13 Days of Halloween: Game Review: The Innsmouth Case (Xbox Series X)

An old-school text adventure/visual novel from RobotPumpkin Games and released by Assemble Entertainment. The Innsmouth Case takes its inspiration from The Shadow over Innsmouth, the horror novella by H. P. Lovecraft.

One of the authors most beloved works, there have been many tales told about the decrepit seaport of Innsmouth and plenty of Lovecraft-inspired games too. So, a ‘choose your own’ path visual novel doesn’t exactly scream excitement. Yet, thanks to clever writing and a hearty number of choices, paths and endings, The Innsmouth Case turns out to be something quite special indeed.

You take on the role of a struggling private investigator living in Boston. One evening, before finishing up for the weekend, you are visited by a mysterious woman. One who has a job for you. Her daughter has gone missing in the town of Innsmouth and she wants you to find her.

Early on, The Innsmouth Case makes it clear just what kind of experience you’re in for. It’s Lovecraftian but RobotPumpkin Games are doing their own thing and having some fun with it. Not only that, this simple conversation has massive implications for the direction your story will take. You can even end the game immediately by refusing to take the case and in doing so, unlocking the first of 27 endings. However, answer in a certain way and you might even get lucky.

As you make your way through the town of Innsmouth, you’ll meet a lot of unusual characters and end up in even more unusual situations. How you get out of them, or become part of them, is up to you. The Innsmouth Case’s branching dialogue paths are varied and unique. Even on multiple replays, previous paths crossed will be walked in different ways.

The desire to experience all these paths and see where all the endings go, means you’ll sink hours into the game. It’s never boring, thanks to the darkly amusing, tongue in cheek writing approach. Which is highly impressive when you consider how basic it is.

Visually, text appears on a page like a diary, with some images relating to the experience and occasional a little bit of animation if you’re interacting with a character. It’s simple looking stuff but fits the tone of the game perfectly.

A tone that means you can spend your time in Innsmouth simply exploring and having fun. Forget the case you took, it’s a well-deserved holiday. Or you can descend into darkness, experience the underbelly of Innsmouth and uncover the horrific truth of what lies beneath.

The choice is yours.