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This game was submitted to IndieCade 2017!

A Case of Distrust by Ben Wander

“A Case of Distrust is a narrative mystery from 1924 San Francisco. Uncover the truth as private detective Phyllis Malone in this historical 2D adventure game.”

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Gav played: A Case of Distrust

The game: A Case of Distrust by Ben Wander

Score: I liked it

Another mystery game! I played Her Story in between runs of A Case of Distrust, and I would choose the unusual gameplay of Her Story if I had to pick just one--but I’m very glad I didn’t have to!

The setting and play of A Case of Distrust are both pretty familiar territory. This is a noir game made by a dev who clearly loves noir and peppered it with fun tropes and references. You play as Phyllis Malone, ex-cop and private eye, working her way through a case of bootlegging, threats, and infidelity in 1924 San Francisco. I’ll be honest that this might land in “it’s a game!” territory if the art wasn’t absolutely gorgeous. You investigate spaces and interview suspects and allies in striking monochrome silhouette illustrations.

{Screenshot: a gambling room in shades of green. Text: “I continued up the stairs to find a similar scene as the day before, only Tiny Paul had been replaced by a young woman, idly playing with a deck of cards scattered across the billiards table.”}

So where does it fall flat? It doesn’t, really, except that its simplicity makes some problems really stand out. The case is, in my opinion, solid and interesting if not groundbreaking. I did not guess the murderer until late in the game, in a way that speaks more to skilled writing than to being blindsided. My three complaints are that the characters are on the predictable side, the historical context is incorporated in a somewhat clunky way, and that characters weren’t programmed to react in a natural way to some major clues.

Two examples in particular that stand out are a character who only reacts to one of two interchangeable pieces of evidence showing the relationship between two characters; and a damning clue about opportunity which I had no reason to think needed to be elaborated on to demonstrate to the suspect that they had been caught. When I first brought it up to them, they responded that they had no idea what I was talking about, and subsequently became angry with me--I was, after all, mid-accusation and had nothing to refute their claimed ignorance. When I later found the additional detail and repeated the accusation, they reacted calmly, as if they had not been asked about it before and had no idea it was incriminating. I’d expect that kind of mismatch from an unforeseen line of inquiry, but such a tidily contained game should have anticipated I would ask exactly those questions.

The game ends on a teaser to set up a sequel, which I’d be interested in playing. The overall fun factor is good by me, as is the quality of the mystery!

{Screenshot: Phyllis Malone in a scene composed of shades of grey. Text: “I grabbed the lapels and pulled them tight.”}

Hearing disorder corner: Negligible, the only sounds are music and click-confirmation noises. Conversations are purely text-based.

Try A Case of Distrust if you like: Juno Steel, Sam Spade, other noir. Detective fiction more generally, illustrationy art, you’re interested in the 1920s and haven’t already learned an excessive amount about the period, trusting nobody.

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4cr Plays - A Case of Distrust (Switch)

Life is hard enough as a dame in San Francisco during the days of Prohibition - harder still as a dame trying to make her way as a private detective. A stream of adultery cases pay PC Malone‘s bills, but leave her pretty unsatisfied. She quit the force to make a difference in the world, and the world reacted with indifference. 

So, when a new case walks through her door - not another instance of “catch the cheater”, but a real case - well, you can’t just ignore that. Sure, the guy is a weasel - a rum-running snake in the grass - but it pays well and sure beats boredom. PC Malone is on the case.

This is the hook that kicks off A Case of Distrust, a new narrative adventure by Ben Wander - a former BioWare developer who recently started his own studio. A Case of Distrust is a historical mystery set in San Francisco during Prohibition, about - as mentioned above - a private eye investigating a threatening letter sent to a bootlegger. This letter sets off a series of twists and turns that would give Hercule Poirot whiplash, and as PC Malone, your task is to unravel the threads of conspiracy and get to the bottom of the mystery.

A Case of Distrust is part point & click adventure, part visual novel. Its closest gaming equivalent is probably something like the Phoenix Wright games. You alternate between investigations - where you click on objects in rooms to examine them, noting details to an observation log - and conversations - where you ask questions about the case. During conversations, you can present your evidence and observations to open up new lines of inquiry. If you spot a lie, you can present evidence to contradict their statement. Your overall progress is measured through a series of overall objectives, but you need to fill in the blanks on the way. 

In a game like this - and, really, mysteries in general - the writing is what is going to carry the whole experience. Fortunately, the writing in A Case of Distrust does the job. The dialogue is snappy, well-written, and gives each character a distinct personality. PC Malone’s inner monologue is straight out of the noir films of the 40′s, and the choices you make do a fantastic job of filling in her past and informing her present state. Mystery aficionados will spot a few of the plot twists coming from far away, but the journey is still worth taking - the character interactions are great, and the overall plot is satisfying. 

I’m being a little vague - I really don’t want to spoil anything - but the overall quality of the writing was great. I also recommend taking every taxi you can - the little slice of life moments are some of the best in the game.

A Case of Distrust is also a beautiful game. Each location and the characters in it are presented in silhouette - in a minimal style where each scene is dominated by one or two colors. The art was created through rotoscoping - where photographs are painted over. The effect is striking - simultaneously minimal and incredibly stylistic. 

The combination of art and writing create a memorable experience. The entire game, from start to credits, only lasts a couple of hours. However, I feel like this is about the perfect length. None of the mechanics overstay their welcome, and the story does not end up feeling bloated. If you’re looking for a cool experience on the Switch (also on PC) to play through in an evening, I absolutely recommend checking it out.

A review copy was provided by the developer, The Wandering Ben.

Nintendo eShop

Official Website

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Interview: Ben Wander on A Case of Distrust

#indiedev Interview: @TheWanderingBen on Noir Mystery #indiegame @ACaseOfDistrust

I feel in love with A Case of Distrust, a narrative mystery noir game set in 1920’s San Fransisco, almost as soon as I started playing it. However, I was playing this game in the middle of the Indie minibooth at PAX East 2018, which is (by the way) entirely the wrong atmosphere, and I knew I needed to give it the proper treatment once I was home

. Later on, early one weekend morning, I sat down…

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so dnd is a riot

(saved as “bird that carries you over a disproportionately small gap.png”)