Jake Hunter

History

The first game of the series, Shinjuku Chūō Kōen Satsujin Jiken (新宿中央公園殺人事件, Shinjuku Central Park Murder Mystery) was released in 1987 by Data East for the Family Computer Disk System. Numerous sequels have been released since then, and the series marked its 20th anniversary in 2007 by releasing a new title for the Nintendo DS. According to Enterbrain, the franchise has sold over 2,220,000 copies in total, making it one of the longest standing and best-selling Japanese adventure game series in history.

Family Computer

Tantei Jingūji Saburō debuted on the Family Computer with advanced graphics, sound effects, and distinct hardboiled scenarios to set itself apart from other adventure games of the time. Kazushige Nojima wrote the scenarios for the 3rd and 4th installments of the series. Time played an important role in the Famicom games, as each command selected by the player caused a certain amount of time to elapse within the game, and failure to solve the mystery during the allotted time period would result in a bad ending. This time system was later revived in the 7th installment of the series.

Fifth generation consoles

Production was halted after the 4th installment, but was revived in 1996 with the release of the 5th game in the series on the PlayStation and Sega Saturn. The series was revamped with improved graphics and sound made possible by the use of the CD-ROM, and featured voice acting for the first time.

Sixth generation consoles

In 2003, Data East went bankrupt, permanently halting production of many of its game series. WorkJam took over production of Tantei Jingūji Saburō, and the series continued with two games released for the PlayStation 2 and two games released as mobile phone applications. There are currently 12 console games in the entire series and 16 mobile phone games; 4 of which are remakes from the console releases.

Characters

The main character of the series is Jake Hunter (known in Japan as Saburō Jingūji (神宮寺三郎, Jingūji Saburō)), a 32 year-old private detective who operates a detective agency in Aspicio, USA (Shinjuku, Tokyo in Japanese versions). He was born as the third son of a wealthy business enterprise owner, and traveled to New York City during his youth to work as an assistant detective. He is a heavy smoker, and often assembles his thoughts while smoking a Marlboro cigarette. According to his in-game profile, his favorite alcoholic beverage is cognac, and he drives a green Mini Cooper.

Other recurring characters include: Yulia Marks (known in Japan as Yōko Misono (御苑洋子, Misono Yōko)), Jake's assistant, and Scott Kingsley (known in Japan as Sanzō Kumano (熊野参造, Kumano Sanzō)), the inspector of the Aspicio police.

Voice acting

Voice acting was first used in certain game scenes in the 5th installment, Mikan no Rupo (未完のルポ, The Unfinished Reportage), and has been implemented in all subsequent releases, excluding those released as mobile phone applications. Jingūji's character has been voiced by Yukimasa Kishino, Akio Ōtsuka, Jūrōta Kosugi, and Kaoru Katō. Yōko's character has been voiced by Tsumugi Ōsawa, Yōko Saitō, Fumiko Orikasa, and Kazue Nakamoto. Other notable voice actors include Fumihiko Tachiki, Kōji Ishii, and Masaaki Tsukada as Sanzō Kumano.

Mobile phone series

The mobile phone games were developed by WorkJam. The first four games are remakes of the original Famicom versions, with minor changes made in text.

Other media

Eight novels based around the game have been released from 1988 to 2007 by various authors and publishing companies (most notably Dengeki Bunko and Famitsu Bunko). Four soundtrack CDs have also been released.

The first four games in the series were released on the Wii's Virtual Console exclusively in Japan.