05/11/2018

London Detective Mysteria Demo: Maybe, maybe not


I was utterly surprised to find a demo for London Detective Mysteria, a VN I had heard about a long time ago yet totally forgotten. How on earth did I miss that demo on the PSN? Is it that old? Or do demos simply not appear in the regular game list? At any rate, I now have my eye on LDM, if only because it was not developed by Otomate; I'm curious to see what other developers can do with the otome genre, and if we can escape good ol' Otomate tropes such as confinement, childhood friends and wolves in sheep's clothing.


The demo is painfully short, as expected for a VN; but that short time with LDM was very pleasant nonetheless. Those fifteen-or-so minutes were more than enough to realize that the colour palette is gorgeous, with rich and crystalline hues, and the character design is lovely without being overdone. (I'm especially fond of Watson's faux-bavarian style and MC Emily's cute yet sassy little face.) Characters are well-defined, and their personalities get to shine right from the start. Based on those elements alone, LDM would be a surefire purchase.


But then, there's also the story. I have to wonder if that "detective" in the title means that I'll get to flex my investigative muscle, or if it's just an excuse to write a big, fat crossover fanfic featuring luminaries from all walks of detective fiction. The demo didn't offer dialogue choices, so I'll be inclined to think that the latter is true; however, this was only the prologue, and things could change later in the game. For now, I'll just assume that LDM won't let me investigate anything myself, just for the sake of avoiding disappointment. That being said, I also have to question the overall quality of the story: because if the 'case' featured in the demo is any indication, then I'm not holding my breath at the thought of the investigations to come. (Spoilers!) Said case involves the crew tracking down a cat whilst babbling nonsense about feline behaviours such as the notion that cats can willingly backtrack in their own prints to hide their whereabouts, yeah right after which Emily produces an ad hoc plant that can attract cats when burnt, which allows her to capture the fleeing cat. Am I supposed to take that 'case' seriously, or is this just a silly appetizer before the story starts for good and starts being good? (End of spoilers)


Well, I guess the only way to find out is to purchase the game, isn't it? Alas, XSEED is not exactly forthcoming about release details: apart from a vague "Fall 2018" mention on their website, there is no information available regarding the release format or the price tag. Those two elements are probably going to determine whether I purchase the game or not: if LDM is digital-only and comes with a hefty price tag say 40 euros or more then I may simply pass on it. Or I may buy it nonetheless, if my gaming instinct really craves it. Or I may wait for a hypothetical discount. Heck, I really don't know yet, to be honest. Let's just wait and see, shall we? Thanks for reading, and be my guest anytime!

2 comments:

  1. Totally agree with you, the design is adorable and the colours are gorgeous !!

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    1. I started playing the full version and it's really a lovely, lovely game. The designs and colours only get more gorgeous by the chapter, to my utter delight. I'm seriously pondering a purchase of the original PSP version, even if it's in full japanese. The graphics alone would warrant such a purchase as far as my retinas are concerned!

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