Case File 040 · Interrogation and Detective Games

Best Indie Detective Games

Detective games listed as Indie on Steam, each built around a distinctive way to investigate.

By Murder Book Editorial TeamPublished 16 September 2026Updated 16 September 2026

The best indie detective games are each built around one distinctive idea: an entire investigation run from a desktop, a murder investigation on a surreal island, or a mystery told only through filmed statements. Strong picks, all listed as Indie on Steam:

Paradise Killer: gather evidence and build your own case on an open-world island.
The Operator: solve crimes using in-game databases and analysis tools.
The Painscreek Killings: investigate an abandoned town with no quest markers or hints.
Contradiction: Spot The Liar: a live-action mystery about catching contradictions.
Interrogation: You will be deceived: question suspects in dialogue puzzles.
Detective Grimoire: a point-and-click murder mystery at a swamp tourist attraction.

Coming later, Murder Book is an upcoming interrogation game from Gungrounds, an independent studio in Zagreb, Croatia.

Key takeaways

Indie detective games often build the whole game around one distinctive mechanic.
The picks below range from open-world investigation to desktop simulation and full-motion video.
Every game on this list is tagged as Indie on Steam, and none describes combat in its store text.
Several are available beyond PC, including on Nintendo Switch and mobile.
Murder Book is an upcoming indie interrogation game supported by European and Croatian development funding.

What counts as an indie detective game?

"Indie" has no strict definition. For this list, every game is listed under the Indie genre on its Steam page. Each game was checked against its Steam listing and, where available, its official site. Some have publishers; independent development and self-publishing are not the same thing.

For a broader list that includes larger productions, see Best Detective Games on Steam.

Best indie detective games at a glance

Game	Developer	Publisher	Investigation style	Combat
Paradise Killer	Kaizen Game Works	Fellow Traveller	Open-world evidence gathering and interrogation	No
The Operator	Bureau 81	Bureau 81, indienova	Desktop investigation with analysis tools	No
The Painscreek Killings	EQ Studios	EQ Studios	Free-roaming exploration, notes and photographs	No
Contradiction: Spot The Liar	Baggy Cat	Baggy Cat	Full-motion video questioning	No
Interrogation: You will be deceived	Critique Gaming	Assemble Entertainment	Dialogue puzzles with suspects	No
Detective Grimoire	SFB Games	SFB Games	Point-and-click investigation and puzzles	No

Paradise Killer

Paradise Killer (Kaizen Game Works, Fellow Traveller, 2020) sets its murder investigation on an open-world island. You explore, gather evidence and interrogate suspects, then build your case. The structure is open: you decide where to go and when you have enough to make your argument. See Games Like Paradise Killer.

Best for: players who want freedom and a strong visual identity.

The Operator

The Operator (Bureau 81, 2024) puts you at a computer in a fictional agency, the FDI, on your first day as an Operator. When field agents call, you help by fact-checking, searching databases and analysing evidence with tools such as a video and photo analyser, a chemical scanner and a terminal. Cases include murders, missing people and cyber attacks. It is on Steam and Nintendo Switch. See Games Like The Operator.

Best for: players who like investigation as research.

The Painscreek Killings

The Painscreek Killings (EQ Studios, 2017) casts you as Janet, a young journalist sent to investigate why a once-lively town was abandoned. You explore freely, take notes, photograph clues and solve logic puzzles to find out who killed Vivian Roberts. Its Steam page stresses that there are no quest markers or hint systems. EQ Studios later made Scene Investigators.

Best for: players who want an investigation that never holds their hand.

Contradiction: Spot The Liar

Contradiction: Spot The Liar (Baggy Cat, 2015) is an all-video murder mystery. As detective Jenks, you explore a village, question its residents and point out contradictions in their statements. The developer's site credits Baggy Cat Entertainment (Tim Follin).

Best for: fans of live-action video who like catching inconsistencies.

Interrogation: You will be deceived

Interrogation: You will be deceived (Critique Gaming, Assemble Entertainment, 2019) makes questioning the core of the game. You play a detective hunting a terrorist group, questioning suspects through dialogue "convo-puzzles" while managing your team and its reputation. Steam's content notes mention symbolic, non-graphic depictions of torture, so it is a morally heavy game. It is also on iOS and Android as Interrogation: Deceived. For more games like it, see Best Interrogation Games for PC.

Best for: players who want interrogation as a strategic puzzle.

Detective Grimoire

Detective Grimoire (SFB Games, 2014 on Steam) sends its detective to a small tourist attraction in the marshes, where the owner has apparently been killed by the mythical creature the attraction is based on. You inspect the crime scene, question suspects, solve puzzles and assemble Grimoire's thoughts into conclusions. SFB Games later made Tangle Tower. See Games Like Tangle Tower and Detective Grimoire.

Best for: players who like point-and-click mysteries with puzzles.

Why do detective games suit indie studios?

Detective games rarely need large action set pieces. What they need is a clear idea about how investigation should feel: searching a database, walking a quiet town, questioning a suspect. That suits small teams, which can build an entire game around one mechanic and see it through. The games on this list rely on writing, systems and presentation rather than scale.

What do these indie detective games have in common?

They approach investigation from very different directions, but a few patterns stand out:

One core idea. The Operator is built around its desktop tools, Contradiction around filmed statements and Interrogation around questioning.
Your own reasoning. The Painscreek Killings offers no quest markers or hints, and Paradise Killer lets you decide when your case is ready.
Room for tone. The list ranges from a morally heavy terrorism investigation to a murder blamed on a mythical swamp creature.
Studios that return to the genre. EQ Studios followed The Painscreek Killings with Scene Investigators, and SFB Games followed Detective Grimoire with Tangle Tower.

How do you choose an indie detective game?

If you want open-ended freedom: Paradise Killer or The Painscreek Killings.
If you like screens, files and tools: The Operator.
If you like studying people: Contradiction or Interrogation.
If you want point-and-click puzzles: Detective Grimoire.

Is there an upcoming indie detective game about interrogation?

Murder Book: The Art of Interrogation comes from Gungrounds (company Macanga Games), an independent studio founded in 2016 in Zagreb, Croatia. The studio began by developing and porting Flash games for Armor Games, Newgrounds and Kongregate. It has worked with or for Devolver Digital, Croteam, Mad Head Games, Miniclip and Fumi Games, made Serious Sam: Tormental and is also developing Immunauts.

Murder Book is a narrative-driven interrogation game inspired by real police footage and psychological interviews. Its cases are designed for focused 5–10-minute sessions. The game is co-funded by the EU's Creative Europe MEDIA programme, where it is listed in the 2023 video game development results, and supported by the Croatian Audiovisual Centre (HAVC), which lists it among its 2025 development-supported projects. In April 2026, HAVC announced that Murder Book had been selected for the Creative Europe MEDIA stand at the Marché du Film during the Cannes Film Festival.

Murder Book is in development for PC (Steam) and mobile, with release currently planned for the end of Q2 2027. Meet the people making it in Meet the Team Behind Murder Book.