[b]My Playtime:[/b] 6.5h (100% achievement, finished the game 7+)
[b]My First Playthrough:[/b] 0.8h (bad ending)
[b]Grindy Achievement(s):[/b] No.
[b]Optional Achievement(s):[/b] Yes (15 achievements).
[b]Difficult Achievement(s):[/b] No.
[h1]Intro[/h1]
[i]Who Pressed Mute on Uncle Marcus?[/i] is an FMV game where you need to find out who poisoned your uncle Marcus in a family quiz. Interrogate every person or just play along with the quiz—the choice is up to you.
[b]Pros:[/b]
- 7+1 endings
- Evidence is retained in the next playthroughs
[b]Cons:[/b]
- Sometimes the game only has slightly different dialogues, and the skip option won't skip until that point in the game
[b]Specs[/b]
AMD Ryzen 7 7800X3D, 16GB RAM, AMD Radeon RX 9060 XT
[h1]Should you buy this game?[/h1]
[i]If you enjoy FMV games, this game actually is a good short one that can be enjoyed in the evening.[/i]
[hr][/hr]
[h1]In-Depth Review[/h1]
[h3]Story[/h3]
[i]Who Pressed Mute on Uncle Marcus?[/i] is an FMV game that happens during a family quiz. Shot during COVID, the quiz was done online through video calls, even for families who are supposed to be living under the same roof. The catch? Your uncle, Marcus, was poisoned during the previous family gathering. You must figure out who did it and what poison was used during the whole quiz.
The game depicts what is supposed to be a family gathering well, except that it was worse than how it normally is. It depicts a toxic family where family members always pick up fights one after another, where normal people supposedly do not exist. Your aunt is a helpless drunk, your little cousin is creepy since he likes death-related stuff, your big cousin is a self-centered guy who just boasts about being selfless—even people that appear normal are not.
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3401197961
What's strange in this game is that the family seems to be technologically adept. Your mom and aunt can operate the video camera well, and even your grandma, who was actually relatable at first with her showing the camera off-center, eventually got it right after, like... the third try? That seems way too fast. I also find your big cousin, Toby, to be ridiculous. He stands out at the beginning since you can see that he's not in his room. He was supposed to be in a vehicle to somewhere else, so the actor sometimes just moved up and down to simulate the rough terrain. It's hilarious, and the actor's flat face just makes it funny.
I found the ending to be lackluster. There are 6 different endings, which differ based on who you accused. The family members seem to be quick to admit whether they did it or not—even the killer just reveals the motive and how they did it by themselves. However, I liked how the game shows the family's thinking process at the end and why they were suspicious, to the point that you can accuse them. It also reveals that they were worse than how they appear during the quiz, including you. Yes, you might not be able to accuse yourself, but your real nature shows after you choose the murderer. Let's just say that I didn't like how she behaves—sure, the other family members might be toxic, and you might be fed up with them, but what she did just makes her no better than any of them.
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3401949567
[h3]The Game[/h3]
[b]Gameplay[/b]
The quiz was held in pairs, in which one family member would ask questions to the pairs. No, you don't have to have any knowledge to answer it. You and your pair will figure it out, and then you can choose whether to answer the question or ignore it and talk about the family gathering instead. Your choice might or might not lead to evidence that increases your suspicions about other family members. And yes, you can gather enough evidence to accuse everyone in the quiz, excluding you.
The game encourages you to play it multiple times. It's impossible to find all the evidence in one playthrough, and the evidence that you gathered in the first playthrough will remain in the next playthrough. Since you can choose who you need to be paired up with every round of the quiz, you can gather different evidence if you pair with other people.
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3401947876
You can skip the cutscene that you have already seen. However, I found that the skip option was lacking. There is no option to skip until the scene that you haven't seen, so if the scene only has a minor change, you will need to watch the whole movie since the skip option will skip everything until the next branching point.
[b]Length and Difficulty[/b]
The game itself is very short, though. It was divided into four rounds, and you can finish one round faster than usual, depending on your choice. I finished it at 0.8h in my first playthrough, but I got the bad ending since I didn't have enough evidence to accuse anyone. I played the game more than 6 times afterwards to sweep the other evidence and achievements.
[h1]Conclusion[/h1]
[i]Who Pressed Mute on Uncle Marcus?[/i] does a clever take on game-making during COVID. Being unable to do the casting together due to COVID, the game just does it as if casting separately is the normal thing to do. This doesn't retract the conversation between the casts—you can clearly see their expression and enjoy the overall plot. It doesn't feel any different from playing other FMV games, and the plot was nice enough to watch. If you enjoy FMV games, especially those where you try to do an investigation, buy it on sale.
