Sleuth Home - Message Boards - Sleuth : Shades of Mystery

Jan-26-2008 16:43
(sticky post)

We've officially lifted the non-disclosure agreement for testers who have been taking part in the closed Sleuth : Shades of Mystery beta tests. I'm hoping a few of them will post here with some of the impressions so you can all get a picture of where the game is and where it is headed.

I'm sorry it was necessary to ask them to keep their mouths zipped up until now, but I didn't want anybody to get wrong impressions about what the finished game will be like by basing their opinions on an early version.

Also, we will be switching to an open beta test very soon, so everyone who is interested won't have to wait much longer before trying things out.

Jan-27-2008 16:40

Oh my god. I cannot believe this happened. Serves me right for having like a bazillion email accounts... going to see if it works now.

I'm so excited!

Jan-27-2008 16:46

I was under the impression that beta testers would be notified by Sleuth Mail, not by our actual email addresses (as it says on the Shades of Mystery page). I changed to a new email months ago, and did not switch it here, because I was expecting to receive notifications in-game. This is very, very unfortunate, as I was looking forward to try out SoM after suffering from a long bout of burnout.

I actually believed I hadn't been chosen to participate. Now because of some misinformation I learn that that wasn't the case at all. Very depressing.

Jan-27-2008 17:33

My impressions of SoM are that it is a different game. Wry grin.

If you like solving puzzles, reading bits of stories and making them into a whole character/story then Noir is for you.

If you like solving mysteries, complicated puzzles and advancing up a ladder then Shades is for you.

With the Flash side of the game it feels much more like a stand alone CD-Rom game that you start, work your way through and come to an end. The case interaction and record keeping are excellent. The detective development is well done. The elimination of the Smart side of skills (not entirely true but close) means that Charm and Tough skills come to the forefront very quickly, and in a more obvious way than in Noir.

Things I did not like include the music and the way of finding clues. It is not extreme pixel hunting, but it does not take any real thought to find clue, simply waving the mouse will work.

Things that I do like (as mentioned before) are the more complex interaction with suspects and townies. Once people see how that works you will understand why several of us have said that is the best part of the new game. The time limits and case solving structure are laid out in a manner that will cause some to become frustrated, and others to be stimulated. There will be many different strategies developed by players as they work the cases.

Things I want to like include those new strategies. It looks like the ability for Admin to add depth to the cases is essentially open ended. There should not be the top tier of AI in the new game, as cases can become harder with such a variety of tweaks. It looks like the detective development will be so varied that there will be many differing opinions on what works best, and even what an agency needs as a set of skills between all its detectives.

Jan-27-2008 17:33

Things I think I do not like include the further limiting of roleplaying. Noir is called an RPG and there are spots where the roleplaying can be developed as part of the reading/scripted interactions in the game. No everyone takes to that side of the game but it is there and available.

SoM removes much of that interaction. It feels much more like a game to be played, rather than a scene to be interacted with. I know that with the addition of agencies and more players there might grow up a roleplaying side, but I do not get the inspiration to start roleplaying from the cases like I did in Noir.

Potential problems in SoM that would make me want to leave include the time component and server speed. The cases do take longer, and there will not be any quick case solver/sleuth helper that can interact with the flash component. In Noir those with more time to solve lots of cases do better. In SoM that is magnified. Like many other MMPG's out there, those who have the time to do more cases will rule the SoM world. With so much of SoM being based on advancement there may very well become a more pronounced difference from the casual player to the hard core devotee then there is in Noir.

Server speed is even more critical with SoM, as the flash file to be pushed out is painful at lower connection speeds. With my fastest connection available and top of the line machine the refresh rate suffered slightly sometimes. When I tested with slow machines and low bandwidth connections there were times I could not do a case. SoM is definitely a game I would not play if I was in a pay for usage set up on the Internet.

Overall I think this new game makes Hypothetical a more diverse company that can provide two different products for two different audiences. Some of us will be in both for a while, but I do think that most will congregate in one or the other over time. SoM will have many more casual players who investigate play and then leave than Noir has.

Jan-27-2008 17:34

Overall I think that anyone who is in Noir should try out SoM to see a different side/type of mystery solving game.

Jan-27-2008 18:57

So I'm really late in beta testing this, but...

Wow.

I simply adore SOM. It's like all the other interactive online mystery games I play in addition to Sleuth Noir. Only better.

Sure, it takes a little time to learn the ropes, get the hang of things, mentally process the many, many new aspects and angles that have been introduced (new contacts, new evidence types, skills, etc.). But after a few cases, things start to coalesce, and it is truly fabulous (and fun!).

Indeed, so fun and addicting I forgot to eat dinner. Seriously, this used to be what Sleuth Noir was like for me, back in the day when it didn't feel routine or tedious. Now all I want to do is dig for treasure in the pyramids.

Don't get me wrong - Noir is interesting and still fun to play. SOM just takes it to a completely new level. It's intricate, and it's fascinating for someone who wants to figure out new things from the very beginning.

Jan-28-2008 02:53

I agree with Greebo's earlier sentiment that the jerky camera angles can make your eyes go buggy at times.

That said, the skills and contacts blend really well together, and I can already see the potential direction the game will go when they add the ability to have and decorate an appartment.

The cases do take much longer to go through than the original sleuth noir cases, but the speed at which you advance compensates well for the time factor. I love the original, but despite my issue with the camera, I think I'll end up spending my time on SoM.

Jan-28-2008 06:25

How very odd RAN that you feel SOM doesn't feel like a scene to be interacted with while you feel that way about Noir.. I have always felt very uninvolved in the case stories of Noir, while in SoM I feel more a part of the investigation. (And before anyone thinks that this is a criticism of what Ran said, it is not. It is merely meant to show how two people can view the same thing very differently.) The interactions with the townspeople along with the skill building allow, in my opinion, more control in shaping your detective.
As far as role playing is concerned, I have a feeling that those interested in that aspect will find a way to enjoy it in SoM.
I do agree that those with lots of time to play SoM will end up on the top of the high score boards..but then again even with case limits per day in Noir the one's with the time to put into the game are the ones who are on top.

Jan-28-2008 07:32

Shell, I think my impression comes from the reading in Noir and the watching in SoM.

Noir feels like I am reading a short story, working a puzzle at the same time.

SoM feels like I am playing a video game and keeping notes on the side about what is happening.

I do agree that the new ways of developing a detective are much more varied that Noir and will do well in helping each person feel unique.

Jan-28-2008 09:17

I know I will stick with Noir.

The main reason are that while it takes quite some time to solve the cases and advance in Noir, but in SoM, it felt like you were advancing slower, and the cases took longer. And, the short time I tested SoM before I just had got enough, I could not even know that I would be allowed to do cases on the hardest level "opened" all the time. When I had come to intermediate, I some times had options to choose just between easies.
While it might be like this in real life, it's different in a game where much are based on advancing.

You might find it fun to search a crime scene or a home the first 20 times, but then it becomes like routine. Oh, yea, that piece of furniture, it's got a space for somthing there, and one (always only one) drawer you can open there..... And, this furniture piece don't have a drawer, even though it looks like it... - and see, I have found the footprint, the handprint, the handwriting, the clothes, the comb/brush, the tobacco or lipstick stain, and there was no extra notes or keys, well, done with that "house".

When you have a game that's mostly routine, and it quickly becomes like that both in Noir and SoM, then you need something that is able to speed the process, as just repetition are not that fun. With Noir I was able to make a program that took care of most of the booring repetition work, but I am not sure if it would be equally easy to do with a flash component.

And, if the character creation system are not drastically improved since I had a look....No.... I accept that I cannot "create me" in Noir, but to make something that have similarities, but still not are me.... :-(, it's just to mock me.

I know that I will either stick with Noir, or none. If the Noir community will be depleeted too much, and Admin will use most of his time on SoM, since it's more new and fun, well, then perhaps I won't be anyplace....