Let’s not be hasty and Kill The Shadow – have you played SCHiM yet? Let’s also not be hasty and poo-poo the news of an upcoming ‘dark’ narrative-drive detective game coming to the PC.

Courtesy of Shadowlight Sanctuary and 663 Games, you play Detective Ah’Guang in a post-war divided city. You investigate a series of murders and unravel them by rewinding time to piece the evidence together.

Master Ruan has gone missing, there’s the sudden death of Wangcai, grudges at the Shipwreck, and ‘dismembered limbs in the sewers’. It sounds all very pleasant, especially when you have the choice to kill, judge or even kiss(!) the mastermind behind it all. Key features in Kill The Shadow include:

  • Hints and Evidence – Freely choose how you enhance your abilities—strength, spirit, charm—and select your own methods to investigate cases—psychological warfare? Bribery? Or simply beating your suspects? Deduction System: Collect, analyze, and connect related clues to create your own unique investigation path
  • Seeing the Past – “The Shadow”, a strange creature attached to you that reads memories and reconstructs the traces of the deceased “Don’t worry, Ah’Guang, we’re just using each other. You use me to find the culprit, and I, well, I love tasting those bizarre stories, hahaha!”, says the Shadow.
  • The Ways of the World – Meet various characters in the city: the energetic girl with a camera, the elegant Mrs. Ruan, the rumoured goddess who can cast spells, and the elderly fish-selling lady. Discover the stories behind them. Encounter characters like the self-righteous Captain Wang, Lao Citou’s son Xiao Citou, the foul-mouthed Little Rascal, and the deceased Master Ruan. Earn the hearts of your favourite characters by completing certain events!
  • Retro and Neon – The combination of 3D environments and 2D pixel art characters creates a unique artistic style with a striking contrast between modern and retro aesthetics. Explore a variety of diverse and freely explorable scenes: the dilapidated steel forest factory, the muddy shipwreck dock built on water, the Zhulong Walled City blending the fictional traditional Ma Island and Imperial culture, and the bustling old city district.

Kill The Shadow is expected to be released on Steam in late 2024. In the meantime, you know what to do.