Developed by The Moonwalls and published by Ultimate Games S.A., Bohemian Killing is a courtroom drama where you must forge your own testimony by actually playing through it. It is a very unique title where you play the game in two dimensions, a modern-day courtroom and the past where you live through the day when you committed the heinous crime of murdering a woman. Set in a steampunk France, Bohemian Killing is a unique drama that comes with different endings. This is our review of the Nintendo Switch of Bohemian Killing in which we try our best to evade our certain death by lying and deceiving the court.
Throughout your testimony, you will continue to explore the locations you visited during the day of the murder. During this time, your every step or move is detailed to the judge like a storybook. As you continue to interact with random items and NPCs, sometimes you will unlock a key evidence item or dialogue where the judge will ask a question and you will need to answer them. These answers are automatic however the items that you interact with certainly have an impact on your case and how it proceeds further. After a certain progression in the testimony, the judge will eventually call it a day and postpone the testimony for the next day. During this free time, you will be in your cell and you can explore it as well.
The normal gameplay also switches back and forth during the testimony where you will mostly play the game as Alfred Ethon exploring his day when the murder happened. After some key points, you will return back to the modern-day courtroom where the trial is taking place and at this point, the judge, prosecutor or your own lawyer will pitch in with different feedbacks. The judge might ask the prosecutor or your defense lawyer some questions, the prosecutor might try to dismiss the evidence provided or some random letter or evidence may arrive in the middle of the proceedings totally changing the scene of the trial.
Time plays an extremely important role in the game and it plays according to real life. Apart from items, activities, and NPCs that trigger an evidence cutscene, certain items are placed in the universe just so that you can pass time such as eating food, reading newspapers or reports, working on your inventions and such. You can compare the time detailed on the reports with your own handy watch to ensure that the time is as accurate to the report as possible so that you manipulate the case in your favor.
During my first playthrough of the game, I managed to cut myself with a blade and thus was able to slip past the neighbor’s testimony that he saw my bloodied clothes. In addition, I rented the room a little early which altered the case and I explained to the judge that I in fact went early to rent the room and it was already booked. This really gives you a sense of freedom to explore the case while keeping yourself safe. The ultimate result of the case, however, depends on your overall deliverance of the testimony.
Depending on the choices, you can avoid the charges or get charged for the murder. I was exonerated during my first playthrough however I lied too much but eventually I managed to get free. Each playthrough is not too long and you can easily complete it within one sitting depending on which direction you want to push the case towards. You can also take help from your lawyer who has detailed some notes in your diary about how you can work in order to achieve a particular ending. Once you’ve got the hint, you can work towards it by managing the time and actions during your testimony. Apart from the main endings of the game, there is also a secret ending of the game which is hidden in a sneaky letter.
For me, the dialogue delivery by all characters in the game was extremely solid. Since the game is set in a steampunk Paris, the accent of characters is strictly French as you can hear their distinctive accent in every word they say. I really loved the dialogue delivery of the game and since this is a courtroom drama where dialogue plays a big role in the game, Bohemian Killing is pretty strong when it comes to dialogue. Apart from the dialogue, the sound design is pretty basic however the music is also pretty good. There is not too much background music but a classic tune begins playing every time you open the reports or the evidence section to deduce what to do next.
Final Verdict:
Bohemian Killing is a pretty decent courtroom drama that offers a unique way of solving a case. Instead of digging into files and always reading the evidence while staying in the courtroom, the game offers you a chance of redemption and if you are good at manipulating, you can totally escape from the courtroom without a scratch on your face. During the testimony sequences, you are free to alter the testimony by any means you see fit and to roll it into your own favor in order to escape with your life. On the other hand, if you have a strong conscious, you can follow the testimony exactly how is it and get punished at the end for the crime that you have committed. With a promising setting and solid dialogue delivery, Bohemian Killing is surely going to push you towards multiple playthroughs in order to find all the endings. If you love court dramas and want a decent video game on Nintendo Switch, you should definitely give Bohemian Killing a shot.
Final Score: 7/10
