[ Review ] : December 2001

DVD REVIEW: STAB IN THE DARK
By
R.K.Foster

Page 1 of 1

The DVD video format allows for onscreen menus and special features that not all DVD releases make full use of. "Stab In The Dark", from Murder To Go Productions, makes full use of DVD technology to bring an interactive Murder Mystery to your TV set. All it requires is a TV, DVD player, and the DVD remote control. This allows you to solve the mystery yourself, or as a group, by interacting with the materials provided with the DVD itself and by making choices from the menus displayed onscreen.

I received a copy of the DVD from MTG, Inc.(Murder To Go) and played/viewed the game myself. The DVD packaging and contents were everything you would expect from a professionally produced DVD; hard case, full color sleeve, silk-screened disc, and a short full color insert containing information related to the "crime". I took my time reading the information, looking at the small maps(which are also on the DVD), and getting an idea of what the "crime" involved before playing the DVD. I played the DVD on my computer which had no problems running it, likely it will run on any standard DVD player connected to a TV.

The DVD opens with a splash and title screen and then starts with an introduction from "Lt Detective McFreedy" who explains a bit and gets you started. The crime is set in contemporary times and does tend toward character acting and cliche but was still well done. The view then changes to appear as if you are sitting behind a desk with the usual items such as a phone, pencil holder, file folders, etc. On screen are the choices for what you want to do; Evidence Room, Crime Scene Tape, Coroner's Report, etc. A police woman walks through the scene on a regular basis, apparently getting coffee, until you make your onscreen selection. She also brings items to your desk when you make a selection. The police woman ia a cute touch for those of us of the male persuasion but I question if those inch high clog heel shoes are standard Police issue. :-)

It took me about an hour or more to go through all of the material on the DVD, playing video sequences, looking at the evidence, etc. The story was sufficiently complex that in a few instances I thought that perhaps the Producers of the DVD had made a mistake of some sort, only to realize that indeed the information did make sense to the story. It all seemed quite straight forward to the point that I thought it would be easy to make a judgement on the solution of the crime. However, I got to the end, having reviewed all of the material, with no clear solution in mind. I considered simply letting the DVD tell me who the perpetrator was, by selecting "Solve the Case", but decided to view the DVD again at a later time. I would suggest that you don't try to solve the case on the first run, it's more fun to let it all percolate a little.

The solution to the crime was indeed complicated enough to challenge the leetle grey cells. But a lot of the enjoyment of the game comes from the video sequences themselves as well as the other info provided. Playing the DVD is not as solitary and quiet as reading a printed book or as uninvolved and aesthetic as watching everything pass you by as in a typical feature film. Being able to make choices, review, and take your time makes the story a whole new experience. Stab In The Dark does suffer, however, from one unavoidable problem that I think is common to all such games. Once you have "solved" the crime it cannot be solved again, at least not by you. But, each new viewer of the DVD will be able to experience the case anew.