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Retro Mystery Club Vol.1: The Ise-Shima Case

Retro Mystery Club Vol.1: The Ise-Shima Case Game Cover
60%Game Brain Score
Most mentioned positive aspects:story, music
Most mentioned negative aspects:grinding
93% User Score Based on 15 reviews

Platforms

Nintendo SwitchPCPlaystation 4WindowsPlayStation
Retro Mystery Club Vol.1: The Ise-Shima Case Game Cover

About Retro Mystery Club Vol.1: The Ise-Shima Case

Retro Mystery Club Vol.1: The Ise-Shima Case is a single player action game with drama, mystery, thriller, comedy and others themes. It was developed by Happymeal and was released on August 24, 2023. It received very positive reviews from players.

This classic-style mystery adventure game, inspired by the Famicom Detective Club series and illustrated by Famitsu's legend Kiyokazu Arai, will take you on a suspenseful journey through the beautiful landscapes of Ise-Shima.

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Games Like Retro Mystery Club Vol.1: The Ise-Shima Case

Looking for games like Retro Mystery Club Vol.1: The Ise-Shima Case? Here are top action recommendations with a drama, mystery, thriller, comedy and anime focus, selected from player-similarity data — start with Unusual Findings, Detective Di: The Silk Rose Murders or Lamplight City.

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Reviews

93%Audience ScoreBased on 15 reviews
story4 positive mentions
grinding1 negative mentions

  • Authentic retro presentation that faithfully emulates classic Famicom detective games, featuring pixel art, limited color palette, and chiptune music.
  • Engaging and layered mystery story with interesting characters and social intricacies, appealing to fans of old-school Japanese adventure games.
  • Accessible and well-paced gameplay with helpful assistant guidance and no risk of getting stuck, making it a good introduction for newcomers to the genre.
  • Pacing issues with a slow middle section that can feel tedious, causing the mystery progression to drag at times.
  • The gameplay is mostly limited to selecting commands with no meaningful player choice or impact on the story direction.
  • Some minor flaws including occasional translation roughness, janky localization, a few typos, and an uncomfortable pixelated font on certain platforms.
  • story

    9 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    44% positive mentions, 23% neutral mentions, 33% negative mentions

    The story offers a twisty, engaging mystery with fun characters and nostalgic pixel art, blending retro style with a modern narrative. While the plot includes intriguing elements and adult themes balanced by humor, its pacing can feel stagnant at times, with limited player impact on outcomes. Overall, it delivers a succinct and classic command-based mystery experience, though replay value is limited once the story is known.

    • “Great artwork, simple but effective sounds and music, and a surprisingly twisty story with fun characters.”
    • “The tale of a string of murders having strange ties to the pearl industry gives the mystery some intriguing elements to explore, though the plot progression can feel slow at times.”
    • “Retro Mystery Club 1 does a great job telling a succinct story that recalls every core element of command-based mystery games while streamlining it.”
    • “You could play the game again, but it’s not really worth it because you already know the story.”
    • “Everything from start to finish is set; you're just picking the right commands to move the story forward.”
    • “While the core story is pretty adult with lots of discovered bodies and cursing throughout the game, a lot of fun and irreverent humor keeps the game from ever getting too heavy.”
  • music

    4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    75% positive mentions, -25% neutral mentions, 50% negative mentions

    The music is generally praised for effectively setting the tone and complementing the game's old-school style, despite being limited by a low polyphony soundtrack and simple sound design. It fits well with the retro art direction and enhances the overall atmosphere.

    • “Great artwork, simple but effective sounds and music, and a surprisingly twisty story with fun characters.”
    • “The music was excellent at giving the right tone and the graphics complement the old school premise.”
    • “It says so on the summary, and it does show on every aspect of its art direction, from the UI to the character sprites, the music tracks, and the sound effects.”
    • “Limited colour palette, low pixel count character sprites, limited polyphony soundtrack and menu system practically lifted from the PC88 version of Portopia.”
    • “It says so on the summary, and it does show on every aspect of its art direction, from the UI to the character sprites, the music tracks and the sound effects.”
  • gameplay

    4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    75% positive mentions, 25% neutral mentions, 0% negative mentions

    The gameplay offers a charming homage to classic mechanics, resembling a visual novel more than investigative titles like Obra Dinn. It features an engaging story with a smooth, accessible progression that suits both newcomers and returning players. Overall, it serves as an excellent introduction to this adventure game style.

    • “There's a homage to a certain game mechanic used in Portopia and Okhotsk which I find delightful.”
    • “I found the story interesting and the gameplay quite easy to progress whether I'd taken a break between sessions or not.”
    • “For those that never played this kind of adventure game, this game is a very good introduction to the gameplay style.”
  • graphics

    2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    100% positive mentions, 0% neutral mentions, 0% negative mentions

    The graphics are praised for their great artwork that complements the old-school style, effectively supporting the game's atmosphere. Along with simple but fitting sounds and music, the visuals enhance the overall experience and tone.

    • “Great artwork, simple but effective sounds and music, and a surprisingly twisty story with fun characters.”
    • “The music was excellent at giving the right tone and the graphics complement the old school premise.”
  • grinding

    1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    0% positive mentions, 0% neutral mentions, 100% negative mentions

    Grinding in the game is perceived as somewhat tedious, especially during the investigation phase, which slows down noticeably around the mid-point, leading to a sluggish progression.

  • emotional

    1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    100% positive mentions, 0% neutral mentions, 0% negative mentions

    The game presents a nuanced and complex portrayal of social interactions, highlighting the emotional depth and imperfect humanity of its characters. It effectively captures the messy, heartfelt nature of people striving to do their best.

    • “We're shown a layered, complicated web of social intricacies that involve what, at the end of the day, are people doing what people do: be emotional, messy, and their best, even if their best is not the best, so to speak.”
  • humor

    1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    100% positive mentions, 0% neutral mentions, 0% negative mentions

    The game's humor is fun and irreverent, effectively balancing its mature and dark storyline to prevent the tone from becoming too heavy.

    • “While the core story is pretty adult with lots of discovered bodies and cursing throughout the game, a lot of fun and irreverent humor keeps the game from ever getting too heavy.”
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Frequently Asked Questions

Retro Mystery Club Vol.1: The Ise-Shima Case is a action game with drama, mystery, thriller, comedy and others themes. Common tags for Retro Mystery Club Vol.1: The Ise-Shima Case include indie, exploration, choices matter, detective, pixel graphics and others.

Retro Mystery Club Vol.1: The Ise-Shima Case is available on Nintendo Switch, PC, PlayStation 4, Windows and others.

Retro Mystery Club Vol.1: The Ise-Shima Case was released on August 24, 2023.

Retro Mystery Club Vol.1: The Ise-Shima Case was developed by Happymeal.

Retro Mystery Club Vol.1: The Ise-Shima Case has received very positive reviews from players. Most players liked Retro Mystery Club Vol.1: The Ise-Shima Case for its story but disliked it for its grinding.

Retro Mystery Club Vol.1: The Ise-Shima Case is a single player game.

Similar games include Unusual Findings, Detective Di: The Silk Rose Murders, Lamplight City, Nina Aquila: Legal Eagle, Season One, Whispers of a Machine and others.