Welcome to our latest review at The Indie Brew! Today, we have a unique game that promises to ruffle some feathers. “Duck detective: The Secret Salami” is a game where you assume the role of a duck-tective, who might not be as competent as he thinks, trying to solve the case of the mysterious salami bandit. This is part of our regular series where we review indie games and rank them from decaf to fully caffeinated. Don’t forget to subscribe for more indie game content. Now, let’s dive into the review and see how this game fares.
Prefer to watch the video version? Check it out here
Story
“Duck Detective” is not your everyday detective story. You step into the webbed shoes of a recently divorced duck with a mild bread addiction who has stooped to the rank of a private investigator. His mission? Investigating a serious issue – someone has had their lunch stolen at the local bus company offices. But as you delve deeper, the case takes a more sinister turn as you attempt to work out who the mystery salami bandit is.
The game’s storyline is absolutely hilarious, with not a dull moment. The dialogue is well-written, and the characters are well-constructed with their own unique identities. Combined with the voice acting, the characters truly bring the game to life. The story is a fun, humour-filled adventure with lots of twists and turns that keep you engaged. For its engaging and funny storyline, we’re rating “Duck Detective” as Fully Caffeinated.
GAMEPLAY
“Duck Detective” is primarily a point and click narrative puzzle game. The gameplay is divided into different sections, each requiring you to find clues and solve word puzzles to crack part of the case. The clues are found by observing people, making basic judgments, snooping around the office, and questioning characters. As you uncover clues, certain words are highlighted, forming the words you can use to solve the case puzzle. Choose all the right options, and you’ll quack the case!
The game offers two modes: a story-based mode that is a bit easier in terms of puzzle-solving, and a detective mode that requires more deductive reasoning. The game mechanics are fairly simple, allowing the story and characters to shine. However, it can be a bit confusing at first, as you need to pay attention to more than just the words that make up the clues. Despite this, for its gameplay, we’re rating “Duck Detective” as Juiced.
DESIGN
Where “Duck Detective” truly shines is in its design. The game features a cute cartoon cut-out design that perfectly matches the game’s vibe. The characters are well-designed, and the voice acting is superb, adding another dimension to the game. The soundtrack offers the perfect tunes for a duck-tective on a case, and the sound effects bring the game world to life. The game is well-constructed and designed to give the player the best experience, earning it a Fully Caffeinated rating in design.
ORIGINALITY
“Duck Detective” is one of the most unique games we’ve reviewed. The story stands out in terms of originality, and the detective theme adds so much personality to the game, making it absolutely quackers. The only game we could compare it to is the “Frog Detective” series, which has a similar style of humour but differs significantly in gameplay. With its unique feel, we’re rating “Duck Detective” as Fully Caffeinated for originality.
THE FINAL BREW
“Duck Detective” is a unique and funny experience that combines cute, cartoony design with excellent voice acting and a hilarious story. After carefully grinding the beans, weighing and pressing the grinds, and brewing this game down, it’s time for a taste test. “Duck Detective” is Fully Caffeinated.
Duck Detective is available on Steam, Xbox and Switch. You can find more info here
The play time is around 2-3 hours, and we are eagerly hoping for more in this series as it was fun to play.
Until next time, stay caffeinated!