Unheard is a short puzzle game based on audio, a pretty unique concept rarely seen in the video game industry. Immerged in different cases as a ghostly detective, the player is tasked of solving several questions regarding one or more unsolved mysteries. In each case, the player can move around in a map without limitations, various events and dialogues can be witnessed at different locations throughout the audio timeline, which, the player can manipulate at will.

The very nature of this game and the absence of any sort of RNG, allow players to brute force any case if they so desire. If this problem is rather common among puzzle games, what could be pointed out, is the lack of innovation throughout the cases, as all clever mechanics and setups are revealed in the second case right after the tutorial.

But beside that, the game proposes a nice experience, the writing of each case is pretty solid, the english voice acting is also decent, dictions or accents might be not realistic to some extent, but it gives a certain flair to the game and definitely help people who are not native english speaker.

Ultimately, the length of the game fits its proposition, the concept which could be polished, still manages to keep the player engaged from the very beginning until the end of the game. Without spoiling anything, the game tackles compelling themes and even offers multiple endings, and all of them are interesting in their own way.

It may not be a game for everyone, but if you're accustomed to this type of game or just curious, I would recommend this game without a doubt.

They really found a genuinely new idea for a game, although it shares similarities to the even more interesting "The Invisible Hours". You basically play as the fly on the wall, listening in to simultaneously happening conversations, trying to figure out what happened, who did what, etc.
The cases are rather interesting, but there's only five of them (plus a free DLC with one large case and a little addendum for said case). It's a rather short experience, but I had a lot of fun with it.
The voice acting can be hit or miss, with some hilariiously bad lines mixed with some which are fine.
The biggest negative for me was that the game didn't really find a good way to prevent brute forcing the solutions. "Return of the Obra Dinn" had a brilliant solution to that problem, but it would not really be applicable to this game. Still, the way the game is right now, it can lead to you trying out a little bit too much, spoiling your own fun of discovery.

A solid game overall, though.

A Chinese detective game with original mechanics, letting you play the detective role by examining past cases and finding answers behind the outcome. This game requires you to use your hearing and logical deduction in order to make progress.

The gameplay had me totally engaged and had me spend from half to a few hours to come down to correct conclusions. And when I was approaching the answer, the more baffled and amused I am by the nature of the cases that reveals itself (and I'll let you figure it out by yourself if you're interested in Unheard). By my skill level and patience of a backlog gamer, I managed without a guide until the last case (and the free DLC).

I warmly recommend this unique game that's been written and coordinated with care, despite the voice acting sounding spotty. Then again, that may be the intention to distinguish the characters.

really unique mystery and investigation format at the core of things gets tarnished by rougher elements elsewhere. the voice acting isn't very good (which is normally whatever but this is so sound centric) and the attempts at an overarching narrative are wack.

still, i found myself enjoying a majority of the cases at least a little even with the lack of complexity/challenge.

this could be really improved on with another go around, i think.

DEVOURED this. I was a little leery going in, as Unheard looked like a Jumpscares Horror Game (and the game certainly leans into this implication to keep you on edge). In fact, it is a mini-mysteries game with zero jumpscares and a really neat investigation mechanic. Similar to Telling Lies, but the conversation matching worked much better. (And you can skip through the audio, no less.) Each case involves a complicated series of intersecting gambits, with you having to follow handoffs, shuffles, and true identities. I could have done without the "evil psych ward" stuff, and the plots weren't exactly deep, but the basic gameplay was so fun that I wish the game were longer.

Apparently the devs aren't planning to release the other two DLCs in English, as they are too based in Chinese culture to be localized like the base game is. Which is a shame, really--I would happily play it translated but unlocalized.

Amazing deductive mystery! Reminds me of Obra Dinn, where it relies mostly on audio to tell the story and it's up to the player to piece everything together. There's no leaps of logic, everything makes sense once you hear everything. The stories are interesting, without being too easy or too convoluted (the free DLC is the only one that's a bit convoluted). It's a bit short, with 5 cases to solve I would have loved more, but what I did get was great! The 3rd one in the police station is the best!

It's an unusual game, and we need more unusual games. You move an invisible avatar across a building blueprint, listening to past conversations in order to solve mysteries.

What is most interesting is that while Unheard focuses on hearing, the best clues and 'aha' moments come from silent pauses, from what isn't spoken.

But the game feels like a demo. After a handful of scenarios Unheard suddenly ends with a hackneyed twist that doesn't justify its central conceit.

The real deal breakers are the over-written script and the awful voice acting – killshots for a game that's all about listening.

O jogo era exatamente o que eu esperava, gostei muito da progressão de dificuldade dos casos, todos os casos do jogo principal são relativamente fáceis, mas não deixei de me divertir.

O caso da DLC é o melhor disparado, foi muito interessante tentar entender aquele caos, devo deixar aqui que não gostei muito da resposta sobre a arma real, não fez sentido na minha cabeça, e deu uma murchada no caso.

Mesmo assim um jogo absurdo, para quem gosta de dedução como Obra Dinn vai gostar. (O jogo é todo em Inglês e sem legenda.)

Completed with 100% of achievements unlocked, DLC case completed. Unheard puts a distinctive spin on the detective genre, tasking the player to solve a series of crimes with the use almost solely of sound. The game is played from an overhead perspective, with 'sound sources' (the voices of the characters in each environment) marked and you can move between rooms to listen to the events within each, with voices dynamically increasing/decreasing in volume and moving in 3D space as you move around them - it's an impressive effect. Taking a cue from immersive theatre, each scenario has events constantly taking place simultaneously, in different locations, and of course that means that not everything can be experienced in a single run. Fortunately, the flow of time can be manipulated at will, with fast-forward, rewind and skip controls to aid in the detective work as you gradually piece together events - first by identifying the names of each individual, then by answering up to three questions that define the crime that you're tasked to solve.

Perhaps worth noting is that the voice-acting quality is a bit of a mixed bag, likely at least in part of being a dub from native Chinese. The game is arguably a bit on the easy side and - at least until the final case or two - the way that your solution can be 'marked' at will makes it very susceptible to brute-forcing - but this didn't particularly detract from an engrossing overall experience; with only five cases, it's over all too quickly!