LATEST ARTICLES 
The MCU has undergone significant shifts since Avengers: Endgame, with no active Avengers team currently in place. Emerging heroes are stepping up to fill the gaps left by Iron Man and Captain America
Author: CarterReading:1
Nintendo has revealed “Emio, the Smiling Man” as the newest chapter in its long-dormant Famicom Detective Club series, a visual novel franchise centered on murder mysteries. Producer Yoshio Sakamoto describes this title as the pinnacle of the series’ evolution.
Emio, the Smiling Man Joins Famicom Detective Club Lineup
First New Famicom Detective Club Story in 35 Years
The original Famicom Detective Club titles, The Missing Heir and The Girl Who Stands Behind, debuted in the late 1980s, immersing players in the role of a young detective solving rural Japanese murder cases. In Emio – The Smiling Man: Famicom Detective Club, players join the Utsugi Detective Agency to investigate a string of killings tied to the infamous serial killer, Emio, the Smiling Man.
Nintendo announced on July 17 that the game will launch worldwide on August 29, 2024, for the Nintendo Switch, marking the first new story in the series in over three decades. A cryptic teaser trailer the previous week featured a mysterious figure in a trenchcoat with a paper bag over their head, adorned with a drawn smiley face.
"In Emio – The Smiling Man: Famicom Detective Club, a junior high student is found dead, his head covered by a paper bag with a haunting smile drawn on it," reads the game’s synopsis. "This chilling image mirrors clues from unsolved murders 18 years prior and echoes the urban legend of Emio, a killer said to leave his victims with ‘an eternal smile.’”
Players will investigate the murder of junior high student Eisuke Sasaki, tracing clues linked to past cold cases. The game involves interviewing classmates and case-related individuals while scouring crime scenes for evidence.
Joining the investigation is Ayumi Tachibana, a skilled interrogator and recurring series character introduced in the first game. The team is led by Shunsuke Utsugi, the agency’s director, who previously tackled the same unsolved murders 18 years ago. Utsugi, a key figure from the second game, mentors the orphaned protagonist, now his assistant.
Mixed Reactions to Emio Announcement
When Nintendo teased Emio, the Smiling Man, the cryptic trailer sparked excitement for its darker tone, a departure from Nintendo’s typically family-friendly offerings. The mysterious figure contrasted sharply with the company’s usual cheerful aesthetic.
One fan on Twitter (X) accurately predicted the teaser’s connection to a new Famicom Detective Club game, writing, “Wild guess: Emio is the villain in a darker third Famicom Detective Club title, building on the Switch remakes of the first two games.”
The prediction proved correct, delighting many fans eager for the return of the point-and-click murder mystery series. However, not all reactions were positive.
Some players expressed disappointment on social media, uninterested in a visual novel format. One user jokingly noted that certain Nintendo fans were frustrated, expecting a different genre like action horror. Another remarked that some “probably wanted Emio to be a high-intensity horror experience.”
Famicom Detective Club Dives into New Mystery Themes
In a recent YouTube video, series producer Yoshio Sakamoto discussed the creation of Emio – The Smiling Man: Famicom Detective Club. Reflecting on the series’ origins, he explained that the first two games, The Missing Heir and The Girl Who Stands Behind, were designed as interactive murder-mystery films.
The Famicom Detective Club series has earned acclaim for its compelling narratives and immersive atmosphere. The 2021 Nintendo Switch remakes of the original games reinforced their enduring appeal, inspiring Sakamoto to develop this new chapter. “I was confident we could create something exceptional, so I went for it,” he shared.
In an earlier Wired interview, Sakamoto revealed that horror filmmaker Dario Argento’s use of mood-setting music and sharp edits, particularly in Deep Red, shaped the series. Composer Kenji Yamamoto noted that, per Sakamoto’s direction, he amplified the final scene of The Girl Who Stands Behind with a jarring audio spike to mimic a jump scare.
Emio, the Smiling Man introduces an urban legend crafted exclusively for this game. Sakamoto emphasized his goal for players to embark on a gripping journey, unraveling the truth behind this chilling myth.
While The Smiling Man centers on urban legends—eerie tales of mysterious dangers—the earlier games explored superstitions and ghost stories. In The Missing Heir, players probe the death of Kiku Ayashiro, tied to a village saying that the dead return to kill those who threaten her family’s wealth. In The Girl Who Stands Behind, a young detective investigates the murder of Yoko, a student researching a ghostly tale of a bloodied girl haunting her school.
Crafted from Creative Freedom
In a 2004 interview, Sakamoto shared his love for horror and high school ghost stories, which fueled the creation of the original Famicom games. He noted that Nintendo gave the team creative freedom, providing only the title and allowing them to shape the story as they saw fit.
Upon their initial release in Japan, the first two Famicom Detective Club games earned positive reviews, each holding a 74/100 Metacritic score based on critic feedback.
Sakamoto described Emio – The Smiling Man as the “culmination of our experience and ideas from the previous games and their remakes.” He highlighted the intensive focus on the screenplay and animations, aiming for a bold narrative. The game’s ending, he hinted, may spark debate, with a conclusion that “cuts to the core of my original vision” and could linger in players’ discussions for years.
