Sights & Sounds
- Charming pixel art throughout. It's not as eye-catching as other adventure games using the style, but it serves its purpose well
- I really dug the music. Gave me Stranger Things vibes

Story & Vibes
- The game consists of a set of 9 cases (6 main and 3 bonus). As you'd expect, these vary a bit in quality. Cases 2 and 5 were particularly interesting
- There's a lot of callbacks to previous cases in the later portions of the game, but I wish a little more attention would have been paid to an overarching narrative to tie things together more tidily
- The game had a pretty good sense of humor. Some of the jokes landed really well. I'm a little tired of 4th wall humor in the adventure genre at this point, though
- All in all, I'd say the writing is the real highlight. It's funny, but there's a lot of personality in each 8-bit character

Playability & Replayability
- It's a point-and-click adventure game about detectives. You already know what the gameplay loop is. Find clues. Combine items. Talk to people. Solve puzzles with bizarre solutions
- I'm not sure I'm feeling a replay coming on

Overall Impressions & Performance
- It functioned well on the Steam Deck, but it's not exactly a system-taxing experience
- I did encounter a weird bug in the 5th mission where an item didn't spawn. Quitting out and reloading managed to fix it, fortunately

Final Verdict
- 6.5/10. It's a fun little game and worth a playthrough. Not many bells and whistles, but the writing is great. Pick it up on a sale

Se você gosta de jogos point-and-click super pixelados com piadinhas e referências a diversos filmes e séries de ficção científica, você definitivamente vai curtir jogar The Darkside Detective. O jogo se passa na fictícia cidade de Twin Lakes (temos aí uma referência a Twin Peaks?) e você controla um detetive que investiga casos sobrenaturais com a ajuda do seu assistente policial. O detetive McQueen e seu parceiro, Dooley, são membros da Divisão Darkside, responsável por investigar as conexões que Twin Lakes tem com uma outra cidade em um universo paralelo onde tudo é muito mais monstruoso.

Como qualquer jogo point-and-click, você avança na história clicando nos itens dos cenários, coletando tais itens e usando-os para resolver mistérios e quebra-cabeças que vão surgindo. Darkside Detective é dividido em casos, como se fossem episódios de uma série ou mesmo fases de um jogo de plataforma, e você pode fazer os três primeiros casos na ordem que preferir e, à medida que você resolve os casos, você vai liberando outros. Há também três casos bônus que foram liberados com uma atualização após o lançamento.

O que mais me chamou a atenção em Darkside Detectives foi a personalidade do McQueen e do Dooley, tão diferentes e ao mesmo tempo com tanta química. Eles seguem estereótipos de detetives e policiais de Hollywood, sendo McQueen um cara mais sério e comprometido com o trabalho e o Dooley servindo como alívio cômico em muitos momentos, mas eu achei tão bem feito que nem me importo de serem clichês. Além disso tudo, a trilha sonora do jogo é muito gostosinha.

Os quebra-cabeças não são muito difíceis e você facilmente consegue zerar o jogo em algumas poucas horas. Confesso que tive que pesquisar uma ou duas vezes porque eu simplesmente estava travado em alguns casos, mas no geral achei a dificuldade bem baixa e é um jogo ideal para quem nunca jogou algo do gênero. Indico pra todo mundo que gosta de point-and-click e queira dar algumas risadas enquanto investiga casos bizarros envolvendo zumbis, fantasmas e monstros do lago.

Played from – to: (2021-06-27 – 2021-06-30)
‣ 8/10 – Paranormal cases are the best.
‣ Game Audio / Soundtrack - 8/10
‣ Graphics – 8/10
‣ Atmosphere – 10/10
‣ Main Story / Characters – 7/10
‣ Final notes: I am not a big fan of puzzles games, but I am attracted by detective games and solving cases. So naturally I went against my nature and played this little detective game. Honestly it was not what I expected, however I still enjoyed piecing together clues and solving random paranormal mysteries. I really enjoyed how everything that is supposed to be unnatural is looked at as normal events that the specific division you oversee has to clean up. The characters were fun, their conversations are hilarious, and I enjoyed how the game breaks the 4th wall a few times. Overall, this was something I randomly decided to play, and I am glad I mixed my video game pallet with this little game.

Není nic horšího než když se klasická klikací adventura snaží nedostatek nápadů, hratelnosti, puzzlů a příběhu zamaskovat humory za každou cenu; a zde je tomu přesně tak. Každé slovo, hláška, věta i popis jsou přes koleno lámané humory na úrovni školkových vtipků. Jsou tak trapné, až nevíte, zda se ze samého zoufalství smát či brečet.

Vlastně něco horšího je. Když autor textů neumí psát dialogy. Ano, ty dialogy které se navíc snaží o vtipnost. Co dialogy, ani postavy. Pokud doufáte, že se o hlavním hrdinovi dozvíte byť jen o chlup více než je jeho jméno, tak doufáte marně. Vždyť i Simon či Guybrush nejsou pouhé komické figurky, proto si k nim hráč najde cestu. Mohl to zachránit příběh, jenže žádný není, zde jsou jen nahodilé jednotlivé situace. Mohla (a měla!) to zachránit hratelnost. Jenže adventura, kde každá z kapitol (jednotlivých paranormálních "jakože si utahujeme z Akt X" případů) zabere ani ne tak desítky minut jako mnohdy sotva minuty, a vejde se zpravidla na 6-15 obrazovek, tak by musela přijít se značně sofistikovaným a promyšleným systémem puzzlů, aby zkratkovitost "zadupala do země". No, zde se žádné puzzly nekonají. Prostě klikáte, čtete (ale raději byste nečetli) zdejší "gejzíry trapnosti", tu a tam vám něco přibude do inventáře a o obrazovku dále to na jediném možném místě použijete. Toť vše. Pouze v pozdějších případech (především pak bonusových) to děláte na více obrazovkách a s o trochu více předměty. Že i do takovéto nepřítomnosti adventurních puzzlů dokázali tvůrci nacpat jednu vyloženou zákysovou podpásovku (vánoční epizoda) je svého druhu umění. Jediné další herní prvky jsou občasné klasické logické puzzly, které jsou ovšem tak základní a primitivní, že se snad ani nevyplatilo trávit čas jejich programováním, když jejich řešení znáte přesně v ten moment, kdy se objeví na obrazovce.

Přitom se z toho dal vytěžit solidní titul, ne že ne. Stačilo ubrat na té (ehm, ehm) vtipnosti, lépe napsat dialogy, využít poskoka, který je celou dobu s vámi, ale trestuhodně není využit v rámci puzzlů, slouží čistě jen jako odrážecí stěna pro další rádoby vtípky, grrr... Přitom z podobných (až vyloženě shodných) elementů třeba série Blackwell dala do kupy vynikající adventury. Holt když dva dělají totéž, není to totéž. A zde je to utrpení, které zmírňuje snad jedině délka nepřesahující čtyři hodiny.

Running on Coffee and Doughnuts...

The Darkside Detective is a great point and click adventure game.
It doesn't take itself too seriously, and the puzzles are quite easy for this genre but the writing got quite a few genuine chuckles out of me and the low-res pixel art is pleasing to gaze at. It can at times look stunning in the more unusual environments.

I found it is a nice game to play in bursts. It has no overarching story; rather the game is split into "episodes" with each episode being its own separate adventure. Every episode can take anywhere from half an hour to 1 hour, which makes them ideal for a quick game in the evening.

The puzzles aren't particularly hard, but there isn't any moon logic here either. It's a good game to pop in and play leisurely.
Mechanically, the game is sound and the only problem I ran into was when I was confused about the order I had to do things in, inside one of the bonus episodes. It's not a big deal, and other than that little hiccup, I had a lot of fun with the game.

The writing is for the most part lighthearted and all of the plots within the game revolve around the antics and escapades involving Detective Francis McQueen and Officer Dooley, whose dynamic is wonderfully weaved and they play off each other in a thoroughly entertaining manner like a wicked song.
Francis and Dooley are assigned to a special division in the police department involving supernatural oddities, and investigating the mysteries they hold, which is the overarching theme of the episodes.

The music is composed by Ben Prunty, most notably composer of FTL: Faster Than Light and Subnautica: Below Zero OSTs.
I give my compliments towards the Darkside Detective OST as the moody, atmospheric setting-grounder, as well as capturing the essence of the location or situation happening on screen.
It is also excellent as a standalone album.

Overall, quality point and click romp, and unless you're looking for a mature storyline and brain-breaking puzzles, you'll hardly be disappointed.
I'll be looking forward to playing the sequel!!

The Darkside Detective is a modern-day PNC wrapped in an old-school skin. Parceled into 9 minisodes, you play as Francis McQueen, head gumshoe of a police branch tasked with investigating paranormal affairs. While the occasional character carries over, these are ultimately standalone adventures based around the comedic resolution of some haphazard haunting, and so the question that remains is is this game worth your time? The short answer is it’s straightforward, simple, and self-aware, those three traits being either negative or positive depending on your personal preference. For the longer answer, read on!

Story-wise, there isn’t much to say that hasn’t already been summed-up above. While the individual premises are definitely unique, the focus of TDD isn’t on these mysteries, but rather the banter that erupts between McQueen, his partner Dooley, and the numerous colorful NPCs they meet along the way. As far as the quality of this writing, it’s overall good, though keep in mind it’s less laugh-out-loud funny and more quiet chuckle material. There were definitely times where I chortled like a silly schoolgirl, however, the better part of the humor derives from that inner glee one experiences after recognizing a pop culture reference. And yes, as you’ve no doubt heard, this is a game that almost drowns in such horror-themed reverence, right down to the names of the freakin levels. But all cards on the table guys, I honestly thought developer Spooky Doorway’s approach to this type of adulation was pretty lackluster. It’s not so much a parody as it is a literal integration of said popular media: you’ll either run across or read about a dead ringer who is the actual persona in all but name, and that’s literally it. There’s no clever twist, no spoofing, nothing- just a small sound bite paying homage to their notoriety in mainstream circles. So to those of you expecting a satire, I advise tempering your expectations as you’re not going to get that.

TDD’s jokes stretch beyond such gags- in fact, the lion’s share of the comedy derives from fourth wall breaks and your typical buddy cop jesting via McQueen and Dooley. And while a lot of is decent enough to warrant a smile, I have to make a grave exception to Dooley as he is, 90% of the time, annoying. He acts as the idiot comic to McQueen’s straight man routine, and the writers further went the hackneyed route of making him a conspiracy buffoon. He’s not completely unlikable, and there are plenty of moments where he more than pulls his weight in the narrative; however, his lines tend to be so groan-inducing, I’m actually glad the game had no voice acting.

Not only does it have no voice acting, but the SFX is pretty minimal in general. Every action technically has a din, yet they’re repetitive and outright stocky at times. That said, it’s not a particular issue here due to the short length of the cases preventing audial registration. Instead, I was more disappointed with the limited OST by Ben Prunty -- though he thankfully avoids reveling in 8-bit noises, there are only 2-3 tracks an area: a base one that runs on a loop, and an additional one or two that play during specific storybeats. Again, because the levels are compact, it’s not degrading or anything, but considering other PNCs program multiple compositions per a section, I was hoping to hear a greater variety.

On the other hand, given how quickly you move between screens, perhaps the lack of unique tunes was for the better, which brings me to the gameplay. Like I noted in the introduction, TDD is a very simple title- you gather objects conveniently lying about the world to remove obstacles in your way. While the intermittent minigame is thrown your way, it’s clear this is a title meant to be played for the writing over the puzzle solving as the vast majority of the trammels are easy to overcome. I suspect the intentions behind this design choice were to appeal to older gamers [who could understand all the pop gags] looking for an initiation into the PNC genre, and on that front they’ve definitely succeeded, right down to the graphics.

That’s right, TDD gained traction in the indie sector for its pixel art throwback, and it’s a surprisingly beautiful game to gaze at. Heavy work was conducted in the crafting of each world, with colors and diversified models evidently prioritized; no two areas resemble the other, and the sheer amount of motifs they were able to duplicate is astounding. Contrary to popular belief, it’s not easy recreating three-dimensional facets in a 2D-setting, let alone an 8-bit one, and so it truly is a testament to the artisans at Spooky Doorway that they were able to succeed so effortlessly. Whether you’re running into zombies, churches, Christmas malls, phantoms, campsites, ghost trains, or Pennywise, you’re never going to experience a discomforting feeling from the clashing styles.

In the end, like several releases I’ve recently reviewed, what it comes down to is this: if you’re in the market for a quick, relaxing distraction then TDD is for you. Those hoping for something more challenging, however, are better-off shopping elsewhere.


NOTES
-Game is a little bit on the short-side. I beat in about 6 hours and that was with examining everything which, at a $15.00 asking price, falls below my ratio of $1.00 : 1/2 hour.

-Unfortunately, there isn't an abundance of unique dialogue from crossing items with NPCs like there was in Half Past Fate, though at least you get some funny responses from clicking McQueen.

-There’s actually a decent mythos here involving a mirror dimension called the titular Darkside. Of course, I don’t expect it to ever be explored deeply.

-I appreciated that McQueen and his occult detective wing are taken seriously by the Chief of his police department when it would’ve been easy (and lazy) to write them-off as a complete joke by their superiors.

I’ll be honest I came across this title completely by accident through a sale on Steam. Between the ‘overwhelmingly positive’ reviews and the summary of the game my interest was piqued. Plus, I’m a sucker for indie games and The Darkside Detective was something I knew I had to play.

The game features a detective named Francis McQueen and his sidekick Patrick Dooley who solve crimes and mysteries of the paranormal in the city of Twin Lake. You’re given six initial cases to solve, but after completing them you’ll be given another three bonus cases. Each case has its own story and is treated like an individual episode which I really liked.

Something I also enjoyed about The Darkside Detective was that even though the characters and the world revolves around the supernatural, it doesn’t take itself seriously in the slightest. That’s because the game is written to be a comedy instead of a generic horror game, which I found to be refreshing. It was really fun to speak to all the characters and examine everything on screen because of how funny the character interactions or responses were, plus it also added some world building and character development. The pop culture references towards certain movies and tv shows was also a nice touch.

Speaking for myself only, I found nearly all the jokes to be hilarious and found myself laughing out loud. I will admit though that there are a few that do fall flat and I think that’s because there are some serious grammatical issues in certain pieces of dialogue. The script really could have used an editor.

The Darkside Detective is a simple point and click game. The gameplay isn’t very intricate because you mainly just use the cursor to move around the screen and click on objects. If you find something you’ll need than McQueen will pick it up and put it in your inventory for later. However, you’ll need to talk to some characters to trigger certain events in order to obtain specific key items.

Let it be known there is no ‘HINT’ button in this game, so if you get stuck and don’t know what to do you’re either going to have to figure it out yourself or use a guide. The game also has the player solve some puzzles too, but I never found any of them to be particularly difficult which might disappoint some players. Also, there’s only a handful of puzzles in the game in general, it’s a little lack luster in that area.


Overall:

I’m not going to pretend that The Darkside Detective is a perfect game because it definitely isn’t. It has it flaws and a lot of gamers are probably going to find the simplistic gameplay and lack of voice acting disengaging. Some gamers probably won’t finish it and some won’t find its humor all that funny because, like most things, comedy is subjective. But for me it was exactly what I needed it to be: a fun and relaxing game filled with a lovable cast of characters.


Pros:
+ great sound track
+ lovable characters
+ funny humor
+ cases were fun to solve
+ easy trophy/achievement list

Cons:
-Poor written grammar at times.
-game doesn’t provides any hints