Tag: detective

The best detective game of the last ten years is published by Square Enix and has received a sequel that you can't miss

When we think of Square Enix, we think of JRPGs. After years of Final Fantasy and Dragon Quest, with their greatest efforts dedicated to that particular genre, it’s normal for everything to be associated with that genre. But among their ranks, they have some renowned creators who have been involved in franchises from genres very different from JRPGs. For example, visual novels. And in particular, detective stories. Because the best detective game of the last five years, which you probably haven’t played, has received a sequel. And it is as interesting or more so than […]

When we think of Square Enix, we think of JRPGs. After years of Final Fantasy and Dragon Quest, with their greatest efforts dedicated to that particular genre, it’s normal for everything to be associated with that genre. But among their ranks, they have some renowned creators who have been involved in franchises from genres very different from JRPGs. For example, visual novels. And in particular, detective stories.

Because the best detective game of the last five years, which you probably haven’t played, has received a sequel. And it is as interesting, if not more so, than the original game. Its name is Paranormasight: The Mermaid’s Curse, but the story of these games is as interesting as the story of its creator, who, although unknown in the West, is quite an institution in Japan. Also among JRPG fans.

A Big Man in Japan

The creator of the game is Takanari Ishiyama, which may not mean anything to you, and that’s normal. Although he has been working in the video game industry since at least the era of the first PlayStation, his name is not one that has resonated in the same way as other famous names like Shigeru Miyamoto or Hideo Kojima. In fact, he started working for the latter at Konami. Working in the sound department, he was responsible for the editing, composition, and adjustments of the sound effects and voices of Metal Gear Solid, as well as handling the sound effects for two little-known games in the West by Kojima: the first two volumes of Tokimeki Memorial Drama Series. Two visual novels spinoffs of a famous dating sim from that era.

Although later he would also work on design tasks in the racing game franchise Tokyo Xtreme Racer, which is little known in the West but extremely popular in Japan, he would join Square Enix in 2005, where he would work on several major titles, as director and screenwriter, particularly for mobile platforms. Highlighting his work as director on  Final Fantasy XII: Revenant Wing and Blood of Bahamut, for Nintendo DS, two of the most underrated games on the platform, he proved to be one of the most talented authors in the company. Even if he is also one of the least known.

But before that, Ishiyama had already gained significant fame. At least, in terms of Japan. Because three years prior, he had started a franchise of seventeen installments that was a massive success on mobile. And it attracted a new audience to video games.

The man who made mystery great

Ishiyama published in 2002 for mobile phones Tantei Kibukawa Ryōsuke Jikentan Vol. 1: Kamen Gensō Satsujin Jiken, which we could loosely translate as The story of the case of detective Ryosuke Kibukawa: the masked fantasy murder. This would be the first installment of the Ryosuke Kibukawa detective series, where an employee of a video game company dies while playing the RPG of a rival company. Having to discover how much of the claim that the video game is cursed is real and how much is, in fact, that someone had motives to murder him.

Being a tremendous success, especially among the young female audience, what I would highlight about the series Tantei Kibukawa Ryōsuke Jikentan is that it adds a unique twist to classic detective stories. All of them address social issues, have some kind of occult twist, and place a great emphasis on discovering how much truth there is in the esoteric part and how much in the crime.

Unfortunately, if you want to play any of the seventeen titles of Tantei Kibukawa Ryōsuke Jikentan, you will need to know Japanese. Although they are easily available on Steam at an excellent price thanks to the company G-MODE, they have never been officially or unofficially translated into any other language besides Japanese. But what we do have are the games that, inspired by Tantei Kibukawa Ryōsuke Jikentan, with a much larger budget and, to be honest, even less publicity, Ishiyama has made for Square Enix: Paranormasight.

Published in March 2023 on Switch, PC, and mobile platforms, Paranormasight: The Seven Mysteries of Honjo offers us a most intriguing premise: in the Sumida district of Tokyo, a group of people is trying to unveil the Seven Mysteries of Honjo, a series of urban legends that seem to be behind a ritual that would allow them to resurrect the dead. Soon we will discover that all of this is true and that each of the mysteries is associated with a curse that can kill a human being if the right conditions are met, and that this is necessary to accumulate enough souls to bring someone back to life. Always for a price.

Our role here is that of a detective and facilitator. By putting ourselves in the shoes of each character in the story, being able to travel back in time and changing the order and the events themselves, we must ensure that they achieve their goals and do not reach dead ends, all while uncovering the secrets behind the mysterious disappearances and deaths surrounding each of them.

The game captivated both critics and audiences, both in Japan and the West. Even though it was in Japan where it stood out the most. Winning the Excellence Award at the 2023 Japan Game Awards, it was only a matter of time before Square Enix allowed Ishiyama to make a sequel. And it seems that the time has come.

Named Paranormasight: The Mermaid’s Curse, the structure is the same and our purpose has not changed. But now instead of being in a rural neighborhood of Tokyo, we are on the island of Kameshima, in the most remote part of Japan. Suffering from different curses among themselves, our goal will be to uncover the truth behind the secret of the Ise mermaids. And while those who have been able to play it have loved it, with even greater critical enthusiasm than its original release, you won’t have to wait to try it: the game comes out on February 19, 2026. As of the publication date of this article. And without needing to play Paranormasight: The Seven Mysteries of Honjo, although we recommend you do so anyway, what’s stopping you from diving into that incredible mystery?

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The best detective series you still don't know returns with a second season

Detective stories are enjoyable, and Rian Johnson knows how to write and direct them like few others. Knives Out proved that he has a gift for keeping viewers’ attention with elaborate crimes and he upped the ante with Glass Onion, a film that managed to subvert everything we expected from a sequel to Knives Out. That doesn’t mean that everything Rian Johnson touches turns to gold. Not at all. Although he is an excellent director, it has taken him many years of exceptional work to get to where he is today. And even now, he remains quite unnoticed […]

Detective stories are popular, and Rian Johnson knows how to write and direct them like few others. Knives Out proved that he had a gift for keeping the audience’s attention with elaborate crimes and upped the ante with Glass Onion, a film that managed to subvert everything we expected from a sequel to Knives Out.

That doesn’t mean that everything Rian Johnson touches turns to gold. Not at all. Although he is an excellent director, it has taken him many years of exceptional work to get to where he is today. And even now, he goes largely unnoticed in some of his works. This is the case with the series he is working on, which is now premiering its second season on SkyShowtime and which you may not have heard of. Its name is Poker Face.

When you can tell when a person is lying, it’s easy to be a detective

The premise of Poker Face couldn’t be simpler. Charlie Cale, played by the fantastic Natasha Lyonne, has the innate ability to detect lies. Due to a suspicious death, she must travel across the United States fleeing from a casino boss. Because of her travels and her unique ability, in each episode she will find herself solving the most peculiar homicide cases, whether she likes it or not.

Very inspired by Colombo, each episode is self-contained and is an inverted detective story. We know the crime and who committed it, and the episode focuses on how Charlie manages to solve it. Generally with hilarious results.

In this second season, which has already finished airing in the US, the format has not changed. Charlie continues to travel across the US, solving a case each time, all peculiar, always reluctantly. But Rian Johnson, instead of focusing on the evolution of Charlie’s character or his mythology, wanted to have fun with the cases. Making them even more outrageous, fun, and spectacular than in the first season.

While Charlie’s character evolves throughout the season, the weight of the series still lies in the cases and their resolution. Now even more complex and interesting, which will delight fans of detective stories, who shouldn’t miss Poker Face for anything in the world.

A series full of great names

In addition, like the first season, this second season is a real who’s who of Hollywood. Packed with cameos, there isn’t an episode without one or two stars making a small appearance. Among the most recognizable are Giancarlo Esposito, Katie Holmes, John Mulaney, and Awkwafina, but the list of actors involved in the series is huge. And to start, we wouldn’t want to spoil it here.

Any fan of detective stories or Knives Out should not miss this second season of Poker Face. Nor Poker Face in general. A series that is flying under the radar perhaps because it is not a drama or a dark and serious story, but it is undoubtedly one of the great current series.

That’s why, before you miss out and regret not having seen it earlier, take advantage of the premiere of this second season of Poker Face to catch up. Because if there’s one thing Rian Johnson has proven, it’s that no one knows how to write a reverse detective story like he does.

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SkyShowtime is a streaming platform from which you can stream series, movies, and entertainment programs in video on demand (VOD) format. It is an ambitious project by SkyShowtime Limited, available in Spain and 20 other countries in the European Union and its area of influence, such as Norway or Bosnia and Herzegovina. SkyShowtime aims to carve out a niche in the market thanks to its very competitive prices. Thus, they will compete with services like Netflix or Disney +, two similar platforms that have increased their prices recently.