Purpose of the game

The game is won if all 4 heroes manage to escape from the shopping mall with the stolen items. Otherwise, all players lose the game.

Basic Gameplay

A game of Magic Maze unfolds through the following sequence:

• The shopping mall is explored in search of the items to steal.
• Each hero must reach and stand on the space containing the item they need to steal.
• When all 4 heroes are in position simultaneously, they steal the items. The alarm is triggered, and they must escape from the shopping mall.

The game offers various scenarios—difficulty levels—and the game elements used (shopping mall tiles and action tiles) depend on the scenarios and the number of players.

Game Setup (Scenario 1: Beginner Level)

Select the action tiles and shopping mall tiles that will be used during the game. Place the starting tile face up in the center of the table, with the 4 hero pawns on the 4 central spaces of the starting tile.

Distribute the action tiles among the players, who place them face-up in front of themselves, aligned in the same orientation (N ˄) as the starting tile.

Also place the sand timer, the Out of Service markers, and the heist tile on the table.

The action tiles indicate which movements each player can make with a pawn:

• up, down, right, left, one or as many spaces as desired
• explore a new area (add a new shopping mall tile)
• go up the escalator
• or move a pawn to a vortex space of the same color

All players can move any pawn they choose—color doesn’t matter—but they can only perform the movement(s) shown on their own action tile.

The shopping mall tiles contain spaces that create paths. Some spaces have special properties:

• Exploration. When a pawn reaches an exploration space of its color, the player who can perform the exploration movement adds a new shopping mall tile.
• Vortex. The player with the ability to move pawns to the vortex can move a pawn to any visible vortex of the same color.
• Escalators, for overcoming level changes. Only usable by pawns moved by the player with this ability.
• Sand Timer. Allows the sand timer to be flipped, enabling continued play.
• Items to Steal. Each item has a specific space where the corresponding color pawn must be positioned.
• Exit Spaces. Specific to each color, except in beginner games where there is only a single purple exit.

Let’s play!

The sand timer is flipped, and the game begins. There are 3 minutes to play. Players, without any specific order or turns, perform the movement or movements they are able to execute, with any pawn they choose.

If a pawn lands on a space with the sand timer, the timer is flipped, the space is disabled with an Out of Service marker, and play continues. (Warning: it’s important to carefully assess whether this action is beneficial based on the timer’s current status).

As pawns move, new areas can be explored by adding additional shopping mall tiles. Each tile has a white arrow on a space that indicates how it should be positioned on the game board.

When all 4 pawns are simultaneously placed on their respective item spaces, the heist is completed. At this moment, the heist tile is flipped, and the vortex spaces are deactivated. Players must now move the hero pawns toward the exit or their respective exits. During this phase, the option to flip the sand timer remains available when a pawn is placed on an active sand timer space.

End of Game

The game ends, and all players win if all 4 pawns successfully escape. The game also ends if the sand timer runs out at any point. In this case, the players lose the game.

Communication

During the game, players are not allowed to talk to each other. However, there are two exceptions where communication is permitted:

1. Using the “Do Something!” pawn. At any point during the game, any player can take this pawn and place it in front of another player to indicate that they expect them to take an action. No words or gestures are allowed to suggest which pawn should be moved.
2. Players may talk to each other during the brief period after the sand timer is flipped and before any pawn begins to move.