The Studio Behind Hatoful Boyfriend is Making a New Game, Murder By Numbers

So, during my last big opinion piece, I made a passing reference to the Pigeon dating sim Hatoful Boyfriend, which was arguably the first in a long string of visual novels who both were too committed to their own joke and yet couldn’t quite ignore the allure of trying to tell a serious story with its comedic premise. It’s a solid visual novel if you’re into dating birds, but if you were hoping for something a little more conventional, then good news: that same studio has just announced they’re working on a brand-new game that couldn’t be more different if it tried.

Introducing: Murder By Numbers. A story about a TV Cop and her robot sidekick solving real murders.



A few things make this noteworthy. The first is that, well, it’s a new game from a studio I like. The second is that it really commits to the '90s vibe and aesthetic, which is something you should appreciate if you really miss what Radical Heights was trying to pull off. The third is that it’s got a rather noteworthy composer in Masakazu Sugimori, who dieheard fans will recognize as the guy behind Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney’s banger soundtrack. And finally, this is the blurb it uses to sell itself:

“90s fashions! Upbeat jams! Sass dialled up to 100! Questionable jokes! Drag queens! All that and more awaits... in Murder by Numbers!”

Sound good to you? Then you won’t have to wait long: the game is supposed to come out early next year.