Murdered: Soul Suspect [PS4, xONE, PC] (Released June 3rd, 2014)

Murdered: Soul Suspect published on June 3rd, 2014 by Square Enix. Instead of a direct announcement, it has been teased with posts on Twitter, with some depicting what could be the tagline of the game: What is the hardest case to solve? On February 19, 2013, a teaser trailer was released on the official YouTube channel of the game. The developer has been confirmed to be Airtight Games and the game will release on Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Xbox One, PlayStation 4.



The game is centered on Detective Ronan O'Connor who uses his ghostly powers to solve his own murder while combating demonic creatures at the same time.

The premise has been compared to the 2010 adventure game Ghost Trick: Phantom Detective, but Matthew Brunner, chief creative officer of Airtight Games, says that he wasn't even aware of Ghost Trick when development began, and that while the premises are similar, the two games' look, feel and gameplay are very different

Plot:

In Salem, Massachusetts, Detective Ronan O'Connor is thrown out of a window while pursuing the brutal and relentless serial-killer, the Bell Killer, who finishes Ronan off by shooting him. Revived as a ghost, Ronan meets the spirit of his long-dead wife who informs him that he can not join her until he completes the unfinished business binding him to the living world. Ronan investigates his murder, and gains instruction into his new ghostly abilities from the ghost of Abigail, a young Puritan-era girl. The investigation leads to a local church to find a young girl, Joy, who witnessed Ronan's murder, and possesses the ability to see ghosts.

In search of her mother, who was consulting with the police on the Bell Killer case, Joy refuses to help Ronan. He travels to the police station, freeing Joy after she is arrested for petty crimes. While leading Joy out of the station, Ronan discovers that Baxter, a hostile fellow officer, was the person working with Joy's mother. Joy's mother's research leads the pair to the Salem graveyard to investigate a possible Bell Killer victim. After pursuing the ghost of the young drowned girl, Sophia, Ronan's abilities allow him to view flashbacks of the murder. Sophia, reveals that the Bell Killer asked her about a contract.



Joy's mother's research leads the pair to a mental hospital to find the Bell Killer's surviving victim, Iris. Infiltrating the facility, they find Iris possesses the same ability to see ghosts, and realize the Bell Killer is killing psychic mediums. It is revealed that Iris is possessed by her sister, Rose's ghost, whom the Bell Killer burned alive after she helped Iris escape. Rose, Iris, and Joy return to the church, while Ronan investigates a museum exhibit about the Salem witch hunts. There, he deduces that the Bell Killer is executing his victims as if they are witches; psychic flashbacks reveal that Baxter suspiciously concealed evidence at the museum about the Bell Killer. Believing Baxter is the Bell Killer, Ronan leaves the museum, but notices several police cars heading towards the church.

At the church, Ronan learns that the Bell Killer attacked the building, crushing Iris to death, and slaughtering several people who stood in his way. Although Joy is safe, she is re-arrested and taken away by Julia's brother Rex, the lead detective on the Bell Killer case. Investigating the church, Ronan realizes that the Bell Killer is hiding in the derelict Judgment House. There, Ronan discovers evidence of the Bell Killer's activities, and clues implying that the killings have been occurring for hundreds of years. Ronan discovers Baxter's corpse; Baxter's ghost reveals he was murdered by the Bell Killer while secretly still investigating the case following his demotion, alongside Joy's mother, who is still alive. In the basement, flashbacks reveal that Abigail had been imprisoned there before she was hanged as punishment for accusing several innocent people of witchcraft, resulting in their deaths. In anger, Abigail drew a bell symbol on the floor, swearing that she will never stop until the bell tolls for all of the witches in Salem, believing they made a contract with demons to gain inhuman powers.



Following the evidence, Ronan returns to the museum to discover that Rex is the Bell Killer, having been possessed by Abigail. As he prepares to hang Joy, Ronan manages to force Abigail out of Rex, and the pair battle by inflicting painful memories on each other; these memories reveal that Abigail has possessed many people to become the Bell Killer, before killing the possessed themselves, including Baxter, who she used to kill Rose, and Ronan, who killed Sophia. Abigail summons a portal of demons to swallow Ronan, but he manages to escape it while simultaneously dragging Abigail in; she is submerged as the portal fades. Joy is saved and later reunites with her mother, and Rex remains unaware of the crimes committed using his body. In the aftermath, Ronan hears Julia calling him, and turns towards her voice.