Posted December 07, 2024 by Ant Caruso
Game Influences
I wanted to write a quick post on the influences of this game. I was looking to do something a bit different and I landed on a mystery/puzzle type game. I am personally observant and enjoy solving problems. Here are some popular references that influenced Judgement.
Shutter Island: this is one of my favorite movies, so I tried to let that influence the game rather than follow the same type of story. Mainly, the player does not know who to trust in this game, just like the Marshals.
Batman: World's greatest detective assisted me with thinking through collection of evidence.
Choose your Own Adventure Books: I used to really enjoy these as a kid; there are a few dead ends in this game that can end the investigation pretty quickly. But one factor is that the player maintains their knowledge of previous iterations while the "detective" does not.
Environment - Catholic Church/Basilica: I initially got this idea of someone admitting to a crime while in a confessional. I expanded on the idea by thinking through a church setting with excellent architecture. I also learned basilicas have crypts which seemed rife for a mystery.