What if there was a option to cease the getting old course of and solely your loved ones knew the key? How far would you go to guard it? And at what value? The Centennial Case isn’t your typical murder-mystery journey sport. It goes out of its option to be totally different, whether or not it’s swapping you to numerous murders over the course of 100 years or utilizing live-action footage to make you're feeling such as you’re taking part in a film. The latter evokes a nostalgic feeling of the FMV video games of yore, however the superior tech and heavy focus on deduction create an expertise that’s equally gripping and interesting, even when it doesn’t at all times hit the mark.
The Centennial Case is a narrative-focused journey centering on the Shijima household, who're linked to a string of suspicious murders during the last century. Additionally they maintain a singular merchandise that guarantees everlasting youth. Is it actual or a delusion? As protagonist and thriller novelist Haruka Kagami, you should uncover the reality, connecting varied occasions and murders to uncover the household’s long-kept secrets and techniques.
The vast majority of The Centennial Case performs out in live-action scenes. You watch these greater than you work together with any gameplay mechanics, however the story is so engrossing it holds your consideration. The excessive level of the expertise is your position as a detective and the way you’re consistently questioning how all these items match collectively within the better scheme of issues. Studying a brand new clue at all times gave me one thing to ponder, and I relished forming my theories primarily based on individuals’s reactions or conflicting info. Each case has a number of layers; not solely are you attempting to determine the offender and occasions behind every homicide, however you’re at all times getting a step nearer to seeing how each dying is linked and if the household truly has the flexibility to cease getting old.
I loved that the instances are set in several time durations, because the story usually jumps from the previous to the current. This dynamic provides selection and a brand new taste to every homicide thriller whereas permitting you to see the way it impacted components within the current day. My favourite case came about at a Seventies nightclub, capturing the extravagance and pressures of showbiz. Each case casts suspicion on each particular person concerned, bringing in a large number of motives, from jealousy and obligation to revenge and anger. Not all of the instances are equal, nonetheless. Some mysteries felt like they'd apparent solutions, and the later instances throw in new components, resembling logic and gameplay puzzles, which I want had been current earlier within the sport.
Nonetheless, it actually is the mystery-solving that makes this sport so fascinating. After accumulating all of your clues, you might be taken to a 3D hexagonal grid. Here, you choose the clues and match them into potential hypotheses, taking a look at each doable manner occasions might have unfolded. Typically this leads you down false paths that just about attempt to toy along with your certainty. I loved taking a look at each angle of proof, from alibis to the position of things on the crime scene. It solely made me extra assured in my reasoning and the way I wished to current my case.
The subsequent part is presenting your idea to the group, which feels akin to an Ace Lawyer courtroom, albeit with out the wacky antics. You get multiple-choice choices to say what you suppose actually occurred, and on the finish of every case, you obtain a rating relying on what number of errors you made. Each particular person concerned exams your reasoning, forcing you to again it up appropriately. I favored the strain here; nothing looks like a protected wager as a result of many prospects appear possible.
Nevertheless, because of how concerned the speculation interval is, you by no means really feel such as you’re utterly taking a stab in the dead of night - though generally you may be shocked by how the proof provides up and brings new components to mild. I generally went into instances not being solely sure who the offender was however being assured within the proof that was askew, and that introduced me to the proper reply. Hints can be found if you happen to get actually caught, however I by no means felt like I wanted them.
Sadly, the acting is hit-and-miss. Typically actors go over the over-the-top with their performances, and you may’t inform if it’s deliberate or not. A part of it feels campy, however there’s some good acting, particularly within the extra tense and emotional conditions. Some individuals could discover it complicated that the identical actors seem in all instances taking part in totally different roles. As an example, one stands out as the sufferer in a case, solely to be the offender within the subsequent. This didn’t trouble me, as you clearly know if you’re shifting into a special time interval. Some individuals could have a tough time adjusting, although. My solely different knock on the sport is it provides you dialogue choices that don’t affect something. In truth, typically, what you choose delivers the identical traces. It’s the phantasm of getting some role-playing or alternative the place there isn’t any, which disillusioned me.
Not many video games are constructed like The Centennial Case, and I loved the ambition behind attempting one thing totally different to inform a posh story and contain the participant in piecing it collectively. It gave me the sensation of studying a fantastic thriller novel, the place your head is spinning with prospects, however the interactivity and construction let you higher perceive the clues and what all of them imply. Typically The Centennial Case stumbles, but it surely’s price enduring for the wild journey it places you on and the broader questions it poses about what’s moral on this planet of science.
