The Maddening Mercy

A Wild-West-themed visual-novel/bullet-hell game where you collect clues to shoot down suspects' arguments to solve a murder mystery.

Step into the shoes of Mercy Allison, a marshal for the peacekeeping Long Arm Gang. Sent to the small, dying town of Toothwood, Mercy is tasked with solving a vicious murder. As she investigates the ramshackle locales and interviews the colorful residents, she uncovers secrets and lies that run deeper than she could ever have imagined, all while trying to keep her own secrets as hidden as possible.

Collect Clues
Learn more about the case by looking around crime scenes and talking with various characters in visual-novel Investigations. All the evidence you collect and characters you meet are logged in your Findings and Characters notes.Confront Suspects
When you encounter a suspect who won't reveal the information you want, use your psychic powers to enter their Mindscape and confront their Suspecter, their will to hide the truth. Battle them in these high-octane Confrontations, dodging attacks until they reveal an opening to strike.Shoot Down Their Arguments
Suspecters will defend themselves with Argument Shields. Use the evidence you collect as Clue Bullets to break through them and take them down in tense Standoffs.Sketch-Like Art-Style
Enjoy illustrative graphic novel-like sprites and backgrounds with stylized, semi-realistic graphite sketchiness.

This game was developed as a student project at DigiPen Institute of Technology and was created for educational purposes only. Please check out our publisher page for more information.