The Lives Of Others
HIGH Finding the last piece of evidence that finally cracks the case.
LOW The myriad technical issues.
WTF With all the passwords left on sticky notes, this city needs better IT Security.
A first-person detective simulator featuring procedurally-generated worlds, characters and objectives, Shadows of Doubt is a dream come true for aspiring gumshoes.
Upon first stepping into the streets of Casablanca Quarter (one of the pre-built cities a player can choose) I was immediately drawn into the world of Shadows of Doubt. Owing no small debt to film noir, the architecture feels suitably oppressive. Residential blocks tower over my character, their tops disappearing into a grainy haze. It’s always dark in this city, even during the daytime. I navigate by haloed neon-light, glowing through steam rising from a nearby sewer. The city shakes and groans around me — an apparent earthquake. It passes quickly and none of the other citizens seem concerned. I move on.
Shadows of Doubt is rendered in voxels (three-dimensional pixels) but eschews the cutesy, retro aesthetic typical of the style. Instead, it lends the world a rag-tag air — buildings, furniture, even people appear rough-hewn and cobbled together. The city is messy in the best way, where every trash can, safe or person may hold the clue that breaks the case. It’s good that the world looks so good, as much of my time was spent getting up close and personal with it.
There are a variety of case types — investigating murders, infidelity, corporate espionage — but most revolve around the process of collecting and linking evidence to a person and event.
In one such case I was hired to investigate a jilted lover’s philandering partner. Arriving at the accused’s apartment, I knock. With no answer and a limited number of lockpicks, I sneak into an adjacent air vent, snaking through the ductwork until I reach the living room. Inside, I waste no time opening drawers, searching for notes, emails, gifts — anything that might prove the infidelity.
Shadows of Doubt demands an engagement with the minutia of its world in such a way that it’s easy to forget its origins as procedurally generated lines of code. Beyond a brief tutorial case that introduces the basics of evidence collection and demonstrates the title’s internal logic, there is virtually no handholding or guidance. It’s left entirely to the player to decide which pieces of evidence are relevant, and how best to connect the dots to draw conclusions.
Exploring the unfaithful lover’s bedroom, I find a crumpled note stuffed in a drawer. Unfolding it reveals a poem signed with initials “XY”. Time to crack open the phone book to track down any citizens with those initials, and hopefully some answers.
Clues like this form a breadcrumb trail from one citizen to the next until the truth is uncovered. If I hadn’t noticed that note, I may have discovered a stray fingerprint that didn’t match my employer or their spouse, or maybe an email alluding to a workplace tryst.
There were several instances where I struggled to make these connections, and given the free-form, open-world structure of Shadows of Doubt, I found myself overwhelmed by the possibilities. Unsure of where to head next, and without a solid lead some of my cases just fizzled out. Is it a realistic depiction of the investigative process? Certainly. But is it a satisfying player experience? Not so much. It could be that I’m just not cut out for the life of a P.I., but I would have welcomed a hint system to nudge me in the right direction.
Despite these failures, I was still compelled to press on and pick up new cases. The act of physically exploring these spaces and connecting the smallest details, but still knowing failure was a possibility brought me into the fiction, making me an active participant in its narrative. Unfortunately, this illusion comes crashing down when it comes to executing the necessary interface steps to make these connections.
Cases are tracked on a virtual corkboard where players can pin pieces of evidence in the form of cards (people, items, fingerprints, etc.) and then literally connect them with thread. This process is menu intensive, and I often found the various pop-up menus failing to register my inputs, or that my cursor would suddenly disappear when trying to select an inventory item.
Most of these issues can be worked around by closing and re-opening the menus, but I often felt as though my mental energy was devoted to outsmarting a stubborn UI, rather than a merciless killer. While I’m sure many of these problems will be addressed in future patches, as it stands, my experience was significantly compromised by these bugs. Nothing shatters the climax of a city-wide manhunt like having to reload a save because I got trapped in the security camera interface.
The other elephant in the room is the procedural generation system. While I generally prefer more intentional authorship, I was genuinely impressed by the level of detail and nuance in each case I undertook. However, I quickly began to notice repetition in the extraneous material.
Literally every office I explored had an identically written email about a gambling ring. Each apartment had the same letters to old friends with indistinguishable text. These elements are incidental and are present to give the space a lived-in feel, but for me they had the opposite effect, taking me out of the experience.
In its current state, Shadows of Doubt is a tricky title to sum up. In many ways, it’s a remarkable and rewarding experience that demands wholesale buy-in from its players. On the other hand, it’s immensely frustrating and ultimately disappointing, with repetitive elements and technical foibles destroying its façade.
While difficult to describe it as a success, Shadows of Doubt is a title I won’t soon forget, and if the itch in the back of my brain is any indication, it won’t be long before I’m back on the streets, chasing down leads and catching killers.
Rating: 7 out of 10
— Ryan nalley
Disclosures: This game is developed by ColePowered Games and published by Fireshine Games.It is currently available on PC, XBS/X, and PS5. This copy of the game was obtained via publisher and reviewed on the PS5. Approximately 15 hours of play were devoted to the single-player mode, and the game was not completed. There are no multiplayer modes.
Parents: According to the ESRB, this game is rated T and contains Blood, Mild Language, Tobacco Reference, Use of Alcohol, and Violence. The ESRB Rating Summary is as follows: This is a simulation game in which players assume the role of a detective solving murder cases. From a first-person perspective, players explore an open-world environment, gather evidence, interact with characters, and obtain gadgets and equipment. Throughout the game, players encounter and investigate cadavers/corpses of murder victims. Players can use various weapons (e.g., knives, boxcutters, batons) and their fists to engage characters in melee-style combat. Combat sometimes results in blood-splatter effects. Players’ character can purchase and consume alcohol (e.g., vodka, bourbon), resulting in a drunk effect (i.e., blurred vision, stumbling). Players’ character can also purchase tobacco products (e.g., cigarettes, cigars, tobacco), which can be held but not used/consumed. The word “bastard” appears in the game.
Colorblind Modes: There are no colorblind modes available.
Deaf & Hard of Hearing Gamers: This game offers subtitles. While the subtitles generally cannot be altered or re-sized, certain written elements in the game world (letters, notes, etc.) can be toggled between handwriting and typeface for easier legibility. All dialogue is subtitled with the exception of some background dialogue such as a PA system in the city, televisions in the world, and other incidental dialogue of this nature. I did not find these elements to be necessary for progression, although they do provide background information for the world. All audio cues are represented by on-screen indicators.
Remappable Controls: Yes, this game offers fully remappable controls.
Following this introduction, Ryan dove headlong into the 16 and 64-bit eras, culminating in the year 2000 with a fateful visit to the local game shop.On the recommendation of a saintly store clerk, Ryan picked up a copy of Deus Ex and, shortly thereafter, embarked on the vain quest to find a game that tops it.
This journey has led Ryan to GameCritics where he attempts to articulate why he still finds this medium so compelling.When not playing or writing about games, Ryan can be found watching competition reality television with his wife, their dog, and three cats.
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