Escape from Colditz was once as popular as Monopoly but the board game is back
Escape from Colditz is being manufactured for the first time in more than 30 years
Popular board game Escape from Colditz is making a comeback after more than 30 years out of production.
The wartime game, based on the infamous German castle prisoner-of-war camp, was as popular as Monopoly at its peak in the 1970s, but production ceased in 1983.
Back then the strategic game was produced on the back of the highly-acclaimed BBC TV series 'Colditz'.
Now a deluxe edition of the board game has been launched after Osprey Games approached Brian Degas - who wrote the BBC TV series - to win permission to manufacture it.
Since production ceased, the older version of the game has withered and torn apart in the backs of people's games' cupboards, without the opportunity of being replaced.
The game - which requires careful planning and nerves of steel - was designed by Brian Degas and the late Major Pat Reid, OBE, one of only a handful of prisoners-of-war to escape Colditz Castle.
Major Pat Reid was a British Army officer and prisoner-of-war during World War II. Held in Colditz Castle, a Nazi prison designated for troublesome enemy combatants, he is one of the few prisoners who managed to escape.
The updated playing board has new hand-painted artwork, and although there are a few new rules to quicken the game, the basic premise remains the same.
It has to be played between two to six people, of which at least one must take on the role of the German guards who are depicted as black pawns.
The other player or players is as an escape officer of one of five different Allied nationalities who has six prisoner-of-war pawns under their command.
Using opportunity cards and the roll of a dice, each prisoner must travel around the board collecting an 'escape kit' that includes a disguise, food and a compass before attempting to escape Colditz.
The German guards have to stop the would be escapees in their tracks and if they are caught breaking the camp rules they are placed in solitary.
Players have to use strategy that often involves sacrificing some of their PoW pawns to distract the guards in order for another to get away.
The new game has been produced on the 75th anniversary of Major Reid's famous escape.
Osprey spokesman James McCullough said: "Escape From Colditz was a classic, huge selling game in its time and one of the premier board games in Britain. It was huge and one year it outsold Monopoly in Britain.
"One reason why it was so popular are that it is based on a true story. Major Reid used his experience and what he did to escape to help devise the game.
"Younger people might be a bit wary of the cover as it looks quite intimidating. But we hope that this new edition will both inspire a new generation and allow long-time fans to revisit a board game classic."
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