Games Like Dry Drowning

A murder. A hack. A bombing. All it takes to plunge the solar system into war – unless you do something about it. Help CDI agent Neil Conrad make a string of increasingly difficult decisions in this modern dialog-driven adventure set in a gorgeous 2D sci-fi noir universe.

Why similar: Noir 18.9%, Futuristic 12.8%, Cyberpunk 11.9%, Detective 11.7%, Thriller 10.8%

Why You'll Like It: Captures the essence of a noir detective story set in a futuristic city with high-stakes decision-making.

Lose yourself in the dystopian world of New York, 2329; immortality comes at a price that someone has to pay. In this interactive noir story, lead the investigation using advanced technology, as Detective James Karra who risks it all in pursuit of a serial killer targeting the city’s elite.

Why similar: Noir 21.1%, Cyberpunk 13.4%, Detective 13.3%, Psychological 12.8%, Thriller 12.8%

Why You'll Like It: Features a compelling futuristic noir setting where players must conduct detailed investigations into serial crimes.

Whispers of a Machine is a Sci-Fi Nordic Noir that tells the story of Vera, a cybernetically augmented detective in a post-AI world, who investigates a string of murders and unravels a dark conflict over forbidden technology.

Why similar: Detective 17.7%, Noir 17%, Cyberpunk 16.6%, Futuristic 11.2%, Sci-fi 10.2%

Why You'll Like It: A sci-fi point-and-click adventure that focuses on investigative techniques and a dark, unfolding mystery.

Disco Elysium - The Final Cut is a groundbreaking role playing game. You’re a detective with a unique skill system at your disposal and a whole city to carve your path across. Interrogate unforgettable characters, crack murders or take bribes. Become a hero or an absolute disaster of a human being.

Why similar: Detective 31.3%, Noir 27.8%, Choices Matter 15.8%, Visual Novel 10.6%, Open World 7.5%

Why You'll Like It: Offers an unparalleled depth of psychological investigation and moral complexity within a gritty, atmospheric world.

Roleplaying in the ruins of interplanetary capitalism. Live the life of an escaped worker, washed-up on a lawless station at the edge of an interstellar society. Inspired by the flexibility and freedom of TTRPGs, explore the station, choose your friends, escape your past and change your future.

Why similar: Futuristic 30.6%, Cyberpunk 28.4%, Interactive Fiction 18.5%, Sci-fi 15.4%, Adventure 4.3%

Why You'll Like It: A narrative-heavy RPG that explores the psychological toll of survival in a dystopian, cyberpunk environment.

This story-driven adventure follows a mystery of death and despair from reality into the surreal realms of objective memories and subjective experiences. Search the mind, solve puzzles, and unravel the dark truth in this psychological thriller.

Why similar: Investigation 28.6%, Thriller 27.4%, Mystery 13.9%, Psychological 11.9%, Choices Matter 10.4%

Why You'll Like It: Explores the psychological landscape of suspects through surreal, brain-scanning investigation mechanics.

When the truth is buried, go underground. Step into this new take on text-based adventure from the award-winning team behind Thomas Was Alone and Volume. A short story that hands you the fate of the world above, as a detective looking for answers on the Subsurface Circular.

Why similar: Noir 18.3%, Investigation 14.7%, Detective 13.6%, Futuristic 11.2%, Visual Novel 9.4%

Why You'll Like It: A concise, text-based mystery that uses dialogue and deduction to uncover the truth in a futuristic setting.

A first‑person cyberpunk horror detective story set in a decaying, neon‑scarred future. As an Observer who invades minds to hunt for clues, you will sift through corrupted memories to track down a mysterious killer and confront your own dark past.

Why similar: Investigation 28.3%, Cyberpunk 27.5%, Detective 22.2%, Horror 14.2%, Choices Matter 7.9%

Why You'll Like It: Blends psychological horror with cyberpunk detective work as you hack into the minds of suspects.

It’s 2065, and you are an interrogator-model android tasked with rooting out deviants among your own kind. You must probe for lies, monitor and exploit emotional spikes, earn the trust of your subjects, and make the final call: release, or destroy?

Why similar: Investigation 20.4%, Cyberpunk 19.5%, Futuristic 16.8%, Detective 13.6%, Choices Matter 8.9%

Why You'll Like It: Focuses heavily on the mechanics of interrogation and reading suspects, mirroring the investigative tension of Dry Drowning.

The Red Strings Club is a cyberpunk narrative experience about fate and happiness featuring the extensive use of pottery, bartending and impersonating people on the phone to take down a corporate conspiracy.

Why similar: Cyberpunk 52.6%, Choices Matter 15.1%, Visual Novel 10.2%, Sci-fi 9%, Adventure 4.2%

Why You'll Like It: A cyberpunk narrative experience that centers on interrogation and the manipulation of information to uncover a conspiracy.

Paradise Island, a world outside reality. There’s been a murder that only "investigation freak" Lady Love Dies can solve. Gather evidence and interrogate suspects in this open world adventure. You can accuse anyone, but you’ll have to prove your case in trial. It’s up to you to decide who’s guilty.

Why similar: Investigation 29.1%, Detective 26.5%, Mystery 17.2%, Open World 14.9%, Choices Matter 11.2%

Why You'll Like It: Provides an open-world approach to investigation, allowing players to piece together a complex mystery on a surreal island.

An interactive horror experience of exploring a missing woman’s phone.

Why similar: Detective 18.7%, Thriller 14.7%, Psychological 12.5%, Visual Novel 11.8%, Horror 10.5%

Why You'll Like It: Uses a unique found-phone interface to create an immersive and unsettling investigative experience.

A cyberpunk adventure game from the studio that brought you Gemini Rue and Blackwell! The year is 2087. Genetic engineering is the norm, and an omnipresent AI powers the city. Take control of three citizens of this world as they struggle to understand a deadly conspiracy.

Why similar: Cyberpunk 56.1%, Sci-fi 19.5%, Adventure 11.3%, Mystery 4.5%, Indie 3.9%

Why You'll Like It: A classic-style adventure game that dives deep into a dystopian future filled with AI, crime, and conspiracy.

In this point-and-click urban thriller, down-and-out private eye Kathy Rain will embark on her most dangerous case yet — the pursuit of the notorious serial killer known as the Soothsayer. Find clues, gather evidence, connect the dots, and confront the murderer before the hunter becomes the hunted…

Why similar: Noir 20.8%, Investigation 16.4%, Detective 14.5%, Thriller 10.4%, Mystery 10.1%

Why You'll Like It: Continues the tradition of atmospheric, point-and-click mystery investigation with a focus on character-driven storytelling.

Join forces with the psychic Director of the Urban Myth Dissolution Center and solve a variety of cases involving cursed relics, rental properties with shady histories, and dimensional anomalies. Monstrous oddities and otherworldly planes abound in this occult mystery adventure game!

Why similar: Visual Novel 23.2%, Mystery 19.2%, Detective 19%, Horror 11.5%, Choose Your Own Adventure 8.9%

Why You'll Like It: Combines psychological horror with investigative gameplay to solve supernatural mysteries.

2064: Read Only Memories is a cyberpunk point-and-click adventure set in Neo-San Francisco. Team up with Turing, the world's first sapient machine, to unravel a conspiracy that threatens to shake an entire society

Why similar: Noir 25.2%, Cyberpunk 17.8%, Futuristic 14.9%, Interactive Fiction 11.9%, Visual Novel 10.6%

Why You'll Like It: A cyberpunk adventure that features a compelling mystery and a strong focus on narrative-driven investigation.

Having lost everything, a retired, hardboiled detective, John Cooper, must take his last case to find a missing upper-class girl among the lowest parts of the dystopian city-planet Terrahive. Choose your unique path in this atmospheric narrative future-noir thriller.

Why similar: Noir 25.6%, Cyberpunk 16.6%, Detective 15.1%, Interactive Fiction 12%, Choose Your Own Adventure 11.7%

Why You'll Like It: An interactive fiction title that puts you in the shoes of a private investigator navigating a gritty, futuristic city.

Discover a world where life is cheap, identities are bought & sold, & a quest for redemption can change the fate of a whole galaxy.

Why similar: Noir 39.1%, Cyberpunk 24.5%, Sci-fi 13.7%, Detective 12.3%, Adventure 6.3%

Why You'll Like It: A quintessential noir sci-fi detective story that balances a dark atmosphere with a gripping, multi-perspective narrative.

Investigate a broken mind to unravel a twisted case. Deduce the truth. Restore lost memories. Listen to private conversations. Draw your own conclusions. Mind Diver is a murder mystery, where the victim is love.

Why similar: Noir 21.1%, Investigation 15%, Detective 14.2%, Thriller 13.4%, Mystery 9.8%

Why You'll Like It: Focuses on the investigative process of diving into memories to solve a mystery through puzzle-solving.

NORCO is a dialogue-focused point & click adventure that immerses the player in the sinking suburbs and industrial swamplands of an increasingly surreal and distorted South Louisiana.

Why similar: Noir 42.1%, Investigation 27.4%, Mystery 19.5%, Adventure 4.5%, 2D 4%

Why You'll Like It: A surreal, atmospheric narrative game that explores the decay of a dystopian future through a lens of mystery.

Rainswept takes you on an emotional adventure in a small town shaken by a double shooting. Join Detective Stone and unravel a tangled web of love, relationships, and unresolved trauma in this character-driven murder mystery game.

Why similar: Detective 22.8%, Thriller 18%, Interactive Fiction 16.4%, Visual Novel 15.1%, Psychological 13.4%

Why You'll Like It: A surreal detective story that explores themes of trauma and crime in a small-town setting.

Psychroma is a psychological horror side-scroller set in a haunted cyberpunk house. Collect cards and explore the memories stored on them to piece together your past. But the deeper you go, the more you expose yourself to the brightest heat, the warmest color...

Why similar: Cyberpunk 37.4%, Futuristic 18.5%, Interactive Fiction 16.2%, Investigation 13.7%, Adventure 5.6%

Why You'll Like It: A cyberpunk narrative game that uses psychological themes and memory-diving to uncover a dark mystery.

Unravel a string of gruesome murders terrorizing Tokyo in this mystery-thriller visual novel. The secrets of a case from six years prior may just be the key to the current unending cycle of tragedy—and the thing that cracks this woeful world’s shell may be one girl’s smile.

Why similar: Detective 29.8%, Visual Novel 22.3%, Mystery 19.8%, Choices Matter 11.6%, Choose Your Own Adventure 9.8%

Why You'll Like It: A psychological visual novel that focuses on dark mysteries and the consequences of player choices.

A dead influencer. An obsessed detective. Three suspects. Piece the truth together by going through the victim’s phone messages, videos, and social media in the follow up to the critically acclaimed SIMULACRA.

Why similar: Detective 34%, Visual Novel 21.7%, Horror 18.7%, Choices Matter 11.8%, Puzzle 8%

Why You'll Like It: Expands on the found-phone investigation mechanics with a more complex and darker narrative.

Detective Rainy Night is a narrative adventure with elements of deduction. Violent crimes, mature stories, and a touch of psychological horror await you at the Motel Holiday. Grab a pencil and paper because solving this case won’t be easy.

Why similar: Detective 30.5%, Mystery 21%, Sci-fi 16.9%, Horror 16%, Puzzle 7.1%

Why You'll Like It: A psychological mystery game that emphasizes realistic detective work and a dark, moody atmosphere.

H.P. Lovecraft meets Cyberpunk. Delve deep into a dystopian world and investigate what is happening to you and your friends in a domed city. Solve puzzles, hack systems and plug in to explore other dimensions. Discover a truth that might tear apart your sanity and question your very existence.

Why similar: Cyberpunk 20.9%, Futuristic 17%, Investigation 13.6%, Detective 12.5%, Mystery 9.7%

Why You'll Like It: Mixes Lovecraftian horror with cyberpunk themes to create a tense, investigative atmosphere.

VA-11 HALL-A: Cyberpunk Bartender Action is a booze em' up about waifus, technology, and post-dystopia life.

Why similar: Cyberpunk 41.4%, Visual Novel 23.7%, Sci-fi 13.4%, Choices Matter 12%, 2D 4.7%

Why You'll Like It: Provides a deeply atmospheric cyberpunk experience where you learn the secrets of the city through conversation.

Suhoshin is a 2D Visual Novel set in the medieval Joseon period of Korea. While investigating a series of mysterious murders, you will have to make choices that will lead you down different paths toward different endings.

Why similar: Thriller 17.8%, Visual Novel 14.4%, Mystery 13%, Detective 12.4%, Investigation 12.3%

Why You'll Like It: A visual novel that blends historical mystery with psychological horror and branching narrative paths.

A new kind of detective game that allows you to think and investigate freely. Discover clues surrounding 12 strange and gruesome deaths and build your own theory. Pick your suspect, deduce the motive, unmask the awful truth.

Why similar: Investigation 21.1%, Detective 20%, Thriller 15.4%, Mystery 14%, Interactive Fiction 11.1%

Play as detective Kaname Date on the case of an elusive serial killer in this thrilling, sci-fi murder mystery.

Why similar: Detective 28.8%, Visual Novel 22.9%, Mystery 19.9%, Sci-fi 9.7%, Choices Matter 6.3%

Gamedec is a single-player cyberpunk isometric RPG. You are a game detective, who solves crimes inside virtual worlds. Use your wits to gather info from your witnesses and suspects, getting to the bottom of deceptive schemes. The game continually adapts to your decisions and never judges.

Why similar: Noir 24%, Cyberpunk 17.8%, Investigation 14.7%, Detective 11.4%, Mystery 10.2%

A post-apocalyptic adventure game from the publisher that brought you Primordia, Gemini Rue and Technobabylon! A young woman stricken with a deadly plague searches for a cure in a hostile world.

Why similar: Mystery 32.9%, Adventure 27.2%, Indie 11.6%, Puzzle 10.5%, 2D 10.1%

Why You'll Like It: A post-apocalyptic adventure that features a dark, dystopian mystery and classic point-and-click investigation.

Your Future Self is a 1-2 hour long story-driven experimental text adventure with unique conversational mechanics, time loop based gameplay, and an emotionally gripping time travel mystery set against the backdrop of a darkly realistic vision of our world ravaged by climate change.

Why similar: Thriller 20%, Interactive Fiction 16%, Mystery 14.4%, Visual Novel 12.8%, Sci-fi 12.3%

Why You'll Like It: A psychological narrative game that explores identity and mystery through text-based interaction.

A private investigator, tracking a missing person, uncovers a conspiracy between humans and androids and a secret that could change everything. Neon Hearts City is a retro point-and-click adventure that thrusts you into a grungy cyberpunk city of the future.

Why similar: Investigation 20.4%, Detective 19.6%, Interactive Fiction 16.5%, Cyberpunk 14.1%, Mystery 7.9%

MINDS BENEATH US is an emotional sci-fi narrative game. Through the eyes of a humble individual, experience a mad world where humans are exploited as computing devices for AI. Listen to the concerns of those you meet and offer guidance. Together, face challenges and confront an uncertain destiny.

Why similar: Cyberpunk 21.8%, Psychological 18%, Choose Your Own Adventure 14.2%, Visual Novel 13.3%, Sci-fi 9.2%

Play as Tristan and solve puzzles to recover human consciousnesses in the year 2071. Investigate environments, uncover secrets, and make choices that affect the ending. Explore a neon-noir world with a low poly aesthetic inspired by the 90s.

Why similar: Noir 25.9%, Cyberpunk 17.2%, Futuristic 10.6%, Investigation 10.4%, Detective 9.3%

Graphic Novel meets Visual Novel in this story-rich, choice-driven thriller. Experience Blake’s journey as he encounters a clandestine nemesis, sparking a series of events that force him to choose between losing his sanity or rising to the challenge. Make the right decisions and save New Stone.

Why similar: Noir 20.1%, Detective 11.8%, Thriller 9.8%, Interactive Fiction 9.7%, Choose Your Own Adventure 9.6%

Tails Noir is a post-noir narrative adventure. Become raccoon private eye Howard Lotor and explore dystopian Vancouver inhabited by animals as you uncover a deeply personal story of change and transformation.

Why similar: Noir 25.5%, Detective 17.8%, Investigation 17.4%, Interactive Fiction 12.2%, Visual Novel 11.4%

Play as Sam or Farah as they attempt to navigate the neon thrills of their cyberpunk city Love Shore, solve murders, fight gods and maybe fall in love.

Why similar: Noir 30.2%, Cyberpunk 21.4%, Interactive Fiction 13.5%, Choose Your Own Adventure 11.6%, Choices Matter 8.4%

FORECLOSED is a narrative-driven action-adventure set in a Cyberpunk world filled with action, suspense, and experimental augmentations. Follow the story of Evan Kapnos in this sleek comic book styled game as he unravels the conspiracy behind his identity foreclosure. Who is responsible and why?

Why similar: Futuristic 31.3%, Noir 28.7%, Interactive Fiction 13.6%, Sci-fi 13%, Visual Novel 6.4%

A mystery adventure game and visual novel set on solitary Shironagasu Island. Discover its secrets, solve its mysteries, and escape from the ominous island!

Why similar: Visual Novel 22.2%, Mystery 18.9%, Detective 14.9%, Horror 12.5%, Thriller 10.1%

Lacuna: Prologue tasks you – CDI agent Neil Conrad – with investigating the murder of a high-profile victim whose death could plunge the solar system into war. Solve the first in a series of cases that lead you ever deeper into the conspiracy at the core of this captivating 2D sci-fi noir adventure.

Why similar: Noir 23.2%, Detective 14.5%, Cyberpunk 12.9%, Interactive Fiction 10.4%, Investigation 9.6%

A Pulp Adventure Thriller - A murdered drifter awakens. Alive again, seconds before his death. Hunted and haunted, help him untangle a mad web of conspiracy in this fast-paced point 'n click thrill-ride.

Why similar: Noir 25.2%, Investigation 19.7%, Thriller 18.3%, Mystery 11.9%, Sci-fi 9.7%

Between Horizons is a narrative 2.5D sci-fi detective adventure. 33 years into the Zephyr's journey, its mission is suddenly jeopardized. Can you find the culprit before it's too late? Experience an enthralling story set in a semi-open world that branches and ends based on your choices.

Why similar: Futuristic 24.2%, Investigation 20.3%, Detective 19.4%, Interactive Fiction 13.5%, Sci-fi 10.9%

State of Mind is a futuristic thriller game delving into transhumanism. The game explores themes of separation, disjuncture and reunification, in a world that is torn between a dystopian material reality and a utopian virtual future.

Why similar: Futuristic 34.3%, Cyberpunk 26%, Sci-fi 18.6%, Interactive Fiction 6.2%, Adventure 5.4%

A visual novel about emotional survival in an automated world. Play as Lina, the last human cab driver. It’s your first night driving the lonely streets of Los Ojos, and your best friend has just disappeared. Stay on the road. Stay on the search. Stay human.

Why similar: Noir 25.5%, Cyberpunk 18%, Futuristic 15.1%, Interactive Fiction 12.1%, Visual Novel 11.3%

The original first‑person cyberpunk horror detective tale set in a decaying, neon‑scarred future. As an Observer who invades minds to hunt for clues, you will sift through corrupted memories to track down a mysterious killer and confront your own dark past.

Why similar: Cyberpunk 39.8%, Futuristic 16.1%, Detective 14.4%, Horror 13.1%, Sci-fi 11.1%

Hack into crime scenes, look for evidence, analyze data, interrogate criminals, track suspects and deal with the consequences of your decisions. This is a dark and brutal detective story with a Black Mirror-esque atmosphere of digital dominance and the narrative structure of a US crime procedural.

Why similar: Detective 22.5%, Cyberpunk 21.2%, Futuristic 20.6%, Visual Novel 13.6%, Choices Matter 10.7%

In an AI-powered age where original authors have become largely redundant, play as a dejected writer on the brink of losing their creative drive forever.

Why similar: Psychological 27.5%, Visual Novel 20.7%, Interactive Fiction 17%, Horror 14.7%, Mystery 6.3%

Can you trust your own mind? Immerse yourself in a psychological thriller of a new kind, playing with the limits between reality and fantasy. Freely inspired by Alfred Hitchcock’s universe.

Why similar: Thriller 20.9%, Investigation 20%, Detective 14.3%, Interactive Fiction 14.2%, Psychological 13.8%

Aoba's vibrant cyberpunk world is one of contrasts: high-tech virtual reality battles versus street gang turf wars, ultra-exclusive luxury resorts and tiny junk shops. The choices you make will shape the path of Aoba's journey into the dark secrets lurking beneath the glossy sheen of the city.

Why similar: Visual Novel 38.3%, Cyberpunk 34.2%, Choices Matter 16.1%, 2D 5.2%, Adventure 4%

Legend tells of a door deep below Tokyo's sewers. All who enter are lost forever. Detective Ito's partner is missing. Explore Tokyo & uncover the darkness that lays beneath the streets in this Point & Click - meets Visual Novel - narrative adventure that questions the very core of Ito's sanity.

Why similar: Detective 28.3%, Visual Novel 20.1%, Mystery 15.4%, Horror 14.7%, Psychological 7.8%

A dark murder mistery game combined with a visual novel revolving around a disturbing plot. Embark on the frightening adventure of a young priest entangled in a forbidden affair with a beautiful lady who meets a gruesome end. Lust, wrath, murder, despair.

Why similar: Noir 27.8%, Thriller 17.9%, Detective 12.8%, Mystery 11.3%, Visual Novel 10.5%

A psychological interactive novel about a floppy disk with a mysterious program. Help Elliot cope with his mental issues and uncover the secret of the floppy disk.

Why similar: Psychological 35.4%, Interactive Fiction 21.3%, Visual Novel 19.5%, Choices Matter 13.5%, 2D 6.1%

A steampunk-ish detective adventure from the creator of A Golden Wake and Shardlight! Can you help private investigator Miles Fordham find justice for his clients and track down his partner's killer before his entire world comes apart?

Why similar: Noir 26.5%, Detective 24%, Mystery 15.8%, Interactive Fiction 11.2%, Choose Your Own Adventure 9.5%

Siberian Way is a detective thriller novel. Follow the dark non-linear story and decide how it can end! For all fans of snowy Siberia, Murder on the Orient Express and twisted plots, seasoned with mysticism.

Why similar: Psychological 22.8%, Investigation 18.6%, Detective 18%, Visual Novel 15.3%, Horror 10.1%

Heaven Does Not Respond is a psychological and analog horror game set in an alternate 2005 timeline. Play as an intelligence agent, exploring a retro computer interface to decipher secret files, watch mysterious videos, and uncover the dark secrets behind a young man's death.

Why similar: Investigation 27.1%, Detective 23.6%, Interactive Fiction 14%, Horror 13.5%, Choices Matter 10.1%

YOU are a psychiatrist, trying to solve a murder whilst treating the unusual patients of the recently deceased Doctor Dekker. Type a question - patients reply in full screen video and have questions for you too but be careful what you say. Your words determine their eventual fates, and your own!

Why similar: Detective 22.1%, Psychological 21.1%, Mystery 14.5%, Interactive Fiction 10.9%, Horror 9.6%

Mothmen 1966 is a 'Pixel Pulp' - a visual novel fusing exceptional writing and stunning illustration, inspired by mid-20th century pulp fiction and 80s home computer graphics - set amongst the strange occurrences of the Leonid meteor shower of 1966.

Why similar: Noir 22.7%, Thriller 13.2%, Interactive Fiction 11.8%, Choose Your Own Adventure 11.8%, Visual Novel 10.2%

A series of murders is shocking Hollywood! Use your detective skills: search the crime scene, find clues, solve the mystery. Who is pulling the strings behind these Confidential Killings?

Why similar: Noir 21.8%, Investigation 17.3%, Detective 16.7%, Interactive Fiction 11.4%, Mystery 10.6%