Emio turns out to be a new Famicom Detective Club title, launching Aug 29 on Nintendo Switch

Remember that creepy Emio trailer that Nintendo dropped last week? We even discussed it on the latest episode of the Pure Nintendo Podcast. Well, the wait is over as Nintendo has revealed the full details. It was Famicom Detective Club all along.

The next installment in the Famicom Detective Club series is on its way after quite a long break. In the game, players will investigate a crime and unmask the truth in a dark, twisted thriller when Emio – The Smiling Man: Famicom Detective Club launches on Nintendo Switch system Auguset 29.

In Emio, a student has been found dead in a chilling fashion. How chilling? Well, let’s just say his head is covered with a paper bag with an eerie smiling face drawn on it.  Yeah, the teaser was alluding to something pretty specific. In the game, this unsettling visage resembles a recurring clue in a string of unsolved murders from 18 years ago. It’s also reminiscent of an urban killer known as Emio (the Smiling Man) who is said to grant his victims “a smile that will last forever.” Eek!

As an assistant private investigator with Utsugi Detective Agency, you’re tasked with helping the police solve this dark crime. Along the way, you’ll need to scrutinize those clues and testimonies for potential connections to the gruesome events of the past.

Emio – The Smiling Man: Famicom Detective Club marks the first new Famicom Detective Club story in 35 years. Yep – 35 years. The original game was released way back in 1988 and only in Japan, followed by several sequels and remakes. The only western release is the 2021 remakes for the Nintendo Switch system: Famicom Detective Club: The Missing Heir and Famicom Detective Club: The Girl Who Stands Behind.

You can learn more about this new installment from a video with series producer Yoshio Sakamoto, who was involved from the plot foundations to the small details of the script and cutscenes. We can’t embed it because of the age rating.

It sounds like an interesting-if-terrifying story, and the revival of an old IP is always an exciting premise. Will you be taking on the mystery of the The Smiling Man this August? Let us know in the comments section.

Emio – The Smiling Man: Famicom Detective Club will retail for US$49.99, with pre-orders open now. View more information, inlcuding pre-order details, on the Nintendo eShop.