Review: Frog Detective 2: The Case of the Invisible Wizard

The newest installment in Worm Club’s quaint Frog Detective series has arrived, which means it’s time to hop back into some wholesome mystery solving. This next chapter picks up right where the last game left off, even making a joke about the time between releases. The Detective has a new case, as once again, Lobster Cop has other matters on his claws. For this newest adventure, you’re off to Warlock Woods to discover who destroyed the sleepy town’s upcoming parade.

Much like its predecessor, Frog Detective 2 is mostly centered on relatively simple adventure game puzzles. Pretty much everyone in town needs something, as you learn through interviewing them, and it’s up to you to help them out. By giving someone the thing they need, you usually get something someone else needs, and it’s kind of a domino effect from there. Sometimes the logic of why someone is giving you an item tracks, and sometimes it’s just kind of random. So it goes in the sleuthing field.

You can keep track of these needed items in the newly added journal the Detective receives at the start. Each person they meet is catalogued in the journal, alongside their potential motive, what they need you to find, and any other notes the detective deems relevant. The journal is also customizable, with a pretty wide selection of funky little stickers to decorate the cover. 

This is the biggest change that Frog Detective 2 comes with. Beyond the journal’s addition, it’s pretty much more of what you’d expect. The conversations are charmingly blunt, and a twee humor permeates every interaction. It’s a comedic style that will either work for you or it won’t. Personally, I enjoy Bruxner’s world building the most. Little things like the Detective canonically hating books and thinking they have no place in society, or not having a single money to their name, despite having an assumedly successful business, made me smile while playing. 

It’s by no means groundbreaking, or even all that interesting, but playing Frog Detective 2 is a nice way to spend an hour. If you just need something silly that will make you smile, or happen to be in the mood for a lowkey, quirky mystery, this game will fit you better than any hat (play the game, and this joke will be slightly funnier)