James Patterson: Women's Murder Club - A Darker Shade of Grey

A group of female crime investigators has to solve the mystery surrounding the death of a cadet from a prestigious Southern military academy.

Women's Murder Club: A Darker Shade Of Grey is another entry in the casual market penned and designed by Jane Jensen, famous for classic adventures like Gabriel Knight. The game combines elements from the adventure and hidden object genres. Most of the time, the screen shows an interactive location with a tab at the left side. This tab has a portrait of the player character, the hint button that can be used five times per chapter, the notepad listing all the actions and objectives that must be performed to complete the scene, the score points, the inventory with forensic equipment and three buttons to review clues, exit the scene or go to the main menu.

The objective of most locations is to collect evidence by clicking on shimmering spots on the scenery, bringing up an interactive zoom window. Some of these windows are separate puzzles where one of the inventory items has to be used. In other places, the goal is to find several instances of an object.

A recurring puzzle occurs in the forensic lab, where the substances collected from the crime scene have to be analysed on a separate screen. The player has to take specific bottles from a moving shelf, and drip the amount of drops described on the measuring device.

The game has several unique puzzles related to the locations where they are found. For example, in the cemetery the player has to match flowers to tombstones, and in the sports field the player has to sort balls. The puzzles can be skipped with the hint button.