Review - The Roottrees are Dead

My new series, Late to the Game, is where I visit past titles of any age that I've missed or interest me. This time, in preparation for my own Game of the Year coverage, I'll be reviewing a puzzle game from earlier this year, The Roottrees are Dead.

Set in 1998, the time of dial-up internet and the transition from VHS to DVD, The Roottrees are Dead has you play as a private Investigator with a specialisation in genealogy. After hearing the news that the president of the Roottree family business, his wife and three celebrity daughters have tragically died in a plane crash, a mysterious figure knocks on your door and offers you a job - to research and reveal all blood relations of the Roottree family. Leading to discovering generations of disagreements, infidelities, traditions and massive secrets.

When your new employer is gone, you're left with the empty Roottree family tree on your wall. A massive complex web of blank names and faces. It all seemed very overwhelming at first glance. But soon enough, you familiarise yourself with the room you'll be spending the entire game in, by clicking on the few posters on the wall, and the tools you'll use to research and fill out every family members' full name, photo and occupation.

There's the evidence table, where each new clue is stored for observation; the family tree wall to fill in and workshop theories and solutions; and your main research tool: the computer - a retro device running dial-up internet. Here, you use a search engine to find relevant information related to keywords, phrases, titles, names and more. But as you discover tidbits that mention periodicals like newspapers and magazines, you can search selected words and phrases in those too. As well as in the internet's public library resource.

After teaching you how to use these tools, the game gives you an initial set of clues of where to begin your search. But the main gameplay loop consists of filling in three family members on the tree, and then, if they're correct, they automatically get locked in. Following the first clues kickstarts your mind into what the game demands: a logical but meticulous attention to even the smallest details. It's greatest trick is making you consistently experience a eureka moment when you connect the dots, which makes you feel smart. It's an addictive gameplay loop, where before you know it, time has whizzed past.

Image: The Roottrees are Dead - Cutscene - Evil Trout Inc

Being a puzzle game with fixed solutions, I won't go into top many plot details as they would only spoilt the fun of untangling the true story of the Roottrees. But what is smart game design, is the way you can potentially find multiple routes to the same solution and unravel the story at your own pace. Each new story detail leads to a new thread that keeps you prying all the way to the end. However, even if you get stumped, the solution is always logical and often the answers can be found by reanalysing previous evidence and old evidence that seemed like a dead end, can be the solution once inputted into a newly found periodical.

The staggering number of internet pages, book extracts and other evidence is all well-written in distinguishable voices that help characterise many members of the Roottree family. The writing style can diverge tone and still never loses quality. I was honestly impressed how some internet pages had keywords that could be copied and pasted into the search engine and led to a new page which could do the same. Sometimes this led to an information chain three or four layers deep. That's how I found the thing, a cool Easter egg tha you'll know if you find it.

Although, if all this sounds too much to parse and memorise, you don't need to. The Roottrees are Dead has a built-in notepad, that allows you to add any text you deem important or need to remember, by simply highlighting it. And if you still find yourself stuck, there's an option to group periodical searches and a hint system. The hunt system can be found in the lower bar menu of the neat and minimalist user interface. A quick click on the rubber duck icon and the game will offer you a hint.

These helpful features make the experience highly approachable to even non-gamers. All you need to do is click from place to place on screen and type in your latest queries. Everything is simple and intuitive - a real brainteaser for anyone that loves logical puzzles. Much like the games that inspired it, Her Story and Return of the Obra Dinn. The puzzles are more about parsing through facts and lies and piercing together the truth in your head or on paper, more so than any directly controlled game mechanic. It's a testament to how strongly designed the family tree puzzle is, that by the end of the first case, it was already one of the better puzzle games I've played in years. And you heard right, the first case.

Image: The Roottrees are Dead - Family Tree - Evil Trout Inc

For those unfamiliar, The Roottrees are Dead was first launched as a free browser game on itch.io. First concepted by Jeremy Johnston during a game jam and further developed over the following year, he released the completed the original game by using AI created images. Being popular on itch.io for its brilliant puzzle and story, developer Robin Ward asked Johnston if his studio Evil Trout could remaster, The Roottrees are Dead, by replacing all AI images with handcrafted art and much more, to which Johnston agreed.

Evil Trout and Ward's remaster retains the creative spine of the original, but enhances the visual fidelity by creating a 3D living space to act as the hub, instead of the original game's family tree board. This refinement is seen in the posters of the walls, and the computer and overhead fan, that gives off a noir feeling alongside the saxophone main theme - all adding flavour to your PI as if they're working a long case through the night. They've even added an actor in the opening cutscene and created a few character models that interact from the doorway and match the lovingly handcrafted artwork of the photographs found throughout the game. All of which bolsters the personality of the Roottree family members that we learn about in the evidence and online searches. And even the writing has been edited, improved and added to. Everything from the intuitive user interface and the voice acting has been improved, culminating into a really strong indie game.

But that's not all. Instead of simply remastering the original case, they designed a brand new second case that acts as an extension to the original. Most importantly, the same high bar of quality persists throughout, and even adds a few harder gameplay mechanics, like individually choosing first and last names instead of being combined. It also makes you feel even closer to being a private investigator by requiring you to remember elements of the first case to help solve the second - a true continuation with an equally tangled history to unravel that brings the plot to a satisfying conclusion.

Image: The Roottrees are Dead - Evidence - Evil Trout Inc

Personally, I was already satisfied enough at the end of the first case, but the addition of a second is a wonderful treat that only improves the value and quality of the game. With a core puzzle mechanic loop of researching, parsing and solving, I'd happily play further mysteries using the mechanic, if the stories were as intriguing and well-written.

Just as I thought I would, I really enjoyed my time playing The Roottrees are Dead. From the addictive investigation and deduction gameplay loop, to the excellently crafted web of interconnected generational mysteries and secrets, I came away from The Roottrees are Dead knowing I would recommend this brilliant piece of interactive investigative fiction to anyone, especially those that have recently enjoyed The Golden Idol games or Obra Dinn, as it scratches that similar itch where you must analyse and deliberate on logical clues to find a solution. And Evil Trout look to continue the act of remastering brilliant itch.io games by remastering Type Help into a new title called The Incident at Galley House, which if this game is anything to go on, it's one to look forward to. So, if you're a fan of puzzle games, The Roottrees are Dead is an easy recommend.

Image: The Roottrees are Dead Score - 8.5/10

*Game provided by publisher