Covering Detective: City of Angels with Smoke and Mirrors
Step into 1940s L.A. and solve a set of hardboiled and difficult mysteries in an expansion for Detective: City of Angels.
There was no stopping my sleuthing in Detective: City of Angels! I moved right onto the next expansion, which looked like it would be a challenging one. Detective: Smoke and Mirrors is all about hardboiled cases and lots of unique mechanics to put even the most seasoned investigator to the test. I was ready to see how far my skills would take me with the new cases!
Spoiler Alert
You won’t find any case solutions here, nor much beyond what is revealed during case setup. There are a few discussions of the new mechanics that some cases introduce, but nothing specifically gives away anything. You’ll mostly be in for a surprise if you haven’t played before, although you may find it’s best to skip over this post until you’ve played these cases.
Game Overview
Game Name: Detective: City of Angels
Publication Year: 2019
Designer: Evan Derrick
Artist: Vincent Dutrait
Publisher: Van Ryder Games
Solo Mode: Included in the Base Game
With an interesting solo sleuth mode, cases come to life across a multitude of mysteries. Questioning suspects to uncover the truth in order to piece together the right clues is a core element. In this expansion, some of the most difficult cases are presented to offer some intense investigations!
First Play
June 22, 2019
Complexity
2
Latest Play
May 10, 2025
Expansions
3
Setup Time
10 Minutes
Lifetime Plays
21
Play Time
45 Minutes
High Score
N/A
Game Area
36" x 28"
Low Score
N/A
To the Carnival
I may have expected to be eased into the cases again, but the first one threw me into a complicated sort of mystery! Set against the backdrop of a carnival, it was very interesting.
One clue was apparent to me early on, although I wasn’t fully prepared for some of the twists and turns. Definitely challenging, but not impossible to find the solution!
It was nice to have mystery cards add on a new area off to the side, and searching became a little more central.
This was still a very tough case, and I stumbled across the correct solution via very complicated trail through L.A. Fun!
Fewer Case Days
Part of what I enjoy so much about these mysteries are the lies… Mainly, knowing when to challenge suspects to get to the truth so I’m not off chasing incorrect leads!
However, I wasn’t quite on my game when it came to Lost in the Fog. Literally, I was lost and kept accusing suspects! No one was happy, and the stress quickly added up.
Most cases have seen me with very little stress, yet I lost a full 2 investigation days thanks to my terrible instincts.
Fortunately, I still pieced things together and came to the correct solution in the end, although this was a close call!
A Questionable Look
Then, it finally happened… Best Served Cold began with a complex mystery that had a lot of moving parts. I was on the case, though, and gathered a good deal of evidence.
This suspect’s expression may have explained my reaction to the solution, though. It was an involved answer with more pieces than usual… And I didn’t get it all correct.
I was still close, but this was technically my first lost case. Oh, dear! Columbo would be most displeased.
However, it was a little far-fetched in that I never did figure out how one element could have been solved. A sad day.
Sleuthing Out Answers
A Murder of Crows was the final case, and may have been the most difficult of them all. It introduced a number of unique mechanics, too, and I was kept on my toes!
This put every facet of my detective skills to the test. I didn’t love how it leaned into one of the darkest storylines, but I appreciated how tricky it must have been to write the case.
Overall, this was a great set of expansion cases! Definitely on the challenging side, requiring plenty of thinking.
I suffered my first case loss, although I still had a great time with it. All cases were very well-written and developed.
Ranking the Smoke and Mirrors Cases
Time to keep up my tradition with putting these cases in order of how much I liked them! These were certainly tricky, and there was a point I thought I might just not be cut out for the hardboiled cases. But I persevered! Only one loss, and even at that, I was still very close with my final solution. Can’t be too upset about that, being a lone detective on the cases!
- The Carnival of Souls (Hardboiled)
- A Murder of Crows (Hardboiled)
- Lost in the Fog (Hardboiled)
- Best Served Cold (Hardboiled)
Session Overview
Play Number: 15-18
Expansion: Detective: Smoke and Mirrors
Solo Mode: Included in the Base Game
Play Details: All Expansion Cases
Outcome: 3 Wins & 1 Loss
It was a neat experience to puzzle through the hardest mysteries, even compared to the other hardboiled cases in the base game. Despite missing a piece of one case solution, I was still pretty proud of how well I did! These were a step up in difficulty, and I’m glad I tried them out after I had a lot of other cases completed. Just one more expansion to go!
%
20 Plays
Affordability
Price & Value
8
Functionality
Challenges & Mechanics
10
Originality
Design & Theme
7
Quality
Components & Rules
9
Reusability
Achievement & Enjoyment
7
Variability
Distinctness & Randomness
5
+ Pros (Positives)
- Solving cases is immensely satisfying, particularly at the hardboiled difficulty level where the solutions aren’t clear.
- Not a lot of components are needed for each case, making setup very quick and allowing the mystery to flow nicely.
- The sleuth mode is excellent as a solo experience with paragraphs to look up that don’t give away the answers.
- Knowing when to challenge a suspect’s response is an important part of gameplay and a very fun part of each case.
- With a large board, the sheer size of L.A. is depicted well, especially when moving to different locations or districts.
- Minimal effort is needed to manage the day and action trackers, allowing cases to remain front and center.
– Cons (Negatives)
- These expansion cases are extremely difficult, and figuring everything out is especially difficult for a solo player.
- Although most of the mysteries aren’t too gruesome, there are a few graphic descriptions found in these cases.
- A variety of sleuthing skills are required, sometimes involving puzzles with limited or no ways to gather hints.
- Minor typos are uncommon and don’t impact the cases, but some of these break the immersion just a little bit.
Victory Conditions
Complete the Case
- Overall Goal Progress 100%
Goals and Milestones
Complete all base game cases. (9/9)
Complete all Bullets Over Hollywood expansion cases. (4/4)
Complete all Saints and Sinners expansion cases. (3/3)
Complete all Smoke and Mirrors expansion cases. (4/4)
Continue the Conversation
How have you done with the cases in Detective: City of Angels? Are there any sorts of mysteries you wish there were more of? I suppose I can’t ask for anything more difficult… This expansion seemed to maximize the challenge! It almost felt like the completion of the cases in some ways, so it will be interesting to see what the next expansion has in store. Onward!
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