Earlier this year, I had the fantastic opportunity to preview Chicken Police: Into the HIVE!, a detective thriller starring a pair of feathery detectives. I was pretty impressed with what I played of the title: its gritty art direction, snappy dialogue, and genuine sense of noiresque intrigue. So, when I was offered the chance to look at another upcoming game in the same series, I pounced on the opportunity. Moses & Plato – Last Train to Clawville is another one of The Wild Gentlemen’s significant projects, and it occupies a space similar to Chicken Police. However, I found something that stood on its own two feet and then some.
Wildly Sophisticated – Does Moses & Plato Pique Our Curiosity?
The demo, which covers the introductory prologue of the main game, sees you thrust once again into the same universe as Chicken Police. You even work for the same police department, but rather than the plumed duo of Sonny and Marty, you follow the escapades of Moses and his assistant Plato. The two of them have been tasked with protecting an ambassador on a mission of peace while he travels upon the Clawville Express. A curious number of high-profile individuals have also found themselves present on the train, hinting that there might be more at play here than it seems.
What is immediately striking about Moses & Plato is the difference in art style compared to its sibling. At the same time, Chicken Police uses a more photorealistic style. Here, the aesthetics are more akin to an animated film. To me, this doesn’t make the game any less visually distinctive. I would say that this more closely suits the Sherlockian atmosphere; Chicken Police is a gritty noir thriller, while Moses & Plato is a more gentlemanly detective story. The fact that the story is an homage to a certain Agatha Christie novel further illustrates this flavor difference.
The mystery being set up here is intriguing, as the colorful cast is already rife with suspicion and motive. They all feel pretty distinct from each other so far and are very memorable, and I’m hoping there are plenty of hidden depths to them beyond what is found here. Our titular protagonists, Moses and Plato, are shaping up to be a very entertaining duo, though, thanks to their chemistry and excellent voice acting. Like any good detective team, it’s fun to hear them banter with one another; it feels like there’s a natural history and bond between them.
Gameplay is very much familiar territory for the genre; you spend most of your time examining the environment, talking to others to gather info, and occasionally performing interrogations. Additional gameplay wrinkles appear here. However, that should hopefully give the game some extra depth. Time management is set to be a vital part of the adventure, as with each action you perform, your time until the next big event dwindles. I’m hoping the time limit might lead to additional endings in the main game. Still, this mechanic already cranks up the tension in what could otherwise be a more sedate investigation.
Moses’ senses also play a part in your investigative process; you can eavesdrop on conversations, pick up on unusual scents, and spot specific tells and body language. All of your info is retained in Moses’ ‘mind garden’; while it is a unique way to display all the information you’ve gathered, it further immerses you into the role of a cunning detective. This extends into the interrogation sections, which see you using the facts you’ve gathered so far to pull even more info out from witnesses. These segments are a real test and push you to pay attention to each portion of information you have. It does feel a little tiresome to do the whole interrogation again after a failed attempt, but it’s hardly punishing or unfair.
From what I played, Moses & Plato makes an engaging attempt at being a detective game that is mostly non-linear in structure; rather than there being one path to the truth, there are many possibilities and secrets to unearth. It is genuinely up to you to decide what you do with the information you learn throughout your investigation, and that is a fascinating prospect to me.
Once again, The Wild Gentlemen have impressed me with their efforts here. The content within this demo is very promising: a classy and charismatic introduction to a tale of murder and intrigue. The entertaining characters here are nicely paired with engaging detective tools that are sure to make this a mystery worth solving. This demo should be available now, so if what you’ve read here seems appealing, I would strongly recommend giving it a chance!
Moses and Plato: Last Train to Clawville is in development for PC via Steam.
