While many are still at home enjoying a relaxing holiday break, gamers might find themselves eyeing Steam's Winter Sale looking for something to play. Those seeking a cozy game that flew under the radar should look no further than Tangle Tower, a detective game that presents a delightfully cartoonish art style while managing to stay consistently comprehensive in uncovering the murder of Freya Fellow.
Released in 2019 by British game studio, SFB Games, Tangle Tower is actually a sequel to the studio's earlier game Detective Grimoire. However, with only two returning characters and a completely new mystery for players to solve, new players can easily jump straight into Tangle Tower instead. Here, the player takes the role of Detective Grimoire and his associate Sally as the pair have been contracted to help in the investigation of a murder at the bizarre Tangle Tower estate.
Despite being called a "Tower," this residence is actually a mansion housing two families on a small island surrounded by eerie lake water. These families, The Fellows and The Pointers, share the estate and are currently processing the recent death of one of their own, 19 year-old, Freya Fellow.
The victim had been painting a portrait of the lady of the house, the quiet, if not foreboding, Flora Fellow in one of the mansion's towers. However, after being alerted by a strange sound, the rest of the family rushed up to the tower to find Freya dead, stabbed through the chest. Strangely though, the red paint used in Freya's painting of Flora turned out to be blood, leading some to believe Freya had been stabbed by the painting itself -- that is, if a painting could stab.
Regardless, it's up to you and Sally to understand what transpired on the day of the murder and who among the Fellows or the Pointers were behind this horrible act. The game is presented in standard point-and-click fashion with the player needing to comb through an array of aesthetically different rooms for clues and evidence. The player will also need to interrogate all the family members, understanding their relationships with everyone else in the house and their alibis at the time of the murder.
Where the game really sticks out is in the cartoony style it presents its characters in, which allows their idle animations reveal much of their personalities. Take the melancholy pianist Polly Pointer with her elongated body; the young girl will shrink herself down when embarrassed or ashamed, speaking like a turtle in its shell. There's also the menacingly massive gardener, Fritz Fellow, who (despite his vacant stare and imposing figure) is quite socially awkward and expresses this by rubbing his wrists and avoiding eye contact when speaking. These little animated touches do wonders to sell the player on these characters just as much as their accompanying voice talent.
Surprisingly, the game is fully voice acted, which also helps sell players on these characters' personalities. Your assistant, Sally, in particular is a real standout. Sally mostly comes off as bored and unfazed by the investigation, but she secretly enjoys the idea of solving a murder. At one point, you enter the main hall and Sally (voiced by Amber Lee Connors) comments that she's excited the duo finally gets to solve a mystery in a spooky mansion. Grimoire corrects her that this mansion isn't all that spooky, but Sally cuts him off saying "Don't ruin this for me." The moment is endearing and does a great job at establishing the dynamic between the two detectives.
As the player searches the island for clues, they'll come across an assortment of puzzles, each hiding a secret within. Some players have find different ones more challenging than others, but all manage to stand out from one another. One has you use magnifying glasses and abstract shapes to make a key through the lens. Another has the player use a treasure map to find the coordinates that unlock Felix Fellow's treasure chest. Each puzzle presents the player with a different kind of headscratcher, and there's a real sense of accomplishment in solving each of them.
As you find more clues, there's something satisfying about connecting two or more pieces of evidence to one of the suspects. At one point, the player finds a torn photograph of the victim with her friend, Fifi Fellow. In the photograph, Freya is holding what appears to be a diary, which is alarming once you find that same diary suspiciously stored away in Fifi's room, not Freya's. There are breadcrumb trails like this that lead back to every member of the household, which does an excellent job at immersing players in this detective story.
Exploring Tangle Tower also puts players in Detective Grimoire's shoes. Each environment not only gives off a different atmosphere, but can raise questions on the room's occupant or history. Why was Freya Fellow's bedroom converted from the mansion's claustrophobic boiler room? Does the beautiful rooftop garden only being accessible through either Fritz or Polly's rooms give the garden some special meaning the two of them?
These little tidbits from the environments tell you something about these characters -- and that's especially true in the rooms of Tangle Tower that we weren't meant to find. The Fellows and Pointers are hiding dark secrets for you to uncover, so gamers intrigued by this charming title should check it out while it's on sale on Steam. There's even a demo so you can try it out first. Tangle Tower is also available on Nintendo Switch.