Retro Replay Review

Gameplay

The first hour is easy to settle into because Games of Passion does not punish you for poking around. As Lindsay, you clear clutter from a murder scene and hunt down listed clues: possible weapons, belongings, and other objects tied to the victim. There is no clock bearing down on you and no penalty for tapping the wrong item, so the game plays more like a leisurely scavenger hunt than a test of observation.

That low-pressure approach is a real strength if you are after a quiet handheld mystery, especially in small sessions. Holding the DS like a book during most of the investigation is a clever little touch that suits the licensed novel material. It also makes the game feel distinct from a standard stylus-only puzzle collection, even though the basic loop remains a familiar hidden-object routine.

Investigation gains some variety by putting you in the roles of Lindsay, Cindy, and Claire. Claire’s coroner work shifts the focus from searching a scene to learning what can be deduced from a body, while mini-games break up the clue lists. The mahjong diversion even asks you to turn the DS to its normal orientation. Still, anyone hoping to actively piece together every deduction may find the game too gentle: the stated objectives lead the search, and the absence of consequences removes much of the pressure that makes a detective case exciting.

Graphics

The game uses its two screens in a book-like vertical arrangement for most of the casework, then switches to the normal DS hold for mahjong. The important visual information is practical rather than flashy: crime-scene clutter, searchable objects, and the bodies Claire examines need to be picked out with the stylus.

Story

A string of deaths in San Francisco gives the game a solid mystery-game hook. They initially resemble suicides or robberies, but the repeated sense that something is wrong pushes you from scene to scene. That is exactly the kind of setup that works well for hidden-object investigations: each location has a concrete reason to search it.

The Women’s Murder Club framing helps the case avoid feeling like one person endlessly tapping through rooms. Lindsay brings the police investigation, while Claire handles cause-of-death work and other deductions from the body. Moving among the club members gives the licensed premise some purpose beyond simply attaching a familiar name to a puzzle game.

Do not come in expecting the prose depth of a full James Patterson novel. This is a compact game mystery built around suspicious deaths, evidence, and deductions, not a sprawling crime drama. Its story is most effective when you treat it as a reason to keep following the next lead rather than the main reward on its own.

Overall Experience

James Patterson: Women’s Murder Club – Games of Passion is a modest, accessible mystery for DS owners who want investigation without friction. It understands that a handheld game can be a pleasant fifteen-minute escape: find clues, examine the evidence, play a diversion, and stop whenever you like.

The trade-off is that the same generosity can flatten the suspense. No time limit and no wrong-answer penalty mean there is little fear of failure, and the hidden-object structure is unlikely to convert anyone already tired of searching lists for tiny items. The mini-games help, but they do not turn it into a more demanding adventure.

The DSi-only Photo Mysteries option is a charming extra for anyone who enjoys turning photos of family, pets, or household objects into additional small mysteries. For everyone else, this is worth a look chiefly as a relaxed licensed detective game. The payoff is modest but pleasant if that is the mood you want; skip it if you need your murder mysteries to make you sweat.

Retro Replay Score

6.2/10