Mystery/Detective/Adventure Games for the PC

[Warrior 4 Jesus]

I've found this is very much a niche market, but there are some good ones.
I just wish there were more.
Can anyone recommend some good PC games where you are a detective or something and you have to look through the evidence, talk to suspects etc - anything that normally takes place in that sort of thing?
Something that's really well done and interesting?
Something that's fun and in depth?


Sorry it's such a tough ask.
Thanks all.

[bakura_fan]

Well, the first game that came to mind was "evidence: the last ritual". I never played it, I just saw it at Best Buy once. Here's a review on it. It could be the type of game you're looking for...unless you're extremely squeemish. From what I hear it can get pretty bad. =_=;
http://www.gamespot.com/pc/adventure/evidence/review.html?sid=6161677&om_act=convert&om_clk=gsupdates&tag=updates;title;1

[Warrior 4 Jesus]

Thanks Bakura. I'll check out the demo.

[lwelyk]

f

[Tarnish]

I'll have to second the Nancy Drew series. The Final Scene, The Curse of Blackmoor Manor, and Last Train to Blue Moon Canyon, especially. Not incredibly deep, but tons of fun, with interesting enough storylines.

You may also want to check out "Still Life". I haven't played it, but I hear it's a good mystery/adventure. If you don't mind cliffhanger endings.

EDIT: Oh! I just remembered! "Missing" is supposed to be amazing. I've read about it, and it looks very interesting. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Missing_%28Video_Game%29

[Mr. SmartyPants]

Oh man, if you had a Nintendo DS, there are two titles I would definitely recommend.

The first is the Phoenix Wright series. You speak with people, point out contradictions, look for evidence, and get to yell out "OBJECTION!" a lot. The characters are also really fleshed out and you end up getting attached to them. XD

The other is Hotel Dusk: Room 215. Not really a detective, but you're an ex-cop that's trying to find out a secret behind a certain hotel, and why all these random people seem interlinked. You walk around, inspect stuff, and talk with people. Very well written and even a tad creepy at times.

[bakura_fan]

I'll have to second the Nancy Drew series. The Final Scene, The Curse of Blackmoor Manor, and Last Train to Blue Moon Canyon, especially. Not incredibly deep, but tons of fun, with interesting enough storylines.

You may also want to check out "Still Life". I haven't played it, but I hear it's a good mystery/adventure. If you don't mind cliffhanger endings.

EDIT: Oh! I just remembered! "Missing" is supposed to be amazing. I've read about it, and it looks very interesting. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Missing_%28Video_Game%29

I think "missing" is the first game for "evidence".

[SolidÃ…rmor]

Nightfall and The Longest Journey are pretty good. Kinda like Siberia with a better story.

[Warrior 4 Jesus]

Wow, thanks guys!
Actually Ryan, I'm thinking of buying a DS in the near future. Phoenix Wright looks great. The other one sounds interesting too.

[lwelyk]

f

[Azier the Swordsman]

I'll have to second Scratches. I couldn't put it down.

[Tarnish]

Forgot one. Syberia is pretty good too. You should check that out. I second PW and HD.

Is Syberia really a mystery? I've played it, and all in all, it seems like your standard adventure game...

This goes for The Longest Journey, too, though I recommend it anyway. It's my favorite game.

[lwelyk]

f

[Fish and Chips]

I recommend Ben Croshaw's Chzo Mythos. It's a freeware amateur adventure series comprised of four games: 5 Days a Stranger, 7 Days a Skeptic, Trilby's Notes, and 6 Days a Sacrifice. Easily falls under mystery, and although short, it's an incredibly well written ride.

And it's free. Legally.

Some language and violence peppered throughout, as well as some fictional occultism if you can handle that.

[Warrior 4 Jesus]

Fish and Chips, I've heard those are good games. I've downloaded them and I'll try them out soon.

I'm playing the Scratches demo - it's pretty good.

[TheMelodyMaker]

I'm thirding the Nancy Drew games; I've got several of them that I've played through and they're all very good. :3 More info here, if you're interested. ^_^

[Edit: Just a warning, though -- the first one is tough to figure out because there are all kinds of red herrings in it, but the second one onwards are all relatively easy and not so misleading.]

[Azier the Swordsman]

Is Syberia really a mystery? I've played it, and all in all, it seems like your standard adventure game...

It honestly bored me to death. I never finished it.

[Scarecrow]

I have Evidence: The Last Ritual... its an alternate reality game though so there are no instructions really. You just have this disc and you have to solve the puzzles the killer left on it... you get emails from in game characters including the killer, you browse websites to get information on past cases etc etc. The only thing I hate is sometimes you wanna use Google however using google can sometime just lead you to a walkthrough rather than the info you're looking for. Never beaten it though so I cant really tell you how violent it is but supposedly some video later on are a bit disturbing (the puzzles are a little creepy themselves).

Anyway, a good game I really enjoyed a long time ago was "Titanic: Adventure Out of Time" Its exactly what you're looking for though it was made in 96 I think so its a bit dated but still awesome fun none the less. Its a relatively difficult game... It starts in WWII during a bombraid but flashes back to when "you" were on the Titanic wondering if you had stopped some key players on the Titanic and gotten a hold of certain items, if you could have prevented WWII. First there are many endings depending on what "objects" you collected during the game. Its a murder mystery, a detective game, lots of clues and puzzles. Lots of characters to interact with and get clues from as well... and you never know whos good for sure or if they can be trusted. Massive ship to explore. And the last part of the game is quite exciting as you really are playing against time as the Titanic is sinking and you need to hurry up and get what you need and get on a life boat... but they're only letting women and children on so... another puzzle for you to figure out or sink So ya, the object of the game is to go back in Time on the Titanic, change history, and prevent WWII... also has a creepy/eerie tone which made it a little spooky to play alone at night. But an excellent game and I highly recommend it if you can find a copy and youre able to run on the computer.

Heres the trailer to the game: http://youtube.com/watch?v=9EGTgriZPig
They have a couple other videos on Youtube but mostly spoilers and cheats on how to get certain items needed to get the good ending..

[bakura_fan]

oh. the titanic game. I had a demo of that game. Always wished I had the full game.

[Htom Sirveaux]

Monkey Island FTW!

[Scarecrow]

Myst is good too... the first one at least Never played Riven but I hear it has the best ending in the series.

[Fish and Chips]

Riven is excellent, except for one large puzzle near the end that is completely evil ("Waffle irons").

[Htom Sirveaux]

Riven is excellent, except for one large puzzle near the end that is completely evil ("Waffle irons").

Rrrgh. Yeah. Pretty much every other puzzle in the game is but a smaller piece that leads to the solution of that one final puzzle. If you already know the arrangements, you can beat the game in about five minutes.
The Myst series is really good though. Engrossing, if a bit frustrating (okay, make that downright infuriating) at times. The key is to turn down the lights, turn up the volume, and make notes of EVERYTHING. Anything that strikes you as odd. It might be nothing important. It might be a vital piece of a puzzle.

[Fish and Chips]

Rrrgh. Yeah. Pretty much every other puzzle in the game is but a smaller piece that leads to the solution of that one final puzzle. If you already know the arrangements, you can beat the game in about five minutes.
The Myst series is really good though. Engrossing, if a bit frustrating (okay, make that downright infuriating) at times. The key is to turn down the lights, turn up the volume, and make notes of EVERYTHING. Anything that strikes you as odd. It might be nothing important. It might be a vital piece of a puzzle.

Myst IV Revelation might not be the best of the bunch, but the addition of the camera and the notebook made wish AFGNCAAP had remembered to bring these along earlier.

[lwelyk]

f