Optimal games in Room 25 solo and coop modes

Abstract: We study the problem of optimal games for the solo and coop modes of the board game Room 25 (season 1). We show that the game cannot be won in a single turn for any starting configuration, but that it can be done in two for some configurations. We introduce an opening that wins in two turns with enough luck, while having a low probability of losing immediately. We then show that the game can be won in a single turn if the game's rules are slightly modified, although the probability of winning then becomes substantially lower than in the two-turn strategy. At last, we show that if the players are maximally unlucky, they will lose regardless of their strategy.