Developer: BOV
PS5 Review
*Disclaimer: I was sent the code for this game on PS5 in return for a review; all opinions are mine and mine alone.
Awakening from the dead must be a right fright. Can you imagine living your happy little life and then finding yourself as a ghost in your crypt, where not only your body has been laid to rest but also your family's? Jane Darkday is certainly having the worst day of her life. How did she get there? How did she die? Well, now is our chance to become our own detective, not just for the sake of ourselves but also for our family.
Awakening from the dead must be a right fright. Can you imagine living your happy little life and then finding yourself as a ghost in your crypt, where not only your body has been laid to rest but also your family's? Jane Darkday is certainly having the worst day of her life. How did she get there? How did she die? Well, now is our chance to become our own detective, not just for the sake of ourselves but also for our family.
Detective From The Crypt is a point-n-click game, click around you to find out what it hidden, that's the best bit of advice I give to people who play this genre of game. Jane's surroundings seem simplistic, what can possibly be hidden, but just by lifting the lid on a coffin or opening a tomb, we are given an inkling of where we should start and Jane's suspicions about the situation she has been forced into. Jane's notebook holds all the information she will need, as well as files and tasks. It will help with a flashback of how this all occurred, and then she will piece together all the information you collect along the way via living and dead characters. It can be accessed via the inventory, which also holds any objects you collect along the way.
As I made my way out of the crypt, I clicked on everything I could around me to trigger the next clue in the story. I was often left waiting for that information unless I gave characters the help they required in return for answers or clues. I was a real ghost detective. There was a lot of back and forth across puzzles, which seemed simple at first, but couldn't be solved until I opened certain locations. At times, I was a little stumped until I re-read what needed to be done and used the right equipment I had collected along the way. My lamp would also offer a helping hand, lighting up when there was something secret in that area, or pressing L1 would give me a little glowing dot to show me where and what I could click on.
At times, I would lose sight of my real task and be taken in by helping others and their back stories. They seemed like very interesting people whose lore I would have loved to explore further. However, Jane's family needed this mystery solved. Why are they all dead? How was she so oblivious to the secrets that surrounded her family and their home? With the use of a secret lab, she is able to use a microscope and a testing kit to find matching paper/hair and see what poisons were in the foods she had collected along the way. Poison was definitely a popular choice of murder back then, and seeing it confirmed with the use of the lab was kind of cool.
Some of the items collected were accessed outside of the inventory and would remain at the top of your screen for easy access, one of them being a little cat that follows you throughout the game once you give it some milk. It was such a cute added feature, especially as the cat was part of the family too. Seeing that furry friend stick around even in death made me smile. However, I felt like the gameplay would feel awkward. I'm aware of how point-n-click games work, but on PS5, it was more awkward and slow to use the controls than it would be with a mouse. I eventually got used to how they worked once I had finished the game.
The wording used within the game may feel odd to some people, the game is based on the Victorian era so they typically wouldn't use the same English language we use in today's world. The gloomy music and atmosphere give the game that eerie and gloomy feel. There have been many deaths in a short amount of time, so it's understandable. Saying that players may struggle to pay attention, the constant going back and forth whilst listening to that music may make them bored. For me, I was enjoying the game and story too much to let it bother me.
Despite how slow it was to move the controls, I really enjoyed this game. Murder mysteries are one of my favourite types of genres, and I've not played one in a while.
Have a cosy day
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