Enter the Darkside

Retro-inspired games flood our current market, but with their increased popularity, most developers have shifted from releasing truly retro games, to retro inspired experiences. After spending some time with The Darkside Detective, I’m convinced that this game not only integrates some clever modern ideas, but it keeps itself true to what a point-and-click retro game should be.

The Darkside Detective – Nintendo Switch – Released: 01/07/2018 – $12.99

You Can Run, But You Can’t Hide! (Review copy provided by Developer)

The Darkside Detective is a short, point and click detective game that takes many inspirations from older games of the genre. The game revolves around McQueen and his partner in crime officer Dooley. Together the two will uncover many mysteries surrounding what seems to be the rising of spirits into our human world.

The narrative itself works nicely throughout the six cases the game has to offer, due to it continuously building upon character motives through majestically written dialogue. Seriously, I found myself smiling to the dialogue, and thought-provoking puzzles this game offers perhaps way too often.

These Puzzles in themselves, may be extremely hard at first, as the game gives no tutorial of any sorts, but the cliche phrase has to be used in this review, “the more you play, the better you get better at it.”.

Comical, Perhaps Too Much so.

While masterfully written dialogue, and interesting gameplay is surely important, I don’t personally believe that’s what makes The Darkside Detective special, and in some ways, that is a problem. You see, the game’s retro-reminiscent graphics, and audio style are at times so great that it is hard to imagine that The Darkside Detective is a small indie game, and while that is great by itself, some may find themselves turnt away by the pixelated graphics, and less than mature dialogue.

However for those of us who can stand these aspects without worries, The Darkside Detective truly impresses, offering a great experience that is beautiful either docked or on the go. When all of this is bundled up, it makes for a package that I can confidently say is worth the $12.99 price tag.

Conclusion

Overall, The Darkside Detective is a short, yet lovely experience. For those who have played LA Noire, or other detective games alike, The Darkside Detective may sometimes seem a bit too quirky, but this quality itself turns out to be one of the game’s strongest advantages.

UPDATE: 5/31/18

I would give this game a 7 out of 10!