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Saloon Sleuth

Welcome to the world of Saloon Sleuth, a 1-bit murder mystery horror social deduction visual novel. Serve drinks and gather clues, both of the recent murder and the deeper conspiracy deep in the washed up boomtown of Quicksand Town.

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Developer
Misc Metaphors
Publisher
Misc Metaphors
Release
Coming Soon
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About the Game

There's been a murder in Quicksand Town, the washed up boom-town amongst the fading wild west. Unfortunately, every single member of the small population town has no alibi, including you. As the local barkeep of the Sinkhole Saloon, it's up to you to gather scraps of information from drunken conversation and gossip to uncover the murder, Stuck behind the bar, you may need to rely on others to investigate areas you can't access. But make sure you don't tell the wrong person the wrong information...

KEY FEATURES:

  • A thrilling literary murder mystery, inspired by a fusion of both classical whodunit media, the historical realities of the time period, exploring the lives of broken souls who set off on the gold rush but failed to meet their dreams along the way.

  • A small town cast of broken dreamers who've found themselves in Quicksand Town:  A cowboy, waitress, ex-bandits, maiden, failed gold rush prospector, and more who've found themselves stranded amidst the frontier. Talk with all of them, learn their secrets, reveal to them dark truths, and see how few secrets can be kept in a small town.

  • Use the built in cork-board to sort through scraps of saved dialogue and evidence, to pin down your prime suspect and map the underlying secret history of Quicksand Town.

  • Engage in a difficult but rewarding counterclaim mechanic based upon logical reasoning, inspired by games such as Ace Attorney and Her Story. Trial and error won't be enough to find the truth in Saloon Sleuth. Can you discover the hidden assumptions within every argument, and strike it down from a sea of evidence you must filter and curate?

  • A stylish but gritty 1-bit noir art style, inspired from games such as World of Horror along with classic command ADV games.

  • Explore a web of different endings and routes, depending on what information you find, and what information you share.

  • An original sound track inspired by various retro musical styles with noir and western influences.

SOCIAL MEDIA:

Find us on Social media at @miscmetaphors on Twitter and join our Discord Server at for updates on the game!

DEMO:

Our goal is to have the demo released by Early August, 2026. The Demo will consist of the Prologue and Day One (out of Seven) of Saloon Sleuth. Within the demo, you will be able to meet all of the central characters, interact with the main mechanics, and engross yourself in the beginning of the story. The Demo will continue to receive updates leading into the October Next Fest, where we will showcase Saloon Sleuth. At the end of Next Fest, unless tragedy unveils, we hope to release Saloon Sleuth by either late 2026 or early 2027.

CREDITS:

Design, Programming, Art, and Scenario by Misc. Metaphors

Music by nonill

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