Methods: The Detective Competition on Steam - User reviews, Price & Information
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One hundred detectives compete against each other in a crime-solving competition.
Methods: The Detective Competition is a indie, comedy and jrpg game
developed by LockedOn Games
and published by LockedOn Games and Erabit.
Released on June 01st 2020 is available on Windows, MacOS and Linux
in 2 languages: English and Simplified Chinese.
It has received 604 reviews of which 554 were positive and 50 were negative resulting in a rating of 8.6 out of 10. 😎
The game is currently priced at 19.50€ on Steam, but you can find it for 5.11€ on Gamivo.
The Steam community has classified Methods: The Detective Competition into these genres:
Media & Screenshots
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System requirements
These are the minimum specifications needed to play the game. For the best experience, we recommend that you verify them.
Windows
- OS: XP
- Processor: 1 GHz
- Memory: 2 GB RAM
- Storage: 2 GB available space
MacOS
- OS: 10.6
- Processor: Apple M1 or Intel Core M
- Memory: 2 GB RAM
- Storage: 2 GB available space
Linux
- OS: Ubuntu 12.04 or newer
- Processor: Intel® Core 2 Duo
- Memory: 2 GB RAM
- Graphics: GTX 260 or equivalent
- Storage: 2 GB available space
User reviews & Ratings
Explore reviews from Steam users sharing their experiences and what they love about the game.
Methods: The Detective Competition is a gritty mystery game where you play as the detectives who are contestants of a grand mystery-solving competition. It consists a colorful casts of characters, whom you may or may not meet again, due to changing perspectives for each stages. All detectives are equipped with their own specialty for solving cases, some are of average types while others are game-changers. Some may require codependency to utilize their strengths, but there are others who are practically better alone than your typical run-of-the-mill. The game definitely catches that eerie vibe when provided with a case so tangible, it could practically happen in real life (given with some suspension of disbelief). Because you’re not just up against other detectives competing to be the best there is. There’s also the stake of the best criminal getting away scot-free if they ever win. But I'm getting ahead of myself, the game is definitely loads of fun and a must play for hard-core mystery solvers, filled with a compelling story and interesting characters. I give it a 9/10.
I have been trying to scratch my detective itch for years now, and this seemed like a hidden gem I would immensily enjoy. After playing 10 hours of this game, I can give a shaky thumbs up. I enjoyed my time but it definitely left me feeling overwhelmed and underwhelmed at multiple points. First, the gameplay is pretty middle of the road. Nothing offensive, it works fine enough as a visual novel as you would expect, but still leaves a lot to be desired especially when it comes to the difficulty. The mysteries themselves are interesting and solid throughout, but the way of solving them is dissapointingly straight forward. You check for clues, you maybe get a multiple choice question and you do either well or not well. There very few fail states, as most of "failing" you can do just gets you different flavor text. The visuals are decent as well, but it took a while for me to get used to it and even then I was not always sold. The music is fine, albeit it a bit too loud, and the visual style was certainly unique. There are tons of different backgrounds, the character designs are all over the place, and my favorite bit of the entire game is how each chapter had an unique introductery visual which were always stylish, especially impressive since there a lot of chapters. We then get to the most important part of a visual novel detective game: The story. Let me start of by saying this: The characters are solid. Some were a bit more annoying then others, but all were decently fun and very defined. Boring is the last thing I would say about the characters or even this story. The story however, has a lot of ups and downs. I think in terms of ups, besides the mysteries itself, it is the in terms of escalation it is decently handled. The reveals of the entire story are well sprinkled throughout and there is always something going on. I enjoyed the journey rather then just wanting the answer. But in terms down, there are two major problems and it is both in terms of structure. The first one plagues the whole story while the latter plagues the second to second gampleay. Let's start with the latter: This game has lots of chapters, a whole lot of them, so that means chapters are often short. The thing is, some of the chapters feel like they waste your time. They either set up things for the next chapter or are a dedicated to a "meanwhile" cutaway that have characters commenting on something other characters are doing. It has a nasty habbit of saying things that are happening rather then showing it happening, making it feel like you are being robbed of gameplay. Now for a much bigger issue, and here I will dive into spoilers so close your eyes if you have to. The main storytelling mechanic of this game is switching characters. You are constantly switching from different points of view. Sometimes one characters gains a spotlight from multiple chapters, especially early on. The thing is, there are a lot of characters, and a lot of perspectives, and some of those characters just exit the story without ever coming back to them. This makes the time you invest into caring about these characters feel wasted. Some of them make sense, like the first one, but later on it just feels like they are wasting time just so they can do the full competition. In the middle of the story, there is an arc which is intriguing with a plottwist at the end, but by the actual end of the game none of it matters and your time feels wasted. Only by the end does the story seem to figure out how to storytell, but even then you switch point of view again and you are now a character that was sort of relevant but no they are the main character now, good luck! Now some smaller gripes: - While the way it tells about mysteries rather then let you solve them is insulting, this "tell, don't show" is all over the writing. "Remember ? Oh yeah I remember ! It was fun!" is said in different variations a lot. - The game uses a lot of subversive storytelling and it is hit or miss. The hits are very funny, the misses feels like it tries to be oh so smart about it. - Its way of commentary on real life issues feels... flat. It has characters expositing about the woes of the world, but it doesn't really take a firm stand on any of it or explores any topic. I know a for fun murdery mystery game is not equiped to solve capitalism, but half heartingly suggesting that it is a problem feels like wasted effort. So, even after all my ranting, why do I still give it a thumbs up? Well, the foundation is still pretty solid. The mysteries are fun and the characters are also often fun. The ending stretch is something I enjoyed too, that mystery was really fun and truly felt like a finaly. I recommend playing this game, even if I have a lot issues with it.
Honestly one of my favorite games I played over the past year and one of the best book adaptations I've ever played! The setting is phenomenal and the attention to detail is incredible- there are over 200 characters in the story and it feels like we are able to track a very large portion of their stories throughout the game - there's a bonus where you can see interviews for nearly every character that gets flashed on screen even once, and one where you can track the rankings of the game round by round and it's so delightful. The writing is very smart and funny (also not afraid to throw in some punches), and the pacing is BRILLIANT. There are a great number of chapters, and they are all bite sized pieces that make the game easy to pick up when you need to step away, but oh so hard to put down. I cannot recommend enough just going in blind and enjoying the story. To get into specifics, this game is more visual novel than game. There are 2-3 dozen odd mini cases and logic puzzles, but they are gameplay lite- typically you will play a minigame or two, investigate everything in the room, debate the scenario with that rounds partner detective, and answer a few questions to determine the truth of the case. There are moments where your choices can also affect the story, but they only really change the outcomes of one or two characters (it's worth exploring your options for the achievements and extra lines and easy to do with chapter select). The other Method's game (The Canada Files) is a prequel that features a much more gameplay heavy investigative game (I'd compare it to Edgeworth Investigations, but with a better scenario and mostly better lines of logic), so if you want something more involved, I'd recommend checking it out. I generally like RPGS or Investigative games with more involved gameplay, but I was never board playing this!
This is more of a neutral review. The visual style and the soundtrack are amazing. The writing is neat. It's charming, though at times indulges in too much pointless banter. The puzzles are alright. Unfortunately, the game doesn't give you time to solve them yourself, it gives you the setup and immediately jumps into telling you the solution at breakneck pace. It would really benefit from giving the mystery time to breathe. The thing I have a big problem with is the story. The story starts out good, but over the course of the game it falls apart at the seams, completely dropping the ball by the end. We switch protagonists multiple times. Half the time we switch to characters who we barely know and who have nothing to do with the plotlines we're invested in. It's like you're suddenly thrown into a spinoff. It also happens in the finale. Numerous plotlines are introduced out of nowhere and either don't go anywhere or don't get resolved at all. Near the end of the game you are teased an impossibly difficult puzzle. It gets resolved off-screen. The ending isn't satisfying and doesn't provide any answers besides what we already know. So, for the aforementioned reasons, it gets harder and harder to care for anything going on with each act. When the credits rolled, the primary emotion I was feeling was frustration. This game should have been right up my alley, but it completely fumbled its latter half. Still, it has too much charm and soul for me to give it a negative review.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Methods: The Detective Competition is currently priced at 19.50€ on Steam.
No, Methods: The Detective Competition is currently not on sale. You can purchase it for 19.50€ on Steam.
Yes, Methods: The Detective Competition received 554 positive votes out of a total of 604 achieving a rating of 8.57.
😎
Methods: The Detective Competition was developed by LockedOn Games and published by LockedOn Games and Erabit.
Yes, Methods: The Detective Competition is playable and fully supported on Windows.
Yes, Methods: The Detective Competition is playable and fully supported on MacOS.
Yes, Methods: The Detective Competition is playable and fully supported on Linux.
Methods: The Detective Competition is a single-player game.
Yes, there are 2 DLCs available for Methods: The Detective Competition. Explore additional content available for Methods: The Detective Competition on Steam.
No, Methods: The Detective Competition does not support mods via Steam Workshop.
No, Methods: The Detective Competition does not support Steam Remote Play.
Yes, Methods: The Detective Competition is enabled for Steam Family Sharing. This means you can share the game with authorized users from your Steam Library, allowing them to play it on their own accounts. For more details on how the feature works, you can read the original Steam Family Sharing announcement or visit the Steam Family Sharing user guide and FAQ page.
You can find solutions or submit a support ticket by visiting the Steam Support page for Methods: The Detective Competition.
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Additionally, we incorporate data from the SteamSpy API, which offers insights into game sales and player statistics. This helps us present a comprehensive view of each game's popularity and performance within the gaming community.
Last Updates| Steam data | 01 June 2026 23:25 |
|---|---|
| SteamSpy data | 09 June 2026 11:49 |
| Steam price | 13 June 2026 20:25 |
| Steam reviews | 13 June 2026 07:57 |
If you'd like to dive deeper into the details about Methods: The Detective Competition, we invite you to check out a few dedicated websites that offer extensive information and insights. These platforms provide valuable data, analysis, and user-generated reports to enhance your understanding of the game and its performance.
- SteamDB - A comprehensive database of everything on Steam about Methods: The Detective Competition
- SteamCharts - Analysis of Methods: The Detective Competition concurrent players on Steam
- ProtonDB - Crowdsourced reports on Linux and Steam Deck Methods: The Detective Competition compatibility
Game modes
Features
Online players
3
Developer
LockedOn Games
Publisher
LockedOn Games,
Erabit
Release
01 Jun 2020
Platforms
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