Our Verdict
Sherlock Holmes: Consulting Detective is an immensely engaging collection of murder mysteries that manages to confound and intrigue, whatever your experience level with board games. Its rules are so light that you can ignore many of them, but we think this works in its favor rather than against it – particularly if you’re looking for an approachable Christmas board game.
- Quality components
- Engaging mysteries
- Beginner-friendly
- Not replayable
- Pointless scoring system
For us cultured people, nothing could be better than playing board games for hours on Christmas day. However, despite Christmas being a time to put aside our differences, not everyone sees eye to eye on the subject. Many family members will sigh and roll said eyes if you suggest bringing them to the table to roll some dice. If you’re still determined to get some quality game time in this December, we’d recommend one title above all others – Sherlock Holmes: Consulting Detective.
The beauty of Sherlock Holmes: Consulting Detective is that’s barely a board game at all. There are no dice to roll, no real ‘turns’ to speak of, and no strategy to consider. However, it’s a murder mystery game that offers more mulling than mulled wine. And despite how simple it appears to be, we’d still call it one of the best board games of all time. Whatever your experience level, it’s deeply intriguing – and it’s sure to keep the family away from the television for a few hours.
Heck, you can even play it tipsy, if that’s your preferred way to get festive. The original Sherlock Holmes had a cocaine habit, so he certainly can’t judge.
What is Sherlock Holmes: Consulting Detective?
At its heart, this is a co-op board game about solving mysteries. Players take on the role of The Baker Street Irregulars, a ragtag bunch that prowls London on behalf of Sherlock Holmes to gather clues. Sherlock is pretty busy (it is the Christmas season, after all), so he’s given the Irregulars more authority than usual – meaning you’re entirely in charge of solving the mystery scenarios found in the board game’s box.
The basic version of Consulting Detective (‘The Thames Murder and Other Cases’) comes with 10 scenarios, each of which should take between one and two hours to solve. Prepare for these to overrun, however – particularly if you’re playing with a large group that’s been slowed down by overeating or alcohol.
After reading the initial setup for a case, you’ll have the following tools at your disposal:
- A scaled map of London, labeled so you can track down specific locations in your London Directory and scenario booklet.
- The London Directory, which features names and labels that correspond with your map and scenario booklet.
- A list of informant’s addresses, which you should visit if you’re stuck and looking for advice.
- Newspapers from the period that the scenarios take place in, which might contain important context for a mystery.
- The booklet for your chosen scenario, which features scenes to be read out when you visit different London locations.
In terms of actual gameplay, Consulting Detective involves reading and having conversations about what you’ve just read. For example, after the scenario begins, you might immediately decide to visit the crime scene or the morgue where a body might be stored.
To do so, you’ll need to look up where that location is – either using your Directory or booklet – and turn to the corresponding entry in your scenario booklet. Nominate someone to read the entry aloud to the group (silly voices optional). This might give you clues that lead to another location, or you might stumble upon a dead end and have to try a new approach. We seriously recommend taking notes as you play.
You can conclude your investigations at any time by turning to the ‘Questions’ section at the back of the scenario booklet. Answer all the questions there, then head to the ‘Solutions’ section to have Sherlock Holmes explain how elementary this mystery was.
The final part of the game – scoring – is actually the least important part rather than the most. A sealed envelope that comes with the scenario shows you how quickly Mr Perfect Holmes would have solved the case, and you score your team based on how well you performed compared to him. In all our games, however, we’ve ignored these calculations – the satisfaction of solving the mystery is more than rewarding enough.
What’s good about Sherlock Holmes: Consulting Detective?
Consulting Detective is delightfully tactile, with quality handouts you’ll enjoy poring over as you search for clues. Yes, it’s all sheets of paper, but the lack of complexity here makes this an incredibly approachable game for newcomers.
And, for all its simplicity, this is by no means an easy board game. The mysteries are full of twists, turns, and red herrings that require some real brain power to figure out. There’s even sub-plots going on in the background that you can gain extra satisfaction (or brownie points) for figuring out.
This may be a simple reading exercise at its core, but it’s intensely immersive and engaging. It’s easy to get lost theorizing with your friends and family, and it’s genuinely exciting when someone hops out of their chair, exclaiming that they’ve stumbled across something important.
What’s bad about Sherlock Holmes: Consulting Detective?
As we’ve already mentioned, the scoring system feels superfluous. We even came to resent Sherlock Holmes because of it, as he seemed to solve mysteries in an impossible-to-achieve number of steps. He’s characterized as pretty smarmy in this game, so it definitely feels like he’s rubbing it in your face for wasting time on investigating thoroughly.
Additionally, there’s an awful lot of reading aloud to be done in this game. For those happy to do so, be sure to drink plenty of water. Gamers of a shy disposition may find themselves reluctant to get stuck in.
Similarly, there’s not a high barrier for entry to play Consulting Detective, but you’ll need to concentrate pretty hard if you want to win. This might be a hard sell for Christmas merry-makers, even if you’ve promised they won’t have to play a complex strategy board game.
Finally, Consulting Detective’s scenarios can only really be played once. Unless you’re particularly forgetful, you might want to donate your copy to someone else once you’ve solved every mystery. Fortunately for big fans of the game, there are plenty of standalone expansions in the series that introduce new mysteries – and mechanics to figure out.
If you’re looking for more beginner-friendly titles, here are the best gateway games to get someone into the hobby. Or, for more Christmas ideas, here are the best party board games we’d recommend.
Source: Wargamer
