Her Story: the computer game where True Detective meets Google

Game designer Sam Barlow has created a new kind of crime adventure, which relies on subtext and perception rather than quick joypad skills

In a cramped police interrogation room a woman is being questioned about her missing husband. Is he dead? Has she killed him? There are seven separate interviews, chopped up into short, teasing fragments, but the answer aren't immediately obvious. It's up the player to trawl through the video records and piece the mystery together.

This is the bare bones setup to Her Story, a fascinating police procedural game written by veteran developer Sam Barlow. Until a year ago, Barlow was working for mainstream studio Climax, where he designed the horror game, Silent Hill: Shattered Memories. Although it was part of a long-running series, the title was an oddity, hugely informed by Barlow's interest in the "interactive fiction" genre of highly narrative-based adventure games. Now he has set up on his own, and is experimenting with new ways to build compelling interactive mysteries

In Her Story, your job is to sit at a police terminal, accessing the video segments via a database search interface and then inputting relevant words to bring up more footage. The skill is in working out how the segments may have been tagged in this fictious police system, and then studying any newly discovered clips for clues and pointers. Her Story is effectively a crime thriller told through the conventions of an internet search engine. It is True Detective crossed with Google

"It is very-of-the-moment, because we're all now typing words into text prompts more than we ever have before," says Barlow. "We intuitively get the process - the 'game mechanic' - of using the correct search terms, of narrowing a search, etc. I wanted to run with the idea that what you're doing is essentially Googling

The game also comments on another facet of modern digital society - the way in which social media and video sharing sites like YouTube have given rise to a culture of armchair detection. In high profile cases like Jodi Arias, Amanda Knox and the Boston bombing, the public became both juror and investigator, scouring news clips and search engines for clues, meaning that the justice process could be said to have become weirdly game-like. Jane's Addiction once sang: "The news is just another show". Now, it's just another interactive social media experience.

But Her Story also borrows from the ancient history of game design, specifically the late-1980s genre of desktop thrillers. Constrained by the graphical capabilities of machines like the Spectrum and Commodore 64, developers found a way to explore complex stories by using the computer interface itself as a framing mechanism. In titles like Vera Cruz and the espionage thriller based on the Forsyth novel, The Fourth Protocol, players would take on the role of a coder or researcher using a database or hacking a mainframe to unpick the narrative. In this way the hardware (and its intrinsic limitations) became the medium and the experience

When gaming visuals advanced during the 90s, the genre fell out of favour, but now independent developers are rediscovering its highly immersive appeal. Lucas Pope's award-winning title Papers, Please brilliantly explores the politics of immigration by putting the player behind the desk of a single border officer in an unstable Eastern European state. Now, Her Story presents its murder mystery though video clips that the players need to discover and retrieve in order to advance

"The conceit of making the computer itself a prop in the game was so neat," says Barlow. "You weren't being transported to an alien world, the world of the game was being transported to your desk-bound reality. It brings about a different approach to the player-protagonist relationship, that has stuck with me. A lot of the built-in assumptions about modern games are tied so strongly to the conventions of having an avatar, navigating a 3D space... these conventions impose a lot of restrictions.

"3D space also makes things easy for developers," he adds. "Especially in say the horror genre. It's quite straightforward to stick a player inside a dimly lit 3D world, hand them a flashlight and get a certain level of engagement out the gate. I wanted to see what happened if I gave up the prop of immersion in a 3D world. I have a love for police procedural thrillers, so when I started thinking along these lines, my mind naturally pulled up a lot of influence from the 8-bit desktop games"

"The ability to imagine a concept, put into words, type it and the game put flesh to that idea - it is magical

For Barlow, the aim wasn't just accessibility, it was about creating a game process that was familiar, that relied more on real-world skills than a knowledge of game conventions. "The loop of listening to the woman, coming up with search terms, interrogating her story, navigating it via her own words... it feels organic, like a real dialogue," he says. "It has this sense of making connections, of digging for truth that is more like 'being a detective' than many games that let you control a detective avatar. Even when there's frustration - trying hard to hit on the right search words, etc - it ends up feeling very much like the detective work that we see on our screens."

Even LA Noire, Rockstar's fifities-based detective drama relied as much on the player's driving and shooting skills as it did on interrogating suspects. Barlow wanted to remove all that video game stuff. "The key skills here are listening and thinking," he says. "I've had a lot of testers tell me that they were compelled to play with a notebook to hand, like a real police detective, which is not something they've done for a long time

I'm very drawn to games where a large proportion of the experience takes place away from the screen. Strangely, I think it can be more involving than games where the attention is entirely focused on the game. I guess it moves the story out into the same sphere as other thought, which means the experience is not so easily compartmentalised"

Indeed, Her Story is part of a whole movement in game design that's getting away from familiar twitch-based mechanics, and away from using story as merely a setting for the action. Partly this is about the rise of indies, but it's also about the arrival of new platforms. Barlow talks about the rise of the tablet, with its intuitive touch controls, and its sleek form factor that lets players curl in a chair and play - like reading a book. It's personal and intimate. He's been inspired by titles like Blackbar, Inkle's 80 days and Emily Short's Blood & Laurels. All deal with themes of mystery and detection in intriguing ways

Games haven't generally tended toward subtlety - this is something else Barlow wants to tackle. It is important if the medium is to mature and diversify. "One of the things that drew me to the police interview as a setting was a desire to make a game where subtext mattered," he says

"In most games, because the story is communicating your challenges, it's a usability thing. Everything has to be on the surface: 'Go here, kill this, do that'. This mechanic of searching the woman's words kind of forces you to engage on a deeper level - it highlights those layers of meaning. The heart of any human story is subtext"

the heart of any human story is subtext

highlights those layers of meaning

this mechanic of searching the women's words kind of forces you to engage on a deeper level

everything has to be in the surface

is a usability thing

is communicating your challenges

where subtext mattered

was a desire to make a game where subtext mattered

as a setting

drew me to the police interview as a setting

one of the things that drew me to the police interview as a setting was a desire to make a game where subtext mattered

is important if the medium is to mature and diversify

is something else Barlow wants to tackle

haven't generally tended toward subtlety

in intriguing ways

all deal with themes of mystery and detection in intriguing ways

has been inspired by titles

is personal and intimate

its sleek form factor that lets players curl in a chair and play

with its intuitive touch controls

talks about the rise of the tablet

the arrival of new platforms

is also about the arrival of new platforms

partly this is about the rise of indies

away from using story as merely a setting for the action

is getting away from familiar twitch-based mechanics

is part of a whole movement in game design that's getting away from familiar twitch-based mechanics

is not so easily compartmentalised

means the experience is not so easily compartmentalised

moves the story out into the same sphere as other thought

the attention is entirely focused on the game

Strangely, I think it can be more involving than games

takes place away from the screen

a lartge proportion of the experience takes place away from the screen

am very drawn to games where a large proportion of the experience takes place away from the screen

have had a lot of testers tell me that they were compelled to play with a notebook to hand

relied as much on the player's driving and shooting skill as it did on interrogatiing suspects

fifities-based detective drama relied as much on the player's driving and shooting skills as it did on interrogating suspects

see on our screens

ends up feeling very much like the detective work that we see on our screens

trying hard to hit on the right search words

even when there's frustration

of digging for truth that is more like 'being a detective' than many games that let you control a detective avatar

has this sense of making connections

feels organic like a real dialogue

interrogating her story, navigating it via her own words

coming up with search terms

the loop of listening to the woman

relied more on real-world skills than a knowledge of game conventions

was about creating a game process that was familiar

the aim wasn't just accessibility

it is magical

put flech to that idea

put into words

the ability to imagine a concept

naturally pulled up a lot of influence from the 8-bit desktop games

started thinking along these lines

have a love for police procedural thrillers

gave up the prop of immersion in a 3D world

get a certain level of engagement out the gate

hand them a flashlight and get a certain level of engagement out the gate

to stick a player inside a dimly lit 3D world

is quite straightforward to stick a player inside a dimly lit 3D world

especially in say the horror genre

these conventions impose a lot of restrictions

are tied so strongly to the conventions of having an avatar

a lot of built-in assumptions about modern games are tied so strongly to the conventions of having an avator

has stuck with me

brings about a different approach to the player-protagonist relationship

was being transported to your desk-bound reality

weren't being transported to an alien world

a prop in the game was so neat

the conceit of making the computer itself a prop in the game was so neat

in order to advance

retrieve in order to advance

though video clips that the players need to discover and retrieve in order to advance

presents its murder mystery through video

in an unstable Eastern European state

by putting the player behind the desk of a single border officer in an unstable Eastern European state

brilliantly explores the politics of immigration by putting the player behind the desk of a single border officer in an unstable Eastern European state

award-winning title Papers

its highly immersive appeal

are rediscovering its highly immersive appeal

fell out of favour

the genre fell out of favour

when gaming visuals advanced during the 90s

in this way the hardware (and its intrinsic limitations) became the medium and the experience

using a database or hacking a mainframe to unpick the narrative

would take on the role of a coder or researcher

the espionage thriller based on the Forsyth novel

by using the computer interfae itself as a framing mechanism

found a way to explore complex stories by using the computer interface itself as a framing mechanism

constrained by the graphical capabilities of machines

specifically the late-1980s genre of desktop thrillers

also borrows from the ancient history of game design

is just another interactive social media experience

meaning that the justice process could be said to have become weirdly game-like

scouring news clips

the public became both juror and investigator, scouring news clips and search engines for clues

in high profile cases

have given rise to a culture of armchair detection

the way in which social media and video sharing sites like YouTube have given rise to a culture of armchair detection

also comments on another facet of modern digital society

wanted to run with the idea that what you're doing is essentially Googling

of narrowing a search

of using the correct search terms

the game mechanic

intuitively get the process

are all now typing words into text prompts more than we ever have before

it is very-of-the-moment

crossed with Google

True Detective crossed with Google

told through the conventions of an internet search engine

is effectively a crime thriller told through the conventions of an internet search engine

studying any newly discovered clips for clues and pointers

may have been tagged in this fictious police system

the skill is working out how the segments may have been tagged in this fictious police system

to bring up more footage

inputting relevant words to bring up more footage

is to sit at a police terminal, accessing the video segments via a database search interface

iis experimenting with new ways to build compelling interactive mysteries

has set up on his own, and is experimenting with new ways to build compelling interactive mysteries

the interactive fiction genre of highly narrative-based adventure games

the title was an oddity, hugely informed by Barlow's interest in the "interactive fiction" genre of highly narrative-based adventure games

was part of a long-running series

shattered memories

designed the horror game

was working for mainstream studio Climax

until a year ago

a fascinating police procedural game written by veteran developer Sam Barlow

is the bare bones setup to Her Story

to trawl through the video records

is up the player to trawl through the video records and piece the mystery together

the answer aren't immediately obvious

are seven separate interviews, chopped up into short, teasing fragments

has she killed him?

ina cramped police interrogation room a woman is being questioned about her missing husband

relies on subtext and perception rather than quick joypad skills

where True Detective meets Google