---
id: detective
status: active
supersededBy: []
lang: en
title: Detective games
description: >-
  Evidence, testimony, alibis, event reconstruction, hypothesis testing and
  accusation. Game examples and prototype checks.
intro: >-
  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.
updatedAt: '2026-10-20'
sources:
  - title: The Case of the Golden Idol
    url: 'https://www.thegoldenidol.com/the-case-of-the-golden-idol/'
    description: >-
      Scene observation, event reconstruction, suspects, motives and weapons.
      Official description by Playstack and Color Gray Games.
  - title: Return of the Obra Dinn
    url: 'https://store.steampowered.com/app/653530/Return_of_the_Obra_Dinn/'
    description: >-
      Exploration and logical deduction through frozen scenes of the past.
      Description by developer Lucas Pope and publisher 3909.
  - title: Her Story
    url: 'https://playism.com/en/game/her-story/'
    description: >-
      Searching interview clips by spoken words and reconstructing a nonlinear
      story. Official PLAYISM page.
  - title: 'Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney – Dual Destinies'
    url: >-
      https://www.nintendo.com/hk/3ds/aceattorney_dualdestinies/pdf/Ace_Attorney_5_OPSeet_en_R15.pdf
    description: >-
      Capcom manual: examination, conversation, pressing testimony and
      presenting contradictory evidence. Describes fictional courtroom rules.
  - title: 'Sherlock Holmes: Crimes and Punishments'
    url: >-
      https://store.steampowered.com/app/241260/Sherlock_Holmes_Crimes_and_Punishments/
    description: >-
      Frogwares description: choosing investigative leads, questioning suspects,
      drawing conclusions and deciding their fate.
  - title: Shadows of Doubt
    url: 'https://fireshinegames.co.uk/games/shadows-of-doubt/'
    description: >-
      Fireshine Games description: tailing, stealth, documents, citizen routines
      and procedural city design.
  - title: Unheard – Voices of Crime
    url: 'https://store.steampowered.com/app/942970/Unheard_Voices_of_Crime/'
    description: >-
      NEXT Studios description: listening to past events, matching names to
      voices and moving between simultaneous conversations.
  - title: Paradise Killer
    url: 'https://store.steampowered.com/app/1160220/Paradise_Killer/'
    description: >-
      Kaizen Game Works and Fellow Traveller description: free investigation,
      choosing whom to accuse and arguing an interpretation at trial.
  - title: Outer Wilds
    url: 'https://www.mobiusdigitalgames.com/outer-wilds.html'
    description: >-
      Mobius Digital describes exploring a changing world in a time loop. This
      is a neighboring-genre example rather than a crime detective game.
counts:
  families: 32
  branches: 32
  variants: 96
url: 'https://gamemechanics.pro/en/mechanics/detective/'
markdownUrl: 'https://gamemechanics.pro/content/mechanics/en/detective.md'
license: CC-BY-4.0
codeLicense: MIT
attribution: gamemechanics.pro contributors
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.
---
# Detective games

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.

## Finding and examining evidence

<a id="evidence"></a>

### 1. Crime-scene observation

<a id="family-01"></a>
id: family-01
canonicalId: detective--family-01
url: https://gamemechanics.pro/en/mechanics/detective/#family-01

The player selects significant environmental details and separates observed facts from possible explanations.

#### Variants

<a id="family-01-branch-1"></a>
- Anomaly search: notice an object or trace that does not fit the location’s usual state. <a id="family-01-variant-1"></a>
- State comparison: compare the scene before and after an event to isolate meaningful changes. <a id="family-01-variant-2"></a>
- Viewpoint selection: move around a scene or inspect a detail to expose an obscured feature. <a id="family-01-variant-3"></a>

Design example: A window is broken, but the glass lies outside. The player records its position before choosing an explanation.

- [The Case of the Golden Idol](https://www.thegoldenidol.com/the-case-of-the-golden-idol/)
- [Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney – Dual Destinies](https://www.nintendo.com/hk/3ds/aceattorney_dualdestinies/pdf/Ace_Attorney_5_OPSeet_en_R15.pdf)

### 2. Evidence collection and provenance

<a id="family-03"></a>
id: family-03
canonicalId: detective--family-03
url: https://gamemechanics.pro/en/mechanics/detective/#family-03

The player preserves a finding with its location, time and collection method so its significance can be checked later.

#### Variants

<a id="family-03-branch-1"></a>
- Discovery context: record where, when and beside what an object was found. <a id="family-03-variant-1"></a>
- State preservation: photograph a scene before moving an object when movement alters available information. <a id="family-03-variant-2"></a>
- Provenance check: reconstruct who supplied evidence and whether substitution was possible within the case rules. <a id="family-03-variant-3"></a>

Design example: Two identical keys enter the notebook with different discovery locations. Swapping those records changes the conclusion.


### 3. Trace and sample comparison

<a id="family-04"></a>
id: family-04
canonicalId: detective--family-04
url: https://gamemechanics.pro/en/mechanics/detective/#family-04

The player checks similarities and differences between a trace and candidate samples. A matching property alone does not establish guilt.

#### Variants

<a id="family-04-branch-1"></a>
- Shape matching: compare an impression, tear or fragment with possible sources. <a id="family-04-variant-1"></a>
- Composition matching: combine fictional analysis results for a material, liquid or coating. <a id="family-04-variant-2"></a>
- Inference limits: determine whom a match excludes and which alternatives remain open. <a id="family-04-variant-3"></a>

Design example: A sole pattern matches three characters’ work shoes. Stride length narrows the field but still needs verification.


### 4. Instrument-assisted inspection

<a id="family-02"></a>
id: family-02
canonicalId: detective--family-02
url: https://gamemechanics.pro/en/mechanics/detective/#family-02

A tool reveals a new property; the player decides what to inspect and how to interpret the result.

#### Variants

<a id="family-02-branch-1"></a>
- Tool selection: choose suitable magnification, lighting or scanning for a particular object. <a id="family-02-variant-1"></a>
- Observation tuning: adjust focus, range or angle until a useful signal becomes distinguishable. <a id="family-02-variant-2"></a>
- Reading interpretation: compare a measurement with a known sample and account for the fictional instrument’s uncertainty. <a id="family-02-variant-3"></a>

Design example: Ultraviolet light reveals an erased mark on an envelope, linking the letter to a particular paper batch.


### 5. Documents, records and ciphers

<a id="family-05"></a>
id: family-05
canonicalId: detective--family-05
url: https://gamemechanics.pro/en/mechanics/detective/#family-05

The player extracts information from character-created records and checks their authorship, meaning and reliability.

#### Variants

<a id="family-05-branch-1"></a>
- Cross-reading: connect a letter, timetable and transaction log through a shared detail. <a id="family-05-variant-1"></a>
- Forgery detection: spot a date, phrase or identifier that conflicts with established world rules. <a id="family-05-variant-2"></a>
- Message decoding: infer a code from an available key and use it to obtain a new lead. <a id="family-05-variant-3"></a>

Design example: A delivery log lists a new address. An older receipt assigns that address to a different owner.

- [Shadows of Doubt](https://fireshinegames.co.uk/games/shadows-of-doubt/)

## Hypotheses and reasoning tests

<a id="reasoning"></a>

### 6. Connecting clues and organizing a case

<a id="family-17"></a>
id: family-17
canonicalId: detective--family-17
url: https://gamemechanics.pro/en/mechanics/detective/#family-17

The player organizes scattered information while preserving the difference between a fact and a proposed connection.

#### Variants

<a id="family-17-branch-1"></a>
- Connection board: link people, places and evidence while specifying what each connection means. <a id="family-17-variant-1"></a>
- Source-linked notebook: return from a note to the original scene, document or statement. <a id="family-17-variant-2"></a>
- Revising the model: remove an unsupported connection after discovering a new fact. <a id="family-17-variant-3"></a>

Design example: A letter and a payment share a name. The player marks the connection as a hypothesis until checking the date.


### 7. Competing hypotheses

<a id="family-18"></a>
id: family-18
canonicalId: detective--family-18
url: https://gamemechanics.pro/en/mechanics/detective/#family-18

The player proposes several explanations and looks for an observation that can distinguish between them.

#### Variants

<a id="family-18-branch-1"></a>
- Alternative interpretations: give one fact several explanations and keep them as alternatives. <a id="family-18-variant-1"></a>
- Hypothesis prediction: state what additional evidence should exist if a hypothesis is correct. <a id="family-18-variant-2"></a>
- Updating confidence: weaken or strengthen a hypothesis after obtaining new independent information. <a id="family-18-variant-3"></a>

Design example: A pass may have been lost by its owner or taken by someone else. Checking its last use distinguishes those hypotheses.


### 8. Experimental hypothesis testing

<a id="family-20"></a>
id: family-20
canonicalId: detective--family-20
url: https://gamemechanics.pro/en/mechanics/detective/#family-20

The player chooses a test capable of refuting an assumption and compares its result with a prediction.

#### Variants

<a id="family-20-branch-1"></a>
- Reproducing conditions: recreate the event’s significant conditions in a safe fictional model. <a id="family-20-variant-1"></a>
- Changing one variable: alter a single factor and check whether it explains the different outcome. <a id="family-20-variant-2"></a>
- Discriminating test: choose an experiment for which competing hypotheses predict different outcomes. <a id="family-20-variant-3"></a>

Design example: The player tests whether a bell can be heard from the next room with the door open and closed, keeping other conditions fixed.


### 9. Eliminating candidates

<a id="family-19"></a>
id: family-19
canonicalId: detective--family-19
url: https://gamemechanics.pro/en/mechanics/detective/#family-19

The player narrows possible answers through compatible constraints and keeps the reason for every elimination.

#### Variants

<a id="family-19-branch-1"></a>
- Logic grid: match people, objects and places against possible and impossible combinations. <a id="family-19-variant-1"></a>
- Constraint intersection: combine access, timing and the physical possibility of an action. <a id="family-19-variant-2"></a>
- Negative evidence: use a missing expected trace only when the reliability of detecting it is established. <a id="family-19-variant-3"></a>

Design example: Only two people had warehouse access, but one could not arrive in time. The other still needs to be linked to the event.


### 10. Motive, means and opportunity

<a id="family-21"></a>
id: family-21
canonicalId: detective--family-21
url: https://gamemechanics.pro/en/mechanics/detective/#family-21

The player checks different aspects of a suspect’s involvement. A motive or access to an item alone does not establish the connection.

#### Variants

<a id="family-21-branch-1"></a>
- Benefit and conflict: establish which goals and relationships could make an action purposeful. <a id="family-21-variant-1"></a>
- Access to means: check who could obtain the necessary object, knowledge or authority. <a id="family-21-variant-2"></a>
- Opportunity to act: compare location and access with the particular time of the event. <a id="family-21-variant-3"></a>

Design example: An heir benefits from a missing will but lacked access to the safe. The player looks for an intermediary or revises the hypothesis.

- [The Case of the Golden Idol](https://www.thegoldenidol.com/the-case-of-the-golden-idol/)

### 11. Inferring hidden rules

<a id="family-22"></a>
id: family-22
canonicalId: detective--family-22
url: https://gamemechanics.pro/en/mechanics/detective/#family-22

In a speculative or systemic mystery, the player first discovers world rules and then uses them to explain an event.

#### Variants

<a id="family-22-branch-1"></a>
- Induction from examples: find a rule that explains several observations. <a id="family-22-variant-1"></a>
- Counterexample: test a rule on a new case and refine its limits. <a id="family-22-variant-2"></a>
- Knowledge as a key: apply an understood rule to reach information without acquiring a new item. <a id="family-22-variant-3"></a>

Design example: A device marks only one kind of material. Several demonstrations establish whether it could have produced a discovered trace.


## Witnesses and information sources

<a id="testimony"></a>

### 12. Interviews and question selection

<a id="family-06"></a>
id: family-06
canonicalId: detective--family-06
url: https://gamemechanics.pro/en/mechanics/detective/#family-06

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

#### 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.

- [Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney – Dual Destinies](https://www.nintendo.com/hk/3ds/aceattorney_dualdestinies/pdf/Ace_Attorney_5_OPSeet_en_R15.pdf)
- [Sherlock Holmes: Crimes and Punishments](https://store.steampowered.com/app/241260/Sherlock_Holmes_Crimes_and_Punishments/)

### 13. Contradictions in testimony

<a id="family-07"></a>
id: family-07
canonicalId: detective--family-07
url: https://gamemechanics.pro/en/mechanics/detective/#family-07

The player compares a specific statement with an independent fact and explains why they cannot both hold.

#### Variants

<a id="family-07-branch-1"></a>
- Fact versus statement: present evidence against the particular claim it contradicts. <a id="family-07-variant-1"></a>
- Two accounts: compare one person’s earlier and later testimony. <a id="family-07-variant-2"></a>
- Clarifying a claim: ask a follow-up question that turns a vague assertion into a testable statement. <a id="family-07-variant-3"></a>

Design example: A witness claims to have seen a coat’s color in total darkness. The player checks the lighting and challenges the mismatch.

- [Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney – Dual Destinies](https://www.nintendo.com/hk/3ds/aceattorney_dualdestinies/pdf/Ace_Attorney_5_OPSeet_en_R15.pdf)

### 14. Information-database search

<a id="family-09"></a>
id: family-09
canonicalId: detective--family-09
url: https://gamemechanics.pro/en/mechanics/detective/#family-09

A discovered word, name or identifier becomes a query that reveals previously unknown parts of the case.

#### Variants

<a id="family-09-branch-1"></a>
- Keyword search: use a phrase heard in one recording to find a related record. <a id="family-09-variant-1"></a>
- Identifier chain: move from an address to an organization, then to connected people. <a id="family-09-variant-2"></a>
- Query refinement: change spelling, period or category when the initial results are incomplete. <a id="family-09-variant-3"></a>

Design example: An unusual nickname appears in a recording. Searching for it finds an interview missed by a surname query.

- [Her Story](https://playism.com/en/game/her-story/)

### 15. Trust and social access

<a id="family-08"></a>
id: family-08
canonicalId: detective--family-08
url: https://gamemechanics.pro/en/mechanics/detective/#family-08

Relationships affect a character’s willingness to share information. Confident behavior alone does not prove truthfulness.

#### Variants

<a id="family-08-branch-1"></a>
- Building trust: keep a promise or establish authority to open a topic. <a id="family-08-variant-1"></a>
- Choosing an approach: seek information through empathy, exchanged favors or a formal request. <a id="family-08-variant-2"></a>
- Cost of pressure: consider whether an aggressive question will close off later access to a witness. <a id="family-08-variant-3"></a>

Design example: A witness will identify a visitor if the player first finds a safe way to contact them.


### 16. Surveillance and behavioral observation

<a id="family-10"></a>
id: family-10
canonicalId: detective--family-10
url: https://gamemechanics.pro/en/mechanics/detective/#family-10

The player observes a character’s actions in the world and compares them with the claimed routine.

#### Variants

<a id="family-10-branch-1"></a>
- Tailing a target: maintain visual contact without arousing suspicion under the game’s rules. <a id="family-10-variant-1"></a>
- Scheduled observation: reach a location when a recurring event takes place. <a id="family-10-variant-2"></a>
- Record comparison: check camera footage or an entry log against a character’s account. <a id="family-10-variant-3"></a>

Design example: A courier leaves the work route every evening. The player chooses a vantage point to discover the meeting place.

- [Shadows of Doubt](https://fireshinegames.co.uk/games/shadows-of-doubt/)

## Reconstructing events

<a id="reconstruction"></a>

### 17. Timelines and alibis

<a id="family-12"></a>
id: family-12
canonicalId: detective--family-12
url: https://gamemechanics.pro/en/mechanics/detective/#family-12

The player establishes event order and duration, then checks whether claimed actions can coexist.

#### Variants

<a id="family-12-branch-1"></a>
- Event ordering: arrange episodes using timestamps and causal constraints. <a id="family-12-variant-1"></a>
- Alibi checking: compare available time, travel duration and independent observations. <a id="family-12-variant-2"></a>
- Clock synchronization: identify time offsets between records before constructing a shared timeline. <a id="family-12-variant-3"></a>

Design example: Travel between two stations takes ten minutes. Timestamps four minutes apart do not support the claimed route.


### 18. Scene-action reconstruction

<a id="family-14"></a>
id: family-14
canonicalId: detective--family-14
url: https://gamemechanics.pro/en/mechanics/detective/#family-14

The player reconstructs a sequence of actions from participant positions and traces left behind.

#### Variants

<a id="family-14-branch-1"></a>
- Participant roles: assign who acted, who observed and who arrived later. <a id="family-14-variant-1"></a>
- Spatial arrangement: position people and objects to explain the traces. <a id="family-14-variant-2"></a>
- Sequence testing: replay a proposed order and locate a step incompatible with the evidence. <a id="family-14-variant-3"></a>

Design example: An open drawer, a wet footprint and a chair’s position suggest an order of entry into the room.

- [The Case of the Golden Idol](https://www.thegoldenidol.com/the-case-of-the-golden-idol/)
- [Return of the Obra Dinn](https://store.steampowered.com/app/653530/Return_of_the_Obra_Dinn/)

### 19. Cause, mechanism and staging

<a id="family-15"></a>
id: family-15
canonicalId: detective--family-15
url: https://gamemechanics.pro/en/mechanics/detective/#family-15

The player separates the observed outcome from its mechanism and later attempts to conceal it.

#### Variants

<a id="family-15-branch-1"></a>
- Event mechanism: connect an action, means and outcome in a testable causal chain. <a id="family-15-variant-1"></a>
- Primary and secondary traces: distinguish the event’s traces from cleanup, assistance or substitution. <a id="family-15-variant-2"></a>
- Exposing staging: identify a fact that the staged explanation cannot account for. <a id="family-15-variant-3"></a>

Design example: A fall appears accidental, but the railing’s position does not explain a tool mark. Another hypothesis is needed.

- [The Case of the Golden Idol](https://www.thegoldenidol.com/the-case-of-the-golden-idol/)

### 20. Identity deduction

<a id="family-11"></a>
id: family-11
canonicalId: detective--family-11
url: https://gamemechanics.pro/en/mechanics/detective/#family-11

The player connects an unknown participant to a name or role using several independent clues.

#### Variants

<a id="family-11-branch-1"></a>
- Face and name: connect a portrait, signature, form of address and participant list. <a id="family-11-variant-1"></a>
- Voice and person: associate a spoken line with a name through conversational context. <a id="family-11-variant-2"></a>
- Alias and role: establish that two records describe one person, or distinguish people with the same name. <a id="family-11-variant-3"></a>

Design example: A character wears a work badge and is addressed by job title. Together these clues narrow the list of names.

- [The Case of the Golden Idol](https://www.thegoldenidol.com/the-case-of-the-golden-idol/)
- [Unheard – Voices of Crime](https://store.steampowered.com/app/942970/Unheard_Voices_of_Crime/)

### 21. Routes and spatial constraints

<a id="family-13"></a>
id: family-13
canonicalId: detective--family-13
url: https://gamemechanics.pro/en/mechanics/detective/#family-13

The player checks who could move, see, hear or transfer an object within the location’s spatial constraints.

#### Variants

<a id="family-13-branch-1"></a>
- Available path: reconstruct a route using doors, passages and their opening times. <a id="family-13-variant-1"></a>
- Line of sight: check whether an observer could have seen the claimed detail. <a id="family-13-variant-2"></a>
- Object transfer: establish a possible chain of movement for a key, parcel or other item. <a id="family-13-variant-3"></a>

Design example: The courtyard entrance cannot be seen from the study. A witness’s knowledge requires another viewpoint or a secondhand account.


### 22. Audio-based investigation

<a id="family-16"></a>
id: family-16
canonicalId: detective--family-16
url: https://gamemechanics.pro/en/mechanics/detective/#family-16

The player extracts information from voices, background events and simultaneous conversations.

#### Variants

<a id="family-16-branch-1"></a>
- Parallel listening: replay a shared interval while following another conversation. <a id="family-16-variant-1"></a>
- Sound event: connect a ring, footsteps or a closing door to an action on the timeline. <a id="family-16-variant-2"></a>
- Audibility context: determine where a participant could hear a line and what they could not know. <a id="family-16-variant-3"></a>

Design example: The same clock strike is audible in two conversations. It aligns the recordings and helps check a participant’s movement.

- [Unheard – Voices of Crime](https://store.steampowered.com/app/942970/Unheard_Voices_of_Crime/)

## Conclusions, argument and assistance

<a id="conclusions"></a>

### 23. Expressing a checkable conclusion

<a id="family-23"></a>
id: family-23
canonicalId: detective--family-23
url: https://gamemechanics.pro/en/mechanics/detective/#family-23

The player translates understanding into an answer the game can check. The answer format determines which reasoning can be expressed.

#### Variants

<a id="family-23-branch-1"></a>
- Statement completion: insert names, actions and objects into a coherent explanation. <a id="family-23-variant-1"></a>
- Role assignment: assign participants to functions within the event. <a id="family-23-variant-2"></a>
- Open answer with support: state a conclusion and select the facts used to evaluate it. <a id="family-23-variant-3"></a>

Design example: The player completes “who passed what to whom” and then selects evidence for each connection.


### 24. Feedback and hints

<a id="family-27"></a>
id: family-27
canonicalId: detective--family-27
url: https://gamemechanics.pro/en/mechanics/detective/#family-27

These systems support reasoning. Their design affects whether players seek explanations or probe answers through interface feedback.

#### Variants

<a id="family-27-branch-1"></a>
- Graduated hint: move from a line of thought to a specific connection when requested. <a id="family-27-variant-1"></a>
- Batch validation: confirm a group of conclusions together to reduce the usefulness of probing one field. <a id="family-27-variant-2"></a>
- Error explanation: reveal a missed constraint after an attempt while allowing the player to revise the hypothesis. <a id="family-27-variant-3"></a>

Design example: The first hint recalls a timing conflict, the second points to a timetable, and the third explains the required comparison.


### 25. Choosing an accusation

<a id="family-24"></a>
id: family-24
canonicalId: detective--family-24
url: https://gamemechanics.pro/en/mechanics/detective/#family-24

The player decides whom to accuse of what, weighing the completeness of an explanation against the risk of error.

#### Variants

<a id="family-24-branch-1"></a>
- Complete accusation: name the participant, action, means and supporting basis. <a id="family-24-variant-1"></a>
- Multiple incidents: assign responsibility to participants in different actions. <a id="family-24-variant-2"></a>
- Deferred conclusion: withhold a final answer until a significant alternative has been tested. <a id="family-24-variant-3"></a>

Design example: A key transfer is established, but participation in a theft is not. The player chooses the accusation’s scope or keeps investigating.

- [Sherlock Holmes: Crimes and Punishments](https://store.steampowered.com/app/241260/Sherlock_Holmes_Crimes_and_Punishments/)
- [Paradise Killer](https://store.steampowered.com/app/1160220/Paradise_Killer/)

### 26. Reporting and explaining events

<a id="family-26"></a>
id: family-26
canonicalId: detective--family-26
url: https://gamemechanics.pro/en/mechanics/detective/#family-26

The player combines findings into a coherent account and separates established facts from likely and unknown claims.

#### Variants

<a id="family-26-branch-1"></a>
- Account assembly: arrange established events into an explanatory sequence. <a id="family-26-variant-1"></a>
- Source support: attach a supporting record to each claim. <a id="family-26-variant-2"></a>
- Knowledge limits: mark unresolved details and confidence without invented precision. <a id="family-26-variant-3"></a>

Design example: A report establishes the route and parcel substitution, while the organizer remains unknown. The game preserves that gap explicitly.


### 27. Defending a case in debate or trial

<a id="family-25"></a>
id: family-25
canonicalId: detective--family-25
url: https://gamemechanics.pro/en/mechanics/detective/#family-25

The player answers objections, presents relevant evidence and refines the argument supporting a case.

#### Variants

<a id="family-25-branch-1"></a>
- Evidence for a claim: select material that supports the particular disputed assertion. <a id="family-25-variant-1"></a>
- Answering an objection: identify a hidden assumption in an opponent’s argument. <a id="family-25-variant-2"></a>
- Proof chain: justify the intermediate steps needed for the final conclusion. <a id="family-25-variant-3"></a>

Design example: An opponent cites an entry log. The player explains why it establishes pass use but not yet the visitor’s identity.

- [Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney – Dual Destinies](https://www.nintendo.com/hk/3ds/aceattorney_dualdestinies/pdf/Ace_Attorney_5_OPSeet_en_R15.pdf)
- [Paradise Killer](https://store.steampowered.com/app/1160220/Paradise_Killer/)

## Investigation structure

<a id="structure"></a>

### 28. Leads and investigation order

<a id="family-28"></a>
id: family-28
canonicalId: detective--family-28
url: https://gamemechanics.pro/en/mechanics/detective/#family-28

Case structure determines which questions and locations are currently available and how new information opens further actions.

#### Variants

<a id="family-28-branch-1"></a>
- Multiple entry points: reveal an important lead through different independent clues. <a id="family-28-variant-1"></a>
- Knowledge unlocks a topic: open a question or location after a meaningful discovery. <a id="family-28-variant-2"></a>
- Player-chosen stopping point: let the player decide when there is enough support to conclude. <a id="family-28-variant-3"></a>

Design example: An address can be learned from a receipt or a neighbor. Both paths lead to the archive but reveal different context.

- [Paradise Killer](https://store.steampowered.com/app/1160220/Paradise_Killer/)
- [Sherlock Holmes: Crimes and Punishments](https://store.steampowered.com/app/241260/Sherlock_Holmes_Crimes_and_Punishments/)

### 29. Time, schedules and repetition

<a id="family-29"></a>
id: family-29
canonicalId: detective--family-29
url: https://gamemechanics.pro/en/mechanics/detective/#family-29

A changing world sets conditions for obtaining information. Observation and reading can have different costs in game time.

#### Variants

<a id="family-29-branch-1"></a>
- Event window: choose a visit time while a person or required location state is available. <a id="family-29-variant-1"></a>
- Case deadline: allocate actions before a deadline while knowing which actions advance game time. <a id="family-29-variant-2"></a>
- Time loop: investigate events again while retaining knowledge from earlier observations. <a id="family-29-variant-3"></a>

Design example: In one loop the player learns a meeting time; in the next they choose another vantage point and check a participant.

- [Shadows of Doubt](https://fireshinegames.co.uk/games/shadows-of-doubt/)
- [Outer Wilds](https://www.mobiusdigitalgames.com/outer-wilds.html)

### 30. Ethical decisions and consequences

<a id="family-31"></a>
id: family-31
canonicalId: detective--family-31
url: https://gamemechanics.pro/en/mechanics/detective/#family-31

After establishing facts, the player chooses an action. A hypothesis’s truth and a decision’s moral evaluation remain distinct.

#### Variants

<a id="family-31-branch-1"></a>
- Finding and punishment: separate establishing involvement from deciding a character’s fate. <a id="family-31-variant-1"></a>
- Disclosure: choose whom to tell an established fact and what context to provide. <a id="family-31-variant-2"></a>
- Lasting consequences: show how a decision changes relationships and subsequent cases. <a id="family-31-variant-3"></a>

Design example: The player establishes who concealed a document and decides how to report it, considering the consequences for a witness.

- [Sherlock Holmes: Crimes and Punishments](https://store.steampowered.com/app/241260/Sherlock_Holmes_Crimes_and_Punishments/)
- [Paradise Killer](https://store.steampowered.com/app/1160220/Paradise_Killer/)

### 31. Limited resources and access risk

<a id="family-30"></a>
id: family-30
canonicalId: detective--family-30
url: https://gamemechanics.pro/en/mechanics/detective/#family-30

Action costs make players choose which uncertainty to reduce first. This additional layer is not necessary in every detective game.

#### Variants

<a id="family-30-branch-1"></a>
- Testing budget: spend a limited resource on the most informative query or analysis. <a id="family-30-variant-1"></a>
- Risky access: obtain information covertly while accounting for guards and possible loss of access. <a id="family-30-variant-2"></a>
- Cost of error: define the consequences of an unsupported attempt and whether play can continue afterward. <a id="family-30-variant-3"></a>

Design example: The budget permits one of two analyses. The player chooses the one that distinguishes the remaining hypotheses.

- [Shadows of Doubt](https://fireshinegames.co.uk/games/shadows-of-doubt/)
- [Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney – Dual Destinies](https://www.nintendo.com/hk/3ds/aceattorney_dualdestinies/pdf/Ace_Attorney_5_OPSeet_en_R15.pdf)

### 32. Procedural cases and a larger mystery

<a id="family-32"></a>
id: family-32
canonicalId: detective--family-32
url: https://gamemechanics.pro/en/mechanics/detective/#family-32

These are ways to organize multiple investigations. Each case needs a checkable causal structure as well as new names.

#### Variants

<a id="family-32-branch-1"></a>
- Participant variation: vary roles, locations and routines while keeping the clues consistent. <a id="family-32-variant-1"></a>
- Larger pattern: discover a connection between standalone cases through a recurring feature. <a id="family-32-variant-2"></a>
- Solvability checking: confirm that generated information distinguishes the solution from alternatives. <a id="family-32-variant-3"></a>

Design example: A generator first defines an event and a participant’s route, then creates compatible traces and checks whether the solution remains inferable.

- [Shadows of Doubt](https://fireshinegames.co.uk/games/shadows-of-doubt/)
- [The Case of the Golden Idol](https://www.thegoldenidol.com/the-case-of-the-golden-idol/)

## The investigation loop

Detective play comes from working with information. Stealth, dialogue, minigames or an evidence board can support this loop, but do not guarantee reasoning on their own.

### Observation → hypothesis → test

Obtain a fact, propose an explanation, predict another clue, test it and revise the conclusion. If the game supplies the answer after every discovery, this loop collapses into collecting markers.

### Who makes the inference

In one format the player discovers a connection and the interface records the answer. In another the player selects a prepared connection voiced by the character. Both are valid, but give the player different responsibility for reasoning.

### Classification boundaries

This is a working map rather than an exhaustive genre standard. Families overlap. Later groups include answer formats, assistance and progression structures; choose each system to support the investigation’s core activity.

## Making an investigation fair

These are design recommendations for checking a prototype, not findings from a conducted study or mandatory rules for every game.

### Available support

Before a required conclusion, make the facts needed to infer it available. An important clue can benefit from an independent supporting lead; the number of highlights alone does not measure clarity.

### Fact and interpretation

A notebook should distinguish “the record shows pass use” from “the pass owner was present.” Preserve the source, observation conditions and possibility of error when the case depends on them.

### Answer meaning

Check that the game does not reject valid reasoning because of a synonym, word order or irrelevant phrasing. For free input, define accepted answers and how rejection is explained.

### Alternatives and red herrings

A red herring needs an intelligible explanation, and an important alternative must be testable. Do not replace missing information with a hidden fact introduced only in the final monologue.

### Information accessibility

Do not encode a required clue only through color, tiny text or a single sound. For audio cases provide replay, isolated listening and a text alternative while preserving the matching task itself.

### Behavioral cues

Anxiety and evasiveness can motivate a follow-up question but need not imply lying. If the game uses a fictional truth indicator, teach its rule in advance and distinguish it from real human behavior.

## What to check in a playtest

These are prompts for a future evaluation. They do not describe results already obtained.

### Support graph

For each required conclusion, list source facts and intermediate steps. Check that each fact is available before answering and that removing one optional finding does not break the entire investigation.

### Understanding or probing

After an answer, ask the player to explain which facts excluded another hypothesis. Observe separately whether they found connections or merely changed fields until the interface confirmed them.

### Locating difficulty

Distinguish an unnoticed clue, misunderstood text, missed inference and rejected answer. These problems need different fixes rather than one generic extra hint.

### Two languages and access methods

Check the same inferences in RU and EN: translation can accidentally reveal a character’s gender, timing or ambiguity. Complete required actions by keyboard and check text alternatives for audio clues.

### A repeatable case

For procedural variants, preserve the random seed and check different role assignments. Look for contradictory traces, missing required facts and unintentionally equivalent answers.

## Combinations for a small prototype

Every situation below is an illustrative design concept, not a description of a released game.

### A contained case

One room, a few participants, observation, two accounts and a timeline. The player names a participant and explains one contradiction. Start with paper cards and check whether the solution can be distinguished from the closest alternative.

### An archive investigation

A small document set, keyword search, aliases and a source-supported report. The central choice is which term to search next. All necessary names and keys must occur in available records.

### An audio case

One time interval, several rooms and conversations, voice matching and alibi checking. Add a shared sound cue and convenient replay of a chosen segment.

### An open accusation

Several investigative leads, two competing hypotheses and a voluntary transition to a hearing. Check separately what happened, what the player understood and what they could support with selected evidence.

## Examples from released games

Examples avoid case solutions. Primary sources listed below support the stated techniques rather than the entire classification.

### Observation and reconstruction

The Case of the Golden Idol connects scene inspection with identifying participants, motives and weapons. Return of the Obra Dinn centers on exploration and logical deduction through frozen scenes. They provide different presentations of material for reconstruction.

### Searching and listening

In Her Story the player enters words to find interview clips where they are spoken. In Unheard the player listens to simultaneous past conversations and matches names to voices. In both, information access order becomes part of investigation.

### Contradiction and accusation

The Ace Attorney: Dual Destinies manual describes pressing testimony and presenting evidence against a contradictory statement. Paradise Killer offers free investigation and defending a chosen accusation at trial. Persuasive in-game argument and established truth can have different criteria.

### Investigative choice and consequences

Sherlock Holmes: Crimes and Punishments allows choosing leads, questioning suspects and deciding an accused person’s fate. Shadows of Doubt uses citizen routines, tailing and a procedurally structured city as an environment for finding information.

### A neighboring-genre example

Outer Wilds explores a changing world’s mystery in a time loop. Repeated event observation and visit timing can inform detective design without classifying every exploration adventure as a crime investigation.

## Sources and examples

Sources support particular techniques or methodology, not every family variant. Design examples and mechanic combinations are illustrative.

- [The Case of the Golden Idol](https://www.thegoldenidol.com/the-case-of-the-golden-idol/): Scene observation, event reconstruction, suspects, motives and weapons. Official description by Playstack and Color Gray Games.
- [Return of the Obra Dinn](https://store.steampowered.com/app/653530/Return_of_the_Obra_Dinn/): Exploration and logical deduction through frozen scenes of the past. Description by developer Lucas Pope and publisher 3909.
- [Her Story](https://playism.com/en/game/her-story/): Searching interview clips by spoken words and reconstructing a nonlinear story. Official PLAYISM page.
- [Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney – Dual Destinies](https://www.nintendo.com/hk/3ds/aceattorney_dualdestinies/pdf/Ace_Attorney_5_OPSeet_en_R15.pdf): Capcom manual: examination, conversation, pressing testimony and presenting contradictory evidence. Describes fictional courtroom rules.
- [Sherlock Holmes: Crimes and Punishments](https://store.steampowered.com/app/241260/Sherlock_Holmes_Crimes_and_Punishments/): Frogwares description: choosing investigative leads, questioning suspects, drawing conclusions and deciding their fate.
- [Shadows of Doubt](https://fireshinegames.co.uk/games/shadows-of-doubt/): Fireshine Games description: tailing, stealth, documents, citizen routines and procedural city design.
- [Unheard – Voices of Crime](https://store.steampowered.com/app/942970/Unheard_Voices_of_Crime/): NEXT Studios description: listening to past events, matching names to voices and moving between simultaneous conversations.
- [Paradise Killer](https://store.steampowered.com/app/1160220/Paradise_Killer/): Kaizen Game Works and Fellow Traveller description: free investigation, choosing whom to accuse and arguing an interpretation at trial.
- [Outer Wilds](https://www.mobiusdigitalgames.com/outer-wilds.html): Mobius Digital describes exploring a changing world in a time loop. This is a neighboring-genre example rather than a crime detective game.