Almost 20 years after releasing his wacky murder board game Kill Doctor Lucky, James Ernest and Cheapass Games are producing a deluxe anniversary edition, scheduled to release in April 2016.

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Kill Doctor Lucky was the first board game produced by Ernest’s no-frills publishing company, back in 1996.  The quirky little board game was a popular and critical success, earning the 1997 Origins Award for “Best Abstract Board Game” and a nod in the Games 100 list for that year.  Over the years, Ernest has kept the game available, through two upgraded versions from Cheapass and a deluxe boxed edition published by Titanic Games in 2006 (see “Paizo Relaunches Bestseller”).  The game was out of print for almost a year before Ernest announced the upcoming 19.5th Anniversary Edition.

In the game, the players all seek to murder the game’s namesake Doctor Lucky, by locating weapons in his enormous mansion and cornering him alone in a room to do the deed.  But the Doctor’s luck, represented by cards, can thwart even the most carefully planned attack.

The new version of the game will feature a revised rulebook and all-new artwork created for the game by Israel Evans, who also illustrated the card game version, Get Lucky (See “ ‘Get Lucky’”).  The contents of the new edition have not yet been finalized, and will be determined by the success of Cheapass’ Kickstarter campaign, but will at least include upgraded cardstock and new character cards.  MSRP is $40.00.

The Kickstarter campaign is off to a good start, reaching its $40,000 funding goal in less than two days, and reaching nearly double that level with 25 more days to go.  Cheapass is also partnering with Truant Spiele to simultaneously produce a German language version of the game.