Touch Detective

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1. #1Description

   Touch Detective (おさわり探偵 小沢里奈, Osawari Tantei: Ozawa Rina, literally "Touch Detective: Rina Ozawa") or Mystery Detective in Europe (except in France) is a point-and-click mystery adventure game for the Nintendo DS which makes use of the device's touch screen. It was developed by BeeWorks and released in Japan by Success Corporation. It was published in the United States by Atlus USA, and in the PAL region by 505 Games. Touch Detective was released for the iOS on August 4, 2011. Its first chapter is free to download. The game was released for Nintendo Switch as part of a compilation game titled Touch Detective 3 + The Complete Case Files, for Japan in October 2022, and worldwide in March 2024.

2. #2Gameplay

   The player controls the titular detective Mackenzie as she solves four mysteries in the small town of Osawari. Both the art style and the plot reflect a subtle fantasy mood – for example, the first case is to track down a thief who is stealing someone's dreams. GameZone reviewer Steven Hopper notes that the game features a unique aesthetic that feels like a Tim Burton version of a Jhonen Vasquez comic. Aside from the main plots, there are also a number of small bonus mysteries that involve much simpler tasks. There is also a Touch Notebook containing a list of major items in the game the player has touched.

   The game is entirely controlled via the touch screen. Tapping a location on the screen will talk to a character or examine an object. The player has an inventory of items collected, and may use them on other items or objects in the environment. The player can also communicate with the characters along conversation trees or present inventory items to them to learn new information. Mackenzie's pet mushroom, Funghi, is used as an aid in some puzzles.

3. #3Characters

   Keys: Cromwell, Dover, Aliens, Friday, Shorty, Mayor Tom, Katrina, Seabottom Dwellers, Harrison, Colleen, Connor, Daisy, Chloe, Eric, Myron, The Cornstalker, Antoinette, Myrtle, Beatrice, Mackenzie, Ogden, Lynsey, Inspector Daria, Silver, Ace, Penelope, Funghi

   Rina Ozawa (小沢 里奈, Ozawa Rina) / Mackenzie: The lead character of the game. As a young girl, she runs a detective agency with the help of Cromwell. Her personality is the most "ordinary", in contrast to the otherwise bizarre world around her. Although she's the most mature out of her friends, she can also often gain a typically childish amusement from doing "naughty" things. She keeps a "Touch List" of things she has touched and what they feel like.

   Manami (まなみ) / Penelope: One of the girls that lives in the condominiums in town and friend of Mackenzie. Her parents are very rich, and thus she enjoys a lavish lifestyle, but she is rather air-headed, and has been known to disappear for a time, or even not talk to anyone (including herself, except for pantomime) for a whole week. She is the one who will give Mackenzie all her cases during the game and is one of the main focuses of the first three episodes.

   Chitose (ちとせ) / Chloe: Another girl in town, and while friend of Mackenzie, tends to be her rival in trying to solve cases. Chloe generally takes actions before figuring out their consequences on herself or those around her, such when she broke into and ransacked Penelope's apartment for evidence.

   Jii (じい) / Cromwell: Butler for Mackenzie and also a genius inventor. Cromwell is a man who has worked for Mackenzie's family for over 300 years. He is often coming up with inventions, and becomes disgruntled if he isn't given the chance to show them off to others.

   Nameko (なめこ) / Funghi: A living mushroom that is kept as a pet by Mackenzie and travels with her as she moves about town.

   Deijī (デイジー ) / Daisy: A goth girl that works at the local boutique, and lives in the apartment above Penelope, having to put up with her loud "ditzy" antics as a result. At first hostile towards Penelope and Mackenzie, she becomes friendly later on.

   Inspector Daria: A red-headed inspector who has no patience for Mackenzie. She tries to solve cases before Mack can when The Cornstalker is involved. She is the self-proclaimed rival of The Cornstalker. She often throws out her back while making her extravagant entrance poses. She gets motion sickness when traveling.

   The Cornstalker: A professional thief and master of disguise, he tries to steal the rarest and most valuable items in the world. He always calls Mackenzie "Touch Detective", though no one knows how he knows about it.

   Ace and Friday: A mysterious young man with a grudge against the rail conductor, and his rodent associate "Friday the Freeloader".

   Mayor Tom: The mildly corrupt mayor, he always panics or faints if anything happens to his items.

   Eric: A petty, smooth talking salesman who cheats on his clients to make a profit for himself.

   Harrison: A tough, hairy archaeologist who seeks to find rare artifacts, fossils and relics and make a name for himself.

   Colleen: The mysterious young curator who runs the haunted mansion although it actually holds a dark secret of her and the mansion itself.

   Silver: A living puppet that sleeps for many years. He could sing beautifully until a freak accident makes him lose his voice.

   Connor: A young man who has recently moved to the town and opened an antique shop. He often gives Mackenzie information on antiques, and sometimes gives her useful items. His shop seems to be closed quite often. Mackenzie thinks he is rather cute, perhaps having a mild crush on him. It is a running gag that he is obviously the Cornstalker, despite Mackenzie's obviousness to the fact.

   Antoinette: The baker who works at the Sweet Mountain bakery and makes delicious sweets in the games. She's always trying new pastries and cakes with strange ingredients.

   Beatrice: The landlord at the condominium where Penelope lives; she provides some help in Mackenzie’s cases, particularly whenever Penelope is involved. She also used to work in the Circus that went through town until it was closed down, able to expand like a balloon.

   Katrina: A fortune teller who lives in town and gives helpful hints to Mackenzie throughout the games. She works in the House of Illusions.

   Myron & Myrtle: Two acquaintances of Katrina that guard the door of her fortune-telling house in Touch Detective, Myron being a red man with short hair and Myrtle being the blue woman with long hair. They only communicate by making gestures. In Touch Detective 2 ½ they work as private security guards at the Department Store. Like many in town, they used to work in the Circus.

   Dover: A shark who used to work in the circus by making shows with the tattoos on his back. After a tragic incident ruined his career he wanders low on money, eating sweets at the Sweet Mountain Bakery.

   Shorty: A dwarf who once used to work at the circus, before settling down to run a hotdog stand. Later on in the second game, he opens up a ChocoBanana stand. Although too short to be seen by the player, he has a big attitude.

   Lynsey: A small girl that likes stars, dolls and chocolate, and so often visits the Planetarium to see the stars and get the free chocolate. She is always carrying a hand puppet named Lini, whom she speaks to and is spoken to as though it were a real person. She has a close relationship with Ogden, the Planetarium astronomer.

   Ogden: The astronomer met in the second episode of the game. Quite an enigmatic character, he watches after the little girl Lynsey.

   Aliens: A race of extraterrestrial creatures appearing in the final episode. They’re summoned to the Wallaby’s department store when all the Seabottom Dweller artifacts are combined. They share a resemblance to the Seabottom Dwellers, in fact sharing a common ancestor.

4. #4Plot (Touch Detective)

   Keys: , Great Detective Society, Lynsey, Dream World, Dover

   Mackenzie learns that in order to join the ranks of the Great Detective Society, she must solve four cases and submit her investigation report to the Society. Fortunately for her, several cases seem to pop up around town.

   Episode 1 - Robbery. The reality of a fanciful dream Penelope comes to Mackenzie because she claims her dreams are being stolen. Mackenzie first acquires a special invention from Cromwell so that she can see into Penelope's dreams and understands what happens: a strange creature is seen fleeing from Penelope's just before she wakes up. Mackenzie investigates further and finds a way to enter the Dream World, but finds no one there that can help because the rest of the town is not yet asleep. Finding a way to convince everyone to fall asleep at the same time that Penelope does, she is then able to stop the fleeing figure and reveal it to be the pastry chef in town. The chef admits to the crime, using the crystallized dreams as an ingredient in her Sweet Dream Cake dessert, but Penelope and the chef agree that the chef will only take Penelope's dreams once a week.

   Episode 2 - Disappearance. The truth hidden in the cosmos Penelope goes missing, and upon investigation, it looks like her room was broken into. It is later revealed that Chloe, trying to find Penelope before Mackenzie, broke in and tried to find evidence, but regardless of Chloe's bumbling, Mackenzie is led to the planetarium and its strange owner, as well as a little girl named Lynsey who seems to like playing with dolls. After catching the owner buying girls clothes in sizes too large for Lynsey, Mackenzie soon discovers that the planetarium owner lured Penelope and now is keeping her in a secret room under mind control in order for her to be Lynsey's friend. Mackenzie is able to rescue Penelope, have the owner captured, and befriends Lynsey so she won't be lonely again.

   Episode 3 - Stranded. The miracle of an innocent heart Penelope claims that an ice fairy is stranded at the ice skating rink, the only cold place in town, but Mackenzie cannot see it though she can sense it. The owner of the rink is tired of living in the cold and is looking to shut the rink down, causing the temperature in the rink to rise and threaten the life of the fairy. Chloe comes up with two near-disastrous ideas for saving the fairy, but Mackenzie realizes all they need to do is make it snow so the fairy can be get out from the ice rink and to a more comfortable location. With the help of the local fortune teller Mackenzie helps Chloe in enchanting an "angel summoning spell" (actually a magical girl theme song), which, through the power of Chloe's will, temporarily transforms Penelope into an angel that can make it snow. The fairy returns home after a parting conversation with Chloe, with it being heavily implied that they share a requited crush.

   Episode 4 - Assault. The tragedy of a past grudge Penelope claims that a murder happened at the circus in town, though it is only a flea circus, and it's actually an assault. Apparently, the circus used to be a larger attraction, but when it shut down, many of the performers took up residence in town. Mackenzie investigates to find that something did attack the fleas, though initially suspecting a flea as the culprit, but the supposed culprit flea ends up near-dead himself, in a supposed locked room attack. This leads to an initial speculation of self-inflicted injury, but Mackenzie deduces that a human sized culprit could have picked up the box the flea was in and shaken it to cause the injuries. When a large anvil nearly kills all the fleas, the trail leads to Dover, one of the ex-performers. His old circus act, animating tattoos on his back, was ruined due to a flea bite, and has been out of work since, and thus took revenge on the flea circus to try to get back into stardom. Dover tries to kill a flea, although Mackenzie is able to stop him, but the circus ringleader accidentally kills it anyway.

   Following the successful resolution of all four cases, Cromwell informs Mackenzie that she has been accepted into the Great Detective Society, but it transpires that he mistakenly submitted Mackenzie's "Touch List" instead of her investigation report. She is given the official title of "Touch Detective" as a result, to Mackenzie's shame.

5. #5Plot (Touch Detective 2 ½)

   Keys: Mayor Tom's Top Secret Picture Book, white noodles, Seabottom Dwellers, colored noodles

   Episode 1 - Robbery, the salvation of an ancient relic Penelope comes to Mackenzie's office because her colored noodles have been stolen, leaving her with only white noodles. Mackenzie starts the investigation only to find out that no one in town has any colored noodles anymore. She later finds out that a page was torn out from Mayor Tom's Top Secret Picture Book. She manages to find the missing page with Yvonne, and tells Mayor Tom about it, but whenever he confronts Yvonne, he tends to forget about it. Then, Mackenzie finds a heart-shaped fossil that was dropped by the mayor and after further investigation, she finds out that someone is trying to destroy the town to retrieve a hidden treasure. They plan to do this by recreating the legend of the White Falcons wherein something white is needed. Mackenzie suspects the mayor who then reveals himself as The Cornstalker in disguise. Mackenzie foils The Cornstalker's plans, but he still manages to escape.

   Episode 2 - Deception, a noble fight against injustice Mackenzie is rewarded with a train ticket by Mayor Tom. Meanwhile, a robbery occurs. It turns out to be the Cornstalker who stole the relic of the Seabottom Dwellers in one of Eric's suitcases. Inspector Daria investigates but she isn't any help due to her motion sickness. Mackenzie finds the Cornstalker disguised as an old lady with the stolen suitcase is in "her" luggage, but he again manages to escape. It was later revealed that Eric is the real culprit, framing the Cornstalker but he comes back to steal the suitcases containing the actual relic. Mackenzie gives chase and recovers the relic with some help from the train conductor, but The Cornstalker escapes again.

   Episode 3 - Deliverance, the curse of cumulative destinies Harrison discovered an amber gem and a human fossil in the pyramid. Meanwhile, Mackenzie is on a field trip to the museum when someone vandalizes a statue. Mackenzie decides to investigate and becomes Harrison's assistant. They move the human fossil into Mayor Tom's museum only to discover that it is actually the cursed Fossil Hunter. The next day, Mackenzie receives a letter from the Cornstalker who plans to steal the amber gem. Harrison is about to hold a press conference when Inspector Daria arrives to guard the museum. She makes everyone leave to prevent the Cornstalker from entering the museum but Mackenzie manages to come inside and sees an alien. After that commotion, Harrison asks her where the amber gem is, but she lies and replaces it with a fake one. Suddenly, another Harrison arrives, exposing the first one as the Cornstalker who quickly steals the fake amber. Mackenzie puts the real amber back into the Fossil Hunter's eye socket bringing him back to life. He explains that he comes from another dimension and is only able to live in their dimension thanks to his eye. His eye came out after a premonition regarding the events of the Noodle Festival, which caused him to turn into a fossil. It is revealed that the "alien" is actually part of the ancient Seabottom Dweller race.

   Episode 4 - Recollection, an illusion hidden in the melody Penelope rushes into Mackenzie's office to tell her that she has seen a corpse inside the Haunted Mansion's greenhouse. When both of them return there, they realize that he is not actually a corpse and assume that he is sleeping. They try to wake him up but fails, so Mackenzie touches the body and discovers that it's only a doll. She also finds a hole in it and uses the wind-up key that she found inside the mansion. The doll wakes up and introduces himself as Silver. He says he doesn't know why he can talk and thinks he has a problem as cannot sing anymore. He mentions a girl who always listened to his songs but when she moved closer to the window, there was a flash and he never saw her again nor can he sing anymore. Mackenzie decides to help Silver and find the girl. She makes her own ghost detector and find a ghost named Colleen. She figures out that Colleen is the same mysterious girl that Silver mentions so she tells her about him, but Colleen gets scared and runs away. Mackenzie goes back to the greenhouse and asks Silver to sing again to guide Colleen to him. The Cornstalker appears, planning to steal Silver but decides not since his singing is bad. Silver feels very sad about this insult. Mackenzie finds Colleen outside the greenhouse. She convinces her to apologize to him and she does. Silver sings again but suddenly, Spooky the cat scares Colleen. She goes through the window with a big flash and disappears. Surprisingly, Silver can sing normally again. As she leaves the building, Mackenzie realizes that Colleen is still there beside Silver through the silver window.

   Episode 5 - Invasion, a vendetta of afar Chloe and Penelope tells Mackenzie that they found a raffle voucher for some Mongolian beef. The three of them decide to search for more tickets. While doing so, Mackenzie finally receives her ID card from The Great Detective's Society. After collecting all five raffles, Mackenzie is also given a VIP pass to the exhibition and invites Cromwell. An artifact is stolen by the Cornstalker, so Mackenzie and her friends track him down inside a pink elephant structure. He tries to escape, but a spaceship appears and takes the whole room along with everyone inside. Mackenzie then wakes up to find herself alone. She soon discovers that the Seabottom Dwellers are actually the servants of aliens who plan to vaporize all of the cows on Earth. After Mackenzie frees everyone, she plants Cromwell's time bomb. They escape and foil the aliens' plans. In the end, they go home and are welcomed by the Men in Black.

6. #6Legacy

   A sequel, Touch Detective 2 ½, was released in 2007.

   In Japan, the character of Funghi became widely popular and a Funghi Gardening Kit (おさわり探偵 なめこ栽培キット, Osawari Tantei: Nameko Saibai Kitto, or simply Mushroom Garden) game was released for the iPhone and iPad on June 30, 2011, and for Android on December 21. It released a "Seasons" version on December 2, which became the number 1 app in the App Store in Japan the following week. By the end of 2011, Seasons had been downloaded 1 million times from iTunes and the Android version, released around the same time, had reached 200 thousand downloads within a week of its release. By March 2012, Beeworks began selling character goods for the various different Funghi.

   A spin-off called Osawari Tantei Nameko Daihanshoku was released for Nintendo 3DS in 2013, while Touch Detective Rising 3: Does Funghi Dream Of Bananas? was released in Japan in May 2014.

7. #7Reception

   The DS and iOS versions received "mixed" reviews according to the review aggregation website Metacritic. In Japan, Famitsu gave the former a score of two sevens and two sixes for a total of 26 out of 40.

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