the remaining guests, they are sequestered on the stairs, then in the basement. The first guest caught "wins" the most fright points, and those caught later in the round gain fewer and fewer points.

Once all guests have been caught, fright points are tallied. After playing a predetermined number of rounds, the player with the fewest fright points wins!