Like most children I grew up familiar with Milton Bradley and their games. Sadly I was not familiar with their 1971 record player based game Voice of the Mummy until my cousin and co-host Sean introduced me to it many years into my gaming life. The idea of the game intrigued me as he explained it; I had heard of games that are soundtrack reliant, but a game from the 70s that was soundtrack reliant… that was shocking; especially when the soundtrack is on a plastic record!

The vitals
Released 1971
Designer: Unknown – released by Milton Bradley
Plays: 2-4
EPT: 30 minutes

As the game was explained to me I envisioned a giant old school record player sprouting out of a small game board with a candylandesque map. Then as I researched the game I was amazed at its simplicity; the record player being a small plastic device set inside a sarcophagus. Despite the game’s heavy reliance on the roll and move mechanic I wanted to try the game desperately. When at last I had the chance we hit a small bump in the road. The record player was not working, I will come back to that; but lets first look at how the game plays.

In Voice of the Mummy players are walking around a mummy tomb in the search of jewels while avoiding the mummy’s curse. Players start in the corners of the map on the tile matching their color and play in clockwise order with the first player being decided by way of high roll. The goal of the game is to end with the most points; points are acquired at a rate of 1 per jewel collected, 5 for the great jewel and negative 5 for the curse.

The play area is a three tiered board with players starting on the lowest level, stairs lead players up and down with jewels spread throughout each level on designated spaces with 12 jewels on the lowest level, 8 on the middle level, and 6 on the highest level. The Great jewel and curse are placed by the sarcophagus on the top level but can only be collected after the 6 other jewels on the top tier are collected; it does not matter how many jewels on the other tiers have been collected so long as the top 6 have been taken.

On a players turn they roll the die and move the rolled number of spaces clockwise around the board; if the player ends their movement on a jewel they remove the jewel from the board and place it in their temple, if they end their turn on a stair they can go up or down to the next tier, and if the player ends their turn on another player the other players must each give the moving player a jewel from their own supply if one is available. Spread about the board there are a few places with a mummy head symbol; on these spaces a player must activate the record player and follow the commands of the mummy.

Once the 6 jewels from the top level have been collected the first player to the great jewel space can collect the it, but with the jewel comes the curse and the end of the first phase of the game. The sarcophagus (record player) is opened and the record flipped over to side B. In phase 2 players race to the exit the tomb (running clockwise or counter clockwise) and thus end the game; there is a catch, however, in that the cursed player cannot end the game. Once one player reaches their starting location without the curse all players count their points to determine the winner. The curse and the great jewel can exchange hands before this happens, however, in that if the mummy tells a player to take the spell they become the cursed player, the cursed player can also pass the curse off by landing on another player, and the great jewel can be stolen if a player manages to land on the player who carries it.

Let us now jump back to our previous scenario as we are pulling the curtain slightly and revealing some Gamer’s Remorse trivia. When at last I was ready and able to play Voice of the Mummy we set up the record and nothing happened. To our fortune Sean speaks the language of electronics and after a trip to radio shack, a few transformers, solder, and electrical tape later we had the record back up and running. We later discovered there was an app we could have used to the same effect of the record player.

The game plays well and is shockingly enjoyable for what is essentially a roll and move game. The joy is derived from the choice of when to change between the tiers, attempts to land on the opponents, and the use of audio in game. In our current state it is not uncommon or difficult for a game to utilize audio as a mechanic; Space Alert and One Night Ultimate Werewolf are fantastic examples of this.

For modern gamers there may be an element of gimiciness; and admittedly that is an acceptable and understandable view; but for players who love vintage games and enjoying older technology this is a fantastic game. It lacks the strategy many older gamers may enjoy but it would work fantastic with younger gamers and those who want to take a break between heavy strategy behemoths. I would recommend, if attempting to find a copy, using the record player if possible, before resorting to apps or online supplements. I will also include the video of our previous review below (NOTE this was before we altered the rating system so in the embedded video 1 is good and 10 is bad [weird I know] so my 3 then would be a 7 now)

All-in-all the game is a silly classic game that utilizes what was at the time good technology. As the game is now it looks out of style, for good reason, but due to that it is almost back in style due to the vintage movement. I now give the game 6.75 out of 10! (the score has dropped slightly due to the nostalgia factor wearing off but it is still a solid classic)
Visuals – 1.5 // 2
Skill/Luck – .25 // 1
Pacing – 1.75 // 2
Theme/Immersion – 1.5 // 2
Mechanics – .25 // 1
Fun Factor 1.5 // 2

Visit again Tomorrow as I take a look at one of my favorite games from 2014; Dead of Winter! Until then you can find us on social media!
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