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Rupert Buttermilk
Apr 15, 2007

🚣RowboatMan: ❄️Freezing time🕰️ is an old P.I. 🥧trick...

Yes, you read that right. Noir Syndrome by Glass Knuckle Games is a procedurally-generated pulpy, noir-themed murder mystery. Was it Ruth Allen? Or was it Thomas Jackson? Or maybe it was... poo poo, Ruth Allen was just murdered. Ok, guess it wasn't her.

http://glassknuckle.com/NoirSyndrome/

From the site:

Glass Knuckle Games posted:

Noir Syndrome is a procedurally generated Detective Murder-Mystery with a new story every time! Featuring slick pixel art animations and a jazzy soundtrack, the player is thrown right in to a highly stylized vision of film noir. Visit locations, interrogate suspects, search for clues, and eventually solve the case before the killer escapes - or you wind up dead yourself.

Features:

Procedural generation: Murder mystery scenarios with a new culprit and clues each time, every play-through is unique.
Permanent choices: NPCs, interactions, death, and a slew of other features will all persist until a new game is started. Every action counts!
Notebook: Collect vital clues in the detective's notebook to help narrow down suspects and solve the case.
Investigation: Interact with and examine numerous objects and characters in a number of environments in the search for more information on the killer.
Countdown: Given a set number of days to solve the mystery, each area visited will decrement the time left, adding to the urgency of every case.
Freedom of choice: Attempt to solve the case, or live out your remaining time doing as you please - be it fighting the law, going after gang members, or just seeing the city.
Gunplay: Combat is generally to be avoided as a single bullet will take down the player. However, when necessary, the revolver is always available for use.
Badges: Complete a variety of challenges to earn unique badges which directly influence future playthroughs.
Statistics and Scores: Statistics and high scores for a wide variety of topics will persist through every game.
Challenges: Optional challenges unrelated to the main case are generated each game. Every challenge completed provides permanent bonuses to all playthroughs.

Currently available on Steam for Windows, Mac, and Linux (and Android devices!). Regular price is $6.99 ($9.99 from the dev's website if you buy the soundtrack as well, which is loving AMAZING), and is at least 33% off until June 30th. I got it for $2.37 on a Steam flash sale the other day.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5F_z_QGErJo

So, you hear of a murder! You travel to the crime scene and search various areas there to find clues, money, and/or lockpicks (for opening locked doors later on). Every time you search, you become slightly hungrier. You can get food at various places, but you need to have cash to buy food. You can also check out 'fishy' locations that almost always include a clue to help you. You can also interrogate suspects! They'll pretty much tell you that someone else did it, which is how you learn of other suspects, and ever character is either a civilian, police officer, or mobster (they also all have hobbies/secondary jobs). You pin down whodunnit by comparing clues with the evidence.

For example, you could find a female fingerprint, a bullet casing (could be a mobster or police officer), and a shoe that says the suspect is a driver or dancer (yes, dancer). A few other clues could help you narrow it down to a dancing mobster! And then when you play again, names and clues and occupations are all mixed around again.

Bonuses/badges are persistent across all playthroughs, so eventually, you get more starting gear to help you take care of cases quicker, or tackle higher difficulty levels with ease. There's also a gun, but I don't really suggest using it. One shot to kill suspects, one shot to take you down as well.

There's also a Dinner Menu mode that's kind of weird, where you know of all the people, but you have to search for clues. You're in a mansion, and suspects randomly go mad (and will shoot you on-sight). I've only tried this version a couple times, and it didn't go well for me. Maybe a future update will make it easier to avoid being randomly shot. Here's hoping, as the dev is open with the community and takes gameplay feedback very seriously and is planning on continually updating the game if he finds things that just don't work.

It's 11:30pm, the moon is full, and a shot rings out in the dark. Time to get to work, detective. Or, alternatively, hang out with your cat.

Rupert Buttermilk fucked around with this message at 03:20 on Jun 28, 2014

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Rupert Buttermilk
Apr 15, 2007

🚣RowboatMan: ❄️Freezing time🕰️ is an old P.I. 🥧trick...

This is a pretty good playthrough of a case. I think something gets screwed up though...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IVdO0PKaus0

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