Thursday, June 14, 2012

#39: Mystery Rummy: Al Capone & the Chicago Underworld (Mark's 100 - 2012)

Mystery Rummy: Al Capone & the Chicago Underworld

Mark's Ranking
  • 2012: 39th
  • 2010: 55th
  • 2005: 54th
  • appeared on all three lists
  • rank: 889
  • rating: 6.89
Print Status
  • out of print
Why It's On The List
  • This is my favorite of the Mystery Rummy series... mostly because it feels a bit like Canasta (possibly my favorite standard deck card game) in how difficult it is to hide key cards from your opponent(s).
Tips & Tricks:
    • In my opinion, this is the easiest of the Mystery Rummy games to teach to non-gamers.
    • While MR: Al Capone is a great 2-handed game and a wonderful partnership game, it drags on way too long with three players.
    Extras
    • While Al Capone is out of print, you can still find copies of Jack the Ripper (probably the most difficult of the games to teach) and Jekyll & Hyde (just for 2 players) available. (You can also find Bonnie & Clyde, but the buzz on that one was bad enough to keep me from trying it.)
    • Wyatt Earp is a cousin to this series of games & is very enjoyable as well.
    • Sadly, my second favorite version of this system, Murder in the Rue Morgue, is also out of print.
    • Here's what I wrote about the Mystery Rummy series for The One Hundred.
    at

    6 comments:

    1. huzonfirst5:09 PM

      Al Capone is also my favorite of the Mystery Rummy series, Mark, and I bet there aren't many other gamers who agree with us (given the love for Ripper and Wyatt Earp). Most of my plays have been two-player, with Sheryl, but my first play of the game was four-player partnership, with Mike Fitz, Bruno Faidutti, and Aaron Weissblum--not too shabby! It was a great game, too.

      I really enjoyed my plays of the Bonnie and Clyde prototype (all of them with Mike), but for some reason, the published game never quite lived up to that. I'm not sure why; as far as I can remember, none of the rules were changed. Nevertheless, I still think it's an interesting game and one well worth trying.

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    2. Garry2:41 PM

      Like Larry, I also quite liked Bonnie & Clyde when it came out but have not played it since (and I cannot believe it's over 3 years since it was released - that's nearly as long as we were waiting for it to be released)

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    3. Garry2:45 PM

      OH, and I agree Al Capone is a great 2-player game. Jan and I really enjoyed it during our holiday last year in Italy.

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    4. Unknown9:22 AM

      We love playing Mystery Rummy Jack the Ripper version. We just purchased Al Capone, having read several great reviews. The only downside, as it was purchased on ebay, was it came with no directions. Do you think the game can be played w/out them? We can use the card instructions. Or do you have a suggestion on where I could locate a copy of the directions?

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    5. Mark (aka pastor guy)9:29 AM

      Leslie:

      Here's a game summary... and if you'll give me a way to get in touch with you, I'll scan my copy of the instructions & send them to you!

      http://boardgamegeek.com/filepage/38212/player-aid-pdf

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    6. uniquevastra2:51 AM

      HTJHMGNFRGHTRFHM

      ReplyDelete