Mastermind (2009 Edition)

Mastermind is a simple code-breaking board game for two players, invented in 1970 by Mordecai Meirowitz, an Israeli postmaster and telecommunications expert. It was played as a pencil and paper game called bulls and cows at least as far back as the early 1960s. One player becomes the codemaker, the other the codebreaker. The codemaker chooses a pattern of four code pegs. Duplicates are allowed, so the player could even choose four code pegs of the same color. The chosen pattern is placed in the four holes covered by the shield, visible to the codemaker but not to the codebreaker. Board colors will vary from board shown.