So you see spirit orbs...

[Crowing]

You check it off in the journal, and it automatically nixes the mimic, then the ghost is the mimic. Instant refund.

[Maverick]

Spirit orbs are "duplicate" evidence. You have to test for the other pieces (Spirit box, UV, and Freezing Temps) It's best to cross eliminate. Compare the other ghosts and their habits (Speed, interactions, Behavior, etc)

[Shurenai]

Originally posted by Crowing:

You check it off in the journal, and it automatically nixes the mimic, then the ghost is the mimic. Instant refund.

The Mimic's weakness is literally fake spirit orbs. It has a 'fourth' evidence that is not actual evidence.

[WolfLink0370]

Fell for the Mimic gotcha trap I see.... happens, but not rage-quit worthy IMO. Just learn from it and try again

The Mimic has Freezing Temperatures, Ultraviolet, and Spirit Box as it's actual listed evidence. The ghost orbs it produces are considered a red herring - in other words, they are fake evidence.

In cases where you get down to Hanto/Onryo (which I presume you picked instead), you should check for the last actual Mimic evidence to ensure you aren't getting tricked.

[Renegade Paragon]

Well, seeing as how you already refunded, I guess it's a moot point, but I'll say it anyway:

Every ghost has a special ability, and the Mimic has one as well. On top of being able to mimic every entity in the game (including itself and players, both of which do nothing), it has special ghost orbs. It's listed in its entry as a weakness.

In short, the ghost orbs you see are the mimics "calling card". They're fake orbs, and as of right now, they're the only instance of "fake" evidence in the game. If you get the 3 pieces of evidence listed under its journal entry (spirit box, UV, freezing) PLUS orbs, you instantly know it's a mimic, every time.

The reason behind the journal eliminating The Mimic when you select orbs is because orbs are not actually part of its evidence (as shown by the journal). The journal ONLY takes into consideration the evidence listed under the evidence part of each ghosts' page, and as such, since orbs are not part of The Mimic's evidence pool, it's eliminated.

Sorry you went through this frustrating event. The game has a few weird things like this, so it's probably best you did refund.

I wish you well in future endeavors!