Suspect (video game)

Last updated
Suspect
Suspect box art.jpg
Cover art
Developer(s) Infocom
Publisher(s) Infocom
Designer(s) Dave Lebling
Engine Z-machine
Platform(s) Amiga, Amstrad CPC, Amstrad PCW, Apple II, Atari 8-bit, Atari ST, Commodore 64, Kaypro II, Mac, MS-DOS [1]
ReleaseOctober 5, 1984
Genre(s) Adventure, interactive fiction
Mode(s) Single-player

Suspect is an interactive fiction video game designed by Dave Lebling and published by Infocom in 1984. It is the third and last murder mystery Infocom released. It was written in highly portable ZIL and released for Amiga, Amstrad CPC, Amstrad PCW, Apple II, Atari 8-bit computers, Atari ST, Commodore 64, Kaypro II, Mac, and MS-DOS. It is Infocom's fifteenth game.

Contents

Plot

Screenshot of the beginning of Suspect Suspect (video game) screenshot.jpg
Screenshot of the beginning of Suspect

The player's character is a reporter for the fictitious newspaper The Washington Representative. Veronica Ashcroft-Wellman, a longtime friend and wealthy socialite, has sent an invitation to the annual Ashcroft Halloween Ball, where Maryland's high society bluebloods rub elbows, network, and congratulate each other on their fortunes. The paper's editor suggests covering the party as a story, smelling an easy article that could either praise or mock the wealthy. Since it is a costume party, the player's character suits up in a rented cowboy outfit and moseys over to the bash. Many attendees wear masks, making it difficult to initially identify them.

Not long into the party, however, Veronica is found dead—strangled with a very familiar-looking lariat, with a bullet from the costume's gunbelt lying near the body for good measure. But the player stashed the rope in the closet earlier, and the bullet is missing from the back of the belt; anyone could have taken them! Nevertheless, the player is the prime suspect in Veronica's murder. A lot of snooping has to be done to identify the real killer.

Release

Suspect included the following physical items in the package:

  1. The satirical book Murder and Modern Manners: A Practical Guide to Murder Manners
  2. A business card from William Cochrane for King's Point Realty (written on the back: "Veronica— Please call me ASAP. Don't do something you'll regret. Bill")
  3. A receipt from "Costumes Unlimited" for the rental of one cowboy costume with lariat and gunbelt
  4. An invitation to the Halloween Ball thrown at Ashcroft Manor (written inside: "Dearest... It has been too long since we last talked. Please do try to come to the party. There are so many things I have to tell you. Until then, Veronica")
  5. A note from the editor of The Washington Representative asking the player's character to cover the ball for the newspaper
  6. A page from The Maryland Countryside magazine, featuring an article about developers encroaching on the "Hunt Club" countryside and a society column piece about the upcoming Halloween Ball

Reception

Based on sales and market-share data, Video magazine listed the game seventh on its list of best selling video games in March 1985. [2] ANALOG Computing praised Suspect's technical sophistication, packaging, and premise, but criticized the game's intrusive "dry humor" and cynical tone. The magazine concluded, "It is certainly complex, detailed and imaginative. I just wish it took itself a little more seriously, both as a game and an example of truly interactive fiction". [3]

Reviews

Related Research Articles

Infocom was an American software company based in Cambridge, Massachusetts, that produced numerous works of interactive fiction. They also produced a business application, a relational database called Cornerstone.

Interactive fiction, often abbreviated IF, is software simulating environments in which players use text commands to control characters and influence the environment. Works in this form can be understood as literary narratives, either in the form of Interactive narratives or Interactive narrations. These works can also be understood as a form of video game, either in the form of an adventure game or role-playing game. In common usage, the term refers to text adventures, a type of adventure game where the entire interface can be "text-only", however, graphical text adventure games, where the text is accompanied by graphics still fall under the text adventure category if the main way to interact with the game is by typing text. Some users of the term distinguish between interactive fiction, known as "Puzzle-free", that focuses on narrative, and "text adventures" that focus on puzzles.

<i>Suspended</i> (video game) 1983 video game

Suspended: A Cryogenic Nightmare is an interactive fiction video game written by Michael Berlyn and published by Infocom in 1983. Infocom's sixth game, it was released for Amstrad CPC, Apple II, Atari 8-bit computers, Commodore 64, Commodore Plus/4, IBM PC compatibles, TRS-80, and TI-99/4A. It was later available for Mac, Amiga, and Atari ST.

<i>The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy</i> (video game) 1984 video game

The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy is an interactive fiction video game based on the comedic science fiction series of the same name. It was designed by series creator Douglas Adams and Infocom's Steve Meretzky, and it was first released in 1984 for the Apple II, Mac, Commodore 64, CP/M, MS-DOS, Amiga, Atari 8-bit computers, and Atari ST. It is Infocom's fourteenth game.

<i>Bureaucracy</i> (video game) 1987 video game

Bureaucracy is an interactive fiction video game released by Infocom in 1987, scripted by comic science fiction author Douglas Adams. Infocom's twenty-fourth game, it is part of the Infocom Plus range which requires a machine with a minimum of 128K of memory.

<i>Leather Goddesses of Phobos</i> 1986 video game

Leather Goddesses of Phobos is an interactive fiction video game written by Steve Meretzky and published by Infocom in 1986. It was released for the Amiga, Amstrad CPC, Amstrad PCW, Apple II, Mac, Atari 8-bit computers, Atari ST, Commodore 64, TI-99/4A, and MS-DOS. The game was Infocom's first "sex farce", including selectable gender and "naughtiness"—the latter ranging from "tame" to "lewd". It was one of five top-selling Infocom titles to be re-released in Solid Gold versions. It was Infocom's twenty-first game.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Brian Moriarty</span> American video game designer

Brian Moriarty is an American video game developer who authored three of the original Infocom interactive fiction titles, Wishbringer (1985), Trinity (1986), and Beyond Zork (1987), as well as Loom (1990) for LucasArts.

<i>Wishbringer</i> 1985 video game

Wishbringer: The Magick Stone of Dreams is an interactive fiction video game written by Brian Moriarty and published by Infocom in 1985. It was intended to be an easier game to solve than the typical Infocom release and provide a good introduction to interactive fiction for inexperienced players, and was well received.

<i>The Lurking Horror</i> 1987 video game

The Lurking Horror is an interactive fiction game released by Infocom in 1987. The game was written by Dave Lebling and inspired by the horror fiction writings of H. P. Lovecraft. The original release was for MS-DOS, Apple II, Atari ST, Atari 8-bit computers, and Commodore 64. It was Infocom's 26th game and the only in the horror genre. Infocom rated it as "Standard" in terms of difficulty. Later, it was ported to the Amiga with the addition of sound effects, making it the first Infocom adventure with that feature.

<i>Spellbreaker</i> 1985 video game

Spellbreaker is an interactive fiction video game written by Dave Lebling and published by Infocom in 1985, the third and final game in the "Enchanter Trilogy." It was released for the Amiga, Amstrad CPC, Apple II, Atari 8-bit computers, Atari ST, Commodore 64, Classic Mac OS, and MS-DOS. Infocom's nineteenth game, Spellbreaker is rated "Expert" difficulty.

<i>Deadline</i> (1982 video game) 1982 video game

Deadline is an interactive fiction detective video game published by Infocom in 1982. Written by Marc Blank, it was Infocom's third game. It was released for the Amstrad CPC, Apple II, Atari 8-bit computers, Commodore 64, IBM PC, Osborne 1, TRS-80, and later for the Amiga and Atari ST.

<i>Infidel</i> (video game) 1983 video game

Infidel is an interactive fiction video game published by Infocom in 1983. It was written and designed by Michael Berlyn and Patricia Fogleman, and was the first in the "Tales of Adventure" line. It was released for the Amstrad CPC, Apple II, Atari 8-bit computers, Commodore 64, IBM PC compatibles, TRS-80, and TI-99/4A. Ports were later published for Mac, Atari ST, and Amiga. Infidel is Infocom's tenth game.

<i>Cutthroats</i> (video game) 1984 video game

Cutthroats is an interactive fiction game written by Michael Berlyn and Jerry Wolper and was published by Infocom in 1984. It was released for the Amiga, Apple II, Atari 8-bit computers, Atari ST, Commodore 64, MS-DOS, TRS-80, TI-99/4A, and Mac. It is Infocom's thirteenth game.

<i>Ballyhoo</i> (video game) 1985 video game

Ballyhoo is an interactive fiction game designed by Jeff O'Neill and published by Infocom in 1985. The circus-themed game was released for ten systems, including MS-DOS, Atari ST, and Commodore 64. Ballyhoo was labeled as "Standard" difficulty. It is Infocom's nineteenth game.

<i>Hollywood Hijinx</i> 1986 video game

Hollywood Hijinx is an interactive fiction video game written by Dave Anderson and Liz Cyr-Jones and published by Infocom in 1986. The game was released for the Apple II, Atari 8-bit computers, Atari ST, Amstrad CPC, Amstrad PCW, Commodore 64, Amiga, TI-99/4A, and MS-DOS. It was Infocom's twenty-third game.

<i>Stationfall</i> 1987 video game

Stationfall is an interactive fiction game written by Steve Meretzky and released by Infocom in 1987. It was published for the Commodore 64, Amiga, Amstrad CPC, Apple II, Atari 8-bit computers, Atari ST, and MS-DOS. The game is a sequel to Planetfall, one of Infocom's most popular games. It is Infocom's twenty-fifth game.

<i>Moonmist</i> 1986 video game

Moonmist is an interactive fiction game written by Stu Galley and Jim Lawrence and published by Infocom in 1986. The game was released simultaneously for the Amiga, Amstrad CPC, Apple II, Atari 8-bit computers, Atari ST, Commodore 64, MS-DOS, TRS-80, TI-99/4A, and Mac. It is Infocom's twenty-second game. Moonmist was re-released in Infocom's 1995 compilation The Mystery Collection, as well as the 1996 compilation Classic Text Adventure Masterpieces.

<i>Border Zone</i> (video game) 1987 video game

Border Zone is an interactive fiction video game written by Marc Blank and published by Infocom in 1987. It was released for DOS, Apple II, Commodore 64, Amiga, Atari ST, and Macintosh. Unlike most other purely text-based games, Border Zone incorporates real-time aspects of gameplay. It is also Infocom's thirtieth game. Its tagline is "Action and international intrigue behind the Iron Curtain."

<i>Plundered Hearts</i> 1987 video game

Plundered Hearts is an interactive fiction video game created by Amy Briggs and published by Infocom in 1987. Infocom's only game in the romance genre, it was released simultaneously for the Commodore 64, Atari 8-bit computers, Atari ST, Amiga, classic Mac OS, and MS-DOS. It is Infocom's twenty-eighth game.

<i>Fooblitzky</i> 1985 video game

Fooblitzky is a board game-style video game published by Infocom in 1985 and designed by a team which included interactive fiction authors Marc Blank and Michael Berlyn. It is unique among Infocom titles for not being interactive fiction and for being the first to incorporate graphics beyond ASCII characters. Unlike most Infocom games, it was only released for the Apple II, Atari 8-bit computers, and IBM PC compatibles.

References

  1. Suspect at Adventureland by Hans Persson and Stefan Meier
  2. Onosco, Tim; Kohl, Louise; Kunkel, Bill; Garr, Doug (March 1985). "Random Access: Best Sellers/Recreation". Video. 8 (12). Reese Communications: 43. ISSN   0147-8907.
  3. Berube, Ray (April 1985). "Suspect". ANALOG Computing. pp. 47, 52. Retrieved 2020-10-05.
  4. "GAMES Magazine #70". December 1985.