A Hardy Developer's Journal – as written by indie adventure game developers

Emerald City Confidential succeeds first and foremost as an adventure because it tells a good story. I cannot emphasize even  nearly enough how much this game has surprised me with its gripping narrative with a fresh take on the already well known Land of Oz and its inhabitants. (more…)

Things just got more complicated, partner!

Somehow almost all my entries seem to go along with cartoony pictures. It’s hard to stay serious in such circumstances. Thankfully I have now dabbled in a realistic, gritty, FMV whodunit adventure game series called Casebook and am able to offer you a taste of something much more dark and realistic for a change. Dedicated especially to fans of solving crimes through methodical clue and evidence gathering and patience-demanding forensic work.

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Gumshoe tells the story of a run-out-of-luck sap from Liverpool called Eddie Ginlay – hitting 31, living alone, small-time bingo caller and noir-fiction aficionado for years trying unsuccessfully to make out as a nightclub comic. As far as the man’s social life goes, his woman was stolen by his wealthy brother a year earlier and his constant Sam Spade-like manner of communicating with people makes them think he’s not right in the head, or at best a poor joker.

Ultimately, even Eddie himself has a mocking way of looking at his life-style. He puts a half-serious advertisement in the paper to appear the day of his birthday, describing himself as a private investigator. Soon, he gets a call from a potential client asking for a meeting, but it will be a very different kind of a job from what Eddie would expect…
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