Outfoxed!

Today's review is of the 2014 release, Outfoxed!  For 2-4 players, it takes 20 minutes.

Overview
A wily fox has committed a crime, and it's up to you and your friends to stop him!  Outfoxed! is a Clue-like game geared towards preschoolers.  A fox is placed on the board in the starting square, sleuth tokens (representing the players) are placed in the middle, clues are placed face-down in spots on the board, and 16 suspects are placed around the board, face-down. 

game components; image from here

On your turn, you roll three dice (and can re-roll them up to 3 times).  Before you roll, you announce your intentions- you'll either:
- search for clues, or
- investigate suspects
You then roll.  After up to 3 rolls, if you get three symbols matching your intentions (paws = clues, eyes = suspects), you get to perform your action.  If you get dice with both paws and eyes, alas!  The wily fox gets to move three spaces, and when he gets to the end, he gets away with it!  But if your luck holds:
- Searching for clues means you can move as many spaces on the board as the number of paws you rolled.  If you land on a clue (always an article of clothing), turn it over and place it in the orange device holding the card of the perpetrator; the device will tell you if the perp was wearing that piece of clothing or not.
- Investigating suspects means turning over two suspects around the board (your choice).  You can then remove any suspects based on clues that have been revealed so far.  For example, if you know the suspect is wearing a cloak (based on a clue someone turned over previously), you can remove any suspects that don't have cloaks around the board.

Eventually, you'll have a good idea of 'whodunnit.' When you do, announce it, and if you solve it before the fox reaches town, you all win (this is a cooperative game)!

Review
I was pleased with two prior Gamewright offerings suitable for children (Sleeping Queens and Dragonwood), so I had high expectations for this one.  Unfortunately, I found it lacking.  Okay, it's for preschoolers; I get that.  But the other two are also suitable for the little ones and also enjoyable for adults.  This one is a snore for the older ones, though perhaps good for helping kids develop deduction skills.

Rating: B-