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We tested these games: "Sherlock Holmes", "Falling Skies" and "Nemos War"
Photo: Maren Hoffmann / DER SPIEGEL
Many people find it a bit nerdy to extremely weird to sit down alone with a board game.
However, the same people find it perfectly normal to play alone on the computer.
Solo board games not only bring relaxation to the eyes from the constant staring at monitors, but also beautiful haptic experiences.
And also the feeling of self-esteem - as if you were cooking something really nice and setting the table nicely, although or perhaps because you are alone.
It's good for the soul, especially in the corona blues.
But it wasn't just since the pandemic that game publishers discovered that many people enjoy playing alone.
For some years now, the possible number of players has been indicated on many game boxes as "from 1 to x players".
Then there is a separate chapter in the rulebook for the solo version, sometimes there is also additional material and even its own extensions for single players.
Pure solo games are also coming onto the market more and more often.
But you don't necessarily have to play them alone - you can also steer the central character or group of heroes through the adversities that the respective game throws in his or her way, discuss decisions and take turns taking turns.
Here are three recommendations for an enjoyable evening at the gaming table - whether alone or as a couple.
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Nemo's War
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: Sink ships in the professional version
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Who wouldn't want to be Captain Nemo, in command of the Nautilus, the stunningly steampunk high-tech submarine 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea?
Chris Taylor's “Nemo's War” uses Jules Verne's famous fictional character as a foil for the multi-layered main character who spreads horror on the oceans in a classic drama.
The central adventure deck holds a wealth of events - divided into prologue, three acts, turning point and finale.
But first you have to decide what actually drives you in the nemo role: Is it an urge to research?
Belligerence?
Anti-imperialism?
Or is it more of a scientific ambition?
Then the weighting of the final victory points depends - and the objective of the game.
The Nautilus cruises cheerfully on the game board through the oceans and tries to sink what is unlucky enough to come within range of its cannons with dice rolls.
She collects treasures and instigates rebellions.
You risk the bug, the crew or Nemo's reputation again and again - this is how you can try to minimize bad luck.
You can only win if you plan ahead.
Material piles up on the board: lots of cards, tiles and scales.
The complexity is a bit intimidating at first, and the 30-page manual in small print does little to soften that impression.
It should also not be concealed that one should read it more than once if possible.
Game mistakes are annoying.
But if you have the effort of familiarization behind you, you will be rewarded with a great depth of play and a variety of tactical options that are really captivating.
The level of difficulty of the game can be adjusted, and even if the finely adjustable cube-based mechanics are essentially abstract, there are many factors that make the game a thematic experience: beautiful graphics that run through to the epilogue book, many Verne quotes on the adventure cards and an incredible attention to detail.
Apart from a few nautical fantasies, all tiles show ships that really existed around 1870 - illustrated with pictures of the actual vehicles.
Only the Nautilus miniature should have been a little less economical in view of its central role.
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Sherlock Holmes, advisory detective
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: combine - excellent!
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In 1985 the jury of the “Game of the Year” selected a winner who was way ahead of his time.
"Sherlock Holmes Criminal Cabinet" brought together several cases from the environment of the most famous detective of all time, which you could solve yourself - equipped with nothing but your own intuition, a few daily newspapers, a London address book and a city map.
No figures, no game plan, nothing, just fine analog investigative work.
35 years later, Frosted Games has reissued and revised the gorgeous collection.
You don't notice its age in the game: The cases are set in the 19th century anyway, the stories are still great, the game idea is great and pleasingly uncomplicated (in contrast to the cases, which are really tough).
Ten cases are in the slipcase, in each of which you can fight the master detective as an individual investigator or together with others.
It works like this: In a short introductory scenario, Holmes tells us what it is about, then we are on our own and can collect clues by looking up promising addresses in the scenario book using newspapers and a city map.
If we are lucky, we will meet someone there who will tell us relevant things - and so we can solve the case.
When we think we've made it, we turn the notebook over and read the final questions: Who was the killer?
What was the motive?
Who had what with whom, why and where are the diamonds?
There are points for every correct answer, but deductions for every clue that we needed to solve the problem - so you should reach your goal with as few clues as possible in order to survive against Holmes, who presents his own, often sobering, solution in the credits .
If you want to try out first whether the genre suits him or her, you can download a small free demo case here.
The game is ideal for a rainy afternoon with a cup of English tea - you don't need players.
However, this can also be great fun: I play the cases via video chat after work with a colleague who also has the game, we rummage through case files and hidden clues together and discuss who our main suspect should be.
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Under Falling Skies
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: Help, the aliens are coming!
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The theme "evil aliens want to destroy the earth, earth is defending itself" is a classic from Steven Spielberg to Tim Burton.
If you find it too uncomfortable to run through collapsing high-rise canyons screaming under continuous fire, you can comfortably take the threat from space at your home gaming table.
"Under Falling Skies" is a dice placement game by Tomáš Uhlíř, in which an enemy mothership slowly descends to earth and spews its ominous fleet.
Below we are - partially ready to defend ourselves, but fully motivated to change that as quickly as possible.
To do this, we throw our dice and place them on our tableau, which drives scientific progress, energy and robots can be generated and the aliens can be shot at.
When the mothership reaches town, it's all over;
trying to prevent this is not easy and thematically entrances you intuitively.
The set of rules is straightforward, the strategic decisions are not.
Uhlíř originally published the game as a free print-and-play version and won various prizes for it - and rightly so, the mechanism is great: With large numbers of dice you have more options, but then the aliens get to the city faster.
Because of this fine balance, luck of the dice counts far less than tactics.
The original version available here may be sufficient for purists, but if you want to treat yourself to more opulence as a solo player, the lovingly developed campaign game with several successive missions of increasing difficulty is worthwhile.
The graphic in comic optics is well done, the game keeps the arc of suspense through different cities, characters and always new tasks - and the replay appeal of the campaign is high because you can always approach the same problem differently.
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