How to Play Daily Detective
Say “Alexa, open Daily Detective” — you are immediately in today’s case. No menus, nothing to set up.
A case, step by step
- Investigate. You hear three places, numbered one to three. Say a place name, or “one”, “two”, “three”. At each place you hear the clue — a real sound, like a copy machine still warm or boots squelching through mud. You may investigate two places, or say “accuse” to skip ahead. After your first investigation, the two places that remain are named and renumbered one and two — numbers always pick from the list you just heard, never from the original list.
- Interview. Three suspects are named, each speaking in their own voice when interviewed. Say a name or number. You may interview two suspects, or say “accuse” to skip ahead. After your first interview, the remaining two suspects are named and renumbered one and two, the same way.
- Accuse. Say “accuse” and a name. If you want the room to weigh in first, say “discuss” — the skill waits while you talk it over. A wrong accusation earns a hint and one second chance; a second wrong closes the case unsolved, with the full solution explained.
Grades and points
A perfect solve — both places investigated, at least one interview, no wrong accusation — earns the Sharp Ear grade and 140 points. A standard solve is Case Closed: 100 points, +20 for both investigations, +20 for an interview, −30 if a wrong accusation came first.
Streaks, ranks and badges
Solve the daily case on consecutive days to grow your streak. If life gets in the way, one grace day per month is applied automatically when you miss a single day. Ranks climb with cases solved: Rookie, Observer, Sleuth, Senior Sleuth, Inspector, Chief Inspector, Master Detective. Badges include First Case, Sharp Ear, Week Streak, Perfect Week and Cold Case Closer.
Choosing your beat
When you are promoted to Sleuth, the wrap-up asks you to choose your beat — the kind of detective you will be:
- 1 — Town Beat: neighbours, shops, and small secrets.
- 2 — City Beat: hotels, trains, and locked rooms.
- 3 — Wild Beat: lighthouses, zoos, and strange nights.
Answer with a number or a beat name. Your beat decides which cases and suspects you meet, and cases grow subtler as you rank up within it. Say “later” and the choice waits for your next visit — that day’s case simply comes from the general pool. At every later promotion you are asked again: say “stay” to keep your beat, or name a new one to switch. Saying “stop” during the choice just ends the visit; nothing is ever picked for you. Your case file reports your beat and how much of its current file you have closed.
Cold cases
Cold cases live in their own drawer of 30 cases, completely separate from the daily files — playing one never uses up a daily case. One cold case is available per day, once your daily case is closed. Close it, and the drawer is empty until tomorrow: ask again and you will be told no cold case is available and to check back tomorrow. Stop in the middle of one and it is not used up — come back the same day and it is still there, exactly where you left it.
Every command
- “cold case” — the day’s one bonus mystery from the separate cold drawer, once today’s case is closed; after it is closed, no cold case is available until tomorrow.
- “my case file” — cases solved, points, rank, streak, your beat and file progress, recent titles, badges.
- “my rank”, “my streak”, “my badges” — your standing.
- “today’s case” — restart today’s daily case if it is still unsolved.
- “teach me” — the 30-second how-to, any time.
- “what can I do” — a suggestion based on where you are.
- “repeat” — hear the last thing again. “stop” or “cancel” — a clean goodbye, at any point; nothing is decided for you.
258 cases ship in the drawer: 228 daily cases across the rank and beat files — your daily case is drawn from the file for your rank and beat, unsolved cases first, so a fresh case every day for months — plus the separate 30-case cold drawer, serving one cold case a day.