A Case of Distrust

 Switch
User Score
6.4

Mixed or average reviews- based on 5 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 0 out of 5
  2. Mixed: 5 out of 5
  3. Negative: 0 out of 5

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  1. nusco
    Oct 7, 2018
    6
    A Case of Distrust is a hardboiled investigative interactive fiction. It has very nice graphics, recalling both the Saul Bass graphics from the 50s, and the text adventures from the early 80s. The music is also appropriately sax-heavy and melancholy.

    It's not easy to write investigative IF, because you run the risk that players will step through all the possible combinations instead of    A Case of Distrust is a hardboiled investigative interactive fiction. It has very nice graphics, recalling both the Saul Bass graphics from the 50s, and the text adventures from the early 80s. The music is also appropriately sax-heavy and melancholy.

    It's not easy to write investigative IF, because you run the risk that players will step through all the possible combinations instead of wrapping their heads around the whodunit. In that respect, this game manages its material well, with a suitably intricate case, a good cast of seedy underground characters, and good mechanics for interrogating suspects.

    On the other hand, hardboiled mysteries live and die by the strenght of their writing, and that's where A Case of Distrust fails. The prose is serviceable at best, and sloppy at worst. There is nothing of the worderfully sarcastic humor of Chandler here, and the pacing is mostly off, with detailed exchanges suddenly evaporating in a disappointing: "I asked about that, but he replied nothing noteworthy", and the like. The social commentary is also out of tune. If you risk something as implausible as placing a female ex-cop private investigator in the years of prohibition, you'd better provide deeper commentary than the usual platitudes on gender and racial discrimination provided here. Finally, the resolution of the case feels like a cop-out, and annoyingly unfair to the player.

    All in all, A Case of Distrust is an enjoyable but flawed romp that lives on the strenght of its core investigation. With a better script, it would have been a memorable game.    … Expand
  2. bergcamp101
    Jan 19, 2021
    7
    The only bad thing in this game is duration. When I was at the end of the case, I thought, oh, it was a cool intro case, let's see, what happens next. But turns out, it was the end of the game.. Otherwise, the plot is good, the detective story-telling is very good.

Critic Reviews

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Metascore
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No score yet - based on 2 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 1 out of 2
  2. Mixed: 1 out of 2
  3. Negative: 0 out of 2
  1. Nintenderos
    Oct 7, 2018
    60
    Despite its seemingly sober premise, it turns out to be quite dynamic visually and becomes a successful black novel that deals with racial and feminist topics, although it would have been appreciated to have a better management of the notebook and a better use of the the control scheme.
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  2. NintendoWorldReport
    Oct 1, 2018
    85
    A Case of Distrust is a really fun adventure game/visual novel. It has a solid, if telegraphed, mystery and a unique cast of characters. It succeeds in capturing Roaring Twenties San Francisco and the evolving social mores of the interwar period. Its style is captivating, and positively contributes to gameplay. This is a strong recommendation for anyone who loves a good murder mystery.
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