21 Best Xbox One Detective Games of All Time - Gameranx (2024)

A detective has always been a relatable hero. He’s usually an everyman, a blue collar sort of guy with few exceptions (Batman cough cough)who uses his wits and some modern weapons to get the job done. So here’s a look at the 13 best Xbox One detective games, let’s get out our magnifying glass and look for clues before diving in.

#21 Chicken Police – Paint it Red!

Publisher: HandyGames

Developer: The Wild Gentlemen

Platform: PC, Xbox One,Xbox Series X/S,PS4,PS5

Release Date: November 2020

Chicken Policeis the sort of game that you shouldn’t take too seriously… or maybe you should. After all, that’s part of the humor. The game is a fully voice acted mystery with over 30 locations to explore, and all of it’s told in some strange aesthetic with photorealistic animals on humanoid bodies.

#20 Beat Cop

Publisher: 11 Bit Studios

Developer: Pixel Crow

Platform: PC, Xbox One,Xbox Series X/S,PS4,PS5,Switch,Mobile

Release Date: March 2017

Beat Copbrings the aesthetic of 80s cop shows and movies to game screens across multiple platforms. Prove your innocence after being framed for murder as a beat cop in 1980s New York City.

#19 Observer

Publisher: Bloober Team

Developer: Bloober Team

Platform: PC, Xbox One,Xbox Series X/S,PS4,PS5,Switch

Release Date: November 2020

If typical pulp noire isn’t your thing, then Observermight be different enough to satisfy. Set in the future, players take on the role of a detective in 2084. From the creators of Layers of Fear, get ready for cyberpunk detective horror.

#18 The Innsmouth Case

Publisher: Assemble Entertainment

Developer: Robot Pumpkin Games

Platform: PC, Xbox One,Xbox Series X/S,PS4,PS5,Switch,Mobile

Release Date: June 2020

The Innsmouth Caseis a text-based adventure game inspired by the works of H.P. Lovecraft (in case “Innsmouth” wasn’t enough of a clue). If you prefer more cerebral games and less action in your detective work, this game has you covered.

#17 Lacuna – A Sci-Fi Noir Adventure

Publisher: Assemble Entertainment

Developer: Digitales Interactive

Platform: PC, Xbox One,Xbox Series X/S,PS4,PS5,Switch

Release Date: May 2021

Landing somewhere between Observerand Beat Copyou’ve got sci-fi, and you’ve got pixellated noire. Lacunamight have a bit of an identity crisis but it mixes things up just enough to keep you from getting bored.

#16 Twin Mirror

Publisher: Bandai Namco

Developer: Don’t Nod

Platform: PC, Xbox One,Xbox Series X/S,PS4,PS5,

Twin Mirrortakes the best of the adventure genre, putting players in the seat of an estranged journalist coming back home. But not everything is as it seems and Twin Mirrorfeatures multiple branches to its storytelling.

#15 Telling Lies

Publisher: Annapurna Interactive

Developer: Sam Barlow, Half Mermaid, Furious Bee Limited

Platform: PC, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S,PS4,PS5,Switch,Mobile

Telling Liesis part of a resurgence in a once esoteric form of video game “Full Motion Video” or “FMV”. That is, the game is told through player input but instead of computer graphics, the game uses pre-recorded live-action footage to tell its story. If you want to play a movie, now’s your chance.

#14 Replica

Publisher: Zero Rock Entertainment

Developer: SOMI

Platform: PC, Xbox One,Xbox Series X/S,Switch,Mobile

In the new millennium, detective work is hardly the cigar-smoking, pistol-slinging, gum-shoeing(?) profession it once was. Nowadays being a detective could be as easy as digging through someone’s cell phone. In Replicaplayers take on the role of someone given a stranger’s cell phone. Their task? Look for evidence of a terroristic plot.

#13 The Darkside Detective

Publisher: Akupara Games

Developer: The Spooky Doorway

Platform: PC,Xbox One,Xbox Series X/S,PS4,PS5,Stadia

Release Date: July 2017

The Darkside Detective is a return to form for themes of detective work and puzzle solving, bringing the classic point-and-click adventure to a new age. Not only that, but they do it with a paranormal flair, track down gangster ghosts, take out cultists, and do it all as part of the underfunded “Darkside Division”, prove your worth to the boss and the others when you take to the streets in this ghost-hunting and crimefighting adventure.

#12 Sherlock Holmes Chapter One

Publisher: Frogwares

Developer: Frogwares

Platform: PC,Xbox One,Xbox Series X/S,PS4,PS5

Release Date: November 2021

Sherlock Holmes Chapter One brings the cerebral adventures of the world’s most famous detective to an open world format. Explore the streets and use everything at your disposal to investigate and solve mysteries as a young Sherlock Holmes. Not yet the famous detective but a former military man. Sometimes a stout fist is the fastest way forward, but is it the best way? Tackle mysteries anyways you choose.

#11 Murdered: Soul Suspect

Publisher: Square Enix

Developer: Airtight Games

Platform: PC,Xbox One,Xbox Series X/S,PS4,PS5

Release Date: June 2014

The tragic thing about murder mysteries is that it’s too late to stop the murder. Afterall, there’s no crime scene to investigate until a crime occurs. This truth is never more relevant than in Murdered: Soul Suspect where players are tasked with solving their own murder as a lingering ghost!

#10 Kona

Publisher: Ravenscourt

Developer: Parabole

Platform: PC,Xbox One,Xbox Series X/S,PS4,PS5, Stadia

Release Date: March 2017

Kona combines detective work and survival as players venture into the cold wilderness around Atamipek Lake. Venture back in time to the 70s and get to the bottom of what appears to be a simple case of vandalism. But perhaps there’s something darker or supernatural at play?

#9 Lost Judgement

Publisher: Sega

Developer: Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio

Platform: Xbox One,Xbox Series X/S,PS4,PS5,

Release Date: September 2021

Lost Judgement is a sequel to Judgement and a spinoff of the Yakuza series. In this game players will take on the role of private detective Takayuki Yagami who gets involved in a bullying case. But as he pulls the thread of this case he uncovers a conspiracy among the upper echelons of society and has to decide whether he will pursue his own justice, or simply enforce the law.

#8 Life is Strange

Publisher: Square Enix

Developer: DONTNOD Entertainment

Platform: PC,Xbox One,Xbox Series X/S,PS4,PS5, Stadia

Release Date: January 2015

Life is Strange has become a modern example of the mystery genre since it came out in 2015. Players take on the role of photography student Max Caulfield who learns she can alter the past. This episodic mystery features multiple endings and a unique time travel mechanic which can drastically alter the course of the story.

#7 The Sinking City

Publisher: Nacon

Developer: Frogwares

Platform: Switch,PC,Xbox One,Xbox Series X/S,PS4,PS5,

Release Date: June 2019

The Sinking City brings the work of H.P. Lovecraft to life in an open world mystery game. The key here is in its replayability, players can delve into the eldritch mysteries of the game in a variety of ways and experience a fresh story each time. Solve the mysteries of the city of Oakmont before it truly is too late for us all.

#6 L.A. Noire

Publisher: Rockstar Games

Developer: Team Bondi, Rockstar Leeds

Platform: Switch,PC,Xbox One,Xbox Series X/S,PS4,PS5,

Release Date: November 2011

It’s impossible not to include L.A. Noire in a list like this one. Rockstar seemed to singlehandedly revitalize gaming’s interest in early-mid 20th century detective stories with this one. This cinematic game puts players in the shoes of a detective in the golden age of Hollywood, but not everything is glamorous and a string of arson attacks and other crimes are only symptoms of a greater conspiracy at work.

#5 The Wolf Among Us

Publisher: Telltale

Developer: Telltale

Platform: PC,Xbox One,Xbox Series X/S,PS3,PS4,PS5,Android,iOS

Release Date: October 2013

Telltale is largely known for their dramatic adventures in The Walking Dead universe, but The Wolf Among Us stands out as another stellar title from the now defunct developer. Players take on the mantle of Bigby Wolf, a retired sheriff who’s thrown in the middle of a murder case. Based on Vertigo’s Fable comic series, players explore a noire world based off of fairytales that’s clever and gritty in its execution.

#4 Return of the Obra Dinn

Publisher: 3909

Developer: Lucas Pope

Platform: PC,Xbox One,Xbox Series X/S,PS3,PS4,PS5,

Release Date: October 2018

Return of the Obra Dinn is mystery solving in its purest form. Players take on the role of an insurance investigator with the East India Trading Company. After the ship the Obra Dinn was set to voyage around the Cape of Good Hope, it mysteriously vanished before reappearing just as mysteriously. With the crew dead or missing, it’s up to the player to discover what went wrong and figure out who exactly has gone missing or died for the company’s records. But be careful, there’s nothing natural about these deaths.

#3 The Vanishing of Ethan Carter

Publisher: The Astronauts

Developer: The Astronauts

Platform: PC,Xbox One,Xbox Series X/S,PS3,PS4,PS5,

Release Date: September 2014

The Vanishing of Ethan Carter follows the story of Paul Prospero, a paranormal investigator who’s lured to a small mining town at the behest of a young boy’s letter, the titular Ethan Carter. However upon his arrival, Paul learns that Ethan has gone missing and not everything is as it seems. It’s up to Paul to get to the bottom of this town’s secrets and hopefully find Ethan before it’s too late.

#2 Batman: Arkham Collection

Publisher: Rocksteady Studios

Developer: Warner Brothers

Platform: PC,Xbox One,Xbox Series X/S,PS3,PS4,PS5,

Release Date: September 2019

It might be a bit unfair to put a collection of three games as a single entry, but Batman: Arkham Collection has everything you need to experience the near complete story of the Batman: Arkham series. While playing as Batman usually entails more beat’em up than it does sleuthing, this series of games shows Batman in a light as both a tough dealer of justice and a brilliant strategist and detective.

#1 Disco Elysium

Publisher: ZA/UM

Developer: ZA/UM

Platform: PC,Xbox One,Xbox Series X/S,PS3,PS4,PS5,Stadia

Release Date: October 2019

If Kona combined Mystery and Survival, then Disco Elysium combines Mystery and isometric RPGs. Disco Elysium is a fully voiced game which lets players immerse themselves in a branching narrative with different skills, conversations, and paths to follow. With its depth and intrigue, players won’t be lacking for things to do in this 2019 hit.