Fedora Spade: Death Wears a Fedora
Death Wears a Fedora is the third episode in the freeware hard-boiled, yet
humorous Fedora Spade adventure series. Players once again take control of
detective Fedora Spade, assisted by his partner Daphne Marshall. It is a
peculiar relationship, as Spade holds a dark secret he has to hide for her.
Other familiar characters also make a return, such as the lawyer Jules
Cashington, the morbid colleague Theo and silly officer Baldie. The majority
of the cast is entirely new. The story takes place in the future and spans
three days. For this case, Spade has to investigate the mysterious death of
Diamond Goldmine in his mansion.
Gameplay is fairly identical to the previous games. Spade has to talk to
different characters to collect clues, search the environment, ask Theo to
examine items in detail, and finally draw suspects into the interrogation room
while using the right clues to advance the story, as well as interpreting it
through prompted answers. The interface is entirely menu-based and all actions
are shown through pictures combined with dialogue, full music and scarce sound
effects. Spade moves around using his car and new locations are opened up when
useful clues are gathered.
Compared to the previous games, the puzzles have become harder. Rather than
allowing the player to try and use all clues until an answer comes up, many
puzzles now require manual input and a thorough knowledge of the story with
the paths to explore.
Fedora Spade: Death Wears a Fedora