Detective Pikachu Returns review: Open-and-shut case

Detective Pikachu has had an odd journey. It's a tale that first began on the Nintendo 3DS and set the stage for something bigger down the road. Then his story was told in movie theaters around the world, and more or less expressed his whole saga in less than two hours. That puts Detective Pikachu Returns in somewhat of a chronologically confusing place. Putting any big screen endeavors aside, however, Detective Pikachu Returns is an enjoyable, albeit pedestrian, adventure set in the world of Japan's Pocket Monsters.

Loose threads

Detective Pikachu Returns is set a few years after the events of the 2018 original game. The case of the mood-altering chemical "R" has been solved by the dynamic duo of Tim Goodman and Detective Pikachu, though the overarching story of the missing Harry Goodman remains as much of an open end as ever. This sequel helpfully recaps the main events of the first game so that players are well-versed in Detective Pikachu lore heading into this new adventure.

While Tim and Pikachu begin the story by getting hired for a seemingly isolated jewelry theft case, it doesn't take long for something much more sinister to arise. The threads from each subsequent case soon tie into a far greater mystery, one that feeds into the series' key plot thread surrounding Harry Goodman.

Players are tasked with pushing each investigation forward in several different ways. Tim can question humans, Pikachu can question other Pokemon, both can investigate various scenes for clues, and then they can start the deduction phase that will lead to a swift resolution. The gameplay loop can best be compared to Capcom's Ace Attorney series, but Detective Pikachu Returns is far more forgiving. There are no real consequences for wrong answers, and the story will eventually move forward, no matter what happens, which may annoy a section of players hoping for a greater challenge.

Of course, most players jumping into Detective Pikachu are likely in it more for the story than for the challenge. Parts of the story should feel familiar to anybody who saw the Detective Pikachu movie, but this is no mere rehash. The Pokemon Company does introduce some interesting twists, original stories, and focuses far more on world-building. I do wish I could have seen more of Ryme City and its neighboring areas, but that's only because I enjoyed so much of what I did see.

A slice of Poké life

On its own, Detective Pikachu Returns is a decent detective story starring a charismatic talking mouse. However, looking at the bigger picture, it's a fascinating window into daily life in the Pokemon world. A major aspect of the game involves meeting and interacting with different Pokemon species, each of which get their own brief introduction when talking to them for the first time.

Back in the 1960s, The Flintstones were widely recognized for taking average prehistoric animals and giving them everyday functions. Today, Detective Pikachu's world does the same. While none of them will say, "It's a living," seeing how Pokemon interact with modern life is always a fun treat and makes the Pokemon world feel much grander than what players experience in the core titles.

Players will feel this more through the game's side quests, which are called Local Concerns. During the first case, Pikachu will bemoan that Local Concerns can be a waste of time, and he's not entirely wrong. Players don't get much out of completing each case's Local Concerns outside of a mention in the newspaper the next day. Completionists will mainly add them to the agenda out of a desire to experience more of this world's contemporary Pokemon daily life.

Detective Pikachu Returns also tries to mix up investigations through the use of helper Pokemon. One example includes Growlithe, who can aid an investigation by using her trusted sniffer to guide players in the right direction. Another includes Luxray, who can see through walls, which is a good way to segue into an aspect of Detective Pikachu Returns that I wasn't so keen on: forced stealth sections. Forced stealth is increasingly becoming one of the most unwelcome ideas in gaming, and it's no different here, though it's not enough to up the difficulty curve to anything unreasonable. Again, it's impossible to fail in this game, so swinging and missing on a stealth section simply takes the player back to its start point.

Case closed

Detective Pikachu Returns is a fun continuation of the original 3DS title and continues to be one of the most novel uses of the Pokemon license. It's amazing that Pokemon is often at its best when placed in a subgenre outside of the core titles. As an adventure game, it's a fun 12-hour romp. However, anyone looking for more of a challenge will want to look elsewhere. Not only is there no real way to fail, but about half of the deduction sequences are total layups containing multiple-choice questions with some silly wrong answers.

Because of its simplicity, Detective Pikachu Returns is an easy recommendation for young kids and their parents. Hardcore fans will have some fun comparing and contrasting the game's story with the 2019 movie. For everyone else, there are better, more challenging adventures out there, even if none of them feature an electric rat with a children's sized Sherlock Holmes hat.

This review is based on a Nintendo Switch code provided by the publisher. Detective Pikachu Returns will release on Nintendo Switch on Friday, October 6 for $49.99 USD. The game is rated E.

Ozzie Mejia

Senior Editor

Ozzie has been playing video games since picking up his first NES controller at age 5. He has been into games ever since, only briefly stepping away during his college years. But he was pulled back in after spending years in QA circles for both THQ and Activision, mostly spending time helping to push forward the Guitar Hero series at its peak. Ozzie has become a big fan of platformers, puzzle games, shooters, and RPGs, just to name a few genres, but he’s also a huge sucker for anything with a good, compelling narrative behind it. Because what are video games if you can't enjoy a good story with a fresh Cherry Coke?