The mystery/detective genre is essential to Visual Novels. Lately I’ve been thinking about how the input method for choices can really impact the detective element of these games.

Note: This article contains minor mechanical spoilers for The Zodiac Trial, Zero Time Dilemma, and Umineko When They Cry. It does not contain major story spoilers.

Pick Your Path – The Zodiac Trial

Multiple choice options are probably the most common option in Visual Novels, and maybe even all of video games. All of the non-side puzzles in The Zodiac Trial are in the form of branching multiple choices.

When it comes to detective work, lazy players (like me, much of the time) can sit back and methodically pick all of the possible choices or lazily guess around. Usually there aren’t any consequences for doing so — and I don’t think that would be much fun if there were in most cases.

Multiple choices also give players hints by the nature of their format. Sometimes it’s easier to solve mysteries by looking at the possibilities and working backwards.

Free Input – Zero Time Dilemma

Some of Zero Time Dilemma‘s Time to Decide sections give player absolutely no hints and opportunities for shenanigans by using free text inputs. It’s a fun way to design around the problems that multiple choices bring to mysteries! The solution can be a word or name that hasn’t appeared in the story directly and would look really out of place in a list of choices.

I suspect that this approach needs a lot more responses to incorrect guesses be built into the game, otherwise it would feel arbitrarily frustrating like an old text adventure game. Part of what makes the specific Who Killed Mira section so entertaining is the game’s reaction to obviously incorrect choices, like pointing the finger at Gab the dog. Of course, the final payoff is excellent here as well.

Who Asked? – Umineko

Umineko solves this design problem by never asking for player input on the answers to its mysteries.

In return, players won’t get any feedback either.

If you don’t work on solving the mystery yourself at least a little bit, you won’t learn the answer. At the same time, your progress won’t be mechanically blocked.

That’s the unique strength of Umineko.

Pick Your Path Redux – The Zodiac Trial

The final deduction in the Zodiac Trial adds a twist to its multiple-choice answers: It presents the player with many questions in a row that challenge their complete understanding of the situation. There’s no feedback given until all of the choices have been made.

This setup makes it very unlikely that players who haven’t figured out at least most of the mystery will be able to stumble their way into the solution. It feels fitting for the final challenge.