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It\u2019s way past midnight, I\u2019m chugging an ill-advised late-night coffee, and I\u2019m intensely tapping my fingers, pondering what to type into a fake \u201890s-era search engine. I tell myself I\u2019ll call it a night after I find one more lead confirming another relative\u2019s place on their family tree. I would spend many evenings reciting the same lie to myself. The Roottrees Are Dead is an investigative mystery game that captivated, surprised, stumped, and, occasionally, infuriated me. It also became my first obsession of 2025.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Set in 1998, the president of a successful candy and fashion empire, his wife, and his three celebrity teenage daughters tragically perish in a plane crash. These are the Roottrees, and they hail from a generationally wealthy family whose corporate empire dates back to the late 19th century. You control an investigator hired by a mysterious client to uncover every blood relative of the Roottrees to piece together their family tree for an unknown purpose. The premise immediately hooked me, and the ensuing mystery rewarded my curiosity.\u00a0<\/p>\n