Methods: The Detective Competition Reviews

Love the art

The gameplay is a bit simple (multiple choice) but the story made up for it! All the characters were distinct and memorable, which is quite possibly this game's biggest strength; it probably helped that most of them were likable and/or realistic too (and when they weren't, they were at least somewhat humorous). The mysteries themselves were also very creative, and the gimmicks for each stage really enhanced them. The shifts in perspective also helped the narrative flow well, getting to view the overarching plot from different viewpoints. Solid game!

This is more of a neutral review. The visual style and the soundtrack are amazing. The writing is neat. It's charming, though at times indulges in too much pointless banter. The puzzles are alright. Unfortunately, the game doesn't give you time to solve them yourself, it gives you the setup and immediately jumps into telling you the solution at breakneck pace. It would really benefit from giving the mystery time to breathe. The thing I have a big problem with is the story. The story starts out good, but over the course of the game it falls apart at the seams, completely dropping the ball by the end. We switch protagonists multiple times. Half the time we switch to characters who we barely know and who have nothing to do with the plotlines we're invested in. It's like you're suddenly thrown into a spinoff. It also happens in the finale. Numerous plotlines are introduced out of nowhere and either don't go anywhere or don't get resolved at all. Near the end of the game you are teased an impossibly difficult puzzle. It gets resolved off-screen. The ending isn't satisfying and doesn't provide any answers besides what we already know. So, for the aforementioned reasons, it gets harder and harder to care for anything going on with each act. When the credits rolled, the primary emotion I was feeling was frustration. This game should have been right up my alley, but it completely fumbled its latter half. Still, it has too much charm and soul for me to give it a negative review.