Sleuth Kings – Case 004: Abraca-Debra (Review)

Location: Your Home!

Players:  We recommend 1-4

Price: $29.95 per box

It’s an older case, but it checks out, sir.

Theme:

Debra Hartfield and Rich Daughtry were once lovers and partners in Rich’s hugely popular magic show. Now, though, they’ve gone through an explosive breakup, and both parties aren’t exactly on speaking terms, to put it mildly. Rich went missing recently, and after the discovery of some pretty damning evidence, Debra is the main suspect in the police’s investigation! Desperate to prove her innocence, she has come to Sullivan, and though he is suspicious, something doesn’t pass the sniff test on this one. He reluctantly agrees to help, but if you cannot find out what really happened to Rich’s body, it’ll be curtains for Abraca-Debra!

First Impressions:

A few months ago, I was scanning the Sleuth Kings Archives to see what sort of cases we missed out on before our subscription began. It should be no surprise that a case titled “Abraca-Debra” instantly caught my eye! What could be more interesting than a punny Magical Mystery Murder? Though it was an older case, I had to see what sorts of great puzzles would be included with this highly exciting theme!

That’s uh… way more blood than usual.

High Points:

Even though this is a previous case, all the hallmarks of a great Sleuth Kings adventure are there! Fantastic props, gloriously clever puzzles, and a fiendishly devious crime to solve! One thing I haven’t mentioned before is I do like that within almost every case so far, we have received a photograph of the main players. It’s a small touch, but really helps bring the story to life. The case weaves an excellent story of a bitter love triangle, full of betrayal and fantastic twists to uncover. Emails with Sullivan are great, as usual, and contain some bits of comic relief along the way; adding some subtle clues to the story that helped us piece everything together. The case flows flawlessly, with every part of the puzzle thread adding to the mystery. Each step along the way is presented without too much explanation, and figuring out what each clue is trying to say beyond the first glance is always immensely rewarding. It’s definitely clear that even as far back as Case 004, no one could cook up as immersive a mystery as Sleuth Kings!

Debra sent along this magical card to blow our minds!

Low Points:

One puzzle had a bit of a red herring included, which was difficult to identify as such until we had stared at it for a good while. Though we understood the reason for it’s inclusion, a slight hint as to why that section would be useless would’ve been nice since we had pretty much everything else solved. This case was overall a bit simpler than current ones, which didn’t really take away from the experience as a whole, but could be a turn off for veteran Sleuth Kings.

Verdict:

One of the great features of Sleuth Kings is the ability to visit their archive and purchase older cases for the same price as the monthly subscription, allowing customers to catch up on Sullivan’s exploits on their own time, or to experience cases you might’ve otherwise missed out on (or have read about on your favorite review site!) I can certainly say that as a fan of the Sleuth Kings universe, I’m glad I was able to receive and enjoy this case months later, and think you will too! Abraca-Debra is not only a fantastic name for the case, but a splendidly crafted adventure worth checking out! As always, if you’re looking for a puzzling mystery box, I definitely recommend subscribing to Sleuth Kings! You can use the promo code ESCAPEADVENTURE to get $5 off your subscription here! As always, I highly recommend it! You can also read the rest of our Sleuth Kings reviews here!

8/10 (Great)

Full Disclosure: Sleuth Kings provided a complementary box.