Murder by Numbers – a puzzle game without grammar, violin or pixel, mixed with visual detective work in the style of a romantic novel. You can summarize the game by saying that you take a good dose of Pikross and mix it with Phoenix Wright and you get a whole new game.
The comparison with Phoenix Wright begins and ends in the category of graphic novels. There are no periods of in-depth research like the Nonari or Phoenix Wright games. Not a process like Dunganronpe or Phoenix Wright. There are the pixel puzzles and the story, and it’s beautiful in many ways.
The cycle of the game is simple. There’s a riddle to be solved. You explore by scanning the scene (you have a radar mechanism that tells you where to go). If you find something, you’ll be thrown into a pixel-puzzle game that you solve and you’ll get the object. Wash and repeat until you’ve found all the items. Then we interview all available people. At this point, you’ll explore further and ask yourself more questions until you get to the point where the game asks you what’s going on – that you might not have any consequences.
Pixel puzzles come to you, both in the search for objects and in the conversation with people. They are not time-controlled and are presented easily (clicks are confirmed as good or bad) or stiff (pure pixel puzzle) with a help system (show errors and insert random blocks). Static score for each puzzle with small modifiers for difficulty and clues. At the end of the deal you will receive a score from F to S which will unlock various bonus puzzles known as SCOUT memory. If you play with ease and find most clues, you usually get an A grade.
There are two parts of the game I’d like to think about. Visual aspect of novelty and pixel puzzles.
Visual aspects of the novel, this game is absolutely STELLAR and should be played alone. The story is very, very well written. The characters are authentic, have the right reaction, the motives for what people do are well explained and there is almost no deus ex machina. Everything is well explained, the great art and the sound effects will fascinate you.
Pixel puzzles are another story. These are pixel puzzles that, if you like them, are great – they’re definitely great for you, and if you don’t, you can still read the story and have fun simply by scrolling with your mouse and filling in the picture automatically. The interface is great and the gray comes out as you fill the column little by little (so if it’s 2,3,2 and you place and mark 2 pixels, 2 will be gray).
My problem is that they get very boring at the end of the second chapter. In the end you just do 15×15 puzzles with nothing more, and they keep coming at you to make history. The puzzles also contain a lot, at least for me, of guessing the task of finding the right anchor point to start building. In the end the art is not that big and we rarely know what we are painting until it tells us what we are painting.
Fatigue is also real because the puzzles aren’t new and they don’t throw you bones around chapters 3 and 4. Columns and rows of 13 or more are rare, and the game does not challenge other pixel puzzles – there are no new features, no curve balls, nothing. It’s only 15×15 puzzles.
It is also difficult to understand that this art is a big part of the game.
This, of course, contrasts with the great story and the multiple word system, which allows you to make the game as difficult or easy as you like – so if the pixel puzzles start to get boring or you want to lower the difficulty of chewing it, it’s mandatory. There is no time limit, except for the hacker segments, so in general it’s not that bad.
The only thing I want to say to consumers is that if you don’t like Picross or if you’ve never tried pixel puzzles (look for the non-game and let them try it), then this game won’t be fun – not even with its super cool plot and 80s retro vibe. It is based on a pixel puzzle, and where the action takes place, Phoenix Wright’s detective work is secondary and not very deep.
There is no repetition and no risk of failure in the game, so it’s a very relaxing and soothing adventure with a great storyline – so if pixel puzzles are your thing, you should definitely buy it.
I played all four chapters and had a lot of fun – but on the other hand, I like pixel puzzles. If you do, try it. If not, see if you like puzzles before you get the game.
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