Summary
Psychics have become a staple character type in supernatural games, with their gifts giving them an edge against malicious spirits and elements that prevent them from achieving their objectives. Due to their special gifts, psychics in these games often become members of law enforcement, particularlyPsychic Investigators, as their supernatural gifts can aid them in spotting clues others can easily miss.
However, despite the appeal of psychic investigators in supernatural stories, they are not an abundant type of protagonist in video games. While psychics do populate gaming spheres, they are often students or outright supernatural warriors who have little time to investigate their cases in a traditional manner. When Psychic Investigators do grace a supernatural game, they offer unique mechanics and perspectives that transform their titles into interesting experiences.
Players take on the role of an amnesiac detective inDisco Elysium, where the game’s setting of an impoverished district in a city recovering from civil war is presented under the backdrop of the rich world of Elysium and its land masses separated by the mysterious Pale. The game is touted for its rich narrative and storytelling, backed by 6,000 years' worth of fictional history and a skill system that doesn’t involve combat.
The dialogue-heavy nature ofDisco Elysiumupends the trend of RPGs having combat, instead relying on deciphering clues. Players can also access a Thought Cabinet that can lead to buffs and corresponding consequences. While not declared to be “psychic” in a traditional sense, the amnesiac detective’s incredible knack for insight as well as his mysterious “connection” to the city borders on the supernatural.
Marianne’s role as a spirit medium inThe Mediumplaces her in the shoes of a psychic investigator, at least in the sense that she helps souls travel to the afterlife on better terms. Taking place in Poland in 1999, a strange phone call from a caller who is seemingly aware of Marianne having a troubling dream will plunge the character into a journey that will put her face to face with her past.
InThe Medium,Marianne’s navigation of both the real world and the spirit worldis important in solving the game’s puzzles. Marianne has to avoid the malevolent entity known as the Maw and its minions on her journey, and she is able to use her psychic abilities to fend them off.
Platforms
Nintendo DS
Psychometry, or being able to touch items to see past events, is a common trope associated with psychics, and this is the same ability used by the protagonist J inAgain: Interactive Crime Novel. Taking place in modern-day Tokyo, J is an FBI Agent whose recent cases suggest the return of the serial killer Providence, whose string of murders 19 years ago left J as the only survivor.
As withother interactive object games,Againrelies on J’s “past vision” to see events from the past across items he can find. While J can explore environments in first person, players may periodically have to watch FMV cutscenes for extra details. Players can’t just use J’s abilities willy-nilly, as a Psychic Meter will decrease the more they use past vision for irrelevant tasks, resulting in a game over once it’s empty.
Xbox One, Microsoft Windows
When the death of David Young’s wife left him traumatized and unable to recollect much of the incident, the story ofD4: Dark Dreams Don’t Diegives the protagonist two things to work with: her dying wish of “finding D,” and the ability to travel through time. In the game, players take control of the private investigator as he tries to solve his wife’s murder with his newfound power, and maybe even prevent it should the opportunity arise.
While the game has a rather energetic and vibrant cast,D4: Dark Dreams Don’t Dieremains a thrilling experiencewith the inclusion of detective-esque mechanics. As David, players can talk to various individuals and interact with objects, all of which can prompt him to gain insights and gather new clues. Time travel isn’t an arbitrary ability, either, as it’s only triggered when interacting with specific objects, leaving it to players to decipher how the incident with Young’s wife took place.
Holding the Guinness World Record for being the most polarizing survival horror game of all time,Deadly Premonitionis a surprising take on the genre with its open-world premise. Players take control of FBI Special Agent Francis York Morgan as he tracks the mysterious Raincoat Killer in the rural town of Greenvale. WhileFrancis has a talent for analysis and criminal profiling, his “mildness” and eccentricity tend to make others feel both comfortable and troubled at the same time.
However, Francis also has another talent in the form of his attunement to the supernatural. Such is his psychic potential that he can access the supernatural Other World and its denizens, the Shadows. Francis also accesses two rooms in his investigation, the White Room of the normal subconscious and the Red Room of evil.
PC, iOS, MacOS
Despite its nature as a narrative adventure,Cognition: An Erica Reed Thrillerearned accolades for its gripping story that centers around the past of an FBI agent. The story ofCognitionstars Agent Erica Reed who has the ability of post-cognition, allowing her to see the past of any object she touches. Unfortunately, this ability wasn’t enough to help her catch the Cain Killer, the serial killer responsible for the death of her brother.
While the Bureau has taken her off the Cain Killer case to investigate other homicides, it’s slowly becoming clear that these unrelated incidents are connected to Erica’s past. Thanks to an antique store owner named Rose, Erica has slowly learned to control her previously unstable powers. In the game, her powers are represented by the Cognition sphere that adds twists to the point-and-click puzzle game, giving her access to abilities such as flashbacks, evidence projection, and even memory regression.
Combining concepts of the new weird with traditional psychic phenomena,Controlgives players control over Jesse Faden as she searches for her brother in the paranormal headquarters of the Federal Bureau of Control. Jesse, assigned Director of the FBC, is tasked to stop an Alternate World Event known as the Hiss who want to use theever-shifting nature of the FBC’s Oldest House headquartersto enter the real world.
While not an investigator in a traditional sense, Jesse is thrust into the shoes of one after she is appointed Director. Set up as a Metroidvania title, Jesse uses the psychically-imbued Service Weapon to transform into different armaments to face foes. She can also discover similarly-imbued Objects of Power masked as ordinary items to unlock various psychic abilities she can use in her journey.
After the events of the firstAlan Wakegame awakened the abilities of the eponymous novelist to “change” reality with his works,Alan Wake 2plunges the writer into a horrific present that seems eerily tied to his past brush with the unknown. Thankfully,accompanying Alan is FBI Special Agent Saga Anderson, whose innate psychic abilities have helped solve cases. Playing as Saga will reveal her special gift of True Sight, allowing her to piece together information and motives when “rearranging” them in her Mind Place.
Saga’s True Sight and Mind Place are invaluable resources in aiding Alan Wake’s own investigation, as his Writer’s Room instead allows him to “change” his immediate environment by altering the story he’s currently writing. Being able to piece together the game’s mystery with Saga’s Mind Place is a crucial requirement in understandingAlan Wake 2.
PlayStation, 3DO Interactive Multiplayer, DOS
Despite being a 1995 title,Psychic Detectivebrings a surprising amount of innovation to story-heavy titles by being an interactive movie game. Set in San Francisco, players take the role of nightclub owner Eric Fox after he’s taught to “hitchhike” into people’s minds. Much of the game takes place in the wake of Laina Pozok’s father, who died under mysterious circumstances.
While Eric can gather clues by doing psychic readings on items, he can also hitchhike into any guest to glean insights during their interactions with other characters. Much like a visual novel,Psychic Detectiveneeds multiple playthroughs to piece together the real circumstances of the Pozok murder, where family drama seemed to be the least of Eric and Laina’s concerns.
1989
FM Towns
While sharing a similar name to the 1995 game, the only similarity between thePsychic Detective Seriesand the former is a protagonist with the ability to dive into people’s minds. The franchise stars Katsuya Furuyagi, a private investigator whosepsychic abilitiesallow him to resolve seemingly unsolvable cases. Each game in the series tackles an unusual case, such as an unconscious girl, someone who wants their memory erased, and even a ghost out for revenge.
The game is presented in first person, where Katsuya interacts with both people and objects in his environment through choice-based commands. Players can gather clues by interacting with items, conversing with people, or outright entering their minds. Twists and turns add depth to each story, with snippets of Katsuya’s past enhancing him as a brooding protagonist, while his clients almost always end up not being what they seem.
