Here are the rules for a game that I’ll dub Insinuation. It’s a lot like Clue. I’ve removed the lousy board-and-pawns element and stripped the theme away. Is the game still good without it? I’m not sure, actually. In the not-too-distant future I’ll talk about the importance of theme.

Equipment: From an ordinary deck of cards, use the 2-10 of spades, the 2-7 of hearts, and 2-7 of clubs. Each player will almost certainly need pen and paper.

Setup: Sort the cards by suit and shuffle each suit separately. Remove one card of each suit and set these three “mystery cards” aside. Then shuffle all remaining cards together and deal an equal number of them (or as close as possible) to each player.

Goal: The object of the game is to be the first player to deduce the identity of the mystery cards.

Play: Play proceeds counterclockwise. The first player who got one less card than the others goes first (choose randomly if they split evenly).

On each player’s turn, that player names one card from each of the three suits. The player on his left, if able, must secretly show the active player one of the named cards. (If that player has more than one, it is his choice which to show.) If that player has no such card, the next player to the left must reveal one if possible, and so on.

It is legal and often useful to name a card you hold in your own hand. Taking notes is encouraged and important.

Ending the Game: If you think you know the identity of the mystery cards, instead of taking an ordinary turn, you declare “I am solving the mystery,” and identify the three cards. Then you examine them. If you are right, you reveal them and win the game. If you are wrong, you state that you were incorrect. You lose the game and no longer take turns, but keep playing to show your cards to the other players on their turns.