Parents' Guide to

Mysterium: The Board Game

By Chris Morris, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 9+

Fun, but difficult, adaptation of visual board game.

App iPhone , iPod Touch , iPad , Android Paid Board Games
Mysterium: The Board Game Poster Image

A Lot or a Little?

What you will—and won't—find in this app.

  • Mysterium Screen #1
  • Mysterium Screen #2
  • Mysterium Screen #3

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What’s It About?

In MYSTERIUM: THE BOARD GAME, players act either as the ghost of a murder victim or one of up to six psychics hoping to solve that murder by identifying the murderer, the location of the crime, and the murder weapon. The ghost helps players narrow the suspects by sending the psychics visions, represented in the game by cards. They're never especially clear and require a lot of guesswork by players. Once the player guesses one element of the crime, they move on to the next. If they guess wrong, the ghost sends additional clues. Players have eight turns to guess all three, after which they must guess the ultimate answer -- again using clue cards supplied by the ghost.

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say: Not yet rated
Kids say: Not yet rated

You can't help but think of the board game Clue when playing this app -- and that's deliberate. Mysterium: The Board Game is like an advanced version of that children's game, designed for an older audience, though it sometimes enrages those same players. The ease of a match largely depends on the other players, since it's multiplayer-focused. And a bad clue card can easily send you in the wrong direction.

The frustrations don't end with the difficulty, though. This is a game that requires patience, as players will sometimes wait for several minutes before getting a clue card -- even in a single-player game (which acts as a tutorial of sorts). It slows the pace of things and may cause some players to abandon a match mid-game. Also, if you do decide to read the story in the early parts of the game, you'll wince. It's chock-full of typos and really poor writing, which could affect your early enjoyment of the game. But if you're a board game fan looking for a serious multiplayer challenge and can deal with some headaches, Mysterium could be the one for you.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about logical connections. Why did you choose that card to represent that answer?

  • Families also can talk about communication. How do you signal something to someone when you don't have a common language?

App Details

  • Devices: iPhone , iPod Touch , iPad , Android
  • Pricing structure: Paid
  • Release date: January 30, 2017
  • Category: Board Games
  • Publisher: Asmodee Digital
  • Version: 1.0.16
  • Minimum software requirements: Requires iOS 8.0 or later; Requires Android 4.1 and up
  • Last updated: October 18, 2019

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