Murdered: Soul Suspect

What is it? When Ronan O’Connor finds himself to be the latest victim of the very serial killer he had been tracking down, the now dead-but-not-moving-on police detective needs to team up with a sleuthing psychic sidekick (say that 3 times fast!) and use his newly discovered ghostly powers (CAT POSSESSION!) to solve his own murder and unravel the mystery of the infamous Bell Killer.

Though billed as an action-adventure, Murdered: Soul Suspect mostly boasts the DNA of classic point-and-click adventure games, including some of that genre’s cons but with very little of its pros. While there are a few genuinely tense stealth sections (demons = brown pants), most of the languidly paced game is spent pixel hunting in a small handful of semi-cordoned locations in the competently realized Salem, Massachusetts, waiting to see an on-screen item get highlighted for you to interact with.

But don’t expect to put these “clues” to challenging puzzle solving use though, as the game seems completely intent on holding your hand rather than racking your brain, with no real way to fail – even if you’re more Frank Drebin than Sherlock Holmes!

This lack of rewarding challenge, a sub 10-hour running time, an occasionally myopic leading man and repetitive gameplay detract from what is otherwise a well-acted, visually decent (but admittedly not great) and intriguing murder mystery.

Available on PC, PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, Xbox 360 and Xbox One. | Metacritic Score: 63