## Description
Twilight Island, one of Japan’s tourist hotspots during the summer, has become
the source of a disturbing rumor as of late. It tells of several visitors
being spirited away to another place, which at first sight seems to be the
same island, but is in fact fundamentally different, as if it was lost in
time. These missing persons eventually do return safely, just as mysteriously
as they disappear, however the rumor was enough to spook some of Professor
Agasa’s colleagues into cancelling their vacation there. The professor has
come handsomely out of this situation with some spare tickets and, knowing
Conan’s interest in such riddles, has suggested that they go in their stead.
Fait accompli, and now the whole gang, besides them including detective Kogorō
Mōri, his daughter Ran, and Conan’s friends from elementary school, are off to
unravel the island’s mysteries.
Meanwhile Hajime Kindaichi, an amateur detective just like Conan, receives a
letter from a former classmate who relocated a long time ago. She asks for him
to come to Twilight Island and prevent a certain tragedy that took place there
25 years ago from happening again. Troubled by the urgency of the note, the
teenage sleuth, together with his friend, Miyuki, and inspector Kenmochi,
departs towards the island. On this adventure, the two detectives’ paths will
cross each other in a way that no one would’ve expected.
_Meitantei Conan & Kindaichi Shōnen no Jikenbo: Meguri au 2-Jin no Meitantei_
is an adventure game and a crossover between _Meitantei Conan_ and _Kindaichi
Sh ōnen no Jikenbo_, two franchises centered around different detective manga
series–the first one published in Shogakukan’s _Weekly Sh ōnen Sunday_ since
1994, and the second one in Kodansha’s _Weekly Sh ōnen Magazine_ starting from
1992. The bulk of the game functions as a visual novel, in which either Conan
or Hajime travels around the island using a map, talks with other characters
and gathers clues to solve a murder. When investigating the crime scene, the
player can use the touchscreen in order to analyze an object of interest in a
regular point-and-click fashion, albeit with a stylus. Information about the
evidence, testimonies and the suspects is stored in a journal available at all
times. The dialogue system makes it possible to talk with all characters
present at the moment, but they may not have much to tell, since the plot is
linear. It can be moved forward only by interrogating specific people.
Solving a case can be divided into two parts: gathering the evidence and
confronting the murderer. Finding clues is not limited to the crime scene–
there are more secrets to discover elsewhere on the island, including by
talking to other people. Sometimes it’s necessary to make a connection between
two different pieces of evidence and literally combine them. This clarifies a
minor problem during the investigation and a new clue is born, one that is
central to disentangling the entire case. The game checks the player’s
understanding of the events often via multiple choice questions. Suspects are
prone to lie, and in such situations their statements must be searched for
contradictions–this is done by marking a specific phrase in the statement’s
text. In all instances a wrong answer, a mistake or using the hint system
decreases the number of logic points. Once they are all depleted it’s game
over. The pool of logic points is restored to 100% at the start of each murder
case. Confronting the culprit starts out by summarizing all the data in a
flowchart. The player must place the answers to major questions pertaining to
the murderer’s identity, the victim, the tricks used etc. into the correct
boxes. Incorrect answers are not penalized and the player can make an
unlimited number of attempts. After all the boxes are filled with the right
choices, Conan or Hajime will accuse the culprit directly supported by several
more multiple choice questions.
The game is divided into chapters, each played from the perspective of either
Conan Edogawa or Hajime Kindaichi, depending on the script. In the last
chapter, the player has the freedom of choosing whom (of the two detectives)
to control and wrap up the entire investigation. The player’s deductive
abilities are scored at the end of every chapter. Included are a couple of
mini games such as riding the turbo-engine skateboard on a course full of
obstacles or defusing a time bomb. Some of them can be skipped.
Meitantei Conan & Kindaichi Shōnen no Jikenbo: Meguriau Futari no Meitantei