{"schemaVersion":1,"record":{"key":"mechanic/detective--family-24","type":"mechanic","id":"detective--family-24","lang":"en","title":"Choosing an accusation","summary":"The player decides whom to accuse of what, weighing the completeness of an explanation against the risk of error.","updatedAt":"2026-10-22","status":"active","url":"https://gamemechanics.pro/en/knowledge/mechanic/detective--family-24/","jsonUrl":"https://gamemechanics.pro/api/v1/knowledge/en/mechanic/detective--family-24.json","markdownUrl":"https://gamemechanics.pro/content/knowledge/en/mechanic/detective--family-24.md","aliases":[],"tags":["Detective games","Conclusions, argument and assistance"],"sourceIds":["source-de967651def38651","source-b21a556417974437","source-7fcfb2fbe5cf06c7"],"sources":[{"id":"source-de967651def38651","title":"Sherlock Holmes: Crimes and Punishments","url":"https://store.steampowered.com/app/241260/Sherlock_Holmes_Crimes_and_Punishments/","verifiedAt":null},{"id":"source-b21a556417974437","title":"Paradise Killer","url":"https://store.steampowered.com/app/1160220/Paradise_Killer/","verifiedAt":null},{"id":"source-7fcfb2fbe5cf06c7","title":"Paradise Killer","url":"https://store.steampowered.com/app/1160220/","verifiedAt":null}],"sections":[{"id":"principle","title":"How it works","body":"The player decides whom to accuse of what, weighing the completeness of an explanation against the risk of error."},{"id":"variants","title":"Variants","body":"### Variants\n\n<a id=\"family-24-branch-1\"></a>\n\n- Complete accusation: name the participant, action, means and supporting basis. <a id=\"family-24-variant-1\"></a>\n- Multiple incidents: assign responsibility to participants in different actions. <a id=\"family-24-variant-2\"></a>\n- Deferred conclusion: withhold a final answer until a significant alternative has been tested. <a id=\"family-24-variant-3\"></a>"},{"id":"example","title":"Design example","body":"A key transfer is established, but participation in a theft is not. The player chooses the accusation’s scope or keeps investigating."},{"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-24","title":"Detective games","url":"https://gamemechanics.pro/en/mechanics/detective/#family-24","categoryIds":["conclusions"]}],"supersededBy":[],"attributes":{"preview":{"updatedAt":"2026-10-22","title":"Choosing an accusation","description":"The player decides whom to accuse of what, weighing the completeness of an explanation against the risk of error.","image":{"src":"images/mechanics/narrative-paradise-killer-02.webp","width":1440,"height":810,"game":"Paradise Killer","sourceUrl":"https://store.steampowered.com/app/1160220/","originalUrl":"https://shared.akamai.steamstatic.com/store_item_assets/steam/apps/1160220/ss_0ee4deeaa33b45f96ac96499c4966577b3f2dd50.1920x1080.jpg?t=1776963586","credit":"Kaizen Game Works / Fellow Traveller","rights":"© Kaizen Game Works / Fellow Traveller. All rights reserved.","caption":"Case evidence before choosing an accusation","alt":"Case evidence before choosing an accusation","markers":[{"x":50,"y":60,"label":"The case file connects a suspect to relevant evidence"}]},"tips":["Distinguish choosing an accusation from automatically confirming its truth."],"examples":[{"title":"Paradise Killer","url":"https://store.steampowered.com/app/1160220/"}]}},"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"}}