Easy way to solve cases

[vcczar]

I think the devs might want to do some things to prevent this, but I solve the cases pretty quickly. Here are some things I do:

1 - I go into the clinic next to the City Hall front desk and use the government database and print out everyone's profiles with fingerprints. This takes awhile because you have to use a combination of letters until you get just about all the names. It also helps to have a great short term memory so you don't print out duplicates. Once you do this, you have everyone's fingerprints and a name to those fingerprints, assuming you don't miss anyone. The population is so small that you can get this done in like an hour.

2 - If I can't figure out who was the murderer with fingerprints, then I visit where my suspects live or work to check their email, cameras, phone banks, etc. I am not discreet at all. If someone doesn't let me into their home and won't accept $50 or $100, I just punch them in the face and get everything I need before they wake up. For businesses, I'll spend money for a pass or I'll just break in at night.

The enforcers are never a threat really. There's usually just one, so I just punch them out or throw a bucket at their head. There's been instances where I've needed to get access to a computer in a high traffic area. If I wait until there's only three people in the area, I can throw a bucket at one guy's head, and then punch the other two out, even if they have a weapon.

I think the main issue is that profusely bleeding, having a broken leg, being thirsty, being hungry, being bruised, etc. aren't a big enough deterrent to carrying on as usual. The security and weapons are also not strong enough of a deterrent. The enforcers are usually idiotic.

I think easy access to a fingerprint database is definitely something that should be taken away. I'd also consider making sleep required. My character rarely sleeps, eats, drinks, or fixes his wounds. I've probably punched 50% of the town in the face and they all act like they have no memory of me. Having people remember you might be a good way to enforce more ethical behavior.

Another weird thing is a murderer voluntarily gave me their fingerprints once, even though I already had them on file. Her husband also let me into their apartment without a struggle. It was like she was trying to get caught. I'd also suggest having the villain attack you if you tell them you're going to arrest them. She just kind of laughed it off and then complained to her husband about milk.

Great game though.

[AlterEgo45]

I don't know. I can't solve a f*****g thing. And this is playing on Easy. I generally try the same stuff as you except I just knock people out instead of paying them and I'm not really sure how all the various tools and cameras and surveillance stuff works.

Like I couldn't even solve the tutorial case.

I got my first murder case in sandbox and about all I could work out was that the victim was probably killed by the hammer that was laying on the floor right next to her. I mean, probably. Good enough for me. I put it on that resolution form and sent it in after I gave up. They didn't pay me for that though.

I mean, I'm exaggerating. I know she was killed by a guy that was stalking her, I went through her computer and her safe and all that stuff, I think I got the guys fingerprints, but I had no way of talking to her partner about it since the apartment was a crime scene so she'd never go there. And there was no means of tracking the guy, since I know where she had seen him but I guess cameras have a time limit and I'm too smooth brained to figure out how that works really. I saw in her e-mails that she had reprimanded a subordinate employee so I went to that employee's place and knocked her senseless and took her prints and well, it wasn't her.

Even the lost and found cases at the hotel. Like the easiest possible one... find a screwdriver on floor 2 of that hotel. How hard could that possibly be, right? I couldn't possibly get an easier task than that. But I looked around floor 2 and couldn't even find the screwdriver.

So I definitely don't think it should be harder.

But the atmosphere and depth and fun I have playing it as a thief simulator are enough to make me not regret buying it, and it's keeping me around enough to where I might figure out the stuff I haven't figured out yet.

[Keller20]

I may add, gun seller's database is OP.

[vcczar]

Originally posted by AlterEgo45:

I don't know. I can't solve a f*****g thing. And this is playing on Easy. I generally try the same stuff as you except I just knock people out instead of paying them and I'm not really sure how all the various tools and cameras and surveillance stuff works.

Like I couldn't even solve the tutorial case.

I got my first murder case in sandbox and about all I could work out was that the victim was probably killed by the hammer that was laying on the floor right next to her. I mean, probably. Good enough for me. I put it on that resolution form and sent it in after I gave up. They didn't pay me for that though.

I mean, I'm exaggerating. I know she was killed by a guy that was stalking her, I went through her computer and her safe and all that stuff, I think I got the guys fingerprints, but I had no way of talking to her partner about it since the apartment was a crime scene so she'd never go there. And there was no means of tracking the guy, since I know where she had seen him but I guess cameras have a time limit and I'm too smooth brained to figure out how that works really. I saw in her e-mails that she had reprimanded a subordinate employee so I went to that employee's place and knocked her senseless and took her prints and well, it wasn't her.

Even the lost and found cases at the hotel. Like the easiest possible one... find a screwdriver on floor 2 of that hotel. How hard could that possibly be, right? I couldn't possibly get an easier task than that. But I looked around floor 2 and couldn't even find the screwdriver.

So I definitely don't think it should be harder.

But the atmosphere and depth and fun I have playing it as a thief simulator are enough to make me not regret buying it, and it's keeping me around enough to where I might figure out the stuff I haven't figured out yet.

I don't use most of the equipment. I've never failed to solve a murder case, and the only tool my guy carries is the fingerprint gun. You just have to find evidence that the murderer left behind. If you have everyone's fingerprints cataloged you can solve some of the cases instantaneously. The first case was definitely the longest because it took me awhile to figure out everything I needed to do. I don't remember how I solved that one, but I think checking emails and looking at the surveillance cameras helped on that one.

[Isabelle]

Originally posted by AlterEgo45:

I don't know. I can't solve a f*****g thing. And this is playing on Easy. I generally try the same stuff as you except I just knock people out instead of paying them and I'm not really sure how all the various tools and cameras and surveillance stuff works.

Like I couldn't even solve the tutorial case.

I got my first murder case in sandbox and about all I could work out was that the victim was probably killed by the hammer that was laying on the floor right next to her. I mean, probably. Good enough for me. I put it on that resolution form and sent it in after I gave up. They didn't pay me for that though.

I mean, I'm exaggerating. I know she was killed by a guy that was stalking her, I went through her computer and her safe and all that stuff, I think I got the guys fingerprints, but I had no way of talking to her partner about it since the apartment was a crime scene so she'd never go there. And there was no means of tracking the guy, since I know where she had seen him but I guess cameras have a time limit and I'm too smooth brained to figure out how that works really. I saw in her e-mails that she had reprimanded a subordinate employee so I went to that employee's place and knocked her senseless and took her prints and well, it wasn't her.

Even the lost and found cases at the hotel. Like the easiest possible one... find a screwdriver on floor 2 of that hotel. How hard could that possibly be, right? I couldn't possibly get an easier task than that. But I looked around floor 2 and couldn't even find the screwdriver.

So I definitely don't think it should be harder.

But the atmosphere and depth and fun I have playing it as a thief simulator are enough to make me not regret buying it, and it's keeping me around enough to where I might figure out the stuff I haven't figured out yet.

difficulty doesn't change how cases are generated / how much evidence you get

cases are just as difficult on easy as they are on hard- its just a case by case thing

[Mittens]

Originally posted by vcczar:

I think the devs might want to do some things to prevent this, but I solve the cases pretty quickly. Here are some things I do:

1 - I go into the clinic next to the City Hall front desk and use the government database and print out everyone's profiles with fingerprints. This takes awhile because you have to use a combination of letters until you get just about all the names. It also helps to have a great short term memory so you don't print out duplicates. Once you do this, you have everyone's fingerprints and a name to those fingerprints, assuming you don't miss anyone. The population is so small that you can get this done in like an hour.

2 - If I can't figure out who was the murderer with fingerprints, then I visit where my suspects live or work to check their email, cameras, phone banks, etc. I am not discreet at all. If someone doesn't let me into their home and won't accept $50 or $100, I just punch them in the face and get everything I need before they wake up. For businesses, I'll spend money for a pass or I'll just break in at night.

The enforcers are never a threat really. There's usually just one, so I just punch them out or throw a bucket at their head. There's been instances where I've needed to get access to a computer in a high traffic area. If I wait until there's only three people in the area, I can throw a bucket at one guy's head, and then punch the other two out, even if they have a weapon.

I think the main issue is that profusely bleeding, having a broken leg, being thirsty, being hungry, being bruised, etc. aren't a big enough deterrent to carrying on as usual. The security and weapons are also not strong enough of a deterrent. The enforcers are usually idiotic.

I think easy access to a fingerprint database is definitely something that should be taken away. I'd also consider making sleep required. My character rarely sleeps, eats, drinks, or fixes his wounds. I've probably punched 50% of the town in the face and they all act like they have no memory of me. Having people remember you might be a good way to enforce more ethical behavior.

Another weird thing is a murderer voluntarily gave me their fingerprints once, even though I already had them on file. Her husband also let me into their apartment without a struggle. It was like she was trying to get caught. I'd also suggest having the villain attack you if you tell them you're going to arrest them. She just kind of laughed it off and then complained to her husband about milk.

Great game though.

I got you beat, find a fingerprint of the killer, go to the victims work and find that board with the picture of each of the employees.

Just check with a black light ON the pictures. Works 90% of the time for me lol

[Shadowswimer]

i was just coming to see if anyone else was finding the murder cases extremely easy.

my system for solving a case within 3-5 in-game hours (or about 15-30 minutes) is this:

1. Search appt of victim - usually find the killers prints on at-least one thing, crumpled paper, or a buisness card, maybe a knife or lipstick.
2. Check security cams for suspects near apt between time of death, pin suspects to board.
3. Ask people outside if they've seen said person(s)
4. Go to that location and ask people in that building, you will almost always eventually find a neighbour or co-worker
5. Go to city hall and use the enforcer division login to access gov database. (use codebreaker if you cant find the code)
6. Search names, print the file, get fingerprints and address
7. Match the fingerprints and solve the case.

i follow this for pretty much every single case and then sleep in my apt for a full day or 3 until the next case.

if i cant get something from cameras then you gotta ask around about activity. but that rarely happens to me.

[vcczar]

Originally posted by Mittens:

Originally posted by vcczar:

I think the devs might want to do some things to prevent this, but I solve the cases pretty quickly. Here are some things I do:

1 - I go into the clinic next to the City Hall front desk and use the government database and print out everyone's profiles with fingerprints. This takes awhile because you have to use a combination of letters until you get just about all the names. It also helps to have a great short term memory so you don't print out duplicates. Once you do this, you have everyone's fingerprints and a name to those fingerprints, assuming you don't miss anyone. The population is so small that you can get this done in like an hour.

2 - If I can't figure out who was the murderer with fingerprints, then I visit where my suspects live or work to check their email, cameras, phone banks, etc. I am not discreet at all. If someone doesn't let me into their home and won't accept $50 or $100, I just punch them in the face and get everything I need before they wake up. For businesses, I'll spend money for a pass or I'll just break in at night.

The enforcers are never a threat really. There's usually just one, so I just punch them out or throw a bucket at their head. There's been instances where I've needed to get access to a computer in a high traffic area. If I wait until there's only three people in the area, I can throw a bucket at one guy's head, and then punch the other two out, even if they have a weapon.

I think the main issue is that profusely bleeding, having a broken leg, being thirsty, being hungry, being bruised, etc. aren't a big enough deterrent to carrying on as usual. The security and weapons are also not strong enough of a deterrent. The enforcers are usually idiotic.

I think easy access to a fingerprint database is definitely something that should be taken away. I'd also consider making sleep required. My character rarely sleeps, eats, drinks, or fixes his wounds. I've probably punched 50% of the town in the face and they all act like they have no memory of me. Having people remember you might be a good way to enforce more ethical behavior.

Another weird thing is a murderer voluntarily gave me their fingerprints once, even though I already had them on file. Her husband also let me into their apartment without a struggle. It was like she was trying to get caught. I'd also suggest having the villain attack you if you tell them you're going to arrest them. She just kind of laughed it off and then complained to her husband about milk.

Great game though.

I got you beat, find a fingerprint of the killer, go to the victims work and find that board with the picture of each of the employees.

Just check with a black light ON the pictures. Works 90% of the time for me lol

I do that too, but that has only solved one murder for me so far. I've scanned every employee in the town.

[AlterEgo45]

Originally posted by vcczar:

I don't use most of the equipment. I've never failed to solve a murder case, and the only tool my guy carries is the fingerprint gun. You just have to find evidence that the murderer left behind. If you have everyone's fingerprints cataloged you can solve some of the cases instantaneously. The first case was definitely the longest because it took me awhile to figure out everything I needed to do. I don't remember how I solved that one, but I think checking emails and looking at the surveillance cameras helped on that one.

Yeah now that I've figured out how to take care of security systems I can crush a murder case.

But it took me 9 hours or so to get to the point where I can do this (I did spend a ton of time just messing around though), so I wouldn't necessarily say that mechanic should be made harder. Plus most players aren't going to sit at city hall collecting fingerprints for an hour.

I don't think adding sleep would help or messing around with health conditions would either. After all, NPC's can shoot at you and you can't use guns and you're in a town where apartment buildings are guarded by sentry turrets so you don't want the injury/death penalties to be TOO high.

What I would do is fix/improve the side cases, have more things for sale, and space the murders further apart. Maybe even have relationships (not true relationships as such, just 'friendships' with citizens that unlock a couple of different dialogues and possibly they're able to help you with cases and gathering information. Plus when you get enough social credit score, you actually have a person you would like to leave your stuff to because you've got a 'history' with them.

So add this, and you've got this fun murder solving process which might get a bit easy, but doesn't become boring in any way because a lot of the game is now about these diverse side cases and interacting with this in-depth town more.

[Robotnik]

Adding sleep will only an arbitrary meter that you have to manage. It won't make the game more dynamic or make cases harder to solve. I suppose it will also add a nasty game over condition for running out of money, which would suck.

I think AlterEgo's ideas are really good. What we really need is just more game here, especially the things that flesh the world out to be more engaging.

If you want harder cases, that could be done. Perhaps the dev could simply make some murderers wear gloves and thus leave no prints. Maybe even wear a mask? Possibly a really smart serial killer that knows how to hide almost all evidence?

Originally posted by AlterEgo45:

What I would do is fix/improve the side cases, have more things for sale, and space the murders further apart. Maybe even have relationships (not true relationships as such, just 'friendships' with citizens that unlock a couple of different dialogues and possibly they're able to help you with cases and gathering information. Plus when you get enough social credit score, you actually have a person you would like to leave your stuff to because you've got a 'history' with them.

So add this, and you've got this fun murder solving process which might get a bit easy, but doesn't become boring in any way because a lot of the game is now about these diverse side cases and interacting with this in-depth town more.

[rja96]

Originally posted by vcczar:

I think the devs might want to do some things to prevent this, but I solve the cases pretty quickly. Here are some things I do:

1 - I go into the clinic next to the City Hall front desk and use the government database and print out everyone's profiles with fingerprints. This takes awhile because you have to use a combination of letters until you get just about all the names. It also helps to have a great short term memory so you don't print out duplicates. Once you do this, you have everyone's fingerprints and a name to those fingerprints, assuming you don't miss anyone. The population is so small that you can get this done in like an hour.

2 - If I can't figure out who was the murderer with fingerprints, then I visit where my suspects live or work to check their email, cameras, phone banks, etc. I am not discreet at all. If someone doesn't let me into their home and won't accept $50 or $100, I just punch them in the face and get everything I need before they wake up. For businesses, I'll spend money for a pass or I'll just break in at night.

The enforcers are never a threat really. There's usually just one, so I just punch them out or throw a bucket at their head. There's been instances where I've needed to get access to a computer in a high traffic area. If I wait until there's only three people in the area, I can throw a bucket at one guy's head, and then punch the other two out, even if they have a weapon.

I think the main issue is that profusely bleeding, having a broken leg, being thirsty, being hungry, being bruised, etc. aren't a big enough deterrent to carrying on as usual. The security and weapons are also not strong enough of a deterrent. The enforcers are usually idiotic.

I think easy access to a fingerprint database is definitely something that should be taken away. I'd also consider making sleep required. My character rarely sleeps, eats, drinks, or fixes his wounds. I've probably punched 50% of the town in the face and they all act like they have no memory of me. Having people remember you might be a good way to enforce more ethical behavior.

Another weird thing is a murderer voluntarily gave me their fingerprints once, even though I already had them on file. Her husband also let me into their apartment without a struggle. It was like she was trying to get caught. I'd also suggest having the villain attack you if you tell them you're going to arrest them. She just kind of laughed it off and then complained to her husband about milk.

Great game though.

I dunno if these are things the devs rally need to fix mate. This, to me, just sounds like you're going WAAAY out of your way to cheese the game, thus ruining it for yourself.

Im not trying to come across as rude, I just dont think its an issue with the game that 1 player decided to spend.....god knows how long typing out every combination of letters to cheaply attain a whole cities worth of fingerprint info.

You made that mess yourself. Dont ask the devs to fix that for you haha

[vcczar]

Originally posted by rja96:

Originally posted by vcczar:

I think the devs might want to do some things to prevent this, but I solve the cases pretty quickly. Here are some things I do:

1 - I go into the clinic next to the City Hall front desk and use the government database and print out everyone's profiles with fingerprints. This takes awhile because you have to use a combination of letters until you get just about all the names. It also helps to have a great short term memory so you don't print out duplicates. Once you do this, you have everyone's fingerprints and a name to those fingerprints, assuming you don't miss anyone. The population is so small that you can get this done in like an hour.

2 - If I can't figure out who was the murderer with fingerprints, then I visit where my suspects live or work to check their email, cameras, phone banks, etc. I am not discreet at all. If someone doesn't let me into their home and won't accept $50 or $100, I just punch them in the face and get everything I need before they wake up. For businesses, I'll spend money for a pass or I'll just break in at night.

The enforcers are never a threat really. There's usually just one, so I just punch them out or throw a bucket at their head. There's been instances where I've needed to get access to a computer in a high traffic area. If I wait until there's only three people in the area, I can throw a bucket at one guy's head, and then punch the other two out, even if they have a weapon.

I think the main issue is that profusely bleeding, having a broken leg, being thirsty, being hungry, being bruised, etc. aren't a big enough deterrent to carrying on as usual. The security and weapons are also not strong enough of a deterrent. The enforcers are usually idiotic.

I think easy access to a fingerprint database is definitely something that should be taken away. I'd also consider making sleep required. My character rarely sleeps, eats, drinks, or fixes his wounds. I've probably punched 50% of the town in the face and they all act like they have no memory of me. Having people remember you might be a good way to enforce more ethical behavior.

Another weird thing is a murderer voluntarily gave me their fingerprints once, even though I already had them on file. Her husband also let me into their apartment without a struggle. It was like she was trying to get caught. I'd also suggest having the villain attack you if you tell them you're going to arrest them. She just kind of laughed it off and then complained to her husband about milk.

Great game though.

I dunno if these are things the devs rally need to fix mate. This, to me, just sounds like you're going WAAAY out of your way to cheese the game, thus ruining it for yourself.

Im not trying to come across as rude, I just dont think its an issue with the game that 1 player decided to spend.....god knows how long typing out every combination of letters to cheaply attain a whole cities worth of fingerprint info.

You made that mess yourself. Dont ask the devs to fix that for you haha

It may be true what you are saying, as a game being a game. But when I play any game like this, I think, what would I do if I were locked in this world and could only get out by solving cases? If I had the entire cities fingerprints at my disposal on a computer I can access, I'm going to use that resource. I'm trying to solve crimes before a second murder occurs. I was able to solve crimes instantly.

The only thing I probably wouldn't do in real life is punch people in the face to get into their apartments (unless I know they're the guilty one). But part of that is frustration with the limited dialogue options/question options.

[Robotnik]

This is the same argument people have for nerfing everything in a single player game. I hear it on Elden Ring Forums "X IS OP!! I CHEESED EVERYTHING USING CHEESE STRATEGIES!! NERF IT!!". Why not have some self control and PLAY the game, you know, play around with the game. Intentionally handicap yourself from cheesing the game as hard as possible. How about, just DON'T USE THE DATABASE TO CHEESE. You also don't mention how tedious and slow this process is. You actually have to go WELL out of your way to do it like this and any fix would make the game WORSE for anyone not INTENTIONALLY CHEESING THE GAME TO MAKE IT EASIER.

You're like someone who looks up every glitch and exploit in an old game and get mad when you use them. "WOW I CAN SKIP THE WHOLE Game of Ocarina of Time by using WRONG WARP!! WOW DEVS FIX YOUR GAEM!!"

[vcczar]

Originally posted by Athos Atreides:

This is the same argument people have for nerfing everything in a single player game. I hear it on Elden Ring Forums "X IS OP!! I CHEESED EVERYTHING USING CHEESE STRATEGIES!! NERF IT!!". Why not have some self control and PLAY the game, you know, play around with the game. Intentionally handicap yourself from cheesing the game as hard as possible. How about, just DON'T USE THE DATABASE TO CHEESE. You also don't mention how tedious and slow this process is. You actually have to go WELL out of your way to do it like this and any fix would make the game WORSE for anyone not INTENTIONALLY CHEESING THE GAME TO MAKE IT EASIER.

You're like someone who looks up every glitch and exploit in an old game and get mad when you use them. "WOW I CAN SKIP THE WHOLE Game of Ocarina of Time by using WRONG WARP!! WOW DEVS FIX YOUR GAEM!!"

I think you might have me confused with other sorts of people. I'm no the kind of person that seeks nerfs or cheat codes. There was just a computer in the game. It was there, and it has everyone's fingerprints. I was just suggesting improvements to the game. I'm not even complaining about the game. I like the game. I'm still playing it. I'm just suggesting that it should be more difficult or that easy solutions be less easy. That is all. You seem to be working yourself up needlessly over someone else's personal suggestions.

[whit]

Op isn't cheesing anything. They're cutting their grass with a lawnmower, while you folks are still using scissors.

Anyway, here's a small discussion talking about almost the same method almost a year ago.

https://steamcommunity.com/app/986130/discussions/0/5756210821483195223/

Edit - also see barely anything has changed in the game since then...:(.

[Sotanaht]

Originally posted by vcczar:

I think the devs might want to do some things to prevent this, but I solve the cases pretty quickly. Here are some things I do:

1 - I go into the clinic next to the City Hall front desk and use the government database and print out everyone's profiles with fingerprints. This takes awhile because you have to use a combination of letters until you get just about all the names. It also helps to have a great short term memory so you don't print out duplicates. Once you do this, you have everyone's fingerprints and a name to those fingerprints, assuming you don't miss anyone. The population is so small that you can get this done in like an hour.

Tip: you can use [space]Letter to get all the last names starting with that letter, no repeats. The only problem is if any character happens to have only 1 name