When Shadows of Doubt launched in Early Access last April, we immediately became believers in the potential of its procedurally generated city and crime-solving simulation sandbox. 17 months of improvements, additions, and tune-ups later, on September 26, 2024, we will see just how much of that potential has been realized. When this cyberpunk detective sim is released 1.0 on September 26, 2024, we will see just how much of that potential has been realized.

Since the early access release, I have spent dozens of hours navigating the complex web of simulated life that “Shadows of Doubt” weaves for the citizens walking the rain-soaked streets of the sprawling voxel city. Every NPC has his or her own home, occupation, relationships, and daily life, intersecting with those of roommates, colleagues, and acquaintances. When one of those NPCs inevitably commits a murder, every thread and connection is tracked and investigated because, after all, it is a noir simulation.

I once bribed a desk clerk to let me into their apartment at 2 a.m. to find out the shoe size of my bartender partner. I once threw a chair through a company window to see if the fingerprints on the company's filing cabinet matched those of the murder weapon. [...] [...] [...] [...] [...] [...]