Hop into the Mystery Machine and join the Scooby Gang as they explore a haunted mansion in the Scooby-Doo! Haunted House 3-D Board Game. Filled with booby traps, you can sneak your way throughout the house as your favorite character from the show and try to reach the top to unmask the ghost before anyone else does. Though it's not the first Scooby-Doo board game ever released, this 3-D haunted house puts you right into the heart of the mystery, letting you live out your animated adventures in real-time.
What Is Scooby-Doo?
Although not everyone is intimately familiar with the legendary cartoon, most people know the talking great dane that's being referenced when they hear the name Scooby-Doo. First released in the fall of 1969, this children's animated show pitted five teenagers against supernatural mysteries, all of which turned out to be the machinations of regular, albeit dastardly, people. According to the Smithsonian Magazine, the original program inspired 16 subsequent series, 13 comic book series, and two live-action films thus far. On top of these impressive iterations, Scooby-Doo has been featured in a massive merchandise campaign that's lasted for over fifty years. Among the merchandise, a bunch of fun physical and digital games involving the Scooby Gang have been released, many of which you can still play.
Join in the Scooby Gang's Fun
Fans of Scooby-Doo can join in his adventures anytime with this 3-dimensional action game aimed for young children and released by Pressman in 2007. The game board easily unfolds to create a 3-dimensional haunted house with brightly colored and detailed scenery. Players mark their progress as they move through four levels in the house, trying to reach the top and unmask the ghost that haunts the mansion. It's not an easy climb through the house, though. Players never know when they'll land on one of the seven secret booby traps in or near the haunted house--like a moving ghost, a creaky staircase, and a haunted moose head.
Player Demographics
The Scooby-Doo Haunted House game is designed to captivate the imagination of a young child. Due to this targeted audience, it doesn't require any reading ability, so it's equally fun for a four-year-old or a six-year-old. It's recommended that it's best played between two to four players.
It's an ideal game for non-readers, slow-readers, or children who don't speak English since it doesn't require reading to advance the game along. Thanks to this, it can be used in a preschool setting to teach young children how to have patience, learn rules, count squares, take turns, and play with other children.
A typical game might take as long as 60 minutes, so it does require some patience and concentration by the players. Adults might want to consider this game as a birthday gift or as a game to keep at Grandma's along with Candyland and other easy-to-learn games for those times when the younger cousins get together and are looking for something to do.
Pieces Included in the Game
You can expect to find a few different pieces within the game box, including:
- 1 haunted house 3-dimensional game board (the board opens up to create height, width and depth with scenery that stands away from the game board)
- 1 spinner
- 5 individual character cards and accompanying stands
- Instructions
How To Play the Game
The game is very easy to set up. To begin, you'll need to unfold the house and place the spinner within reach. Each player selects which character they want to be (Fred, Daphne, Velma, Shaggy, or Scooby) and then all of players use the spinner wheel to determine who goes first. Once the order is determined, players use the spinner to find out how many spaces they can move through the four levels of the haunted house. As players move throughout the house, they'll find that they might stumble across several traps set throughout the mansion meant to deter their progress. Some of the obstacles include:
- Shaky floors and stairs
- A ghostly knight
- A swinging sarcophagus
- A falling bird cage
Whoever reaches the top of the haunted mansion first gets to unmask the ghost and wins the game.
Jinkies, This Game Is Fun!
If you're looking to entertain your young children and want to take a trip down memory lane, the Scooby-Doo! Haunted House 3-D Board Game is one you'll want to break out from the depths of the game closet. Perfectly balancing nostalgia with modern gameplay, this Scooby-Doo game holds up over a decade after its release. Since the game is no longer in print, you'll have to hunt down a copy at your local consignment shop or vintage store. So, tie on your ascots, break out a box of Scooby snacks, and start looking for clues to lead you to a copy of this spooky game.
