I was blown away when I first played Shadows of Doubt last year. The detective sim realizes a city of characters, each with their own routines, jobs, and lives to live, and you're dropped into the middle of the locale to solve crimes while you chase down a serial killer. As far as the genre of immersive sims goes, this one seemed to have a lot going for it even while it was in Steam Early Access, and now it's finally coming to consoles alongside its 1.0 update.
ColePowered Games' indie will arrive on PS5 and Xbox Series X|S on September 26 as a digital release, though a physical version will soon follow. Detective games are timeless in their appeal, but I've actually never played one that goes to the lengths seen in Shadows of Doubt.
Now Playing: Shadows of Doubt - 1.0 & Release Date Announce Trailer
You build out your own case board, red strings and all, and the game is happy to let you make the wrong assumptions. You can play stealthily, sneaking into businesses after hours to rummage through their trash, or take on the role of a confrontational gumshoe who harasses passersby in the streets. You can hack computers, check call histories, bribe people for information, and more. The game gives you an impressive amount of freedom, outdoing many of its genre counterparts in ambition.
You can read my preview from last year for more of my impressions. I haven't been back to the game in a while, but I suspect it's only gotten better. The digital version can now be preordered on consoles, while the PC version remains available in Early Access for a few more weeks.
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