Customer Reviews

Pressman Toys Advanced Mastermind

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

This is the Mastermind game they used to sell, and the one I learned to play as a child. The newer four-peg version is definitely easier, but doesn't provide the deep satisfaction of winning a five-peg game. Adults will find the outcome of this version less predictable. Children may find it frustrating, but it will definitely teach them to think. I don't know if they've changed the packaging design, but the pegs and markers used to be far too easy to lose and not portable at all -- my only criticism of the game, and thus the three-star durability rating.

This remake of the original Super Mastermind is a welcome return, as I have lost most of my pieces from the game (purchased in the 70's ouch!). While this is a great brain game you can expand it even further by using a blank hole as a sixth color adding even more difficulty to it. If you do use the empty hole as a color, I suggest that you allow the red peg to be placed in the correct coresponding hole while the white pegs will still represent the correct additional colors, but not in any order. If this sounds confusing to you, I 'll bet you've never played this game. Trust me, buy this game and you'll understand very quickly. Don't miss out on this addictive and thought provoking game. Ages eight and up seems to be a stretch, it is more appropriate for 10/12 and older. Enjoy!

Actually, we love the game very much but are very disappointed with Pressman Toys. Here's the scoop: our game came with only 20 pegs of each color -- the box clearly shows at least 40 of each color. We've called the company 1800 800-0298 x 186 several times but they refuse to send us additional pegs. Just bad business practice in my opinion. As the saying goes, when you love something you tell a few people, when you're not happy you tell everyone. I'll be sure to check that I'm not buying items from Pressman Toys next time. So instead of returning the game and paying for shipping we'll just have to win in fewer steps. SIGH!!

I have "Super Mastermind" which is the same setup as the advanced Mastermind. I have enjoyed playing it whenever I can find someone to play it with me. Recently, I was trying to help a friend improve her logic thought processing, and we split the game up into two parts: one "game" was to solve the order of colors using 5 predetermined colors; the other "game" was to solve which 5 colors had been chosen. Once she got the two parts figured out, we put it all together.

I remember enjoying this game a lot when I was a kid and ordered this for collection and to play it my husband. This advanced mastermind is quite challenging and we enjoyed it. However, I was surprise with the quality of it. It looks cheap and not well made. It does not made of nice plastic.

I know this game since when I was a kid, and I have recently bought it for my 8 year old son. The game really makes you think through different possibilities, matching them against the "response" pegs of your opponent. The quality of the pegs could have been better, and the number of the white and black pegs is just about enough, which are minor drawbacks of this edition.
I suggest to buy this game rather than regular 4-peg mastermind, since you can always play it with either three-peg or four-peg combinations if you want to make it a bit easier for the kids.

I have had the original "Mastermind"...created in '70, '71 for over 36 years (which is showing wear and tear), and it has been a favorite game in my family. My children, and now my grandchildren, pull it out to play everytime they come to visit. So, it was a toy I had to give to them even if it was a 'newer' and 'advanced' version. I just know that they too, will not only enjoy it for years to come, but will keep their 'thinking skills' sharp and will pass it on to their own children as well. Games of the mind are always a great buy!!!

I was kinda surprised by the cheap feel of the game (and even the box!) considering the [..] price tag. It was however, a very fun and challenging game. Be careful to not lose the small pieces. If you did, or just thought there weren't enough, you could always buy another board! ;)

We have the original "Super Mastermind" which is the exact same layout. It's fun and enjoyable year after year but too many games at one sitting can cause a headache. It's fun to watch others work at it too. The pieces are small so should be kept away from little kids but age 10 and up seem to enjoy it. It's a great addition to our game shelf and we are getting more to give as gifts.

Length:: 8:01 Mins

This version is a welcome expansion on the basic Mastermind. It adds a 5th slot and 2 more colors (black & blue) to the basic games color set. You can choose to play as the basic form my just limiting yourself to 4 slots and 2 fewer colors. With the basic mastermind, an adult can usually solve by deductive reasoning in 5-6 attempts if they are really trying hard, thinking through, and validating your results before having each attempt scored. This version significantly adds to the number of possible combinations such that it might not be possible to always solve before you run out of attempts and rely on some luck. As with the basic, if you allow multiple of the same color pegs to be used, it adds more complexity than if you can assume only one color is ever used. You could have always expanded the basic Mastermind with an additional color by using empty slot as another choice. You can further expand this one by an empty slot too if you really want to make it hard and rely on some more luck to guess correctly. I have not yet tried Ultimate Mastermind.

The construction of this board seems better than basic Mastermind. The scoring pegs fit in much more easily. The code cover is more usable by adults too. I received plenty of the pegs and scoring pegs. They give you about 42 scoring pegs for a maximum of 60 scoring slots among 12 scoring rows. But it should be impossible to actually need 60 because you have seriously messed up guessing if you got all 5 right in the first turn to fill all holes in scoring and couldn't get it right by the 12th attempt. But if you are like me, you can always combine with your basic mastermind. They both are the same pegs, just better board construction this time.

The game plays more slowly because it takes longer thinking to work out by deductive reasoning and checking validity before scoring. The code master probably should get a magazine or come back when ready to be scored again. Or else set a timer and raise the reliance on luck, thinking speed, and chance that the code will not be broken by guesses that are not as well thought out.