Famicom Detective Club; First new game in the series in 35 years

Nintendo has announced Emio The Smiling Man: Famicom Detective Club – the first new game in the series in 35 years.

Last week, Nintendo uploaded a teaser for what looked like a horror title. Some thought this teaser was for a new game from Bloober Team, but as it turns out, that wasn’t the case. A week later, Nintendo has now officially revealed a new entry in the Famicom Detective Club series – Emio – The Smiling Man: Famicom Detective Club. We’ve included the official announcement trailer below:

A student was found dead! His head was covered with a paper bag with a creepy smiling face painted on it – much like the victims of Emio, the Smiling Man – a killer from urban legend who is said to put such a bag over his victims’ heads.

As the private detective’s assistant, you are tasked with helping the police solve this crime, which is reminiscent of a series of unsolved murders that occurred 18 years ago. Has a serial killer returned, or is this the work of a copycat? Are these crimes inspired by the story of the Smiling Man, or are they the origin of it?

As a member of the Utsugi Detective Agency, discover the answers to these and other questions in this thrilling story full of mistrust, isolation and fragility.

In the game, players take on the role of an assistant private investigator at the Utsugi Detective Agency. Players are tasked with helping the police solve a crime, examining the clues and witness statements they collect for possible connections to the gruesome events of the past.

Emio – The Smiling Man: Famicom Detective Club will be released for Nintendo Switch next month on August 29th. As mentioned, this is the first new entry in the series in 35 years – the last game (The Girl Who Stands Behind) was released in 1989.