Nippon Ichi has released the first details for their recently announced visual novel, Murder Detective: Jack the Ripper. In this game, you take control of private detective Arthur Hewitt, who begins to hallucinate a seemingly-real Jack the Ripper after a serial murder case occurs. [Thanks, 4Gamer!]
Characters
Arthur Hewitt (CV: Yuusuke Hirooka)
A young man who has been running the Hewitt Detective Agency since two years ago. He’s the type to feel happy when he’s being useful, and as such runs the agency to help the citizens of London. He’ll even take on small tasks like finding lost items or searching for lost pets, so he’s got a good reputation.
“Self-proclaimed” Jack the Ripper
A mysterious being who starts to appear before Arthur. Is he a ghost, or Jack’s hallucination? Only Arthur can see and hear him. He calls himself a killer, and toys with Arthur while laughing the whole time. Jack the Ripper should have been executed two years ago…
Charlotte Peaceley (CV: Aiko Yamasaki)
A female police officer working for the London Police. She’s got a very straightforward personality, and upholds her duties as an officer fairly. She will never turn a blind eye to crime, and shows no mercy for criminals.
Harry Brown (CV: Yuuki Fujino)
A police officer in the London Police who mainly does criminal cases. He is frequently partnered with Charlotte in cases, but they doesn’t get along well as Harry is the type to do things halfheartedly without being serious.
Rory Godspeed (CV: Mitsuki Natsukawa)
The deputy head of the Godspeed Union Family mafia group that is based in London. She’s a familiar face around the area where Arthur runs his agency, and is always busy with something.
Walter Raichel (CV: Kouji Mikogami)
Arthur’s physician who works at a London clinic. He is knowledgeable in not only internal medicine and surgery, but also psychiatry, and has a high prowess in the field of medicine. He is also in charge of autopsies for the London police.
Sophie Raichel (CV: Yuki Kawakami)
Walter’s only daughter. While she’s young, she’s an intelligent and bright person who not only does the housework but also acts as Walter’s assistant as the receptionist and during surgery procedures.
Story Route System
During the story, you’ll come across decisions that will affect the story greatly and decide your ending. The game has a Detective Route and a Murderer Route.
For example, in the above situation, Arthur is asked whether he thinks killing is good or bad depending on the situation, such as if it’s self-defense. Depending on your answer you’ll see a different cut-in that shows which route you chose for that choice.
You can revisit each scene through the scenario tree.
Detective Route
Detective Route presents Arthur as the logical thinker who looks at situations analytically even if it means he has to kill his feelings in order to see the whole picture.
Murderer Route
An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth. Murderer Route presents Arthur as someone who will do anything to protect what he finds important. He’ll take action first and think later.
Prologue: Incubation
Arthur Hewitt once sustained heavy damage to his heart during the riots that occurred during Jack the Ripper’s public execution. Using cutting-edge medical science, he received a heart transplant, and managed to stay alive. He then began a private detective agency in London.
During this time, he receives a request from Rory to investigate a serial murder incident. Seeing the bloody scene of the crime shocked Arthur, and he began to hear a voice that he didn’t recognize in his head. Believing that he was just hearing things, je goes to talk to Charlotte of the London police for advice, but she asks, “Why are you sneering?”
At this unexpected question, Arthur was unsure of the answer himself, and quickly left the crime scene.
Check out the trailer here:
Murder Detective: Jack the Ripper releases in Japan for PlayStation 4 and Nintendo Switch on April 25, 2019.
