Mystery Games Are Undergoing A Renaissance

As the days grow longer and Halloween grows closer, mystery-loving gamers have plenty of options during the spookiest season of the year. The current mystery game renaissance began with Emio – the Smiling Man, an unexpected new title in the Famicom Detective Club series. This was followed by the Ace Attorney Investigations duology, featuring the long-awaited official English translation of the second game, Prosecutor's Gambit. A third title, which unfortunately received minimal marketing, was the remake of a classic Japanese mystery title . The Hokkaido Serial Murder Case: The Okhotsk Disappearance Memories In Ice, Tearful Figurine is best known for both its mouthful of a title and being written by Dragon Quest series creator Yuji Horii.

Attention towards the mystery genre has been gradually increasing over the past several years; key events included the massive success of indie detective title Disco Elysium, Nintendo's surprising remasters of the first two Famicom Detective Club games, and the Great Ace Attorney Chronicles. Many indie studios have contributed to this boom, releasing titles like Duck Detective: The Secret Salami, The Case of the Golden Idol, and more.

Nintendo Takes A Dark Turn With Emio –The Smiling Man

Release Date: August 29, 2024
Platforms: Nintendo Switch

Nintendo surprised fans with a grainy found footage-style trailer asking a simple question: "Who is Emio?" Theories ranged from a new survival horror IP to a Silent Hill spin-off, but few guessed the truth: the first new game in the Famicom Detective Club series in around 30 years. Hailed as one of Nintendo's darkest first-party titles, Emio sees the Detective Club return to investigate a bizarre serial killing that seemingly connects to a creepy urban legend.

Although the first two games, The Missing Heir and The Girl Who Stands Behind, received remakes in 2021, fans generally considered the series to be a relic of the classic adventure game era that would remain in the past. Emio's release was a pleasant surprise and could indicate more Famicom Detective Club games are coming.

Ace Attorney Investigations Collection Completes The Series

Ace Attorney Investigations Miles Edgeworth Prosecutors Gambit Pre Order

Release Date: September 6, 2024
Platforms: Nintendo Switch, PC, PlayStation 4, Xbox One

While Ace Attorney Investigations had seen an official English translation, its direct sequel, Prosecutor's Path, never had. Theories about its lack of export ranged from mixed reviews for the first Investigations to wanting to promote the series' then-newest main title, Dual Destinies, rather than focusing on spin-offs. However, 2024 saw the two games, which star popular recurring prosecutor character Miles Edgeworth, remastered and bundled together for the Nintendo Switch.

Now, for the first time, all main series Ace Attorney titles are available in English. Capcom's plans for the future of the series remain unclear, but it's definitely not impossible that another main series Ace Attorney game could be in the works, possibly bringing back Phoenix Wright, Apollo Justice, or Athena Cykes or introducing a new protagonist entirely.

The Hokkaido Serial Murder Case Flew Under The Radar

Release Date: September 12, 2024
Platforms: Nintendo Switch, PC

Released with shockingly minimal marketing for the Nintendo Switch and PC, Hokkaido Serial Murder Case involves a nameless, player-controlled detective investigating a series of murders scattered around Japan's Hokkaido Prefecture. Developed in 1984 by Yuji Horii, it was a mostly standalone follow-up to Horii's 1983 detective game, The Portopia Serial Murder Case.

Portopia, which has been cited by Eiji Aonuma and Hideo Kojima as one of the most influential games ever created, received a disappointing re-release featuring AI integration. It was used by Square Enix as a demo to showcase AI capabilities but was widely panned by critics and players. Fortunately, Hokkaido's remaster is not AI-focused and is much more polished, with improvements such as a redone command menu and voiced dialogue. Mystery fans looking for something new and exciting to play should definitely check out The Hokkaido Serial Murder Case, which they may have missed. Plus, hopefully, these titles will lead to more remasters of classic mystery games and new releases within the genre in the near future.

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