Last Message

First, stretch the included screen across the table. One player is chosen as the victim, and another as the criminal, sitting together on one side of the screen. The remaining players are detectives, sitting on the opposite side. Choose one of the six crime scenes; the game comes with various double-sided sheets. Find the four sides that match the chosen crime scene and arrange them to form one large picture for the detectives. Then, find the smaller, matching fold-out sheet and give it to the criminal and victim, who unfold it and place it in front of themselves. The victim collects a marker and four erasable boards. The criminal takes the sand timer, a marker, and a clear token. The criminal and victim secretly examine the scene and pick one sentient character (no animals or plants) to be the criminal, placing the transparent token on it. Only the victim and criminal should know the chosen character.

The objective for the detectives and the victim is to cooperatively identify the criminal character from the crime scene. The victim provides clues through drawings and words, while the criminal attempts to obscure these clues by erasing parts of the victim's messages. If the detectives correctly identify the criminal within four rounds, they and the victim win. If they fail to do so, or choose the wrong character in the final two rounds, the criminal wins the game.

The game is played over four rounds, each with three steps. First, the victim leaves clues. The criminal flips the 30-second sand timer, and the victim draws and writes clues on one of their four blank boards, focusing on the area around the criminal. Clues can be text or drawings, drawn within the nine squares but can cross over. Words cannot be repeated on the same board, but different drawings of the same object are allowed. Second, the criminal covers their tracks. Once the sand timer runs out, the victim stops. The criminal takes the board and erases a number of spaces: 5 in round 1, 4 in round 2, 3 in round 3, and 2 in round 4. Third, the detectives choose a suspect. The criminal hands the board to the detectives, who examine it and the crime scene. They choose one character they suspect is the criminal. The criminal confirms if the choice is correct without further comment.

There is no traditional scoring in Last Message. The game is cooperative for the victim and detectives, and competitive for the criminal. If the detectives correctly identify the criminal at the end of any round, the detectives and the victim win. If the detectives choose the wrong character during the 4th and final round, or if they fail to identify the criminal by the end of the 4th round, the criminal wins the game.

The game concludes in one of two ways. If the detectives successfully identify the criminal character at the end of any round, the game immediately ends, and the detectives along with the victim achieve victory. However, if the detectives fail to correctly identify the criminal by the end of the fourth round, or if they make an incorrect accusation during the third or fourth round, the criminal player wins the game.