Monroe Murders
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About Monroe Murders
Monroe Murders is a mystery RPG with visual novel elements from Palomino Games. Released in 2025 for PC, it drops you in a small town where a murder occurs every Halloween for five years. You play as a rookie detective tasked with untangling the web of suspects, motives, and clues. The game blends branching dialogue choices with strategic resource management, like tracking leads, interviewing witnesses, and allocating limited investigation time. It’s a slow-burn narrative puzzle where every decision ripples into the next chapter. If you like methodical sleuthing and morally gray choices, this one’s for you.
Gameplay
Each session revolves around managing a 48-hour investigation window per case. You collect evidence by clicking on environmental hotspots, interrogate NPCs with branching dialogue trees, and assign “focus” points to dig deeper into specific clues. Resource scarcity is key: you have a fixed budget to hire experts, buy forensic tools, or follow risky leads. The visual novel segments play out in real time, with branching paths influencing relationships and future options. Late-game reveals force you to revisit earlier decisions, creating a feedback loop that ties all five cases together. Controls are click-and-type, but the pacing is deliberate, expect to spend 10-15 minutes per “action” segment.
What Players Think
PlayPile users rate it 4.3/5, with 78% completing the full story. Average playtime clocks in at 18.5 hours, though 32% of players hit 30+ hours. Community moods split 65% intrigue, 20% frustration, and 15% “mildly annoyed.” Reviewers praise the “dense, layered script” but gripe about “tardy clue drops.” One wrote, “The final twist makes every tedious file search worth it.” Completion rates spike after the third murder case, suggesting the game finds its rhythm mid-campaign. Achievement hunters note 54 total, with the elusive “Third Degree” requiring a specific dialogue chain at hour 42.
PlayPile's Take
Monroe Murders is a must-play for fans of slow-burn detective stories. At $29.99, it offers 20+ hours of cerebral puzzle-solving, though the first two acts drag for impatient players. The 54 achievements add replay value, especially for perfectionists. It’s not a flashy game, no combat, no open world, but the interconnected cases and moral ambiguity will hook you if you enjoy figuring out systemic corruption. Skip it if you crave action or instant gratification. Stick with it past Act III, and the payoff is stellar.
Game Modes
Single player
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