The Shapeshifting Detective
D'Avekki Studios Ltd · 2018 · FMV, Adventure, Indie, Detective, Choices Matter
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About The Shapeshifting Detective
Dorota Shaw is dead. And the prime suspects are three tarot readers with the uncanny ability to predict murder - or commit it. It’s your job to find out what else they know - but they won’t reveal their dark secrets to just anyone… Luckily, you can be anyone you want to be. Even the next victim.
The game features more than 1600 full HD video responses, a simple questioning interface with unique ‘delete’ mechanic, and a randomly chosen murderer at the start of the game. Developed by the World Record-breaking makers of "The Infectious Madness of Doctor Dekker".
As you explore the town of August, you'll be treated to a streaming radio broadcast of specially selected dark fiction read out by some of our favourite content creators...
Jesse Cox
Tex Murphy (Chris Jones)
Adam Day (CallOfCthulhu)
Brandy Clarke (Brandykins)
Jessa (The Jessa Channel)
John Mark Clawson
Laceya Finley
The Raw Geek
Tim Leftwich
Venomous Platypus
What Steam players say
Recent verbatim reviews from Steam — separate from playze.io community reviews below.
The Shapeshifting Detective offers an interesting twist on FMV games by focusing on interrogation rather than traditional puzzle-solving, with generally solid video quality and some strong performances from the cast. However, players find the repetitive dialogue-selection gameplay tedious and lacking meaningful choices, with the shapeshifting mechanic feeling gimmicky rather than consequential, and many feel the story is undermined by an unsatisfying ending with unresolved plot threads. The game's experimental approach appeals to some but alienates others who prefer the more interactive struct
I was entertained for some time. Everything falls apart at the end, tho. With multiple endings and multiple killers within these endings, the whole story is kind of a pointless waste of time, as there isn't a definitive answer to what is truly happening or who is actually at fault.1 found this helpful
Bored conversations, all you can do is try out all of the character and talked every options. There is no surprise that I try to be fun and adventurous in these two hours, and there is no feedback. From trying to expose yourself or get drunk or try to irritate others, then you get nothing. The dull conversation waste all my patience, and I can't even skip them or making them talk quicker by any chance.
Kind of wish there was just a neutral option, but I ultimately didn't like this. The idea is really neat. A "shapeshifting detective" has a lot of potential as a story hook (and it's definitely not something I've ever seen before), but I thought the execution was fairly poor overall. The story is confusing, a lot of choices are just there to waste your time, and it just gets extremely tedious to play at points. There's also a lot of weird dialogue that I didn't care for, but it just wasn't for me, in the end. So I can't really recommend it.
I have mixed feelings about this one, as it's not your typical FMV game. Instead, it's more about gathering information from each character by asking questions until you reach the final choice of who the killer is. You can accuse anyone, so your decision should be based on the information you've gathered. It can get a little boring just listening to people talk. I actually had to play it across multiple sessions to finish the game, which is unusual for me when it comes to FMV games. I enjoyed the characters, but I think it would have been better if it followed the traditional FMV format, or if the detective work had been expanded beyond just talking to people. I also didn't like that some parts of the story never get answered. I'm not sure if they were planning a sequel, because some things are mentioned or happen during the game but are never explained, such as: [spoiler] Who are the Travelers? Why do you have the shapeshifting ability? How did you mess up the previous case? What's the deal with the aliens? [/spoiler] I'd give the game a 6/10. I wouldn't recommend it unless you're willing to spend hours watching people talk.
I love classic adventure and detective games. I have loads of experience with FMV games and have always liked them. I could not bring myself to play this game for more than nine minutes. Every single thing about it was pretentious and annoying, and even at the sale price I snagged ($2.50 or so) I was inclined to request a refund.
cool use of the fmv genre.
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