Murder by Numbers

Detective visual novel where grid puzzles uncover murder clues

Mediatonic · Published by The Irregular Corporation · Released Mar 6, 2020

Reviews: Very Positive; 84% of 1,690
Recent reviews: Not enough recent
Playing now: 1; right now
Steam Deck: Verified
Last update: Unknown; no patch notes found

What is Murder by Numbers?

Set in 1996 Los Angeles, this single-player puzzle adventure follows actress Honor Mizrahi and a discarded robot as they investigate murders after her boss is killed. Across a series of cases, you search locations for evidence, solve nonogram grids to reveal clues, and question witnesses.

For you if...

+you enjoy challenging nonograms tied to a story
+you like humorous mysteries with character-focused dialogue
+you want extra grid puzzles outside the main story

Not for you if...

−you want detective work without frequent required puzzles
−you prefer short mysteries with little dialogue

What players say

84% of 1,690 reviews are positive

Players praise the nonogram puzzles, characters, and music. Common complaints are that the story drags in later cases and mandatory timed hacking puzzles can be frustrating.

Screenshots and trailer

Murder by Numbers system requirements

As published by the developer.

Minimum

OS: Windows 7 or higher (64 bit)
Processor: Intel Core i3 or higher
Graphics: GeForce GTX 660 (2048 MB) or Radeon R9 285 (2048 MB) - Integrated GPUs may work but are not supported.
Memory: 4 GB RAM
Storage: 2 GB available space
DirectX: Version 9.0c