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Crude: The Oil Game
1974
Rules assistance for Crude: The Oil Game
Plain-language explanations of turns, card effects and disputed situations, with official source references and saved question history.
- 2–4 players
- 90 min
- 13+
- Complexity 2.7/5
For 2 players
Rules assistant for Crude: The Oil Game
What would you like to know?
Answers come from the official rulebook, with the page to check.
Crude: The Oil Game is a board game released in 1974 for 2–4 players, 90 minutes per game, and ages 13 and up. It was designed by James J. St. Laurent and its main mechanics are Income, Dice Rolling, and Tile Placement.
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About the game
In Crude: The Oil Game, players take on the role of oil company CEOs, seeking to expand their companies into multi-national energy mega-corporations. Just as with real world energy companies, player will setup facilities for oil drilling, oil pumping, oil refining into gasoline, and gasoline selling to the consumer... all of which are represented by actual plastic pieces placed on the board! Players also speculate by buying and selling oil and gasoline barrels in both the domestic and foreign markets... again represented by actual plastic barrels in their playing area! However, the changing economic climate, as well as sudden world news events, will challenge players to keep a long-term strategic view of the world energy markets. The first player to reach a corporation value of $750 million is the winner! Crude: The Oil Game is not only a great simulation of the global oil markets, but with almost 300 plastic playing pieces, it is a sight to behold! Known as McMulti when it was printed in Europe almost 25 years ago, this great game is finally back in print after many years! Brought back into print in 2012 by Stronghold Games, Crude: The Oil Game has been a highly sought-after ("Grail") game. This is an early Euro-style game – before Euro-style existed! – which accurately simulates the market forces and elements of the oil and gasoline markets at all levels of production, including oil drilling, oil pumping, oil and gasoline buying and selling in the domestic and foreign markets, oil refining, and finally gasoline selling to the consumer.
Categories
Mechanics
Designers
Publishers
- Pegasus Spiele
- Hexagames (I)
- Stronghold Games
- St. Laurent Games
Questions and answers
Crude: The Oil Game supports 2–4 players according to the catalogue. This range comes from the publisher’s listed player count, so the game can be set up for any group size within it. Some setups, rules and scoring details may still vary by player count, so check your edition’s rulebook for the exact configuration.
The listed playing time for Crude: The Oil Game is 90 minutes. This is the publisher’s estimate for a full game. The actual duration depends on the group, the player count and familiarity with the rules: first sessions usually run longer, while experienced groups often finish faster. Setup and teaching time are not included in this estimate.
The catalogue lists Crude: The Oil Game for ages 13 and up. This is the publisher’s recommendation and reflects reading demands, rule complexity and small components rather than theme alone. Younger players can often join with help from an adult, so check the age guidance on your edition and consider your group’s experience with board games.
Crude: The Oil Game has a complexity rating of 2.7 out of 5 from BoardGameGeek players, which makes it a medium-light game. The rating reflects how much rules knowledge, planning and decision-making a typical game demands. Expect a longer first teach for heavier games, and use a preparation guide before game night.
Crude: The Oil Game belongs to these categories: Economic and Industry / Manufacturing. Its main mechanics are Income, Dice Rolling, and Tile Placement. Categories describe the theme and setting of a game, while mechanics describe what players actually do on their turns. Each mechanic links to a catalogue hub with similar games, which helps when you want something comparable.
The credited designers of Crude: The Oil Game are: James J. St. Laurent. These credits come from the published game data and name the people responsible for the game’s design, not its illustrators or publishers. Designer pages on MeepleRules collect other titles by the same designers, which helps when you enjoy a game and want to find similar ones.
The catalogue lists Crude: The Oil Game as a base game. It can be played on its own with the components in the box and does not require any other title. Expansions, if any exist, add new content or rules on top of it and are listed separately in the catalogue with a link back to this base game.