The 25th Ward: The Silver Case

 PlayStation 4
The 25th Ward: The Silver Case Image
Metascore
68

Mixed or average reviews - based on 15 Critic Reviews What's this?

User Score
8.1

Generally favorable reviews- based on 36 Ratings

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  • Summary: It is five years since the events of 1999's "The Silver Case," set in the new 25th Ward that arose in the bayside area of Kanto. In a room of the "Bayside Tower Land" apartment complex, a woman is found murdered under mysterious circumstances. This sets off a series of seemingly randomIt is five years since the events of 1999's "The Silver Case," set in the new 25th Ward that arose in the bayside area of Kanto. In a room of the "Bayside Tower Land" apartment complex, a woman is found murdered under mysterious circumstances. This sets off a series of seemingly random events throwing together multiple protagonists including The Silver Case's Tokio Morishima. With all viewpoints assembled, a truly shocking pattern emerges...

    Available for the first time outside Japan, The 25th Ward: The Silver Case is presented with new HD assets and additional content not found in the original version.

    Game Features:

    * A SUDA51 Trip -- Set in the "Kill the Past" universe, the series continues its bleak look into a semi-futuristic world on the edge of collapse and the misfits and antiheroes that inhabit it.

    * Brave New World -- The return of the signature "Film Window" system is brought to The 25th Ward for the first time! New visuals, sounds and controls capture the game in a fresh perspective.
    * One Story, Many Sides -- Includes all three of the original arcs released for the title, "Correctness", "Placebo", and "Matchmaker".    … Expand
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Critic Reviews

Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 5 out of 15
  2. Mixed: 9 out of 15
  3. Negative: 1 out of 15
  1. Digitally Downloaded
    Mar 6, 2018
    90
    To say that The 25th Ward is niche would be an understatement, but that’s what’s so impressive about it. It respects the intelligence of its players, allowing them to wade through the feverish surrealism that the game often depicts, and melds that perfectly with a traditional noir thriller than Raymond Chandler himself would have been proud of. Goichi Suda might be known for his action games today (and they’re usually very fine games in their own right), but what I wouldn’t give for him to go back for another spin or two at the visual novel.
  2. DualShockers
    Mar 13, 2018
    80
    The 25th Ward: The Silver Case takes chances and pushes the boundaries of storytelling and character development.
  3. Cubed3
    Apr 24, 2018
    80
    The 25th Ward: The Silver Case, while not for everyone, is still a unique visual novel experience that oozes creativity. Its gameplay elements do slightly bog it down, but the stylised writing, entertaining characters, and one of a kind story more than make up for it. It's a truly memorable adventure accompanied by wonderful music and artwork, all coming together to make something that visual novel fans should definitely look into.
  4. Wccftech
    Mar 9, 2018
    70
    The 25th Ward: The Silver Case offers another bit of insight into SUDA51's insane creativity, this time completely rebuilding a mobile phone title into the same framework as that of The Silver Case. While it doesn't quite have the same revelations of The Silver Case, there's still some rough charm left in the aftermath of Kamui Uehara.
  5. GameOver.gr
    Mar 30, 2018
    70
    If you have played and enjoyed the first case in this detective story by Suda51, then The 25th Ward can be a good choice for a few more hours of visual novel/ noir gameplay.
  6. SpazioGames
    Mar 6, 2018
    65
    The 25th Ward: The Silver Case is a remaster of the old visual novel developed by Grasshopper Manufacture. Unfortunately, just because something is "remastered" doesn't mean it's better.
  7. RPG Fan
    Mar 28, 2018
    45
    The 25th Ward has a few cool ideas, yet they're almost always held back by outdated ignorance and rampant misogyny, turning what could have been a powerful avant-garde adventure game into a frustratingly juvenile monument to phallocentrism.

See all 15 Critic Reviews

User Reviews

Write a Review
Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 4 out of 6
  2. Mixed: 2 out of 6
  3. Negative: 0 out of 6
  1. ThisLifeSucks
    Nov 19, 2019
    10
    The sequel of the already fantastic Silver Case delivers even more with an even more cryptic story, but an even more flawless execution. ThisThe sequel of the already fantastic Silver Case delivers even more with an even more cryptic story, but an even more flawless execution. This is the pinnacle of style. The soundtrack was done by Akira Yamaoka, making it the perfect experience for a visual novel.… Expand
  2. natopomato
    Jul 14, 2022
    10
    Kind of like a magical experience, really. The 25th Ward seems like a real place after completing the game. a perfect utopia of sorts. BeKind of like a magical experience, really. The 25th Ward seems like a real place after completing the game. a perfect utopia of sorts. Be prepared to spend time with it's denizens through out the story.… Expand
  4. Luke23d
    Mar 26, 2021
    10
    Definitely worth a buy if you like suda's writing. Storytelling is very unique
  5. threesan
    May 30, 2022
    10
    One of the most creative and unique stories/settings I've ever seen in a visual novel. Lovely striking artstyle as well. Truly kino.
  6. SnappyGR
    Sep 3, 2019
    7
    Snappy Game Reviews - Down the rabbit hole

    It’s been a whole year since the remaster of Grasshopper Manufacture’s first game The Silver    Snappy Game Reviews - Down the rabbit hole

    It’s been a whole year since the remaster of Grasshopper Manufacture’s first game The Silver Case launched overseas for the first time. Based on the original PlayStation game by the legendary SUDA51, published in 1999, this bizarre visual novel still managed to blow me away even 18 years after its original launch. As a SUDA51 enthusiast, I was able to pick up several references from more recent Grasshopper Manufacturer titles such as Killer7 and No More Heroes which made the already compelling story even more of a pleasure to experience. Despite it being a work of fiction, The Silver Case has a very distinct late 90’s suburban Japan vibe to it and those who resided in the 24 Wards felt like real, unapologetic people.

    I believe this speaks volumes about both the quality of the original script and the English translation as well. Back when I first picked up The Silver Case I had no idea that there had been a sequel released for mobile phones in 2005 but I was extremely happy to hear that there were plans for a worldwide release of the remaster of The 25th Ward: The Silver Case as well. Given the embryonic state of mobile gaming in 2005, I would be lying if I told you I wasn’t at least a little sceptical about the quality of the game but my doubts quickly dissipated as I made my way back into the world of Kamui Uehara and rejoined the Heinous Crime Unit.

    Without going into spoiler territory the story picks up almost half a decade after the events of the original game, the sequel envisions a dystopian city where there’s a very peculiar community. In the said community, the most privileged have access to this new lifestyle, a “perfect” city, practically without negative aspects and completely without criminal activity. However, those who live there must obey the rules that have been set for this perfect society. Whoever makes the smallest mistake isn’t punished like in a normal society, instead, they’re instantly shot or turned into some sort of brain dead being. These events are stringed together by rather bizarre moments and twists that make for a very enjoyable and very dark, unpredictable story only pushed even farther by the mostly skewed colour palette and strange, at times even purposely ugly character portraits.

    Although this is a Goichi Suda game, only the first scenario was written by him with the two others being written by Masahi Ooka and Masahiro Yuki. While the first scenario has the typical over the top SUDA51 style that could be compared to some of Quentin Tarantino’s works the other two are less chaotic and more concise chapters in the message they want to convey. The 25th Ward: The Silver Case mainly explores themes such as the moral and ethical issues of corrupted authorities that should defend the law and protect the people and how in turn that mould the behaviour of ordinary citizens based on the social hierarchy.
    The game is a traditional visual novel with very minimalist interactions thrown in throughout each of its nearly 20 chapters which are divided into three different scenarios. This isn’t a huge deal if you manage to get into the insane plot and, just like in the original game, ignore the typewriter sound that the text scrolling makes. At times you’re allowed to roam freely through long corridors, talk to some characters and even enter keywords but these usually feel like stilted interactions that are only there for the sake of giving the player something to do.

    The 25th Ward: The Silver Case is ambitious, but its ambition doesn’t quite manage to achieve the same brilliance as its predecessor. It still shares the same interesting lore and I’d argue that some of its characters are more charismatic than most of the cast of the original game but there’s a certain “something” that’s missing on top of the inferior soundtrack and overall plot. Despite this, The 25th Ward: The Silver Case still is a fairly interesting visual novel and a small piece of Grasshopper Manufacture’s history, which goes without saying that this is yet another must-play for any SUDA51 fan.    … Expand
  7. DeadSix
    Apr 9, 2018
    7
    The 25th Ward: Silver Case offers a complex mystery that mixes supernatural and surrealism into a blender but fails to leave a proper lastingThe 25th Ward: Silver Case offers a complex mystery that mixes supernatural and surrealism into a blender but fails to leave a proper lasting impact. There are three stories that the game offers, the Placebo, Correctness, and Match Maker. Each line follows a different side of the story with different characters but their are connections present.

    This is a port from a mobile game from 2005 and its interface is clunky and sometimes not responsive, especially in the segments where you have to move your character or when you are using the menu to save or load a game. There is no voice acting and the constant clicking sound from the dialogue appearing every time on screen will get annoying to the point where muting the audio is the only alternative solution.

    There are 100 possible endings in the game so replay-ability value is there but to get the true end you are required to view all of them and even with that, more questions are raised then answered. Unless you played the original game, take a pass.    … Expand