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Welcome to the Mystery and Detective Games Thread! Alternatively known as: Of all the genres of fiction kicking around before video games, the murder mystery is arguably one of the most suited to the medium. Mystery stories often feel like games, presenting themselves as puzzles that challenge the reader. Members of The Detection Club of the 30s wrote stories that were fair-play, using rules that were meant to give the reader a fair shot at solving the mystery, creating a sort of game logic.      Murder Off Miami, first published in 1936, is a great example of how gamey these stories could be. Presented as a police file, the book contains telegrams, transcripts of police interviews, suspect and crime scene photos, and a piece of wallpaper and "hair" as samples of evidence. Above are photos of my copy. In Japan the fair play subgenre of mystery was known as honkaku, meaning orthodox. As fair-play started to lose its popularity when audience tastes shifted towards grittier procedurals and thrillers throughout the world, in the 80s they had a resurgence in Japan with the arrival of shin honkaku (new orthodox) stories, and fair-play is still going strong in Japan today. If you ever wonder why Japanese mystery video games tend to bring up Knox's Rules more than Western games, this is likely the reason why.  The 80's are also when we see what our thread is actually about, the first graphical mystery games. First we have Murder House in 1980 from Roberta Williams, who would later go on to create the thread's namesake, Laura Bow. The Portopia Serial Murder Case would release in 1983. A more robust offering than Murder House, one where we see many cornerstones of mystery games established that are still used today. In baffling news, Square Enix has recently released a new version of the game to serve as a tech preview for its AI bullshit. Other notable 80's releases include Deja Vu and Famicom Detective Club, which recently released remakes of two games in its series. One of the appeals of the genre is they are often experimental. While some are just glorified Cluedo, other games have weird dialogue systems, mind maps to put together deductions, or killers that are selected at random from a stable. Indie darling Obra Dinn had players time traveling to solve its mysteries. Mystery games are having a renaissance currently. Obra Dinn, Disco Elysium, and AI: The Somnium Files all came out less than five years ago. Last year saw Pentiment released to great acclaim. Kinetic novel Misericorde was released a month ago, and this week the open world experimental Shadows of Doubt came out. This is just scratching the surface on recent releases, and there are a good number of upcoming games that have been announced. So, Detectives take out your notepads and let us discuss mystery games. Did anyone else had that Clue Jr. computer game that came with a weird magnify glass growing up? 
Snooze Cruise fucked around with this message at 23:12 on Apr 29, 2023 |
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Apr 28, 2023 04:59
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Recommendations and Notable Releases Misericode: Volume One- steam, itch.io   A kinetic novel set in a monastery in England during the 15th century. The story follows Hedwig, an Anchoress, who is forced out by the Superior when another nun is murdered. The Superior believes the man who was arrested is innocent, and wants Hedwig to get closer to the other women in the monastery to find any clues to the real killer. Misericode drips with atmosphere, has a killer soundtrack, and features a charming cast. If you are a fan of Pentiment or Umineko, this game likely has something to offer you. Only one volume of the story has been released so far but already the game has the makings of a future cult classic. Frogwares' Sherlock Holmes and Sinking City- steam, get sinking city through EA, switch, or gamesplanet to avoid giving money to a lovely publisher   Frogwares has been developing Holmes games since 2002 with their first being The Mystery of the Mummy. There have been 9 games in the series, 10 if you count The Awakened's remake, each with original stories. Though Crimes and Punishment does have cases that are adaptions of Doyle's works. At the start the series was what would be considered pretty typical for a point and click adventure game, offering the assortment of type of puzzles you would expect. But recent entries have change up the formula by introducing the deduction board. Here you can link up clues you found together to form new theories to present as solutions to the crime, meaning cases can have multiple endings, some where Holmes actually gets it wrong. Also notable is Sinking City, another game by the developer with a Lovecraftian theme. Contradiction: Spot the Liar! - steam   Hercule Poirot. Nero Wolfe. Father Brown. Holmes. Columbo. The mystery genre is beloved for its detectives. And video games have been no different, giving us characters such as Phoneix Wright and Kyle Hyde. But in the genre exists a different breed of sleuth. The high fidelity full-motion video investigator. And among the greats are three names: Tex Murphy, whatever Walken's character in Ripper was called, and Detective inspector Jenks. Contradiction is a FMV adventure game with a lot of charm, most coming from actor Rupert Booth, who hams it up as Jenks. The main gimmick is you press suspects on contradictions in their statements, usually by comparing them to a previous statement, to unlock new scenes. When it works its nifty, but can get pretty frustrating when you know what is wrong but not what exactly the game wants. Also has a dud of an ending. Even still, game is a lot of fun. Caper in the Castro - Internet Archieve  Presented more as a cultural artifact than a recommendation, Caper in the Castro follows lesbian detective Tracker McDyke as she searches her friend, the kidnapped drag queen Tessy LaFemme. Created by C.M. Ralph and released in 1989 is notable for being one of the first LGBT themed games. Released as Charity Ware, players who downloaded the game were ask to donate to an AIDs charity of their choosing. An earlier detective game, 1986's Moonmist, while not as heavily queer themed, is possibly the first English game with any gay characters, with one of the storylines revealing a suspect to be a lesbian. HeR Interactive's Nancy Drew series - steam   First person adventure games with a focus on puzzles, like Myst, but better because Nancy Drew is cool. HeR Interactive has been making this series since 1998, making an impressive 33 games. Now noted they vary in quality with some janky clunkers, but entries like Curse of Blackmoor Manor offer a mix of brain twisting puzzle design and fun spooky atmosphere. The most recent game, Midnight in Salem, moved to full 3d environments but long time fans bemoan the release as souless, while HeR Interactive has been on life support for that last decade, kept alive by a single investor. But still, a 34th game has been announced, time will tell if it will manage to turn things around. And even if these games sound like they wouldn't appeal to you, you have to admit that there is novelty in Nancy Drew being jumpscared by a J-Horror ghost. Detective Grimoire and Tangle Tower - steam links   SexyBlindfold posted:A whodunit with a charming cartoony style and plenty of puzzles. As with other detective adventures, you'll have to process the information you learn in a 'deduction system' of sorts in order to develop a theory of what happened. This helps make it feel like you're actually taking part in solving the mystery instead of just along for the ride of the linear storytelling, like it happens in a lot of graphic adventures. It's a small touch, but it makes a difference. Fun game overall, though on the short side. Paradise Killer - steam   SexyBlindfold posted:Paradise Killer - The plot and setting are batshit insane in the good way, but deep down it's a pretty standard murder mystery investigation with clues and suspect interrogation, though gameplay-wise it takes the form of a 3d platformer. It's very much just that one mystery - you roam the world looking for clues, and once you think you're done, you head to the trial and you present a theory. I think it was booked as being 'open ended' but there definitely is a correct solution that you can get. The platforming can get frustrating if that's not your thing, but otherwise it's worth playing for the crazy worldbuilding alone. Great music, too. The Case of the Golden Idol - steam   Inspired by Obra Dinn. Has a DLC coming out soon. Inspector Gesicht posted:Golden Idol is to me, an adaptation of those Usborne Puzzle Adventure books from the 90's. These were picture books where you had to solve a puzzle every two pages. Whenever a code appeared that you had to decipher my eyes would always glaze over and I'd skip it. I'd gather at least one person on the thread has read Murder on the Midnight Plane or Agent Arthur. You can read them today on the internet archive. Games with their own threads Pentiment - thread  A RPG by Obsidian set in 16th century Bavaria. There are no conclusive answers to the mysteries, so heads up if that sounds like it would annoy you, but the game still has a lot to offer to fans of the genre. Excellent writing, the game is a real tear jerker. Shadows of Doubt - thread  A highly ambitious sandbox detective game. With the exception of the tutorial case, the mysteries are randomize and the game simulates the entire city where they take part. Currently in early access. Disco Elysium - thread  A rpg that is not a good mystery game, but it is a very good detective game. One of the funnier games to come out recently. Return of the Obra Dinn - thread  19th century mystery game that has you investigating a ghost ship that has drifted back into port. Its up to you to figure out what happened to the crew using a watch that lets you see the final seconds of any bodies you find. Umineko When They Cry - thread  A kinetic novel taking place in the 80s on Rokkenjima, an island the wealthy Ushiromiya family owns. Once people start getting killed off one by one in ways that suggest the use of magic, 19 year old Battler sets out to prove that the crimes could have been committed in material means. There is a witch, multiple horrible middle age women who are badasses, and many seemingly impossible locked rooms. AI: The Somnium Files - thread  Adventure game written and directed by Uchikoshi of Zero Escape fame, you play as Kaname Date who has a funny AI that lives in his artificial eyeball. Ace Attorney and The Great Ace Attorney Chronicles - thread   Adventure game series that has you playing as a defense attorney who must prove their clients innocence. Made up of investigations and court scenes, the former have you searching locations and talking to npcs for clues, while the later have you in court defending your client and putting together the clues you found to find the real murderer. Also includes Ace Attorney Investigations, which has you play as fan favorite Miles Edgeworth. Deadly Premonition - thread  SimonChris posted:While mostly remembered for its "so bad it's good" writing and dialogue, Deadly Premonition has some legitimately good open-world detective gameplay. Every inhabitant of Greenvale has their own detailed daily schedules, which change as the plot progresses, so you can follow people around on your initiative and discover more information about the town's secrets. Catch someone at the right place at the right time and it might trigger a side quest. A lot of the final revelations are hinted at if you pay attention, even though you obviously can't solve the main case early. Upcoming Releases NOVECT's Project Code Name “M” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H-MKBosBHn4 NOVECT, developers of cult hit visual novel House in Fata Morgana, have announced their new project. A murder mystery adventure game where you play as both the detective and the serial killer they are investigating. Snooze Cruise fucked around with this message at 22:49 on Apr 30, 2023 |
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Apr 28, 2023 04:59
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I would check out Portopia, AI bullshit aside, if I haven't already spoiled myself on its culprit years ago. Also a good mystery/detective game is The Case of the Golden Idol, which is actually getting some DLC in a week.
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Apr 28, 2023 05:02
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You know I keep meaning to play that JB Harold game for TurboCD
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Apr 28, 2023 05:14
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I don't know if Shadows of Doubt counts as the type of game you're thinking of, but it's the best detective experience I've ever had.
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Apr 28, 2023 05:26
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Shadows of Doubt has a lot of potential but is one of the buggiest games I've ever played, currently. It really does simulate an entire "city" (more like a few blocks and around 900 citizens, all with their own homes, jobs, and workplaces/routines) though. After using surveillance footage to identify the last person to see the murder victim alive, I tracked her to her apartment and was interviewing her when the loving murderer walked past me, into her apartment and blew her away in front of me. I beat down the murderer and arrested her, solving the case. So the AI needs some work as well but it was kind of cool being in the "right place at the right time" to actually witness a murder. There are other procgen mysteries to solve like recovering stolen items and identifying the thief, but the game is so buggy I've not been able to turn in a lot of quests, despite having solved them. When things are working properly, it really does make you feel like a detective. You can stake out apartments/buildings, investigate and cross reference fingerprints, break in, hack computers, etc. The game does NOT hold your hand, so putting two and two together and finding a solid lead feels REALLY good. But I would recommend holding off for a few patches at least, it's buggy as all gently caress. Edit: Typos
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Apr 28, 2023 05:26
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I'm playing through Frogwares more recent Detective Sherlock Holmes games and Sinking City they are pretty good (although not without issues). Just make sure to buy Sinking City through Frogwares's site otherwise you'll be supporting a poo poo publisher that stole from them. (including even using a cracked copy for the steam release of the game so they could sell the DLC because Frogwares refused to give it to them). Ace Attorney Investigations is a good detective game series, but you'll need to use a fan translation to play the second game because the first game didn't sell well in the west. Hotel Dusk is a good DS adventure game with some detective elements in it.
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Apr 28, 2023 05:31
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Sinking City was kind of a mess, but I kinda love the way tracking down addresses was a pain in the butt. You'd get a street name and just had to.. use the map to find the intersection and such. There was something oddly satisfying about having to do this simple navigation task rather than map markers just letting you no-think your way through navigating.
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Apr 28, 2023 21:03
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Lord Bob posted:Sinking City was kind of a mess, but I kinda love the way tracking down addresses was a pain in the butt. You'd get a street name and just had to.. use the map to find the intersection and such. There was something oddly satisfying about having to do this simple navigation task rather than map markers just letting you no-think your way through navigating. It is my sincerely held belief that videogame maps should hate the player more Anyway, detective videogames: The ones I've played - Disco Elysium - Disco Elysium has become the The Wire of videogames in that playing it will turn you into an obnoxious prick who can't hold a normal conversation without telling people to go play Disco Elysium. By the way, you should definitely go play Disco Elysium. Recommended. Paradise Killer - The plot and setting are batshit insane in the good way, but deep down it's a pretty standard murder mystery investigation with clues and suspect interrogation, though gameplay-wise it takes the form of a 3d platformer. It's very much just that one mystery - you roam the world looking for clues, and once you think you're done, you head to the trial and you present a theory. I think it was booked as being 'open ended' but there definitely is a correct solution that you can get. The platforming can get frustrating if that's not your thing, but otherwise it's worth playing for the crazy worldbuilding alone. Great music, too. Recommended. Detective Grimoire - A whodunit with a charming cartoony style and plenty of puzzles. As with other detective adventures, you'll have to process the information you learn in a 'deduction system' of sorts in order to develop a theory of what happened. This helps make it feel like you're actually taking part in solving the mystery instead of just along for the ride of the linear storytelling, like it happens in a lot of graphic adventures. It's a small touch, but it makes a difference. Fun game overall, though on the short side. Recommended. Gray Matter - More general mystery than detective per se, but it's sorta whodunit-ish so I'd say it fits the bill. It was par for the course for a point-and-click of the time, with a bit of novelty since the protagonist is an amateur magician and you get to use some tricks to bullshit your way through the investigation. Then you reach the third act and it all goes to poo poo. Meaningless red herring quests, twists pulled out of the writer's rear end, rushed sequelbait ending, the works. Not Recommended. 2064: Read Only Memories - Another graphic adventure, though this one's first person, in the vein of games like Snatcher. The story has a cyberpunk setting, and the colorful, kinda cutesy art style might give the game a bit of a twee vibe, though the tone does get darker further down the line. Good plot, good twists, good voice acting. There's a demo out for the upcoming sequel, too. Recommended. Pentiment - Homicidal intent is when someone is rude to me and the ruder they are the more homicidal intent they have. Recommended. Kathy Rain - One of the darlings of the indie graphic adventure revival, has good small-town-mystery vibes. Don't expect anything too different from the standard point-and-clicker, gameplay wise, but it's pretty solid at what it does. Recommended. Whispers of a Machine - Same creators from Kathy Rain. This one has a sci-fi tone and some innovations in the gameplay, since your character can develop different sets of augments to help her in the investigation. This means the puzzles are a bit more open ended and there's even a bit of replay value, which is rare for a point-and-click. I'd still rank it below Kathy Rain since the main plot didn't quite hook me, but I appreciate the effort in the worldbuilding. Recommended. The ones I've sorta played: Contradiction: Spot the Liar - I watched a full playthrough of this one - it's an FMV whodunit where you get to suss out motives and lies from suspects after several interviews. As with most FMV games, the experience comes down to the acting. The guy who plays the detective is clearly having the time of his life and it's contagious, even if not the entire cast is on the same vibe. Overall the interrogations are a lot of fun, but you're also gonna have to navigate through a whole mess of maps and alleys with plenty of backtracking, which can be annoying. The ending's a bit of a dud since apparently it was going to be the first installment in a series, but on the whole I'd still say it's a fun experience. Recommended if that's your thing. Chinatown Detective Agency - Played the demo. It looks pretty enough and it has some hooks like being able to travel around the world to chase suspects, but it's way more boring than it sounds. The cases felt AI-generated (even if they weren't) and the main quest seemed extremely generic. Overall, the rare stamp quests were my favorite part. Not Recommended. The ones I just know about : Tangle Tower - Sequel to Detective Grimoire. Seems to have the same charm of the original. Hope this one's longer, though. Recommended maybe?? Frog Detective - I've heard this one's pretty cute and funny, though really short even by indie adventure game standards. You can get the whole franchise in a pack, so maybe get that one if it's ever on sale. Recommended maybe?? There's frogs?? Detroit: Become Human - lol. lmao. Not Recommended. (Though I guess the detective bits are the best part) Heavy Rain - lol. lmao. Not Recommended. (Though I guess the detective bits are the worst part)
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Apr 29, 2023 03:25
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I added games that already have threads to the second post, someone tell me if i missed anything important that has a thread. I'll add some stuff later that doesn't have a thread like Misericorde.
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Apr 29, 2023 04:30
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I should actually play those Laura Bow games before anyone figures out I haven't touch them and I just made it the thread title to make a Friends of Dorothy joke.
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Apr 29, 2023 04:37
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I strongly recommend The Case of the Golden Idol for those who like the deductive elements of Curse of the Obra Dinn. ...man, I'd kill for an Obra Dinn sequel. ...anyway, Golden Idol's also getting a DLC expansion in a couple days. It's a fantastic game by a small team, and I can't recommend it strongly enough. Like Obra Dinn, perhaps even more so, it's best to go in blind, because it goes places. Discendo Vox fucked around with this message at 07:29 on Apr 29, 2023 |
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Apr 29, 2023 06:13
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While we're recommending stuff... I like Discworld Noir. It's basically a point and click adventure game, but instead of collecting items you collect clues in your notebook. It's worth playing even if you don't care about Discworld. Sadly it's being sat on by some holding company who forgot they own the rights to it, so you better find a PSX copy and emulate it if you want it to run on modern hardware. Lord Bob posted:Sinking City was kind of a mess, but I kinda love the way tracking down addresses was a pain in the butt. You'd get a street name and just had to.. use the map to find the intersection and such. There was something oddly satisfying about having to do this simple navigation task rather than map markers just letting you no-think your way through navigating. It looks like a neat game, but I'll likely never play it because of the publisher shitshow  Edit: I tired playing The Dagger of Amon Ra, but it aged terribly. It's one of those really really old point and clicks that you have to use a guide for because the game will kill you with no warning. Probably has multiple soft-lock points, too. I just couldn't bother with it. itry fucked around with this message at 06:33 on Apr 29, 2023 |
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Apr 29, 2023 06:29
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Immortality is sorta a mystery game where you have to find out why an actress hasn't aged since the 70s and why none of her films ever released I recently saw an article call this genre of games "metroidbrainia" and I just massaged my temples a lot reading that word
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Apr 29, 2023 06:50
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also! something that's great for goons with no working memory like me is that the new steam client beta just added overlay support for a notepad that you can sticky to the screen during puzzle and mystery games  https://twitter.com/Steam/status/1651720424085131265 https://twitter.com/GamingAndPandas/status/1651893784945254406 i'm finally gonna beat obra dinn once and for all
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Apr 29, 2023 11:01
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Bookmarking this thread, and also gonna drive-by mention L.A. Noire as one of those detective games. It's honestly not that good, but I'm enjoying my time with it currently. I find it really funny that the recent rereleases for like, the Switch and similar finally did away with Truth and Doubt, and replaced them with Good Cop Bad Cop.
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Apr 29, 2023 11:08
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Recommend Tangle Tower. The ending has sequel bait but the main mystery is solved and the presentation is excellent. I wanted to enjoy Heavy's Rain cheese but the gamepad controls are simply awful. I only got as far as seeing the protagonist''s son turn into a Jackson Pollock on the pavement before refunding.
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Apr 29, 2023 12:24
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Heavy Rain is a game that pretends it's a mystery
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Apr 29, 2023 12:49
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Nothing is more emblematic to me about Heavy Rain than Ethan's mysterious blackouts. Originally there were scenes that were going to suggest that Ethan had some sort of psychic connection to the killer, but Cage cut those bits out because of the perceived backlash to the paranormal elements of Indigo Prophecy... But they kept in all the bits of Ethan blacking out and waking up with origami in his hand. Because uh, cheap red herrings I guess?
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Apr 29, 2023 12:57
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Make it Good is an old-school text adventure game, written in 2009 by Jon Ingold. Playable in your browser at the link, though it can be downloaded too if you have the requisite program for running it. As mentioned, it's an old-school parser game, so you'll have to deal with no graphics or sound, and typing 'take hat' a lot. Still, it's very well written and there's a ton of possible interactions you can do to progress the story, though there is a timer that will eventually conclude the game if you spend too much time messing around. You play an alcoholic wreck of a detective (that old chestnut) sent to investigate a murder case, and you have until the proper cops arrive to analyze the evidence and figure out a primary suspect. (Spoilers for a notable early-mid game twist follow) Collecting and analyzing the available evidence quickly reveals that for whatever reason that may be, everything points to you as the one who did it, and if you're looking to make it out you had better shift from solving the case to shifting the blame onto someone else.
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Apr 29, 2023 14:39
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Deadly Premonition https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B23FBOEUrF4 How could you leave this out, Zach? I'm in shock like a weasel in an electric chair! While mostly remembered for its "so bad it's good" writing and dialogue, Deadly Premonition has some legitimately good open-world detective gameplay. Every inhabitant of Greenvale has their own detailed daily schedules, which change as the plot progresses, so you can follow people around on your initiative and discover more information about the town's secrets. Catch someone at the right place at the right time and it might trigger a side quest. A lot of the final revelations are hinted at if you pay attention, even though you obviously can't solve the main case early. SimonChris fucked around with this message at 16:23 on Apr 29, 2023 |
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Apr 29, 2023 16:16
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SimonChris posted:Deadly Premonition This is one of my favorites. As janky and inexplicable as it is beloved. It’ll take a specific type of person to enjoy it, and even then you have to slog through the tech issues and rote combat sections. However, if you ever wanted Twin Peaks in video game form, this is very deliberately that game. The sequel (which is simultaneously a prequel) is worth a look, too. Throwing out another endorsement for Paradise Killer. No game vibes harder, and the open ended nature of it is very novel. Obligatory mention of Danganronpa. Ace Attorney by way of battle royale. I found these games very fun. Cool atmosphere and exciting courtroom mechanics. It definitely goes off the rails compared to more straightforward mystery stuff, and requires a tolerance of anime, but it’s pretty top notch murder mystery stuff.
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Apr 29, 2023 16:30
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Snooze Cruise posted:Nothing is more emblematic to me about Heavy Rain than Ethan's mysterious blackouts. Originally there were scenes that were going to suggest that Ethan had some sort of psychic connection to the killer, but Cage cut those bits out because of the perceived backlash to the paranormal elements of Indigo Prophecy... But they kept in all the bits of Ethan blacking out and waking up with origami in his hand. Because uh, cheap red herrings I guess? This guy did a comparison of the writing of Disco Elysium and Heavy Rain (and other Cage Classics) which honestly feels like pointless overkill, but I appreciated it because other than the infamous twist, having never played it I had no idea that the writing in HR was so absolute dogshit. It also gives some pointers as to what can make or break stories of the genre. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vs3-ZYvLPXM
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Apr 29, 2023 17:29
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Added a ton to the second post, including Misericorde. Everyone who is not allergic to visual novels should play Misericorde. Speaking of https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YzfHXcPxuY4 What has the best mystery music in the game? Umineko of course has its soundtrack but a good number of its tracks have more horror or action vibes than mystery. Ace Attorney of course has some of the best making suspects sweat music in the game. What is the Inspector Morse theme of video games...
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Apr 29, 2023 22:57
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Umineko overwhelms with sheer numbers. More than a hundred tracks from many composers, and even if a fraction of them are bangers, that's still a lot of bangers, there's something there for every mood..
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Apr 29, 2023 23:20
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Now reading about CM Ralph, who I'd never heard of before- thanks very much! It turns out they're still active and currently working on a "D.I.Y. Murder Mystery". Some recent interviews: https://www.npr.org/transcripts/1151702216 https://www.npr.org/2023/01/27/1151702216/how-the-first-lgbtq-video-game-was-given-a-second-life https://www.pastemagazine.com/games/caper-in-the-castro-interview Another game to recommend, The Painscreek Killings, is a moderately eurojanky detective game where you play a journalist exploring the recently abandoned town of Painscreek, which is slated to be abandoned and condemned after a series of deaths. The game has different endings based on how completely you solve the death that was the beginning of the town's decline. Despite the jank, the game is excellently complex- definitely something you'll benefit from having a sheet of paper handy for to keep track of names, times and codes. This game indirectly inspired a lot of the revival of the genre on steam. Another game in the same style by the devs, Scene Investigators, is slated to come out later this year. It is a whole bunch of standalone puzzle case scenarios, with an emphasis on deductive inference. Discendo Vox fucked around with this message at 03:13 on Apr 30, 2023 |
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Apr 30, 2023 02:16
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Oh wait, I only just realized I can use this thread to talk about one of my favs. Lady in Mystery  So admittedly I am a mark for a lot of elements in this VN. I like mysteries. I love disguise motifs, especially the historical crossdressing variety. And I enjoy period piece lesbian romance. Lady in Mystery is a korean VN that takes place in 1786 Seoul. The game follows a woman who has been disguising herself as a noble man after the lost of her family. She stumbles into opening up a detective agency in the capital, and the game starts a few years into its existence. The story is episodic, typically one case per episode, and does have choices with some bad ends. Eventually the episodes split off into 4 routes, one for each romantic interest: A runaway noble lady, who is an out lesbian. A Damo, which was a type of female police officer that at the time period existed to deal with crimes that would be embarrassing for the male officers, i.e adultery, basically crimes that would involve women. An evil merchant lady, for all the girl boss lovers. And finally a woman thief, disguised as what is basically Korea's equivalent of Robin Hood.  This image is woman disguise as a male detective x woman disguise as male thief. Truly some galaxy brain poo poo. Now the mysteries don't have a lot of depth. This may have more interactivity than Umineko or Misericorde but if you want a VN with cases you can sleuth out yourself, those are the better options. There are some tonal issues and some of the bad ends feel out of placed, but these didn't really impact my enjoyment. The VN's biggest issue, and the reason why I ultimately won't put it in the recommendations post, is that it has a very rough translation. I was able to get past that and enjoyed what was there, but again this is the type of story I am already a mark. I have a lot of affection for this VN so I wish it was easier to recommend, but ultimately you will either need a high tolerance for bad TLs or be as much as sucker as I am for the story elements.
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Apr 30, 2023 22:12
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Unheard: Voices of Crime Unheard is a Chinese detective narrative game with a number of fairly predictable scenarios and a cool gimmick. You travel around an overhead map listening to various nodes of a very well localised audio play capturing elements of the crime before putting it all together in a check list. There's a number of scenarios, the art gallery, the insane asylum, the police station, the theatre, etc. etc. all pretty standard Ace Attorney type stuff but what I really want to talk about is the free dlc: Unheard - The Lethal Script which isn't standard at all. It's a fabulous nesting doll of a puzzle to figure out as you follow actors rehearsing a script of a real crime that occurred several days earlier. You not only need to figure out who's who but who's playing who and who each role is based on. Add in two different timelines of crime, the crime that happens in the rehearsal and the crime the play depicts, AND the fact that it's not just one big rehearsal with the play all laid out but snippets placed incidentally in conversation and the level of complexity far out strips anything in the main game. A great experience if you want something to chew on.
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Apr 30, 2023 22:38
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Golden Idol is to me, an adaptation of those Usborne Puzzle Adventure books from the 90's. These were picture books where you had to solve a puzzle every two pages. Whenever a code appeared that you had to decipher my eyes would always glaze over and I'd skip it. I'd gather at least one person on the thread has read Murder on the Midnight Plane or Agent Arthur. You can read them today on the internet archive. I hope we get sequels to the Golden Idol, and more mysteries that build on the same format. edit: I really hated the corny voice-direction in Unheard. You'd have characters speaking like Dashiell Hammett characters while using modern day tech like mobile phones.
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Apr 30, 2023 22:40
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fez_machine posted:Unheard: Voices of Crime Oh this sounds really cool, I am surprised I haven't seen anything about it before.
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Apr 30, 2023 22:42
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Jetamo posted:Bookmarking this thread, and also gonna drive-by mention L.A. Noire as one of those detective games. They did what??? I hadn't heard newer iterations changed that mechanic so much. I played when it first came out and I liked it enough. I really appreciated the effort they went to to make the truth/doubt mechanic work through the actors expressions and cadences. I finished Danganronpa yesterday and started on 2 today, I love these so much! TheWorldsaStage fucked around with this message at 04:59 on May 1, 2023 |
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May 1, 2023 04:53
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L.A. Noire was originally written and had the conversations designed around the prompts being labeled Coax, Force and Accuse - they changed the labels shortly before release into Truth, Doubt, Lie. The remaster is just reverting the prompts back to something that reflects the original intentions.
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May 1, 2023 20:49
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That makes sense, there are places where a witness is clearly lying but selecting "lie" causes you to make a bizarre allegation against them rather than just challenging the lie.
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May 1, 2023 21:51
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it was never a bad idea to press lie if you were unsure doubt was the answer. Could always back down
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May 1, 2023 22:22
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The Colonel's Bequest is probably one of the better games to come out of Sierra
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May 1, 2023 22:51
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If you were to make a tv show about the history of a game developer Sierra is one of the better picks. Ken Williams hiring sex workers for his staff. The frogger debacle. Season 3 introducing a new character to the cast, Daryl Gates, how fun!
Snooze Cruise fucked around with this message at 23:41 on May 1, 2023 |
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May 1, 2023 23:38
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I never like, FORGET about the Daryl Gates thing but it shocks me every time I re-read it
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May 2, 2023 02:56
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Very good thread, thanks for making it.
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May 2, 2023 22:24
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I mentioned Danganronpa 2 earlier, I just beat the first case and Makoto is not well, is he? Like at allMegaman's Jockstrap posted:Very good thread, thanks for making it. Absolutely!
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May 2, 2023 22:33
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My favorite genre. Just some random thoughts/recommends based on the convos so far without a giant quote stream: Other than Hotel Dusk I’ve never been able to get into a visual novel but I might check out this one with nuns or whatever. Seems like a good double feature with Pentiment. Even Phoenix Wright was a too little gameplay/detective work/too much anime for me. I’m big into games like Obra Dinn and Painscreek where you really need to keep your own notes to put everything together. I wish so bad A Hand With Many Fingers had more going for it, cause the idea is fantastic but took all of 45 minutes to finish. If you can get it on sale for like a dollar or two I suppose it’s worth your time. I kickstarted the new Scene Investigators game by the Painscreek devs and have high hopes. I was trying to remember the name of a game I played about a journalist going back to the religious cult they escaped as a kid. It’s a bit of a walking sim but if you’ve enjoyed games like Dead Secret Circle, Sagebrush could be worth your time. That said, while googling it I accidentally discovered this which might lean a bit more towards horror but I feel like investigative walking sims dip one foot into this thread. https://store.steampowered.com/app/1432340/Loveland/ Also, I’ll be a dissenter and say I think that I think Contradiction sucked. It’s mostly navigating through screens of the town, the mystery stinks, and there were multiple times I caught contradictions that weren’t the one the game wanted so I ended up having to just mix and match evidence until the game allowed me to proceed. Reminded me of the worst moments of LA Noire. This does remind me, however, that I’m yet to play Her Story and its spiritual sequel about the old Hollywood actress, both of which have been sitting untouched in my library forever. weekly font fucked around with this message at 23:15 on May 2, 2023 |
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May 2, 2023 23:11
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