Villa Diodati: detective game review, criticism and test

Another game from the Sherlock detective series is Villa Diodati by Ricard Ruiz Garzón (Abacus Games). Another criminal case has to be solved, this time at the beginning of the 19th century in the villa of the same name, where a number of prominent writers and their friends have gathered. But not to share ideas about their latest work. Alternatively, with small amounts of laudanum, you can indulge in the experiences of intoxication that inevitably follow. But someone took advantage of this to steal a manuscript from one of the main characters.

How to play Sherlock – Villa Diodati?

Players are supposed to use the cards to find out what happened according to the already known game principle. Useful information should be available to everyone. However, anything deemed useless is placed on the waste pile. At the end, players are asked questions about the points awarded.

An unclear mission in Sherlock – Villa Diodati

I put my trust in you Castile merchant, where not only the background, but also the mission was transferred to the players, we had a difficult time with Villa Diodati. After reading the backstory, no one was really clear about what needed to be resolved. A manuscript was stolen, but the owner had already identified the thief, arrested him, and recovered the manuscript. So what needs to be solved?

Unfortunately, we have been so occupied by this unresolved question that we have not been able to truly reconstruct the Sherlock-Villa Diodati story, because if the goal is not clear, the path there is also difficult. That's what Castile merchant It was a lot of fun, and especially the investigation that was so deductive and imaginative, it didn't really take off. There's a little mistake in the story (it's about married couple Mary and Percy Shelley, but according to one card they didn't get married until two years into the story) that didn't really matter.

In addition, according to the rules of the game, other players must be allowed to read the underlined texts on the cards in order to exchange information. However, the underlined texts are just individual words that are difficult for other players to glean any meaning or information at all from by reading them out loud. However, you are not allowed to discuss the rest of the card unless you place it face up. This has also caused confusion.

That's why I didn't reach a satisfactory conclusion with Sherlock – Villa Diodati. There was something different about the counter games here. Or the editorial work was not done very carefully. Anyway, Sherlock worked better last time and was fun too.