Review: Emio — The Smiling Man — A Surprisingly Mature Murder Mystery
September 14, 2024
Most people don't play video games to read. That's a bit of a shame because games like Emio — The Smiling Man: Famicom Detective Club offer some of the most interesting experiences that the medium can provide. It's one thing to have a murder mystery — it's another to have an interactive one. This is an adventure game that you can deeply immerse yourself in. On the surface, it might seem like your average horror mystery. But trust me when I say that this is a deeply serious and grim tale that is absolutely worth experiencing for yourself.
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Enjoyability: 10/12
In no way was I expecting to enjoy Emio — The Smiling Man as much as I did. Text-heavy games can be really hit-or-miss with how much they're able to keep your attention. I'm happy to say that Emio doesn't really struggle in that department. It doesn't exactly reach super high peaks, but it's about as entertaining as an adventure game can be. There's a lot of reading, of course, but the player is always forced, to some degree, to think about the situations they're in. There's little downtime which is a good thing, believe it or not.
There's always something to keep you captivated in Emio — The Smiling Man, be it exceedingly grim tales or the game's quirky humor. You won't ever really find yourself being bored by what's in front of you. There's some unnecessary repetitiveness, but it's a pretty golden experience, otherwise.
Gameplay: 8/12
Emio — The Smiling Man plays like an old adventure game from the 80s. That's not really surprising, given the series' roots; it's just important to detail because the game flow definitely feels super antiquated. It feels out of place in the modern day. Command-driven gameplay is just too awkward to deal with all the time. Ironically enough, it makes the game feel less interactive, and, more often than not, just serves to slow down your progress. Very rarely does it ever make you feel clever in your investigation work. There are plenty of times where you're just going to select every command prompt possible until one of them works. That doesn't sound particularly engaging, does it?
Thankfully, what you're actually doing most of the time isn't all that hampered by the controls. Emio — The Smiling Man is very much a detective game. Conversations and interrogations, therefore, make up a large percentage of the game. There, the different command choices don't feel too disruptive, because it actually feels like you can get valuable information through them. It still doesn't feel amazing and could definitely be more streamlined, but it's more apparent why the development team decided to stick with command-driven gameplay. It works for the purposes of the game. Surely, something else could have worked better for it, though.
Atmosphere: 12/12
The first thing that will immediately stand out to you about Emio — The Smiling Man is its music. Right from the get-go, it serenades you with that gorgeous title theme. The music doesn't get any bit weaker as you play through the game, by the way. The soundtrack is super good, and it has somehow completely flown under the radar.
The music does a fantastic job of setting up the mood of Emio — The Smiling Man. Whether you're in the middle of your detective work or reminiscing on depressing memories, you're going to feel the moment. This game doesn't half-ass any of its emotions. It's sentimental in a way that catches you off guard. Emio — The Smiling Man is an incredibly dark and mature story; it conveys that very effectively.
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None of the characters in Emio are super flashy in terms of their visual designs, but they're all personalized incredibly well. From the likes of Detective Kamihara to the Todoroki family, they're all bustling with life. It makes for a dynamic setting — one where the player actively wants to keep talking to all these different characters. Even the lead protagonist, who the player gets to personally name, has a palpable personality to him. And that reminds me, the voice acting in this game is phenomenal. You can feel the emotions in their voices.
Emio — The Smiling Man has a unique charm to its world that really makes the game stand out. There's a level of comfiness to the whole experience that will resonate with players even after they've finished the game.
Design: 9/12
The character interviews in Emio — The Smiling Man are a very strong part of the experience. Any kind of new insight on the different characters and the unfolding story keeps players hooked. Even just subtle changes in expression serve to keep players invested in their conversations. They're intentional cues that you're supposed to pick up on. All that is great. Interviews are fairly simple, but plenty effective. Visual novels tend to struggle with long conversations, but Emio doesn't have that problem at all.
Where Emio — The Smiling Man really struggles, though, is in its exploration and pacing outside of conversations. The game will often drop you into new locations and expect you to interact with everything until you finally advance the plot. I understand that interrogating strangers makes perfect sense for a detective game, but some of these sections are a little too drawn out. When I feel like I've exhausted all possible command options and am still left stranded, that's a huge problem. It happens enough that it leaves you a bit embittered.
Direction: 11/12
The story in this game is pretty captivating, from start to finish. The premise just happens to be really strong. Serial murders are always going to catch people's attention. The fact that there's a mythos behind the Smiling Man in-world adds an extra layer of mystery and intrigue. It makes the story feel more real. Emio — The Smiling Man gets a little too real, at times, honestly. That's no criticism, by the way. It's just surprising that Nintendo has made such a mature story.
The story is broken down into chapters which makes it easy to digest whether you're playing for just half an hour or 4 full hours. You'll review any new information you've learned at the end of every chapter so most things will stick with you. In any given chapter, either you'll learn a whole lot or basically nothing at all so it's pretty easy to keep track of the evidence. The "filler" chapters are definitely a bit disappointing, but at least they don't feel entirely pointless. The narrative is fairly well-guided and stays focused throughout. There's always something to rack your brain over. Emio — The Smiling Man is definitely worth a try, just for the narrative alone.
Closing Thoughts
I don't make a habit of providing closing thoughts, but Emio — The Smiling Man resonated that deeply with me. The game has its flaws, don't get me wrong, but it's those missteps that have me yearning for more.
As an example, I'd like to see Ayumi Tachibana's character developed further. It's great that she's even playable in the first place, but she needs to be more expressive. She doesn't really get much of an opportunity to shine in Emio — The Smiling Man. The player's detective skills also don't get too much of a chance to shine either. It would be nice to have more stakes involved so that there's more of a reward to being an attentive listener. Having the possibility of ruining relationships with the characters you talk to could be explored further. We see a hint of that here in Emio.
At this point, I'm just rambling. The Famicom Detective Club series has definitely won me over at this point. I know that Emio — The Smiling Man is unlikely to be a huge commercial success, but I'm rooting for the franchise. I really hope to see more entries in the future.
