---
key: mechanic/detective--family-06
type: mechanic
id: detective--family-06
lang: en
title: Interviews and question selection
summary: >-
  The player chooses conversation topics, asks for details and obtains new
  investigative leads.
updatedAt: '2026-10-22'
status: active
url: 'https://gamemechanics.pro/en/knowledge/mechanic/detective--family-06/'
jsonUrl: >-
  https://gamemechanics.pro/api/v1/knowledge/en/mechanic/detective--family-06.json
markdownUrl: >-
  https://gamemechanics.pro/content/knowledge/en/mechanic/detective--family-06.md
aliases: []
tags:
  - Detective games
  - Witnesses and information sources
sourceIds:
  - source-3674ef77efed76d0
  - source-de967651def38651
  - source-5826b1f3d00cd60a
sources:
  - 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-de967651def38651
    title: 'Sherlock Holmes: Crimes and Punishments'
    url: >-
      https://store.steampowered.com/app/241260/Sherlock_Holmes_Crimes_and_Punishments/
    verifiedAt: null
  - id: source-5826b1f3d00cd60a
    title: Shadows of Doubt
    url: 'https://store.steampowered.com/app/986130/'
    verifiedAt: null
relations: []
placements:
  - catalogId: detective
    id: family-06
    title: Detective games
    url: 'https://gamemechanics.pro/en/mechanics/detective/#family-06'
    categoryIds:
      - testimony
supersededBy: []
attributes:
  preview:
    updatedAt: '2026-10-22'
    title: Interviews and question selection
    description: >-
      The player chooses conversation topics, asks for details and obtains new
      investigative leads.
    image:
      src: images/mechanics/narrative-shadows-doubt-02.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_36346e86ecfb3d72d2280f83bdbd5b9cfdb07385.1920x1080.jpg?t=1787842717
      credit: ColePowered Games / Fireshine Games
      rights: © ColePowered Games / Fireshine Games. All rights reserved.
      caption: Choosing a question while speaking to a citizen
      alt: Choosing a question while speaking to a citizen
      markers:
        - x: 67
          'y': 73
          label: Ask about identity or request fingerprints
    tips:
      - Connect each question to a specific information gap.
    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
---
# Interviews and question selection

id: detective--family-06
type: mechanic
key: mechanic/detective--family-06
lang: en
status: active
url: https://gamemechanics.pro/en/knowledge/mechanic/detective--family-06/

The player chooses conversation topics, asks for details and obtains new investigative leads.

## At a glance

![Choosing a question while speaking to a citizen](https://gamemechanics.pro/images/mechanics/narrative-shadows-doubt-02.webp)

[Shadows of Doubt](https://store.steampowered.com/app/986130/) · © ColePowered Games / Fireshine Games. All rights reserved.

1. Ask about identity or request fingerprints

- Connect each question to a specific information gap.

- [Shadows of Doubt](https://store.steampowered.com/app/986130/)

## How it works

The player chooses conversation topics, asks for details and obtains new investigative leads.

## Variants

### Variants

<a id="family-06-branch-1"></a>

- Flexible topic order: choose which event or person to ask about first. <a id="family-06-variant-1"></a>
- Evidence-led question: show an object or record and ask for a specific explanation. <a id="family-06-variant-2"></a>
- Follow-up interview: return with new facts and check whether the answer changes. <a id="family-06-variant-3"></a>

## Design example

Finding a ticket unlocks a question about a journey. The answer reveals a witness at another station.

## Context and limits

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.

## Connected materials


## Sources and 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.

- [Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney – Dual Destinies](https://www.nintendo.com/hk/3ds/aceattorney_dualdestinies/pdf/Ace_Attorney_5_OPSeet_en_R15.pdf) (id: source-3674ef77efed76d0)
- [Sherlock Holmes: Crimes and Punishments](https://store.steampowered.com/app/241260/Sherlock_Holmes_Crimes_and_Punishments/) (id: source-de967651def38651)
- [Shadows of Doubt](https://store.steampowered.com/app/986130/) (id: source-5826b1f3d00cd60a)

CC-BY-4.0 · gamemechanics.pro contributors