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Investigation hidden gems on Steam
Every game here is tagged Investigation on Steam, sits between 1,000 and 5,000 reviews, is rated at least 80% positive, and carries a catch drawn from its own negative reviews. All 17 of them. How these pages are made.
This is a retro pixel-art adventure game where players investigate a murder case in a cyberpunk city. Players analyze details and interact with NPCs to uncover a conspiracy.
What players likedPlayers praise its engaging story and characters, reminiscent of classic point-and-click adventures.
The catchConstant unrelated puzzles crowd out the actual detective work you came for.
Games like Tales of the Neon Sea →
Cozy mystery game where you interview characters and use deduction to solve a conspiracy. Features a short, fully voice-acted narrative with a unique observational mechanic.
What players likedPlayers praise "Duck Detective: The Secret Salami" as a charming, funny, and cozy point-and-click mystery with excellent voice acting, similar to Frog Detective or Ace Attorney.
The catchVery short; completable in well under an hour
Games like Duck Detective: The Secret Salami →
Wytchwood93% positive from 4,716 reviews202127% finish itDeck Verified
Crafting adventure game where you explore, gather, and brew spells to teach characters lessons in a gothic fairytale world.
What players likedPlayers praise Wytchwood as a charming, visually stunning, and story-rich "fetch quest" game akin to Skyrim's crafting, perfect for those who enjoy collecting and crafting.
The catchThe whole game is fetch quests and backtracking for ingredients, which turns tedious.
Games like Wytchwood →
This is a stealth horror game where you sneak into a neighbor's house. Its core loop involves outsmarting an AI that learns your tactics.
What players likedPlayers praise its nostalgic Alpha style and peak gameplay, reminiscent of earlier versions, with multiple ways to reach the basement.
The catchIt is buggy, with objects falling through the map and scripted events repeating.
Games like Hello Neighbor Alpha 2 →
Paradise Killer93% positive from 4,458 reviews202021% finish itDeck Verified
This is an open-world detective game where players investigate a murder on a surreal island. The core loop involves exploring, gathering evidence, and building a case to present in a trial.
What players likedPlayers praise Paradise Killer as a unique open-world detective game akin to Disco Elysium, Danganronpa, and Ace Attorney, for its deep lore and engaging mystery.
The catchMost of the time goes to aimless wandering and collecting, not actual deduction.
Games like Paradise Killer →
This is a stealth horror game where you sneak into a neighbor's house. Its core loop involves an AI learning your tactics to counter your exploration.
What players likedPlayers praise Alpha 1 as the peak of Hello Neighbor, offering improved puzzles, a scary neighbor, and a unique art style.
The catchThe build is buggy and glitchy, so hours of play can end with little progress.
Games like Hello Neighbor Alpha 1 →
This is a live-action horror game where you play as Maya, using a ghost receiver to uncover a psychopath's secret and save her friends. It blends film and gameplay for an immersive, spooky experience.
What players likedPlayers praise its unique live-action, point-and-click horror, comparing it to classic adventure and horror games.
The catchHiding from the same stalker in samey corridors gets repetitive within a few hours.
Games like At Dead Of Night →
Cyberpunk horror game where you hack into minds to solve crimes. Explore twisted dreams and uncover dark secrets in a dystopian future.
What players likedPlayers praise its excellent cyberpunk horror, comparing it to Cronos, Silent Hill, and Cronenberg for its trippy story, visuals, and mind-hacking.
The catchNonstop glitch effects, flicker and motion blur make it physically nauseating to play.
Games like Observer: System Redux →
This is a classic point-and-click adventure game where players solve puzzles and uncover conspiracies. It features a narrative-driven experience with fully voiced characters and a wry sense of humor.
What players likedPlayers praise its intriguing story and clever puzzles, reminiscent of classic point-and-click adventure games.
The catchEndless dialogue and slow unskippable animations stretch every scene into a crawl.
Games like Broken Sword 5 - the Serpent's Curse →
Stealth horror game. Sneak into a neighbor's house against an AI that learns your tactics.
What players likedPlayers praise its scary, aggressive AI and realistic art style, often calling it better than the full release.
The catchThe neighbor spots you instantly and never stops chasing, so sneaking is impossible.
Games like Hello Neighbor Pre-Alpha →
This is a point-and-click detective game where players investigate crime scenes to deduce motives and identify culprits. It features a unique mechanic of collecting keywords from observations to build theories.
What players likedPlayers praise its "eureka moment" mysteries and engaging story, a worthy sequel to the first "Golden Idol" game.
The catchSolving reduces to trial-and-error word swapping
Games like The Rise of the Golden Idol →
Live-action video murder mystery adventure where you interview characters, find contradictions in their statements, and catch them in lies. It offers free exploration and evidence gathering.
What players likedPlayers praise this unique FMV mystery and detective game for its great acting, sound design, and engaging contradiction system.
The catchEvery new clue means trekking back to ask all six characters about it again.
Games like Contradiction - Spot The Liar! →
A VR puzzle adventure game where players interact with intricate contraptions to solve mysteries. It offers a suspenseful, tactile experience exploring cryptic locations.
What players likedPlayers praise its solid puzzles and story, comparing it favorably to Fireproof Games' other highly-regarded VR titles like Ghost Town.
The catchIt runs about three hours, which feels thin next to the price and earlier entries.
Games like The Room VR: A Dark Matter →
This is a short, narrative-driven adventure game where players collect words to solve dialogue puzzles. It features a unique vocabulary inventory and a detective story feel.
What players likedPlayers praise its engaging, narrative-heavy sci-fi mystery with well-written dialogue, often compared to a "Thomas Was Alone" sequel.
The catchChoices barely change anything and the ending arrives rushed and abrupt.
Games like Subsurface Circular →
Cozy mystery adventure game. Interview suspects, find clues, and solve a case.
What players likedPlayers praise its charming art, humor, and voice acting as a worthy successor to the first game, improving its detective puzzles.
The catchSolutions demand answers the given clues don't support
Games like Duck Detective: The Ghost of Glamping →
This is a narrative detective game where players connect memory fragments to solve a cold case. It features a jigsaw-like reasoning system and a melancholic, investigative feel.
What players likedPlayers praise this short, unique detective puzzle game for its compelling, emotional story and clever dialogue-fragment mechanics.
The catchTracking huge walls of text through a clumsy interface turns deduction into tedium.
Games like No Case Should Remain Unsolved →
A story-adventure game where players rewrite history to trigger the butterfly effect and solve puzzles. It features time travel and narrative-driven gameplay with a focus on subtle changes.
What players likedPlayers praise its beautiful aesthetic and unique time-traveling, butterfly-effect mechanics told through comic panels.
The catchMost of the time is spent clicking through long, clumsily translated dialogue.
Games like A Guidebook of Babel →
