Nintendo has announced that an Emio – The Smiling Man: Famicom Detective Club demo is on the way. Releasing on 20 August, the demo will unlock periodically leading up to the launch of the game on 29 August.
The first chapter will roll out tomorrow 20 August followed by Chapter 2 on 23 August and Chapter 3 on 28 August. This means players will be able to get into the game and experience a few hours of the opening before they jump into the full title on 29 August.
Nintendo says that progress from the demo will then carry over to the main game when it releases. So if you have already pre-ordered it, think of this as “early access”. Emio – The Smiling Man: Famicom Detective Club is releasing exclusively on Nintendo Switch. The game was announced last month in a cryptic teaser video.
In Emio – The Smiling Man: Famicom Detective Club, a student has been found dead in a chilling fashion, his head covered with a paper bag with an eerie smiling face drawn on it – much like the victims of Emio, the Smiling man – a killer of urban legend. Playing as an assistant private investigator, you are tasked with helping police solve this crime, which is reminiscent of a series of unsolved murders from 18 years ago. Has a serial killer returned, or is this the work of a copycat? Are these crimes inspired by the Smiling Man story, or the origin of it?
As part of the continuing adventures of the Utsugi Detective Agency, for the first time in the Famicom Detective Club series, familiar character Ayumi Tachibana is also playable during select portions of the story. As an investigative duo, you’ll dive deeper into this intense story of suspicion, isolation and fragility.”
There’s also a new trailer to celebrate the demo launch. Watch it below:
