What is The Silver Case series?
The Silver Case
The Silver Case is a visual novel that was previously unreleased in western countries until 2016 and 2017 were it was remastered for Steam and PS4 respectively. The game takes place in the fictional Japanese city of The 24th Ward, a planned city created to curb over population. Twenty years prior to the events of the game a young serial killer named Kamui Uehara assassinated various members of the Japanese government before being arrested and deemed mentally unfit for trial. He then falls into a comatose state and is sent to a mental hospital. The game is divided into two campaigns: Transmitter and Placebo. The Transmitter story line followers the 24th ward heinous crimes police division as they investigate various violent crimes and the effects of Kamui's seeming reawakening. The Placebo story line follows former journalist, Tokio Morishima, who is hired by an unknown benefactor to investigate Kamui and his origins. Both story lines take place at the same time and is recommended you play them concurrently (play Transmitter #1 then Placebo #1 so on and so forth). The PS4 and Steam versions contain 2 extra chapters too.
The game mostly tells it's story through still images and text boxes, but there are live action video and anime animated sections. The little game play there is often just involves walking to places and solving easy puzzles: the story is the main event here. There also are no story/dialogue choices which may turn some people off.
Flower, Sun, and Rain
Flower, Sun, and Rain was the first game of this series released in the west on the DS in 2008. It is currently the olny way to play the game for western players though Suda has said he is planning on re-releasing the game for modern devices. The game's story follows a new character named Sumio Mondo who is a private detective who is hired by the manager of the island resort Flower, Sun, and Rain, Edo Macalister, to find a bomb hidden at the airport by a terrorist on Lospass Island. While the story may not relate directly to the previous game but at around the half way point it some familiar plot points show up.
The gameplay while not too exciting it is much more involved then the previous game. It mostly involves you walking around the island, talking to people, and solving math based logic puzzles. The walking can get quite boring so I recommend playing the game on an emulator so you can fast forward the walking sequences.
The 25th Ward
The 25 Ward is a direct sequel to The Silver Case that was originally considered lost after mobile carriers stopped carrying it, but it was remade for PS4 and Steam. The game is direct sequel to The Silver Case taking place is the urban utopia of The 25th Ward a planned community where only the best can live. The game has 3 campaigns: Correctness, Matchmaker, and Placebo. Correctness follows the 25th Ward heinous crime division as they investigate a group of 10 suicides that all took place in the same apartment building within a week of each other. Matchmaker follows Shinkai Tsuki and Yotaro Osato of the Regional Adjustment Bureau, a shadowy government organization that assassinates people viewed to threat the stability of society. Placebo follows Tokio Morishima from the first game who has washed up in The 25th Ward with amnesia. He is contacted by his old friend Slash who finds cases for him to investigate. I would again recommend playing the chapters in order (Correctness #1, Matchmaker #1, then Placebo #1) as they happen concurrently.
The game play is very similar to the first game with some minor changes and improvements. The interface is more clean and easier to use, the graphics are better, there are no anime or live actions sections, and there are more puzzles though they are not as plentiful or hard as the ones in Flower, Sun, and Rain.
If you are a fan of visual novels, Suda51 games, or just noir conspiracy stories in general then these games are incredible. Granted there is little in the way of gamplay so watching a longplay on youtube is a viable option.
