Osprey Games OSP8935 Escape from Colditz 75th Anniversary Edition Game for 14 years to 18 years,Multicolor,11.6 x 2.8 x 426.72 inches

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In a four player game, for instance, the German Security Officer will have 14 guards to thwart the relentless plans of 18 POW’s (six per Escape Officer).

In the center is an appel area, which is completely safe; any POW here can’t be bothered for some unknown reason.The Security Officer, similarly, moves his men, collects Security Cards, and attempts to prevent escapes by arresting PoWs. Remember that the advent of cooperative games was still to come and this is a game of simple mechanics. Could a POW move to a tunnel with this card, move through the tunnel to the outer area, cut a fence and continue moving? The board game was fairly innovative, featuring co-operative and asymmetrical gameplay – a rarity at the time. The card play is very important for both sides, the allies will be making ‘equipment farms’ and gathering escape kits, whilst the German cards allow inspections, or aid in apprehension.

As an arrest is made, the guard is not ending their move in a tunnel, but this could have been clearer. A Boy's Own Story of Imaginary Combat, journalist Harry Pearson noted the one problem he had with the game: " Escape from Colditz was hugely popular, but it had one major defect — someone had to be the Germans. It wasn’t clear to us if these pawns could then continue moving (provided there is movement remaining). A PoW, when released from the outer cells (Section 4 of the board) may only re-enter the Prisoner's Courtyard through the 'Pass' circle.A Spanish edition, Fuga de Colditz, sold very well in Spain, and Major Reid designed a sequel, Después de Colditz ( After Colditz), in which the POWs who escaped from Colditz try to make their way to Switzerland, Spain, Sweden or England. It’s a beautiful presentation that feels like it was done to pay some respect to the very real people and events this game is based upon. Humphries's concluding words of advice are, "first, keep on the move and second, plan escape attempts carefully.