The Silver Case

The Silver Case is the first game made from Japanese game developer Grasshopper Manufacture. It was specifically written by Suda 51, and is part two in a series despite the series generally taking the name of this game.

The Silver Case series consists of:


 * Moonlight Syndrome: the sequel to two games in the Twilight Syndrome series, and the last game Suda 51 wrote for Human before he founded Grasshopper. The Twilight Syndrome games generally deal with a guy and two girls in high school who investigate paranormal events. Moonlight Syndrome, however, introduces a god named Mithra and another girl named Yayoi, who manipulates Mithra into convincing the guy to kill Yayoi in order to bring one of the two girls back to life after she was killed..


 * The Silver Case: this one picks up immediately after Moonlight Syndrome ends, with the remaining boy and girl nearly killing a police officer, and getting gunned down themselves in turn. And that's just the prologue!


 * Flower, Sun, and Rain: this one takes place an indeterminate amount of time after The Silver Case, and develops the stories of a few secondary characters present in that game, including, theoretically, Yayoi from Moonlight Syndrome.


 * The Silver Case: Ward 25: this one was only released on Japanese cell phones, and seems to feature the main characters from both Flower, Sun, and Rain and the original Silver Case, as well as two new characters.

The Silver Case is divided into several chapters, and two distinct parts. The first part "Transmitter" follows an ex-public mercenary named Akira, as he's transferred to the Ward 24 Police Homicide Division, following the death of his entire team at the hands of a mysterious man named Kamui. The second part "Placebo" is the story of a reporter named Tokio Morishima who tries to figure out the connection between Kamui, a mysterious woman named Ayame Shimohara, and the city's government.

The "Transmitter" section is divided into six parts:

Lunatics: in which the events of Moonlight Syndrome are brought to a close. The player is introduced to the lead detective from the Ward 24 Homicide Division, Tetsugorō Kusabi, in this chapter.

Decoyman: in which all of Akira's team is murdered in the woods while chasing down Kamui. With Akira the only survivor, he is recruited to join Kusabi's team to try to capture Kamui. They get a call from a reporter named Tokio Morishima, who has tracked Kamui to a mall. When they get there, they only find him.

Spectrum: in which the personalities of some of Akira's team members are fleshed out, in a case that concerns the abduction of a child, and the protection of the child's best friend, the only witness.

Parade:.

KamuiDrome:.

LifeCut:.

The "Placebo" section of the game stars Tokio Morishima, an freelance journalist, as he tries to piece together the truth behind "The Silver Case". The governmental structure of Ward 24 was split between two political factions: The TRO/CCO, and the FSO. The TRO/CCO was run by Kaoru Hachisuka, and the FSO by a foreigner named Sundance Shot. In 1979, Sundance sent a professional assassin named Uehara Kamui to a building that the TRO/CCO leaders were having a meeting at. All of the leaders except for Kaoru were killed, and Tetsugorō Kusabi arrested Kamui. He was eventually imprisoned and when the connection between him and Sundance became known, Sundance was forced to flee Japan and go back home.

At least, that's the story the public heard. Tokio discovered the truth, which was.

Following the revelation, Tokio gave all of the information to Akira with the idea that Akira would inform the press, and then Tokio went on vacation. .


 * All There in the Manual: Lots of plot details are shown in the manual's character chart, including characters' full names, the structure of the police and security departments, and even some characters who don't actually appear anywhere in the game.
 * And Now for Someone Completely Different: The "Placebo" storyline puts you in the shoes of the reporter Tokio Morishima, following the events from the "Transmitter" storyline from the outside.
 * Arc Words: "Kill the Past".
 * Cluster F-Bomb: Kusabi is the greatest offender of this.
 * Cyberpunk: Downplayed, but definitely present, especially in the Kamuidrome case.
 * Denouement Episode: Tamura, although there are actually two post-climax chapters, and four as of 2017.
 * Episode Zero: The Beginning: Lunatics.
 * Five-Man Band: The main Heinous Crimes Unit detectives (minus Kiyoshi Morikawa).
 * The Leader: Testugoro Kusabi.
 * The Lancer: Sumio Kodai.
 * The Smart Guy: Morichika Nakategawa.
 * The Big Guy: Akira.
 * The Chick: Chizuru Hachisuka.
 * Sixth Ranger: Sakura Netsuke.
 * Idiosyncratic Episode Naming: "Transmitter" chapters are "cases"; "Placebo" chapters are "reports".
 * Inciting Incident: "The Silver Case", named after Kamui's assassination of a government official and, later, 10 senior citizens.
 * Jurisdiction Friction: Republic and Central both seem to have a very poor opinion of the HCU.
 * Psychological Thriller: One of Suda's darkest works.
 * Red Shirt Army: Republic, sans the Player Character.
 * Two Lines, No Waiting: The seemingly intended playing order of alternating between Transmitter cases and Placebo reports, although the player is free to choose their own order to an extent.
 * Unusual Chapter Numbers: Transmitter. It starts at 0 and proceeds to 5 normally, but then goes to ! and then jumps to 25.
 * Wham! Episode: Parade and Lifecut. And Lunatics, for the Moonlight Syndrome angle.