History YMMV / MysteryCaseFiles

* AssPull: The ending of ''Fate's Carnival'', the last puzzle you have to solve is destroying Alister Dalimar's journal (which you've had since ''the beginning of the game'') with a silver dagger. However when that doesn't work, what do you use to stop it? [[spoiler:Your silver badge -- thanks to Madame Fate's advice -- which was originally used as the logo for the franchise which could've been used prior to the puzzle to end the game earlier!]]

* NightmareFuel: Increasing with each game in the ''Ravenhearst'' arc.
** People who have a phobia of skeletons would do well to keep away from these games, particularly ''13th Skull'' (as the name would imply).
** The fates of the performers in ''Madame Fate'' are all sorts of grisly. We have Art [[spoiler: stuffing his mouth with cigars, smoking himself to death]], Dante [[spoiler: being hung ''by his own tongue'']], and Francesco [[spoiler: being so hungry he died after ''eating a horse''.]]
** ''Escape From Ravenhearst'' comes with a trigger warning on the download page for a ''reason''. [[spoiler: Multiple reasons, in fact - among them, implied child abuse and a patient's eye view of a Victorian insane asylum.]]
* NoYay: Charles and the Master Detective's interactions in ''Escape from Ravenhearst''. First, he asks her to [[spoiler: "give birth to him"]]. [[ItMakesSenseInContext She does]]. Then he pulls off [[spoiler: an AccidentalMarriage trick]] on her. Gah.

* NoYay: Charles and detective's interactions in ''Escape from Ravenhearst''. First, he asks her to [[spoiler: "give birth to him"]]. [[ItMakesSenseInContext She does]]. Then he pulls off [[spoiler: an AccidentalMarriage trick]] on her. Gah.

* NoYay: Charles and detective's interactions in ''Escape from Ravenhearst''. First, he asks her to [[spoiler: "give birth to him"]]. [[ItMakesSenseInContext She does]]. Then he pulls off [[spoiler: an AccidentalMarriage trick]] on her. Gah.

* CompleteMonster: If you didn't think Alister Dalimar was one before, [[spoiler:learning that he killed his ''own daughter'' in order to kick off a clan feud that plays into his plan for gaining immortality]], you'd think he is now. The detective even comments that he's a complete madman, if he's still a man.

* AssPull: The ending of ''Fate's Carnival''. [[spoiler: As it turns out the diary that you find at the very end of the game that you use the dagger on? It's fake. How does the master detective stop Alister? Well apparently the diary they found at the ''beginning of the game'' is the real one, and they use their "Silver MCF Badge" to lay the killing blow!]]

* NightmareFuel: Increasing with each game, at least in the PC versions.

** ''Escape From Ravenhearst'' comes with a trigger warning on the download page for a ''reason''. [[spoiler: Multiple reasons, in fact -- implied child abuse and a patient's eye view of a Victorian insane asylum.]]

* CompleteMonster: ''Ravenhearst'''s Charles Dalimar seems like a StalkerWithACrush, hence is at least somewhat comprehensible as a villain, but he's become this trope in spades by ''Return''.
** His mother also, assuming [[spoiler: the re-creation of his childhood home for ''Escape'']] is accurate.

* FridgeBrilliance: The reason why you see Charles [[spoiler: as the killer who offed Madame Fate? It's personal; he used to be an exhibit in her carnival before sent into an asylum!]]
* FridgeHorror: The {{backstory}} of ''Dire Grove''. The banshee came into existence because of a virgin sacrifice - one which involved the girl being sealed in an ice cave until she died. ItMakesSenseInContext, but if you give it any thought after you solve the mystery...no wonder she wanted revenge!
* FridgeLogic: Who exactly drew the sketches in Emma's diary in ''Ravenhearst''? Especially the one of [[spoiler:Charles about to kill her with a hatchet]]? It could be that the detective herself was the one who drew most of them, but there's no indication that she should have known that particular detail. Artistic license?
** FridgeBrilliance: ''Escape'' reveals that ghosts can alter the appearance of objects, so maybe the "sketches" were blank paper until the Master Detective started reading the diary and Emma made the drawings appear.
** Additional FridgeLogic: What use is it to track down and dispose of the cursed horn from ''Shadow Lake'', if [[spoiler: the ''rest'' of the demon skeleton is left lying around where anyone who snoops around the ruined prison could find it?]]

* ExcusePlot: The plots in all the games are basically excuses to look for random objects in cluttered scenes.

** The fates of the performers in ''Madame Fate'' are all sorts of grisly. We have Art [[spoiler: stuffing his mouth with cigars, smoking himself to death]], Dante [[spoiler: being hung ''by his own tongue'']], and Francesco [[spoiler: being so hungry he died after ''eating a horse''.]]

* HighOctaneNightmareFuel: Increasing with each game, at least in the PC versions.

* FridgeBrilliance: The reason why you see Charles [[spoiler: as the killer who offed Madame Fate? It's personal; he used to be an exhibit in her carnival before sent into an asylum!]]

** The fates of the performers in ''Madame Fate'' are all sorts of grisly. We have Art [[spoiler: stuffing his mouth with cigars, smoking himself to death]], Dante [[spoiler: being hung ''by his own tongue'']], and Francesco [[spoiler: being so hungry he died after ''eating a horse''.]]

** The fates of the performers in ''Madame Fate'' are all sorts of grizzly. We have Art [[spoiler: stuffing his mouth with cigars, smoking himself to death]], Dante [[spoiler: being hung ''by his own tongue'']], and Francesco [[spoiler: being so hungry he died after ''eating a horse''.]]

* AccidentalNightmareFuel: Increasing with each game, at least in the PC versions.
** People who have a phobia of skeletons would do well to keep away from these games, particularly ''13th Skull'' (as the name would imply).
** The fates of the performers in ''Madame Fate'' are all sorts of grizzly. We have Art [[spoiler: stuffing his mouth with cigars, smoking himself to death]], Dante [[spoiler: being hung ''by his own tongue'']], and Francesco [[spoiler: being so hungry he died after ''eating a horse''.]]

* CrowningMomentOfFunny: In ''13th Skull'', the bartender at the local dive asks you to unclog the toilet. When you succeed, you are heralded by the sounds of people cheering and applauding.

* FridgeBrilliance: The reason why you see Charles [[spoiler: as the killer who offed Madame Fate? It's personal; he used to be an exhibit in her carnival before sent into an asylum!]]

** His mother also, assuming [[spoiler: the re-creation of his childhood home]] is accurate.

** FridgeBrilliance: ''Escape'' reveals that ghosts can alter the appearance of objects, so maybe the "sketches" were blank paper until the Master Detective started reading the diary and Emma made the drawings appear.

** FridgeBrilliance: ''Escape'' reveals that ghosts can alter the appearance of objects, so maybe the "sketches" were blank paper until the Master Detective started reading the diary and Emma made the drawings appear?

** FridgeBrilliance: ''Escape'' reveals that ghosts can alter the appearance of objects, so maybe the "sketches" were blank until the Master Detective started reading the diary?

* FridgeLogic: Who exactly drew the sketches in Emma's diary in ''Ravenhearst''? Especially the one of [[spoiler:Charles about to kill her with a hatchet]]? It could be that the detective herself was the one who drew most of them, but there's no indication that she should have known that particular detail. Artistic license?

* NightmareFuel: Increasing with each game, at least in the PC versions.

* ExcusePlot: The plots in all the games are basically excuses to look for random objects in cluttered scenes.