I have not been too big on the supernatural ghost scene when it comes to video games and the like. Most of my experience comes from movies and TV shows, with the occasional Luigi’s Mansion-type game. That said, I had a great time figuring out and reviewing the game Conrad Stevenson’s Paranormal P.I.
Game Name: Conrad Stevenson’s Paranormal P.I.
Platform(s): PC (Reviewed)
Publisher(s): D&A Studios
Developer(s): D&A Studios
Release Date: September 28th, 2023
Price: $14.99
Conrad Stevenson’s Paranormal P.I. puts you in the shoes of Conrad. He has had his take on experiences with the supernatural and the paranormal. He decides to hone his senses and figure out the craft of ghost chasing and investigation. The goal of this game is to satisfy the curiosity of those who hire you to help them see that their home has ghosts.
The Good
My favorite thing about Conrad Stevenson’s Paranormal P.I. is the emphasis on investigating; it’s a huge point of the game. You take on a case, and you get a bunch of files and resources to look through on a specific house. You use those resources looking for clues and adding them to your digital notebook. You can have up to six notes or clues to look into before you get to go to the house. You then get to use those notes to search the areas of the house. You get access to the full house, basement, and garage included. Using the tools you have at your disposal, a flashlight, audio recorder, night vision camera, an EMF reader, and a temperature reader.
Each ghost presents a different story, and as part of the investigation, you are supposed to be the one to figure that story out. Ghosts in this game generally don’t appreciate light, so you need to keep the lights off to see them in their element. When you figure out their story, it helps you figure out the best way to draw out the ghost or to record the ghost. Some are more susceptible to recording their audio; other ones are more blatant with their appearance in the house. It makes you feel like you are investigating the house and any of the ghosts that are in the game.
The first-person point of view is very helpful in adding to the immersion of Conrad Stevenson’s Paranormal P.I. Having a headset on also adds to the immersive experience. You walk slowly in some areas, or you can hold shift and walk faster to get to the destination you know you are going towards. The sounds of the house are very easy to pinpoint and can sometimes feel a bit scary when you hear your creaks in a footstep. With immersion, you also tend to notice all the little things that come across your view, and you have to double-take if what you saw is really what you saw. It adds a fun spook to the game. I want to try this game out in VR just to see how well I can scare myself.
The Bad
The experience and immersion in Conrad Stevenson’s Paranormal P.I. is very engaging. Sadly not everything is as engaging and keeps you in the game as that. The controls make sense, but Conrad, as a character, does not handle it well. Walking and walking faster with shifts can be a bit finicky. I judge a door or cabinet I should be able to open but can’t due to the position I am in. I have gotten stuck on doors a few times trying to open them, and then they open outwards towards me, and I can’t walk forward, so I have to try and close the door, but it won’t close because it doesn’t register my character able to close it based on where I am at. Heck, on one door, I got stuck inside it because it opened out towards me and stopped inside my character’s body. I had to juggle the movement back and forth and left and right while aiming for the mouse to finally get the door to close. It would make something unsettling, just flat-out frustrating.
I loved the investigation and detective work, but the overall gameplay loop took me a bit till I understood how things worked. There isn’t a real tutorial on figuring out what you are supposed to do on the first house, so I had to figure it out by going through the house a few times and just choosing random notes to look for. A small tutorial that helps introduce you to using all the tools in your experience would go a long way with this game. The game has notes on all the devices when you open them up for the first time, but it doesn’t teach you how to use them.
The Verdict
Overall at the price point Conrad Stevenson’s Paranormal P.I. is at, it is a worthwhile purchase. Especially if you are someone who has ever wanted to feel like you want to be a satisfying smart detective. Figuring out the case and learning the story behind each ghost feels great. I probably would still fail in real-life ghost chasing, but hey, at least I know I am not incompetent when it comes to chasing ghosts in this game!
Conrad Stevenson’s Paranormal P.I. is available via Early Access on PC.
Review Disclosure Statement: Conrad Stevenson’s Paranormal P.I. was provided to us by D&A Studios for review purposes. For more information on how we review video games and other media/technology, please review our Review Guideline/Scoring Policy for more info.
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Summary
Conrad Stevenson’s Paranormal P.I. is a very thrilling time of investigating, and searching houses for ghosts with real ghost detecting technology. It makes you feel smart to figure out each individual ghost story but it doesn’t always play the greatest.
Pros
- Real items used from those that look for ghosts
- Detective work that feels satisfying
- Good light effects and graphical appearances.
Cons
- Controls a bit tanky
- Doesn’t always register the mouse to interact with objects the best
- First few trips down the house will leave you confused till you figure the game loop out.
