A Case of Distrust

A Case of Distrust, the text-based detective debut game by Ben Wander, is a mixed bag. Presentation-wise, it is stunning: the use of silhouettes for the characters and environments, the unobtrusive but wonderfully atmospheric background music, and the creatively animated transitions between scenes all cooperate to create a stylish experience. Look past the pretty packaging, however, and you'll find a rather bland story, with characters that remain one-dimensional throughout the whole game. Even the main character, who is the only person to also have their inner life described, is still quite dull and sterile. The story has a clear focus on emancipation and women's rights, but in such an overly explained way that it never felt genuine or lived in. The plot twists feel forced and nonsensical, and by the end, even the artful user interface started to annoy me as I was trying to piece together this contrived narrative. A Case of Distrust is a short game, but halfway through its 3-hour runtime, I was already longing for it to conclude. 6.5/10

Great short detective game, though not with an insane impact, just a delightful short story in my opinion. What really sparkles is the beautiful design, reminiscent of the good old Hotel Dusk games, and the well-written dialogue and, at least from what I can tell, well-researched and authentic-feeling 1930s setting. Caveats: 1. The game is kinda annoying to play with the standard steam deck control scheme and I have not found a better control scheme. Which is a shame, this was very cozy for reading in bed. You're forced to use the trackpad, and while that works well enough, but it could be better. 2. Lotta travelling back and forth between places just to confirm one or two more statements. But again, that is not so bad, the travelling is accompanied by unique taxicab chats and it's really well written and interesting to read. All in all, for a couple bucks and about 2-3 hours of entertainment, I think it's solid.