From the Tokyo Game Show 2023we have had the opportunity to try DecaPolicethe new brand of Level-5 that comes stomping and gives us some of the most “Laytonian” vibes.
Next, we tell you what our detective experience has been in DecaPolice, scheduled for 2023 on PS5, PS4 and Nintendo Switch.
Level-5 is celebrating: it is celebrating 25 years that have flown by. At TGS 2023 it has three playable new features (Inazuma Eleven, Fantasy Life) and, among them, stands out DecaPolice (Professor Layton’s new Switch game was not seen at this event.)
This is a new twist to gaming. detectives and investigation, developed in a world with a futuristic tone and with graphics that we cannot deny that we loved. That it has the possibility of being Level-5’s new successful franchise is something that should not be doubted.
A virtual world where you can carry out research
The game takes us to DECASIM, which is a virtual representation of the same city where the protagonists live. But since it is not the real world, it allows you to do all kinds of research, search the past and thus be able to relive certain situations. It’s as if we entered a world Matrix at pleasure.
We didn’t go into it much in depth either because it is a demo version that doesn’t try to reveal all its cards. At the beginning of the game we control Harvard Marksthe “kid” (although he may not seem like it, he is already 20 years old) who leads a special investigation unit made up of rookies who, in the future, will be great detectives.
He and his team receive cases that have remained stuck in the past and that could be resolved thanks to the virtual world to which they access. With that starting point, we received our first case.
A robbery in a jewelry store
![DecaPolice](https://cdn.hobbyconsolas.com/sites/navi.axelspringer.es/public/media/image/2023/09/decapolice-3140978.jpg?tf=3840x)
The police were very surprised by the robbery that occurred some time before in a jewelry store. Therefore, we recreate it and visit it to try to find clues. Before reaching the jewelry store, we move freely around the world. For now, movement and access to buildings is limited, but Level-5 tells us that the final version will offer much more.
The look is promising, so much so that, while I try the demo, I have to apologize for “wandering” looking at everything. The lighting effectsAs you might imagine, they are top notch.
We enter the jewelry store and start using the system DECA-Scanner, which marks those points on the stage where there could be hidden clues, as well as the people who can give us information. We are searching and talking.
The conversations are not about hitting the button to go through them quickly, but rather you have to read calmly to see what the witnesses tell us. With this data and the tests, it will be possible make deductions and fill out the Case Board with all the information.
To make it easier, we are given a “map” of the case and we can add photos and evidence to complete it. The system will help us a little by telling us which of these deductions are correct or not.
![DecaPolice](https://cdn.hobbyconsolas.com/sites/navi.axelspringer.es/public/media/image/2023/09/decapolice-3140976.jpg?tf=3840x)
During the investigation, the session is interrupted and a battle. Then we’ll talk to you about that, since it is a very interesting feature as a way to break the rhythm and avoid monotony.
After the combat we return to the crime scene. Our investigations discover a suspicious person. We can question her to see if she gives up anything. If talking to Harvard doesn’t get us anything, we just have to change another member of her team. In this demo, we switched to Carl Oxford (and yes, all the characters have a university last name), who uses his techniques to get even more information.
We use the DEC-Scanner again, we talk, we search and we continue making deductions. At the end of the case, we have to answer three questions that will lead us to the definitive identity of the criminal responsible for the robbery. If we get it wrong, the system will tell us which one is wrong so we can make the appropriate changes to our final deduction.
Then it will be the turn, in the style of many other games that are surely familiar to you, to say who was responsible. In our case, we guessed it the first time! (but totally stupid, we’re not going to fool anyone either).
This is how you fight in DecaPolice
![DecaPolice](https://cdn.hobbyconsolas.com/sites/navi.axelspringer.es/public/media/image/2023/09/decapolice-3140974.jpg?tf=3840x)
The game, as we have told you, with the investigation and free movement around the city, is already solid. But it has a battle system which increases the freshness of its gameplay. This system is activated when some type of irregularity or surprise occurs with criminals or suspects. For example, they may want to escape or even threaten innocent people with a weapon.
In this situation, the game changes style and adopts the mechanics turns of a fairly traditional RPG. However, we are not going to limit ourselves to attacking or hitting the rival, because it would not be logical. What we do is use a system by which We attack physically or mentally.
Using one or the other will depend on what is happening or what the console itself tells us. Mental attack is the use of phrases that will produce a series of feelings or reactions in the offender. For example, we can make him afraid to make him stop his actions or even make him feel remorse.
If we have to attack, we will use physical force and try to take down the suspect in a more direct way. In the end, the battles end with an arrest by whoever committed the crime. Yes indeed, they are not always easy.
During the demo we have played two battles. In the first, it was not the main boys who fought, but rather two other agents apparently more prepared for combat. But the final confrontation against the culprit of the robbery does take place with the two heroes that we have mentioned. What’s more, a tense situation arises because the enemy takes one of them hostage.
Saving the distance, that tug-of-war talking with the criminal reminds us of some of the best moments that Detroit had.
When is DecaPolice released?
On the official website it is indicated that DecaPolice will go on sale in 2023at least in Japan, but it seems like an ambitious project and we wouldn’t be surprised if it ends up falling apart next year.
From what we have been told, at least it will come in English, but it would be an ideal game to have an edition in several languages. And, in terms of platforms, it will be on sale in both nintendo switch like in PlayStation 5 and PlayStation 4.
Impressions of DecaPolice written by Justo Romanos, correspondent at Tokyo Game Show 2023.