{"schemaVersion":1,"record":{"key":"mechanic/detective--family-01","type":"mechanic","id":"detective--family-01","lang":"en","title":"Crime-scene observation","summary":"The player selects significant environmental details and separates observed facts from possible explanations.","updatedAt":"2026-10-22","status":"active","url":"https://gamemechanics.pro/en/knowledge/mechanic/detective--family-01/","jsonUrl":"https://gamemechanics.pro/api/v1/knowledge/en/mechanic/detective--family-01.json","markdownUrl":"https://gamemechanics.pro/content/knowledge/en/mechanic/detective--family-01.md","aliases":[],"tags":["Detective games","Finding and examining evidence"],"sourceIds":["source-d44fa1b4a4c747d6","source-3674ef77efed76d0","source-5826b1f3d00cd60a"],"sources":[{"id":"source-d44fa1b4a4c747d6","title":"The Case of the Golden Idol","url":"https://www.thegoldenidol.com/the-case-of-the-golden-idol/","verifiedAt":null},{"id":"source-3674ef77efed76d0","title":"Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney – Dual Destinies","url":"https://www.nintendo.com/hk/3ds/aceattorney_dualdestinies/pdf/Ace_Attorney_5_OPSeet_en_R15.pdf","verifiedAt":null},{"id":"source-5826b1f3d00cd60a","title":"Shadows of Doubt","url":"https://store.steampowered.com/app/986130/","verifiedAt":null}],"sections":[{"id":"principle","title":"How it works","body":"The player selects significant environmental details and separates observed facts from possible explanations."},{"id":"variants","title":"Variants","body":"### Variants\n\n<a id=\"family-01-branch-1\"></a>\n\n- Anomaly search: notice an object or trace that does not fit the location’s usual state. <a id=\"family-01-variant-1\"></a>\n- State comparison: compare the scene before and after an event to isolate meaningful changes. <a id=\"family-01-variant-2\"></a>\n- Viewpoint selection: move around a scene or inspect a detail to expose an obscured feature. <a id=\"family-01-variant-3\"></a>"},{"id":"example","title":"Design example","body":"A window is broken, but the glass lies outside. The player records its position before choosing an explanation."},{"id":"context","title":"Context and limits","body":"A working map of detective design: 32 families and 96 variants. The core loop is to find information, form a hypothesis, test it and explain a conclusion. Answer formats, hints and investigation structure are treated separately. Families overlap, design examples are hypothetical, and released-game examples cite primary sources without revealing case solutions."}],"relations":[],"placements":[{"catalogId":"detective","id":"family-01","title":"Detective games","url":"https://gamemechanics.pro/en/mechanics/detective/#family-01","categoryIds":["evidence"]}],"supersededBy":[],"attributes":{"preview":{"updatedAt":"2026-10-22","title":"Crime-scene observation","description":"The player selects significant environmental details and separates observed facts from possible explanations.","image":{"src":"images/mechanics/narrative-shadows-doubt-08.webp","width":1440,"height":810,"game":"Shadows of Doubt","sourceUrl":"https://store.steampowered.com/app/986130/","originalUrl":"https://shared.akamai.steamstatic.com/store_item_assets/steam/apps/986130/ss_ec0da802062c35b2ba31229f3855bd9aabd05652.1920x1080.jpg?t=1787842717","credit":"ColePowered Games / Fireshine Games","rights":"© ColePowered Games / Fireshine Games. All rights reserved.","caption":"Examining a body and its surroundings","alt":"Examining a body and its surroundings","markers":[{"x":45,"y":71,"label":"The body and object positions provide observable facts"}]},"tips":["Distinguish a discovered detail from an explanation of how it appeared."],"examples":[{"title":"Shadows of Doubt","url":"https://store.steampowered.com/app/986130/"}]}},"endsAt":null,"provenance":"Original editorial taxonomy authored for gamemechanics.pro on 2026-10-19. Primary developer and publisher sources support specific released-game examples, not the whole classification; design examples are hypothetical.","license":"CC-BY-4.0","codeLicense":"MIT","attribution":"gamemechanics.pro contributors","catalogKey":"catalog/detective"}}