It would appear that there is a time in indie games before Return of the Obra Dinn and after it. I mean, obviously, that’s how time works, but the impact of that game is not to be underestimated. Lukas Pope’s investigative masterpiece opened up doors for more developers to sink their teeth into the genre, whether it’s Tim Sheinman’s Family taking a look at the history of the local music scene, the more cartoonish adventures of the Duck Detective, or Color Gray Games’ popular Golden Idol games.
Having grown up as a fan of detective series and movies, it’s heartwarming to me to see the indie scene take on the act of deducing in such ways. These games manage to make me feel smart, even though I’m not nearly clever enough to solve point-and-click games, for example. It’s so interesting to get these hunches and find ways to make sure that they’re (in)correct, unlocking new hints as to other things you need to figure out. It reminds me of a good puzzle, getting the pieces into place, allowing you to find more of the complete picture.
That’s why I’m always excited when I see new games being added to the detective genre. What are they going to do differently? Am I actually going to be able to solve the actual puzzles? What will make the game stand out compared to others in the genre? The first thing that comes to mind for Inkblood when it comes to that last question is, undoubtedly, the art style. The visuals are incredibly gothic, seemingly inspired by painters from a certain era, and they immediately draw you into the game’s world.
They fit the setting rather perfectly too: you play as an Inquisitor hot on the trail of a deadly cult. You investigate from the back of your carriage, which functions as both your home and your prison. But it will also aid you, as it has tools not available to regular humans, like a magnifying glass that allows you to peer into the past. You can imagine that coming in handy while investigating murders. But being in this carriage comes with its own tension: why are you locked in there, and what will happen if you tamper with it?
But those are questions for another day, as the playtest I got to try out focuses on the start of the adventure. You’re on your way to a village, where you need to investigate an inn. You get two cases to solve within the demo: a dead body on the road towards the village and an… event at the inn itself (I won’t spoil it here, so you can go and try out the playtest for yourself right now on Steam).
The deduction itself will be very familiar to those who have played any of the games I mentioned earlier. You lock names and pictures into places, and then you call your Overseer to find out if your investigation was successful or not. If not, you continue playing, taking another look at all of the evidence until you figure things out. One thing I did note while playing is that if you get your investigation wrong, you get no feedback as to what you did or didn’t guess correctly. I don’t need the game to tell me that outright, but some hints would have been welcome.
Not that the hints are necessary, though. After about half an hour of time with the demo, I can say that the difficulty so far isn’t too much to handle. Compared to games like the Golden Idols or Obra Dinn, this is, so far, pretty straightforward. I’d put it on par with the Duck Detective puzzles, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing, although those looking for a real challenge might be left wanting a little bit more. That can change, of course, once you get further into the game.
Inkblood’s playtest really focuses on the investigative gameplay, more so than on the storyline, but what it does best is create intrigue. I’m already invested in the world the developers are creating. I want to know more about the cult that I’m following and about my own role as an Inquisitor. I’d love to get more information on why I’m locked in a carriage or why I can look back into the past and how that even works. I want to get to know the characters that I’ve seen so far, because they all look so full of personality despite not even talking to us.
I also wonder how big this game is going to be. You’re trailing a cult, but as you uncover more pieces to the puzzle, you’ll need to travel back to places you’ve visited before to get new perspectives. It feels like a really intricate network is being created, similar to how Obra Dinn had you revisit the same scenes over and over, which gets me really excited. If Inkblood can deliver on its promise, we’ll have another classic in the genre on our hands.
I’m really rooting for Hey Bird!, as they are a small team from the Czech Republic creating something really interesting. It’s heartwarming to see a publisher like CRITICAL REFLEX putting their backing behind Inkblood, as they have been on something of a roll lately themselves. I’ll definitely be keeping an eye on any updates to this one, whether it’s a new demo or the full release, which is scheduled for sometime later this year.
The difference between an interesting detective case and one that people don’t care about is intrigue. And Inkblood has that in spades. From the world you travel through, over the cult you’re following, to your own history, there’s so much to uncover, and I am here for all of it. It’s the gothic visuals that draw you in, but it’s the mechanics and secrets that make you stay. My time with this demo was very short, and I am giddy for the game’s full release. If you have any love for the detective genre, you owe it to yourself to add this to your wishlist.
Inkblood is set to release in 2026 on PC. You can wishlist the game or join the play test that’s happening right now until May 14th, 2026 on Steam.
