Famicom Detective Club: The Missing Heir

 Switch
Metascore
74

Mixed or average reviews - based on 65 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 37 out of 65
  2. Mixed: 28 out of 65
  3. Negative: 0 out of 65
  1. 3DJuegos
    Jun 1, 2021
    Two memorable visual novels in a row. They both contain a very good history and nice visuals, but they are too classic.
  2. Polygon
    May 12, 2021
    Famicom Detective Club reminded me why I love mystery games. It’s also current proof that the genre can be complex in its simplicity, and that it deserves its longevity.
  3. The Verge
    May 14, 2021
    Perhaps the most remarkable thing about these games is that they barely feel dated at all. If it didn’t have “Famicom” in the title, I might think they were new crime dramas from Nintendo that just so happened to be set in the 1980s. What Famicom Detective Club lacks in innovation it makes up for with everything else: gorgeous art, captivating writing, and more than enough mystery to keep you glued to your Switch.

Awards & Rankings

85
#85 Most Discussed Switch Game of 2021

User Reviews

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User Score
7.1

Mixed or average reviews- based on 22 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 16 out of 22
  2. Mixed: 1 out of 22
  3. Negative: 5 out of 22
  1. ItsTamo
    Jun 2, 2021
    8
    It's was an enjoyable game for what it is.

    The character sprites and animations are fabulous. I loved them. The characters felt lively. The    It's was an enjoyable game for what it is.

    The character sprites and animations are fabulous. I loved them. The characters felt lively. The voiceover was great and it made the repeated dialogues a lot less frustrating.

    I'm bit mixed on the story progression method and the UI. I understand that it's a remake of an old game and they wanted to keep the (quote on quote) gameplay aspect. I had to click the same dialogue option to find one menu command that would let me proceed in the story and it was oftentimes frustrating. I do think that they could have done a lot better if they decided to stray away from that old gameplay. It's really a dilemma in any remakes. I've had this question on 'what makes a good remake' ever since Link's Awakening came out, and I'm having the same question with this game too. Still, in my opinion, the gameplay has aged quite badly, but the devs tried to improve on it as best as they could without changing too much of it, and I was able to see that during my playthrough.

    There's no auto skip/advance on the dialogues, and I don't know why they chose not to include it. It's a norm to include auto-progression in any games with long dialogues, including RPGs, and it was a bit tiresome to click the A buttons way too many times while I just wanted to read the scripts.

    I don't quite get why they didn't program the use of touch screens for investigations. I liked clicking random things with my stylus on Professor Layton or Pheonix Wright. It was a bit disappointing that I couldn't do that in this game.

    The story was well fleshed out, while it was somewhat predictable. However given that the game is from the 1980s, I can understand that the trope the story uses became kind of old. Still, it's quite a murder mystery and has stood its age relatively well, better than I expected it to.

    I personally can't stop thinking that the ios or android version would have been more suited for this game. I normally hate mobile ports of console games (like, square enix should stop doing their terrible mobile ports), but VN is just one genre that I think is better suited on mobile than home consoles since I can lie down on my bed and just read through the story, requiring minimal player input. Even the length would be perfect for a mobile port since the game lasts less than 10 hours to complete. The mobile version may simplify the animations and the sceneries, but I really don't think this would hurt my experience.

    It's a real nice remake. I liked it. But the problem is that it WAS a remake. I can see that the devs were constrained by its original release. Be ready to pull out of walkthroughs from progression blocks. But otherwise, enjoyable experience and a nice murder mystery.    … Full Review »
  2. iMustang
    Jul 10, 2021
    8
    After 30 years of being locked in Japan, Nintendo has remade and released the Famicom Detective Club games stateside giving a chance to tryAfter 30 years of being locked in Japan, Nintendo has remade and released the Famicom Detective Club games stateside giving a chance to try their only murder-mystery visual novels to date. These games (made by the creator of Metroid) were a wonderful ride with beautiful visuals, an amazing soundtrack that is worth pausing to jam out to, and two incredible stories filled with twists and turns all the way to the very end. Each journey tells a very different type of story, this one a series of mysteries and several murders along the way. Both hint at supernatural elements, overturn theories you may have come with along the way, and save the biggest plot twists for the final hours. Never at any point were these games predictable, and even if you can guess some things, you can never guess everything and it's a great feeling.

    These games are not perfect, as they're very faithful remakes that sometimes make the greatest challenge of the game just trying to play it. You'll have to mash the same prompts over and over, check random things, then try prompts again... It's frustrating, and sometimes finding a guide is the only practical solution. But even with those frustrations aside, seeing the groundwork that would inspire games like Phoenix Wright was an absolute joy, and a must play for fans of murder mysterious that keep you on the edge or your seat, visual novels that seemingly come to life with flawless uses of the environments, or really anyone who wants to experience a lost piece of Nintendo history, these are definitely worth picking up as a bundle. I'll always remember my time with these games fondly, and I'm certain I'll find myself listening to the soundtrack on more than one occasion.    … Full Review »
  3. otakumhgamer
    Jul 8, 2021
    9
    famicom detective club's story was very amazing it had its own little flaws but thats ok but i think the main issue is the gameplay most offamicom detective club's story was very amazing it had its own little flaws but thats ok but i think the main issue is the gameplay most of the time you don't have a clue to what to do you just randomly selecting the commands or you have to use a guide but all and all its an amazing game… Full Review »
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