Ever scoured the Internet looking for what exactly you were missing from the old board game you pulled from your closet, only to find no succor in your time of need? Well, stop that fruitless searching through endless google results, as this week we look at Parker Brothers’ Stop Thief, the classic 1979 Electronic Game of Cops and Robbers.
Box art for the 1979 game, Stop Thief
A more indepth discussion the various releases of this game through the years, as well as its gameplay, can by found in a previous blog entry, titled, The Best Classic Board Games – Stop Thief! What’s In That Game Box? deals specifically with the game’s contents, which are:
The game box (featuring a multi-colored Stop Thief logo, a prominent image of a hand holding the Electronic Crime Scanner, and a few cartoon detectives and criminals, all on a dull yellow/peach background)
The game board (featuring four multi-square building locations – Antiques, Bank, Furs, and Jewelry – five subway locations, the Newsstand location, and the 127-squared intersecting game path)
Four plastic Detective player tokens (blue, green, red, and yellow)
Two 6-sided dice
The Electronic Crime Scanner device (with a multicolored numeric keypad and requiring a “9-volt” battery to operate)
A supply of Reward Money (in green-colored $50; blue-colored $100; and pink-colored $500 denominations)
8 Acme Detective Agency Licenses:
Carrie Badger (No. W02-30-03)
Harley Hand (No. M01-03-30)
Kent Ketchum (No. M01-04-40)
Lester Lose O’ (No. M01-01-10)
Mavis Marvel (No. W02-10-01)
Nanny Harrow (No. W02-20-02)
Rosa Subrose (No. W02-40-04)
Sheerluck Holmes (No. M01-02-20)
10 WANTED poster cards, consisting of:
Armand Slinger – Arm Robber (REWARD: $900)
Bunny & Clod – Petty Thieves (REWARD: $1,000)
Emil “The Cat” Donovan – Cat Burglar (REWARD: $800)
Felicia Field – Sneak(er) Thief (REWARD: $900)
Hans Offe – Pickpocket (REWARD: $900)
John Doe – Buck Passer (REWARD: $800)
Luke Warm – Auto Thief, etc. (REWARD: $1,000)
Ruby Diamond – Jewel Thief (REWARD: $800)
Saul Teen – Safecracker (REWARD: $1,000)
The Brain – ????? (REWARD: $1,000)
32 STOP THIEF! SLEUTH cards, consisting of:
BACK TO ACME DETECTIVE AGENCY (You or Another Detective) [x2]
BUY A TIP FOR $50 [x4]
BUY A TIP FOR $100 [x2]
COLLECT $100 FROM ANOTHER DETECTIVE [x2]
COLLECT $200 FROM ANOTHER DETECTIVE [x2]
FREE TIP [x4]
GO 3 EXTRA SPACES
GO 4 EXTRA SPACES [x2]
GO 5 EXTRA SPACES
GO 6 EXTRA SPACES
LOSE A TURN [x3]
MOVE ANYWHERE [x2]
PRESS “CLUE” BUTTON 3 EXTRA TIMES
PRESS “CLUE” BUTTON 4 EXTRA TIMES
PRESS “CLUE” BUTTON 5 EXTRA TIMES
PRESS “CLUE” BUTTON 6 EXTRA TIMES
TAKE ANOTHER TURN [x3]
The game rules booklet
Box contents of the 1979 game, Stop Thief
Aside from the inner plastic tray that holds the loose game parts and the cardboard space filler, that’s it! NOTE: The box art shown in this blog entry is from the Canadian version. The American version had a black background, and only English wording. All the contents of both versions are the same, with the exception of the Canadian version being in both English and French.
Have fun finding those pesky criminals!
All 10 WANTED posters for Stop Thief (1979)
All 8 Detective Licenses for Stop Thief (1979)
Filed under: Board Games, What's In That Game? Tagged: | 1979, acme detective agency, board game, cops and robbers, parker brothers, stop thief
I’ve bought the game used a few years ago. I’m recoding the crime scanner on my Android.
When I was a kid, that electronic scanner was so cool.
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