Amsterdam, 1959.
A priceless diamond is stolen.
Four detectives work the case.
Three of them are dead.
You have one hour.
What is this game?
Cold Case is a printable detective game for groups of 6 to 12. Designed for teams — in a training room, at an away day, or anywhere you want to find out how people really work together.
Your group divides into three sub-teams. Each team gets a different case file. Nobody has the full picture. The only way to solve the case is to share what you know.
Most groups take about 10 minutes to figure that out.
How it works
Print the file. Divide into three teams. Start the clock.
Each team receives one of three detective files from 1959 Amsterdam — maps, codes, suspect lists, archive documents. The files are different. The teams don’t know that yet.
There’s also a fourth detective: Anton Groen. Old, sharp, and reachable via chat. Ask him anything.
One hour. One suspect. One chance to get it right.
Why it works
Because it doesn’t ask people to reflect on how they work together. It shows them.
In sixty minutes, you’ll watch your team’s real dynamics play out in real time. Who takes initiative. Who goes quiet. Who copies an assumption without checking it. Who holds the group together when things get stuck.
Cold Case doesn’t simulate team problems. It surfaces them
What people say
What’s included?
One PDF. Print it, divide it, play it.
Game leader instructions — Three complete case files, 7 pages each — Codes, maps, suspect lists, and one newspaper from August 1959 — Access to Anton Groen via QR code & chat
Players: 6–12 — Playing time: 60 minutes — Setup: 10 minutes — Language: English
