I finished reading the mystery novel "The Locked Room Murder Game 2.0" by Shogo Utano.
This is a sequel to "The Locked Room Murder Game: Checkmate" by the same author.
While not a direct sequel, there are tricks that can only be enjoyed by reading the previous book, so starting with this one is not advisable.
Review of the locked-room murder game: Checkmate (novel by Shogo Utano)
Preface
Now, as usual, I'll start with some small talk.
This isn't really related to the main topic of the article, so if you want to get straight to the book review, feel free to skip this part.
In the article, I wrote:I'm the kind of person who doesn't like to criticize or belittle works of art.
Especially for free games, I rarely write anything negative.
Some free game creators might want to know what the downsides were, but I intend to leave that role to others.
The reason I take that stance is because the work is provided free of charge.
Even if the work is extremely boring, you haven't lost any money.
I think some people might feel that they wasted their time, butIt's simply due to my own lack of ability to enjoy things and my inability to recognize interesting works.
If you play a game because you thought it looked interesting, but it turns out to be uninteresting, you should lament your own misjudgment.
I often play games after reading positive reviews, so I rarely encounter games that are unexpectedly disappointing...
Conversely, I don't have much resistance to writing about my dissatisfaction with works that I've paid for.
Since I paid money to buy it, I think I have the right to express my opinion.
However, if this goes too far, it can expose one's own lack of judgment, so I don't think it's a good thing.
Whether you bought it after reading an article that said it was interesting, or based on your own intuition, ultimately, you were the one who made the decision to buy it and paid the money.
Therefore, when I write negative opinions about a work, it's often because I don't want people who are hesitating about buying it to end up wasting their money.
Review (contains spoilers)
Now, if I were to give my opinion on whether this film was interesting or not, to be honest, it was less impactful than the previous film.
The trick in Q3, using a corpse as a hiding place, was very interesting.
Just like in the previous work, it was very enjoyable to read as the culprit, who also acts as the brilliant detective, goes through trial and error to solve the mystery.
The episode made full use of all the foreshadowing, and it was a good opportunity to re-evaluate Zangya.
Then, in Q4, the ending of the previous work was revealed, and a trick was used that information.
However, the trick of using an unexpected culprit is essentially the same as the trick used in the previous film, so the level of shock in that regard was low.
This is a trick involving men and women that will fall for you if you're familiar with the previous work.
Question 5 was a trick that used physical gimmicks, and it wasn't very fun.
The situation itself was exciting, giving off a real sense of being trapped in a confined space.
However, the trick was visually unremarkable, harder to understand than Q3, and not very interesting.
Considering the personality of the person who created the question, it was a typical axe question, just like Q1 from the previous work.
I think tricks like the one in Q3, which only work because it's a murder, are beautiful.
However, the cases presented by axe felt more like quizzes or riddles, and I didn't really see the need for them to be murders.
I feel like we're focusing too much on the problem itself.
However, since it's a game that brings together those kinds of people and is based on that kind of concept, I suppose it can't be helped.
And finally, Q6 is a feature-length episode.
I was impressed by the case presented by Columbo in the previous installment, and the trick in this one was also quite interesting.
However, the idea of playing the victim myself felt unfair, and I didn't really feel like I'd been outsmarted.
The author may have been aware that their motivation was weak, given that they went to the trouble of attaching a paper that supported their final motivation.
Should I read the sequel?
It appears there is a sequel to this game called "Locked Room Murder Game Maniacs".
However, since the second installment was less satisfying than the first, I'm still undecided about whether to buy it or not.
I'm torn between two feelings: "I've read this far, so I might as well finish it," and "No, maybe I should just stop."
I'll probably buy and read it, and once I finish it, whether it's interesting or boring, I'll try to write an article about it.
The works I introduced are here.
Rakuten Market: 密室殺人ゲーム2.0（楽天ブックス）