What the game is
The Last Exit is the first game on the bureau's tactical desk — a head-to-head strategy game, not a case file. It takes its inspiration from the classic family of wall-and-pawn route-blocking games and rebuilds it with an original board, original rules and a chase worth caring about: a thief is loose in the city with the Nightingale diamond, and between them and freedom stands exactly one open gate.
The whole game is one repeated decision. On your turn you either move your runner one square — north, south, east or west — or drop one barrier into a gap between squares, blocking the two street crossings it spans. Runners race; barriers redraw the city. Whoever reaches their goal row first ends the pursuit.
The two pursuits
The last exit — the signature pursuit — starts both runners on the same south row, five squares apart, racing for the same north row. The fugitive wants to be first through the gate; the detective wants to be first onto the row to seal it. Because both routes run the same way, every barrier is double-edged: the wall that pinches your rival's corridor may be standing in your own way two turns later. Reading that tangle — whose route a wall really hurts — is the whole art of the race.
The classic chase plays the traditional duel from opposite ends: the detective starts on the south row and races north to seal the river gate, while the fugitive starts on the north row and races south to reach the bolt-hole where the night's takings are stashed. Here every barrier is aimed squarely at the other side, and the game becomes a running argument between speed and obstruction.
The detective moves first in both pursuits. If a match feels one-sided, swap seats for the return leg.
How a turn works
- Run. Move one square along an open street. The glowing squares show every move open to you.
- Jump. If the rival runner stands on the square you would enter, leap straight over them — two squares in one move, the classic overtake.
- Sidestep. If a barrier or the board's edge bars the straight jump, step diagonally past them instead. In the race pursuit, a well-timed sidestep at the gate wins matches.
- Or barrier. Spend the turn placing one barrier in a gap between squares. Each side's pool is fixed for the whole pursuit — 7 each on the small block, 10 on the standard, 14 on the large — and an empty pool means it is all running from there.
The one law above all: no barrier may ever seal a runner's last route. The board tests every placement and refuses the unlawful ones with a note saying why — you can make the other side's route long, but never closed. Barriers also never overlap and never cross each other.
Reading the board like a detective
- Count both routes, every turn. The pursuit is really one number: your shortest route against theirs. Move when you are ahead on that count; barrier when you are behind.
- Spend barriers late, not early. An early wall is information you have given away for free — the other side simply routes around it while their own pool stays full. The killing walls land in the middle game, where routes are already committed.
- In the race, wall behind you. Once you are ahead on the shared corridor, a barrier placed behind you hurts only the runner still coming through — the rare wall with no double edge.
- Keep a jump in hand. Runners standing adjacent are a step ladder: whoever moves second gets the free overtake. In the race's final stretch, arriving beside your rival is often better than arriving ahead of them.
- Watch the pools. A rival with no barriers left can be outmanoeuvred openly. If you hold two walls to their none in the endgame, the city is yours to redraw.
The bench of opponents — and why they play fair
Three computer opponents sit the other side of the desk. The Constable (easy) runs keenly for the gate and throws in the occasional useful wall. The Inspector (medium) takes a winning move on sight, blocks yours the turn before it lands, and weighs each wall's cost to both routes. The Chief (hard) shortlists its strongest moves and walls, then tests each against your best reply before committing.
The tactical desk's standing rule: the computer never cheats. There is no hidden information in this game — both runners, every barrier and both pools sit in plain view — and the opponent reads exactly that board, the same one you do. Harder settings think further ahead; they never see more. You can also seat two humans for a duel on one screen, or two computers, and watch how the bench plays the city.
Choosing a city block
The 7×7 block is the teaching board: seven barriers each, about five minutes a pursuit, and every mistake explains itself quickly. The 9×9 block is the standard match — ten barriers each and room for a genuine middle game. The 11×11 block is the long shift: fourteen barriers a side, real fog between the start and the gate, and the patience game at full length. Your table settings are remembered between visits.
The tactical desk and the case files
Everything else in this bureau is a case file: a puzzle generated fair, proved to have exactly one answer, and solvable by logic alone. The Last Exit deliberately is not. It is a strategy game with an opponent — you can play well and lose, play twice and see two different games, and no solver can promise you a happy ending. The bureau keeps the two kinds of evening on separate desks so neither promise gets blurred: case files are proofs, the tactical desk is play. What they share is the standard behind them — complete public rules, no hidden trickery, and a fair table for everyone sitting at it.
Questions from the tactical desk
What is The Last Exit?
The Last Exit is the first game on the bureau’s tactical desk — a two-player pursuit strategy game rather than a case file. A thief has slipped the museum cordon with the Nightingale diamond, and the whole city comes down to one board: each turn you either move your runner one square or drop a barrier across the streets. In the signature pursuit both runners start on the same south row and race for the same north gate — the last exit. The detective wants to reach it first and seal it; the fugitive wants to slip through it. There is also a classic chase mode played from opposite ends of the board.
What is the difference between the two pursuits?
The last exit (race) starts both runners on the south row, five squares apart, racing for the same north row — first runner onto it wins. Because both routes head the same way, barriers cut both ways: a wall that slows your rival can pinch your own path two turns later. The classic chase starts the runners at opposite ends: the detective races north to seal the river gate while the fugitive races south to reach the bolt-hole, and each barrier is aimed squarely at the other side. The race is the story mode; the classic chase is the traditional duel.
How do barriers work?
A barrier sits in the gap between squares and blocks the two street crossings it spans. Each side has a fixed pool for the whole pursuit — seven barriers each on the 7×7 block, ten on 9×9, fourteen on 11×11 — and placing one costs your whole turn. Barriers never move once placed, never overlap and never cross one another.
Can a barrier trap a runner completely?
No — that is the first law of the chase. Every runner must always have at least one open route to their goal row. The board checks every barrier before it lands and refuses any placement that would seal either runner in, telling you why. You can make a route long, winding and miserable; you can never close it.
Do the computer opponents cheat?
No. The computer sees exactly what you see across the desk: the two runners, the placed barriers and the barrier pools. There is no hidden information in the game for anyone to peek at, and the harder settings are honestly harder — they think further ahead rather than knowing more. The Constable plays keenly but takes chances, the Inspector spots immediate threats and blocks them, and the Chief weighs its best moves against your best replies before committing.
Can I play against a friend?
Yes. Set both seats to human and the game becomes a local two-player duel on one screen — pass the phone, or share the desk. You can also set both seats to computer opponents and watch the pursuit play itself, which is a pleasant way to learn what barriers are worth.
Why does the detective move first?
Someone has to, and the bureau claims the privilege. Moving first is a small edge in a footrace, so if a match feels one-sided, swap seats for the return leg — playing both sides of the same pursuit is the fastest way to improve.
How is this different from the bureau’s case files?
Every case file on this site is a puzzle with exactly one provable answer, generated fair and checked by a solver before you see it. The Last Exit is a different kind of evening entirely: a strategy game with an opponent, where you can play well and still lose. That is why it lives on its own tactical desk rather than among the case files — the bureau keeps the two promises separate. What the desk does share with the case room: complete public rules, a fair opponent and no hidden trickery.
Which board should I start on?
Start on the 7×7 block — a full pursuit takes around five minutes and teaches you what a barrier is really worth. The 9×9 block is the standard match with room for real strategy, and 11×11 is the long game, where fourteen barriers a side turn the city into a maze and patience wins.
Can I take a move back?
Yes. Undo steps back to your last decision — if the computer has already replied, both moves come back, so you are never left fixing the middle of an exchange. Against a friend, Undo takes back one move at a time, on the honour system.
Is The Last Exit free?
Yes. Both pursuits, all three boards and all three computer opponents are free to play in your browser, with no account and no sign-up. Your table settings — pursuit, board and seats — are remembered between visits.