Mysteries of Old Tokyo News

[p]As the release date gets steadily closer, and with Next Fest on the horizon, it's time for what might be the final major update before release... the definitive demo version.[/p][p]This update transforms the regular gameplay with two big new additions. First, you'll no longer get the postcard locations just given to you at the start of each chapter. You'll need to visit a nearby station and work it out from there - just like in the real Tokyo![/p][p]Second, not all evidence will be conveniently at the location you visit. You'll get a pager message directing you to a nearby station where you can find more information.[/p][p]There's a whole host of bug fixes and improvements, including new graphics, music and sound effects. Enjoy the demo, and see you at Next Fest![/p][p][/p][h2]Features[/h2]

• [p]New postcards are no longer shown by default on the map. Use the “Gazetteer.txt” file to locate the nearest station first, then visit the station and examine the exit information to unlock the postcard.[/p]
• [p]Some evidence will require some extra work. You’ll have to trek around Tokyo to find specific pieces of evidence when prompted.[/p]
• [p]You can spend your money now! Treasures are locked by default after you discover them, but you can purchase them on the Browse screen from the main menu. (If you already played the demo and have a saved game, you already have the treasures.)[/p]
• [p]Your magic LAN connection has been severed. You now have to return to the office to edit data entry and the spirit report.[/p]

[h2]Improvements[/h2]

• [p]Continuing after finishing the demo was a bit confusing because it looked like Week 2 was restarting. The segue is now more obviously different.[/p]
• [p]Music now cycles between weeks. Added 3 new tracks.[/p]
• [p]PDA route finder now includes stations. Walking directions now include the cardinal direction (north, south-west, etc.)[/p]
• [p]Added Hibiya and Mita metro lines.[/p]
• [p]Brand new Menu Thing with cool buttons and lights. Also updated clock, map and PDA graphics.[/p]
• [p]Newly discovered stations gain a highlight animation and colour.[/p]
• [p]Tutorial streamlined and updated for new features.[/p]
• [p]On overworld map, player icon now turns transparent if covering a pin (instead of awkwardly jumping around).[/p]
• [p]Free Roam now has music.[/p]
• [p]When viewing a loop line at the station, the current station is shown in the middle.[/p]
• [p]If at a station outside the bounds of the map, the best route back to the map is now shown, rather than just any station.[/p]

[h2]Bug fixes[/h2]

• [p]Modern day photo now also displays for bonus postcards if available.[/p]
• [p]Browsing using the < > buttons on a postcard now loads bonus postcards as well.[/p]
• [p]Can no longer pay for a hint after the spirit report is finished.[/p]
• [p]Fixed improper sentence case when making an objection (e.g. “You’re wrong! the bridge was…” is now “You’re wrong! Kasuga-dono, the bridge was…”).[/p]
• [p]Objecting to a route time now sounds a bit more natural (e.g. “took 5-10 minutes”… not “took 7 m 14 s”).[/p]
• [p]Fixed some incorrect categories for locations.[/p]
• [p]Fixed a bug where getting directions from a point that was too close to a station would fail.[/p]
• [p]Locked postcards are no longer spoiled when getting directions.[/p]
• [p]Clean up “Keywords” list when file unloaded.[/p]
• [p]Fix invisible issue where updating stations on map didn’t clean up old stations.[/p]
• [p]Fixed unlock screen not appearing at end of chapter.[/p]
• [p]Fixed embarrassing bug where train logic, not realising that loop lines go both ways, would ride all the way around the loop to go 1 stop.[/p]
• [p]Fixed bug where player could jump off train in transit. (Possibly in future, you can break a train journey mid-way.)[/p]

[p]As the release of the full game gets closer and closer, it's time to start wrapping up the core features and fixing some long-standing bugs. We're almost there![/p][p]This release adds the long-awaited and much-requested hint system for the Spirit Report, but be warned - it'll cost ya. There's also improvements to graphics and sound, and on-screen keyboard support on Steam Deck.[/p][p][/p]

• [p]Hint system! Ria, the helpful chatbot, will be happy to help you if you get stuck on a spirit report - for a fee.[/p]
• [p]Postcards now have a splash screen when you visit them for the first time. [/p]
• [p]For context on a location, you can view a general image using the "Live View" button on a postcard.[/p]
• [p]The postcard order is now more-or-less final for the finished game. As a result, two new postcards debut in Chapter 2 in this version, replacing two from the previous version (Kameido Tenjin replaced by Ueno Station and Takarazuka Theatre replaced by Zojo-ji Temple).[/p]
• [p]Finishing the demo also now unlocks a bonus postcard.[/p]
• [p]Gallery now includes a "Landmark browser" to browse some of the minor locations in the game.[/p]

• [p]When the game is saved, a little "Game Saved" notification now appears.[/p]
• [p]Image files have more specific file names.[/p]
• [p]A smattering of new sound effects and visual tweaks, plus game title card and chapter title card.[/p]
• [p]Upgraded to Godot 4.6.[/p]
• [p]Streamlined demo assets for smaller download.[/p]

• [p]Keyboard entry should now work correctly on Steam Deck. Clicking a text box will launch the Steam on-screen keyboard automatically (can toggle off in Settings).[/p]
• [p]Fixed possible long-standing bug with Steam API.[/p]
• [p]Fixed a bug where filter showed evidence before the player had found it.[/p]
• [p]Fixed similarity finder interfering with settings window.[/p]
• [p]Fixed bug where leaving a location too quickly left spirit report incomplete.[/p]

[p]The Steam Detective Fest was a big success! Thank you to everyone for your continued interest in the game, and in particular to everyone who play-tested version 2 of the demo and gave some great feedback.[/p][p]This version implements a lot of your feedback and fixes at least one really annoying bug with the “Send Feedback” button (ironically).[/p][p]And apologies for blasting your eardrums with some rather loud sound effects. Those affected will be pleased to see the new volume controls in the Settings menu.[/p][h2]New features:[/h2][p][/p]

• [p]General UI: New 4-digit year input component, including conversion to Japanese era calendar.[/p]
  • [p]In puzzles, the year (e.g. “1923”) is no longer listed in the word list, but is now entered using the year input component. In some cases this means you will have to determine the Western-style year using the Japanese era calendar.[/p]
  • [p]In other places the standard spinbox has been augmented by the year input. This should make data entry much easier if you don’t have a keyboard, but you can still use the keyboard here too.[/p]
  • [p]Since the year picker includes Japanese era names, the existing era text files have been deleted from the database.[/p]
• [p]Accessibility: When using Steam Big Picture mode, the Steam on-screen keyboard (OSK) should open automatically when selecting a text field. Unfortunately, this doesn’t seem to work on Steam Deck yet for some unknown reason. This is a priority to be fixed.[/p]
• [p]Explore overworld: Crisp high-resolution 320x240 video! Travelling around Tokyo by train will now trigger a short video clip.[/p]

[h2]Improvements:[/h2]

• [p]Explore desk: The desk letter text was a little small and hard to read. It now expands to fill the screen when it appears.[/p]
• [p]Audio: More refined audio controls for master, music and ambient sound levels.[/p]
• [p]3D treasure viewer: A good suggestion to add play-pause controls for the 3D treasure viewer has been implemented.[/p]
• [p]General UI: The menu button at the bottom of the screen is more obviously a menu button now.[/p]
• [p]Puzzles: Tweaks to the Kameido Tenjin and Takarazuka puzzles to make them a bit more interesting and challenging.[/p]

[h2]Bug fixes:[/h2]

• [p]Fixed an annoying bug faced by a few players, where trying to access “Settings” or “Send Feedback” at the start of a chapter (during the intro or when the desk appears) would essentially freeze the game. Apologies for the annoyance.[/p]
• [p]Postcard browser: You can now browse Week 2 postcards after completing the demo. Also, the browser now correctly shows the Notes you have unlocked.[/p]
• [p]Treasure browser: Treasures are now correctly unlocked from your save data even after restarting the game.[/p]
• [p]Fixed bug where treasure was unlocked at start, not end, of chapter.[/p]

[p]Hello! It's been a great Detective Fest so far, and thank you for playing my game and sending feedback :)[/p][p]A few small changes for v2.0.1 to improve accessibility and the handheld experience. [/p][p]I love my Steam Deck and I often use it to test builds of Mysteries of Old Tokyo. It's not perfect on Steam Deck (entering text will always be tricky!) but I made a few tweaks to make the game more comfortable when playing on a device without a mouse, or if drag and drop presents an accessibility issue for you.[/p][p]In future I will be improving the numeric input (e.g. years) to be more convenient both on desktop and handheld.[/p][h2][/h2][h2]New features:[/h2]

• [p]Accessibility option to turn on “Sticky Drag”. This changes the way dragging words from the word list works. Instead of clicking and holding to drag, the word “sticks” to your cursor when you click it, and “unsticks” when you click again. This also makes the game much more playable on Steam Deck or touchpads.[/p]
• [p]Text is slightly larger in places to be more readable on small screens.[/p]
• [p]New options menu accessible from the main menu and the “Options” button on the desktop. Save data management is now under a separate "Manage Data" button on the main menu.[/p]
• [p]“Parallels” mode in the similarity finder now supports the magnifier tool.[/p]
• [p]Audio: New beeps and boops when using the similarity finder or saving data entry.[/p]
• [p]“Visit Location” button on the menu now specifies the current location.[/p]

[h2]Bug fixes:[/h2]

• [p]Fixed a bug where stamina drained faster than intended on the train.[/p]
• [p]Rebalanced stamina drain when walking/on the train to be more realistic.[/p]

[p]Did you know the postcards in Mysteries of Old Tokyo are 100% real? They exist. On paper. I have them. I scanned them all myself, and they are safely stored away in my cupboard. So where did they come from? And how did they get to be in a hit (hopefully) new detective adventure game?[/p][p][/p][p][/p][p]I found them on a scorching day in September 2024. It was my first trip back to Japan in many, many years. I had arrived in Tokyo the day before, and I was still buzzing with the sights, sounds and smells of a city that has fascinated me for most of my life.[/p][p]That morning, I visited a flea market in Shibuya. [/p][p][/p][p][/p][p]At the back were some stalls selling antiques and Showa-era memorabilia. Books, toys, militaria, maps, and posters... and then I found it.[/p][p]50 Views of Greater Tokyo.[/p][p]It was a postcard set, wrapped in a slightly tattered, but still shiny, silver cover. As I flicked through the postcards, something told me this was special. The stall owner asked for some price that was probably too high. I bought it immediately.[/p][p][/p][p][/p][p]There were scores of postcard collections printed in the early 20th century. The Tokyo Metropolitan Library has a great collection online, including many of "my" postcards. They were printed and reprinted; shuffled around, with photos reused, or colorised, and the text copied or tweaked as the years passed. They are an invaluable resource to show several things: not just what Tokyo looked like back then, but also what people thought was interesting, and important, and worthy of capturing on paper.[/p][p]My set of postcards is called "50 Views of Greater Tokyo" or "Greater Tokyo: 50 Scenes", with the subtitle: "New Special Edition: Splendid 3-Color Prints". My best guess is that they were printed about 1935, since there are a few buildings from 1934, but the Diet Building (opened 1936) is talked about in the future tense. That may also be the reason the Diet Building is embossed on the packaging.[/p][p]The publisher is unknown, though I suspect they might have some link with the Mitsukoshi Department Store, which always seems to get a mention.[/p][p]They are a snapshot of a version of Tokyo, peaceful and prosperous on the surface, that was barrelling down the express route to total world war. Within ten years, many of these buildings would be ashes and rubble.[/p][p][/p][p][/p][p]These postcards are not particularly rare, except perhaps to find them nearly complete - 44 out of the original 50 survived in my set. That's what makes my set unique - whoever bought them, 90 years ago, picked out six and posted them to their friends and family. What we receive as antiques are the postcards they either didn't care to share, or the ones they liked so much they kept them for themselves.[/p][p][/p][p][/p][p]I can't help but wonder about the person who bought these postcards. What did they think of them? Were they in Tokyo for business or leisure? Two of the cards have addresses to Tajima, Fukushima, written in black ink. Were they from Fukushima, or did they have friends there? Ten years later, in 1945, were they alive or dead?[/p][p]It staggers my mind to think that the postcards I now hold have passed down to me through 90 years of history. When the nation listened to the news transmitted back from Pearl Harbor, they lay on a table. As bombs rained on Tokyo, they sat on a shelf. When the Olympics came in 1964, they waited in a drawer. Through the glitz and glam of the 80s bubble, they lingered in a box of old junk. Maybe. Who knows? One day the little package was picked out, and put on a market stall, and then - like Taylor Swift's mansion - it was bought by me.[/p][p]And that about wraps up the story. Half a year after I bought the postcards, as I was experimenting with game development, it occurred to me - wouldn't it be interesting to look at those postcards and dig into them? Locate them on the map, and find out what happened to them? Perhaps, even visit them?[/p][p]And so, in April 2025, I created the first iteration of Memories of Old Tokyo - later to become Mysteries of Old Tokyo. The very next month I was back in Tokyo, slogging through pouring rain and blazing heat to capture as many of these postcards in modern photographs as I could manage. In a few months, the game based on all this will be released. [/p][p]And to think it was just a chance find at an antiques market.[/p][p][/p][p][/p]