CrimeSight

CrimeSight is an unusual multiplayer game in which the virtual incarnations of Holmes and Moriarty face off in an intellectual battle in the future. The turn-based strategy-style project was developed and released by Konami as the company's first all-new brand in years.

Plot

London in 2075 is far from being a cyberpunk vision of a metropolis riddled by a cancer of corruption and crime. On the contrary, the city has managed to reduce crime by 90%, much to the delight of its citizens. All thanks to the Foresight system, which is able to predict future misdeeds based on various clues in the network.

However, at a certain point, Foresight's artificial intelligence announces an ominous vision of a ruined world, which will be brought about by unpreventable crimes. So the engineers decide to provide the system with Holmes, a new AI named after the famous detective from Arthur Conan Doyle's stories, to specialize in analyzing clues and preventing those most difficult crimes. After solving many cases, Holmes quickly comes to the conclusion that another artificial intelligence, Moriarty, is behind these crimes. This leads to an extraordinary duel between two cybernetic geniuses, with world peace at stake.

Mechanics

The general concept of CrimeSight may bring to mind quasi-detective adventure game series like Ace Attorney and Danganropa or independent productions based on social game Mafia like Town of Salem and Among Us, although the gameplay is significantly different from that known from those series. We have one big location (shown in an isometric view) and a handful of characters (or "pawns"), including the future victim and her (yet) would-be murderer. The players' task on Holmes' side is to keep the target alive for four days or discover the killer's identity - otherwise Moriarty's team wins.

Before the killer can attempt to eliminate the target, three conditions must be met. The killer must be armed and close to the target, and there must be no other "pawns" in the room with the victim. However, even if the victim survives to the fourth day, Holmes must still discover the identity of the would-be killer - otherwise the game ends in a draw. The whole game takes place in turns like a virtual version of Cluedo, with players giving commands to the characters one by one.

Game modes

CrimeSight is a multiplayer game designed to be played over the Internet. Between 2 and 4 players can take part in the game, taking the side of Holmes or Moriarty.

Technical aspects

The 3D graphics, referring to comic books and Japanese animations, brings to mind associations with Danganronpa. It is slightly less exaggerated than in the series by Spike Chunsoft studio, coming closer to what we know from Persona or even from the games of Supermassive Games team.