A pair hours into Misericorde: Quantity 1, a homicide thriller visible novel set in a convent in England in 1482, the nuns get into an argument in regards to the means of slaughtering geese for the night’s supper.
It’s not precisely a logical argument — no less than, not for Flora, who is completely simply fucking together with her fellow nun Eustace. After Eustace assures everybody that she doesn’t discover it laborious to kill geese — “They’re not a lot of a match for me, if I’m being sincere” — Flora counters by asking, “What number of geese would it not take earlier than you suppose you’d lose?” And though Misericorde has no voice performing, relying solely on black-and-white drawings and artwork, you may simply hear the cussed this-is-not-a-debate tone in Eustace’s response: “I may defeat each duck. It’s merely not an issue for me.”
Nevertheless it’s not a duck who’s been murdered. It’s the convent’s feistiest free thinker, Sister Catherine, who has simply turned up useless. And for no less than considered one of these characters, Catherine was no match for them.
This haunting and infrequently fairly humorous (because the duck-killing debate exhibits) visible novel primarily unfolds by means of a eyes of the pious, naive Hedwig, who on the outset of Misericorde is the convent’s Anchoress. Which means, by her selection, she’s spent her youth locked up in a cell, serving as a presumed “impartial” supply of information to any and all non secular advice-seekers, as she’s devoted herself absolutely to studying solely scripture and spiritual literature. She is aware of solely the voices of those that’ve visited her — and although she counsels them at occasions of intense vulnerability, she is aware of virtually nothing about them, or about folks and society typically.
![Sister Margaret addresses Sister Katherine in the hallways of the convent in Misericorde, saying, “We can get our stories straight later then.”](https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/lfpq741xKdIXIH6FDLwJyQ4wqxQ=/0x0:2560x1440/1200x0/filters:focal(0x0:2560x1440):no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/24761898/20230403105510_1.jpg)
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![Moira looks askance as she walks between convent buildings in Misericorde, saying, “You’d better join us for lunch.” Rain pours down around her and the other nuns in the background.](https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/QAqW1YJRnyUoL4Cy9FZLfcLR8Ys=/0x0:2560x1440/1200x0/filters:focal(0x0:2560x1440):no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/24761900/20230403113139_1.jpg)
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![In an image from Hedwig’s perspective as she gazes upon all of the nuns sitting in pews, she stutters, “H... hello...”](https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/Vzy1WznD6QDd0IExt1439ArS2JM=/0x0:2560x1440/1200x0/filters:focal(0x0:2560x1440):no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/24761899/20230403105921_1.jpg)
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Sadly for Hedwig, her place on the convent means she’s the one one who positively didn’t homicide Sister Catherine. That’s why Mom Superior drags her from the straightforward however serene familiarity of her cell, forcing Hedwig to then secretly consider the convent’s few members in an try to find the identification of Catherine’s killer.
Misericorde is a visible novel within the strictest sense: There’s no participant selection, no branching dialog; it’s a matter of simply clicking by means of and studying the story because it unfolds. Solely the primary quantity of the sport has been launched on Steam thus far, so the thriller continues to be unsolved. But it’s already skyrocketed to the highest of my private record of favourite video games of the 12 months as a result of depth of its characters and the twisty, generally even supernatural, turns of its homicide thriller.
![Hedwig looks up and sees a cloaked figure staring at her from an upstairs passageway in the convent. The image is captioned with Hedwig’s internal monologue: “Cloaked in shadow... the barest glint of eyes.”](https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/FgKWuNFiKid6TGNJSp-nfcC1GGk=/0x0:2560x1440/1200x0/filters:focal(0x0:2560x1440):no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/24761901/20230403141831_1.jpg)
Picture: XEECEE by way of Polygon
It’s uncommon to see an ensemble solid this nicely developed and characterised, particularly in a homicide thriller, a style that usually depends on tropes and shorthand. At first, upon seeing the black-and-white artwork depicting the entire nuns wearing (clearly) an identical habits, I nervous about how I’d handle to maintain observe of all of the suspects. However I didn’t fear for lengthy. Every nun has her personal a definite voice — and her personal set of secrets and techniques, guarded carefully from Mom Superior, Hedwig, and the remaining.
As quickly as I performed this unforgettable opening salvo, Misericorde: Quantity 1, I went straight to the solo developer’s Patreon and have become a paying subscriber, as a result of I knew I’d need to play Quantity 2 as quickly because it turned out there. Misericorde is on the market on Steam and itch.io.