Get Schooled In Mystery With Black Closet

St. Claudine’s School is extremely prestigious. Only the daughters of the wealthy and elite can walk its hallowed halls. And only Elsa, the student council president, can police those halls and make sure that wrongdoing is nipped in the bud.

Welcome to the world of Black Closet. This mystery RPG is the latest offering from Hanako Games, makers of fantasy and anime-style adventures such as Cute Knight, Soul of the Samurai, and Long Live the Queen. St. Claudine’s may look flawless on the surface, but it’s a bit more cut-throat than appearances suggest. From petty thievery and cheating to violent crime, the school is a hotbed of delinquent activity. Reputation is everything for the students, and the reputation of the school itself is paramount. So when Elsa learns of a few misdemeanors, she’s not inclined to let it go.

In the role of Elsa, players will be given procedurally-generated mysteries to solve. Her leadership is applauded when mysteries are solved quickly, but public opinion dances on the edge of a knife; these things must be handled delicately. She is assisted in her endeavors by a group of students she affectionately calls her minions, who comb the school in search of clues and eyewitnesses. The only problem is that it starts to become apparent that one of these minions is turning against Elsa – and she doesn’t know which one.

To continue being successful as student council president, Elsa will need to interact with her fellow students, as well as a few authority figures. RPG-style dialogue choices allow the player to determine Elsa’s personality, and also how the other characters relate to her. She can pursue friendship and even romance with her skirt-clad schoolmates if so inclined, but at the end of the day, what matters most is solving the mysteries – and finding the turncoat in her ranks before it’s too late.

Black Closet is available for Windows PC, Mac, and Linux. The developers urge all student detectives to download the appropriate free demo first, to ensure that the game will run properly on their systems. The full version is $19.95 USD. To see what else is in the works for Hanako Games, be sure to check out their Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube Channel; you can also connect with other players via the Hanako Forums.