So you've come here to solve mysteries? Try doing it from the darker end of society. Get your hands dirty with the criminals. If you are ready to try something truly unique in terms of narrative style and psychology, this is an immesive ride, conveyed with impressive elegance. The features that make this case truly unique are experienced most poignantly when you encounter them for yourself. Strap yourself in, pay attention to every detail, and put your brain in gear. One last point... If games can be considered art, then this case is (without a doubt) the most literary one I have yet engaged.

• Disclaimer: Joined for the livestream.

Lots of historical detail, very well crafted documents, and some nicely crafted puzzles that combine different pieces of information in creative ways, will really pull you into the story. Also a very nice behind the scenes postscript for those who are interested in mystery writing and game design. Looking forward to seeing what new puzzles the author has cooking up in future cases.

Disclosure: Joined for the livestream playtest of the case and am a fellow case writer myself.

If you don't have the time for a large campaign this will hit the sweet spot. Both days have a unique investigative feel while continuing one story. Would enjoy seeing more of the Brooks and his club in future cases. A rich setting to further develop.

Disclosure: Joined for the livestream playtest of the case and am a fellow case writer myself.

We played this on youtube over the course of 3 days and about 15 hours in total. Absolutely outstanding use of the New York Noir system. The foundational stuff, the core mechanical deductive elements, are done really well here. But you also get a whole bunch of new innovative fun mechanical ideas, a compelling mystery with details that had us debating even at the end. Everything we want in a New York Noir case is here -- tough moral choices, a great epilogue ending, humor, history, etc. Could not ask for more. And through it all some of the very best noir writing that we've seen. Amazing. -jesse

I played this game after having seen the beginning of the live playthrough on Friday morning (29/05). I was intrigued and decided to play it on my own at a later time. This case begins with an employee who doesn't show up for work and the office secretary who decides to contact the police. As sir Teddy has never been absent, not even a single day in 15 years. I do feel that this was something that needed explanation, because we never do find out how this phone call ended up becoming a matter the police decided to look into. The case plays out over 3 days. When you feel you have investigated enough for one day or when your time for the day runs out you visit an end of the day location. I think this was very cleverly done. When reading the end of the day entry you would be asked 'do you have markers x,y,z ...? If you don't come back at a later time.'. This way you can't really miss essential information. I usually avoid using hints, but I did venture to the hints section a few times during the game. When the game says you are missing one marker, it's like looking for a needle in a haystack without a clue as to what you have missed. So I did go to the clues section to get an idea of where to even look. Because of the multi day set-up and the markers you could also revisit places once you had additional information or documents. It reminded me of The Baker Street Irregulars and also brought to mind my favourite board game, which also uses this mechanic. This meant you could talk to the same people as the 'days' progressed. This really ensured a nice progression as you would visit a person on day one and return on day two once a certain document / information had been acquired. This was true for several locations. As with a SHCD case you will go to an end section with questions, but after answering the questions there is an ending which depends on you markers, but also on some final choices you make, I felt like that was a nice touch. There wasn't just an ending for the main plot, but also for other criminal activity that is discovered along the way. This case was very well written with a good mystery behind it. I liked the little historic details like when you visited the Yorkville Casino Club or ETL having really existed and the link it has to Edison or the Horn & Hardart automat which apparently used to be an existing chain and reminded me somewhat of a Dutch snack wall. One minor critique: I do think it is more difficult than a 4/5 difficulty rating. There are other games that use this scale and for me I always feel like 4/5 and even 4.5/5 usually means ‘attention to detail required, but there is little chance you will need the hints at any point’. For this game the hints were a necessity, especially since some entries in the detective research guide were dead ends, making you believe there wasn’t anything to be found. In SHCD when you go to the central carriages for example there will be an entry to either tell you there is nothing, or to tell you there is something or to redirect you. Some of the entries in the detective’s research guide were dead ends when in reality you were supposed to get the information elsewhere. Which as a player you won’t realise until you are at the end of the day missing a marker. I also felt like some locations should have had an entry, if only to tell you there was nothing there, like the Consulate of Germany or the Consulate of Denmark. Final thoughts: A really enjoyable game. I would play other games by this author.

A fun case designed to teach new players how to become immersed in the world of New York Noir. Would be a mistake to think that the case will be easy though - It’s a challenge in the best way. 😊😊

Some reviews on bgg: Review by John Kean; Review by Nigel Thomas

We played this on youtube over the course of about 10 hours. It was a wild ride. I thought the writing was amazing, and completely different from what we are used to, told from a unique perspective in a unique writing style. I felt like the case demanded our careful attention to details, clues, and also just taking in the scenery. Felt like a classic old hard strange mystery book -- reminded me of The Red Right Hand. This is not a case to be played casually. Some very subtle clever clues that frequently rewarded re-reading. Very very cool. I would rate it as HARD difficulty, and the final questions as beyond hard. We couldn't quite get on the wavelength of the solution and I do think this is a case where it's the journey and the final Q&A is of less importance. ps. I am not leaving a rating for any of the cases i review. -jesse

This was my first case using the New York Noir platform…and it didn’t disappoint! I played it all online (although I can see it would be fun to have printed directories) and found the system intuitive and easy to use - even for somebody who has never been to America, let alone New York 😊. The case was interesting, wonderfully written and I need all my deductive prowess to solve the mystery. I will definitely be checking out more cases as a result of this experience.

We played this case live on youtube and loved it. Great writing and fun mystery. My favorite part was the two act structure over two days, very cool twist. Also really fun pair of protagonists.

This was a fun and enjoyable case, with a nice level of difficulty/challenge. The story was intriguing and had some creative twists throughout.

This is a really great case! The setup, the unique atmosphere, how the story unfolds—everything works together to make 'Guilty or Not' a terrific experience. When you're investigating, it really feels like you're immersed in a noir Chandleresque novel where you really care for the outcome of the research. The writing is excellent, and Kovacs gives the investigator a personality of his own. Simon is no longer 'The Kid'—he's now a detective with his own way of talking, of thinking, and his own moral compass. And what can I say about the ending... I loved it! Congratulations on the result, and thank you to the author for hours of great fun!

We played this, the very first case ever written for New York Noir, live on YouTube and it was a very special experience. This is a short case, without much by way of mechanics, but we still had a great time with it.

We played an earlier version of this case live on youtube and it was only the second case ever written for New York Noir, and the first long, serious one. The author invented his own mechanics and so this game plays quite differently than some of the more recent cases, but it's very interesting to play. The author is a police officer and it really shows, especially in the super long crime scene lead which is pretty epic. -jesse

We played this live on youtube and had a great time with it. The writing was great, the tone captured noir perfectly. Lots of cool historical documents as well. Can't wait to play the next case in the series. -jesse