The Case of Sherlock Holmes: The Challenge of Irene Adler

September 21, 2020 | Sessions | 0 comments

Solve a pair of mysteries as Holmes or a new consulting detective in Sherlock Holmes: The Challenge of Irene Adler. 

At last! I grabbed the second season of Graphic Novel Adventures to dive into some more intriguing stories. Let’s just ignore the tiny fact that the third season of books will likely arrive in the next couple of months… My first choice was the somewhat slimmer book, Sherlock Holmes: The Challenge of Irene Adler. I can’t pass up a good London mystery!

Game Overview

Game Name: Sherlock Holmes: Challenge of Irene Adler
Publication Year:
2016
Designer:
Cédric Asna
Artist:
Cédric Asna
Solo Mode: Included in the Base Game

Across a couple of mysteries, both Sherlock Holmes and Irene Adler have the ability to piece together the clues. In a somewhat surprising move, the book also includes a mode for 2 players to take on dueling roles. Fortunately, it still remains a solo adventure at its core. Murder? Kidnapping? There isn’t time for a tutorial case: The game is afoot!

Going Head-to-Head with an Adversary in Sherlock Holmes: The Challenge of Irene Adler

Investigating Watson

Possibly my favorite part of this experience was the very beginning. Good ol’ Watson! His little humming song was amazing because I sound like that on most good days. Ha!

So far, all of the Holmes mysteries I’ve encountered really make the main characters feel alive. Watson is my favorite. His expressions are amazing and realistic.

Unfortunately, he takes a backseat role in this pair of mysteries. Holmes remains a central figure…

But Irene Adler is also on the scene as a new consulting detective! How very rude, at least according to Holmes.

Zooming in on Watson's Arrival in Sherlock Holmes: The Challenge of Irene Adler

Setting the Stage

The back cover provides a nice overview of what to expect within the pages. That head-to-head matchup isn’t a highlight, though. I don’t know how I would enjoy it.

Curiously, this seems to be a very minimalistic set of cases. Compared to Sherlock Holmes: Four Investigations, the number of cases is cut in half. Still good? Possibly.

Some standalone mysteries can be amazing on their own with interesting characters and intertwined clues.

Yet for me, I typically like to see more cases. It’s hard to create so much in a small space, though!

Setting the Stage for Sherlock Holmes: The Challenge of Irene Adler

Contacting Help

You may choose to play as either Sherlock Holmes or Irene Adler. Each has a separate set of contacts, although the variability is quite low. A contact is used in 1 of 2 cases.

Unless I really couldn’t read, the text mentions opposite locations to find each of the respective contact lists. Oops!

Over a couple of plays, pretty much all of the new content disappears. I only fared poorly during my first outing because I accidentally offended a suspect. Sorry, sorry!

Overall, though, this felt like there was a lot missing. I was only partially engaged in the first case. It was just… There.

Taking a Look at the Contacts and Rules for Sherlock Holmes: The Challenge of Irene Adler

Friendly Competition

Despite acting as foes, Holmes and Adler made a good sort of team! It was kind of fun to compete against the other.

Much as I admired that top hat, I played as Irene Adler since she was an amateur sleuth. Sounds much closer to my actual skillset when solving mysteries. Ha ha!

But then I found out how the case solutions were presented… And there isn’t really a reason to go back and play as Holmes. Such a shame! I may not return.

I hoped for a vague solution system, like in Sherlock Holmes: Four Investigations. That was fun to work on!

A Friendly Pair of Foes in Sherlock Holmes: The Challenge of Irene Adler

An Odd Way to Give Away Case Solutions

Each case is made up of 3 different questions, with 3-5 different options. So I was excited to have to play a few times to get the right answers! Only… It gave away the solutions right away. It looked like this, without any spoilers:

  • Question 1
    • Answer A (100)
    • Answer B (200)
    • Answer C (300)
  • Question 2
    • Answer D (10)
    • Answer E (20)
    • Answer F (30)
  • Question 3
    • Answer G (1)
    • Answer H (2)
    • Answer I (3)
    • Answer J (4)
    • Answer K (5)
  • Total Sum (Such as 124)

Then… The solution was presented in an upside-down panel, with the numerical answer. So… Maybe 323. The trouble is that there is no doubt as to which answers led to that number. Absolutely no mystery! I got one response incorrect the first time around, yet it was impossible for me to ignore the number. I knew what it was supposed to be without trying.

I wish this had been done in a more unique manner. Like using random numbers, such as 23, 57, 88, etc. Even if only the right answers added up to the solution, it wouldn’t be as obvious. Why change up what worked before?!

Session Overview

Play Number: 1 and 2
Solo Mode: Included in the Base Game
Required Play Space: 14″ x 18″
Setup Time: Almost None
Play Time: 1 Hour per Play
Outcome: 5 and 10 (1 Win and 1 Loss)

There was a lot of excitement as I went into these cases, yet ultimately, the experience fell a little flat. I felt like the quality of the mysteries was disappointing. Finding the right solutions without trying to was also a major issue. I wanted to play again as Holmes… But probably not.

Riding Through the Streets of London in Sherlock Holmes: The Challenge of Irene Adler

%

1 Play

Affordability

Price & Value

4

Functionality

Challenges & Mechanics

7

Originality

Design & Theme

7

Quality

Components & Rules

10

Reusability

Achievement & Enjoyment

4

Variability

Distinctness & Randomness

2

+ Pros (Positives)

  • The artwork is unique with minimal gruesome elements, and the characters’ expressions are excellent.
  • Not all of the clues are obvious from the dialogue, so it takes some actual deduction to find the solutions.
  • There is an additional challenge to locate hidden business cards throughout the course of both investigations.
  • Certain clues take a little extra thinking to puzzle through, and figuring them out can be very satisfying.
  • The binding quality is noticeably improved from season one: It crackled a lot, but never actually broke.
  • Getting information from the contacts at the right time is a short-lived experience, yet is still enjoyable.

– Cons (Negatives)

  • Although this type of game doesn’t have a long life, the revealed solutions severely cut down future plays.
  • Neither case feels extremely cohesive nor interesting, making the experience seem somewhat humdrum.
  • There are a few minor typos here and there, but the mixup with where to find the contacts is a little annoying.
  • A couple of the puzzles are extremely difficult or present multiple solutions that appear to be right, but aren’t.

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Continue the Conversation

What do you think of Sherlock Holmes: The Challenge of Irene Adler? Are you a fan of the solo mystery-solving genre? I love a good mystery, and I appreciate how tame these cases are. Even murders are presented without disturbing elements. But I couldn’t help feeling let down by some of the design choices. How I wanted to love being a detective!

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