What is Spade Investigations?
Use your investigating skills to solve Zephyr City’s most heinous crimes through the eyes of infamous detective Nick Spade. This steampunk noir city is a rats nest of secrets and lies. Do you have what it takes to earn the title The Ace of Spades?Spade Investigations is a narrative-driven detective adventure game showcasing the unique marriage of film noir and steampunk styles. Players will control Nick Spade – infamous private detective with a clouded past – and explore the black and white metropolis landscape of Zephyr City. Accent colors alight the city and draw the players to points and people of interest. With the help of his robot companion Gizbo and a menagerie of complex characters, Nick will uncover Zephyr City’s lost secrets, bring justice to the forlorn, and find answers to his lost past.
Characters
Nick Spade
The Ace of Spades
After a decade of solving the city’s most baffling mysteries, Nick Spade has established himself as Zephyr City’s premier private investigator. This brooding dick has a veiled past, an insightful mind, a stalwart sense of justice, and a dapper black hat. Nick’s cases have taken him to places all over the city from the city pound to City Hall. With his quick wit and quicker mind, there isn’t a thing that makes it past this detective’s keen eyes. Those who know him usually call him Nick. Those who don’t simply refer to him as the Ace of Spades.
Betty Lockheart
Mother of Bots
Betty Lockheart is a young upstart inventor and creator of Betty-Bots TM Betty is a scatterbrained ramble master with a caring soul: traits which also come to life in the personalities of her creations. She looks up to her uncle Thomas – another famous engineering businessman in Zephyr City – as the epitome of intelligence and success. Her uncle has a strong influence on Betty, but the love she has for her father Sherman is unmatched. The two have a strong bond. Even after she strode out to find success on her own in Zephyr City, the two make time to meet every week at their favorite diner for breakfast. When Sherman never showed up to their regular meetup, Betty was sure something was wrong. Months later, the rest of the Z.C.P.D. has given up looking for the lost officer. With nowhere left to turn, Betty ends up on the stoop of Zephyr City’s Ace of Spades – Gizbo in tow – to hopefully find what has become of her wayward father.
Gizbo
clank-clank-whirr
Betty-Bott TM model GZ-80 is a feat of engineering genius brought to you by Betty Lockheart. Like all Betty-Bots, Gizbo is an automaton unlike any other that you will find in Zephyr City. He runs on readily available O.E.M. or third-party steam cells operating on a tri-tiered performance spec based on cell capacity and usage. Though, there is perhaps some additional spark that sets Gizbo apart from the rest of his kind. Developed with the intention of aiding in investigations, Gizbo was originally created as an aid for Betty’s father Sherman on the Z.C.P.D. After Sherman’s recent disappearance, Gizbo finds himself in the service of Zephyr City’s own Nick Spade.
shirly knockout
K.O.
Knockout is her maiden name, and she keeps it like a badge of honor. She knows exactly how to play to her strengths as a sensual demure woman. Using the tools at her disposal, she can get almost anything she desires. Married to a high-ranking banker at Cirrus National Bank, she lives a comfortable life in the lap of luxury. Not all that glitters is gold, it seems, as Shirley suspects her husband of being unfaithful. Now fate has brought her to the office of the only man in town who can make heads or tails of the situation.
lester watts
gets results
Lester Watts is a police detective for the Zephyr City Police Department. He was also Sherman Lockheart’s partner and best friend before his disappearance. He loves to lighten the mood, always telling jokes, which was always in stark contrast to Sherman’s rigid and serious persona. He took pride in being one of the few people that could always make Sherman laugh. Even though the rest of the department seems to be content in shelving the case of the missing officer, Watts refuses to give up the trail.
primrose cadwell
the songbird
Primrose is the daughter of Mayor Arnold Cadwell. At a young age she took an interest in music. The moment she was old enough to venture out on her own, she set out to make her fortune as a singer. Partly because of her father’s name, but mostly because of her perfect storm of talent, beauty, and charisma, Primrose quickly rose in the scene as a young superstar. Primrose is headstrong, ambitious, and independent-minded. Much like her father, she has a knack for the game of politics which she uses to her advantage when negotiating with managers and record labels.
crazy ray
Aliens!!!
Ray has lived in Zephyr City Park for over 20 years. He’s seen a lot of strange stuff over the years. To Ray, Aliens are a very real part of this world; he’s not afraid to share this with everyone he meets.Unfortunately for Nick Spade, Ray also happens to be the last person to see Sherman Lockheart alive before his disappearance.
The World
City Park
Originally a major rail hub owned by the Merem Family, the land was donated to Zephyr City. Now, citizens can enjoy a stroll through the rose garden, boat out in the picturesque lake, or even hitch a ride on the carousel. Fancy a quick bite? Head to the Clock House Café to enjoy any number of tasty treats in the renovated railway station.Nova Lux District
Colloquially known as, “The Lux,” the Nova Lux district is the beating heart of Zephyr City. Here the city offers high-rises, high salaries, and high stakes. When the sun goes down, The Lux really shines with its active nightlife and social scene.Nick’s Office
The humble home of the Zephyr City Ace himself. One of the few low density residential properties in The Lux. Inside, expect to find all the comforts of a modern home such as climate control, full plumbing, pneumatic communications, and files upon files of intrigue and scandal.
Gameplay
Zephyr City offers a detective experience like no other!
Unlock new areas of the city by completing cases and unlocking tools for Gizbo.
Interact with unique characters that impact how you play the game.
Use Gizbo’s tools to traverse the city, sneak into locked areas, find hidden clues, and solve puzzles.
Interrogation mode lets you confront suspects with evidence to prove their guilt.
Meet the dev. team
Join our Team
We're looking for talent!
Calling all Riggers and Character Modelers! The Spade Investigations Art Department needs YOUR help! We're currently seeking extra hands to help finish up a small demo we've been working on to pitch to publishers.What's Spade Investigations Got to Offer Anyway?
A narrative-driven detective adventure game.
The unique aesthetic union of Film Noir and Steam Punk art styles!
Zephyr City's black and white metropolis, sheltering secrets and lies for you to demystify! Do you have what it takes to earn the title, The Ace of Spades?
It's a detective experience truly like no other!Being a small start-up built by graduates, we have yet to receive funding for this project. As of now, we are all working on the game in our spare time. Several of our team members also maintain full time jobs. While we don't have the budget for immediate compensation, we are offering all team members revenue share from the final product! We've already been approached by a few interested publishers but don't currently have enough playable content to warrant partnerships. We are hard at work — producing a prototype, which consists of one full case in game, and a story trailer, in the hopes of securing funding in the near future!A Note: This game has recently undergone a title change! It was formerly known as Ace of Spades. Some of our content still sports the old name and logo, but rest assured! This is the same game! We apologize for any potential confusion this may cause! We're currently hard at work updating our assets!Still interested? Great we thought you would be! Thank you for taking the time to consider lending us a hand! Below you'll find a link to our application! We're all thoroughly excited and hope to hear from you soon!