Strolling Is A Free Detective Game About Exact Thinking

Edgar Allen Poe's The Murders in the Rue Morgue is often considered the first modern detective short story ever written, and stars a part-time sleuth named C. Auguste Dupin. Mr Dupin solves crimes by way of 'ratiocination', a process of exact thinking, and this happens to be the main inspiration for Beavl's Strolling [GameJolt page] - a lovely wee point and click adventure game that was created for AdventureJam 2016 and is available to download now. It's also free, so I exactly think you should give it a whirl.

"A game about walking with someone and making deductions" probably isn't the most outlandish premise for a videogame, however the opening line "Also, every time he sprayed deodorant his nipples would get hard!" is certainly pretty out there. That's how Strolling kicks off, as you don the role of dapper chap Pedro and wander down a busy Buenos Aires high street with your chum Mariano. He's a bit quiet today, it turns out, and his out-of-character vacant stares and furrowed brow lets us know something's up. But what?

That's where ratiocination comes in. By asking the right questions in concert with the game's nifty time-manipulation mechanic, you're able skip back and forth, up and down the street, matching 'thoughts' housed in your inventory to uncover mini-events and ascertain what's getting your pal down.

Besides its lovely animations and vivid pastel-coloured backdrops, the game comes into its own by eventually allowing you to combine thoughts to create new ones and delve deeper into its short narrative. It's a really cool concept and at times reminded me of Tom Jubert's Ir/rational Redux, which is no bad thing.

As an AdventureJam 2016 entry, Strolling took just two weeks to make, however it'd be real nice to see Beavl expand the idea into a bigger game. Whether that happens or not, you can grab Strolling free-of-charge over on GameJolt.

Oh, and if the name Beavl rings a bell, that's because they're the folks behind the likes of Faif, The Narrow Path, and Monster Streaking, which are also all good fun and worth checking out.