Line #58 VideoGame/EagleEyeMysteries


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7	-> ''Hi, I'm Jake Eagle''...
8	-> ...''' ''and I'm Jennifer Eagle'' '''.
9
10	''Eagle Eye Mysteries'' is a two-part EdutainmentGame series developed by Stormfront Studios (now defunct as of 2008) and published by the Creative Wonders (EA*Kids) studio. It was released for the PC and Platform/AppleMacintosh computers and playable on DOS, as a first-person detective game involving reading, puzzle-solving, and much research on the part of the player. The series is for players aged 8 and up, which means adults can get in on the fun as well.
11
12	The first game, ''Eagle Eye Mysteries: The Original'' (referred to as ''EEM Original'' in this article), was released in 1993, and its sequel, ''Eagle Eye Mysteries in London'' (hereafter identified as ''EEM London''), was released in 1994.
13
14	The premise: Pre-teen [[SiblingTeam twin siblings]] [[PrivateDetective Jake]] and [[KidDetective Jennifer]] [[AmateurSleuth Eagle]] are the founders of the Eagle Eye Detective Agency, which is based out of their hometown of [[EverytownAmerica Richview, USA]] [[GeographicFlexibility (it's never stated where exactly the town is situated)]]. In the first game, they solve mysteries that take place in and around Richview and that involve their friends, neighbors, and other close residents. In the sequel, the two go on vacation to visit their Aunt Miranda, Uncle Basil and cousin Nigel (also Eagles themselves) in London, England, hoping to take a break from sleuthing...only to find mysteries waiting for them in [[CityOfAdventure London and its environs]]. You, as the player, are a member of the Agency who can partner with either of the siblings to solve cases, collect clues and [[PoliceAreUseless help the police collar criminals]].
15
16	In-game, Jake and Jennifer use a hand-held electronic notebook called a [[MagicalComputer TRAVIS]] (short for Text Retrieval And Video Input System), which can store notes and photos of suspects or other pictures for easy reference later when going through clues to solve the mystery. [[AllThereInTheManual According to the game manual]], they also adhere to a strict series of rules that govern mystery-solving, allowing them (and you) to better sift through clues, identify the ones that are most relevant to the case, and thus correctly identify the guilty party.
17
18	Each game begins with a [[JustifiedTutorial practice mystery]] that the player can access to get a feel of how gameplay works. In ''EEM London,'' when you start playing for the first time, you're immediately launched into the practice mystery, as it sets the pace for the game's underlying StoryArc, where the kids will have to match wits with an elusive criminal known only as [[TheChessmaster Macavity]].
19
20	The mysteries are separated into "books," each containing roughly 25 mysteries. In ''EEM Original'', there are three books, Book 1, Book 2, and a "Challenge Book." The cases in Books 1 and 2 have the same names, but those in Book 2 are slightly harder, with different clues and different outcomes. The Challenge Book only contains six mysteries, each with significantly higher difficulty.
21
22	In ''EEM London'', there are two books, with the cases in Book 1 being very different from those in Book 2 and with approximately the same level of difficulty across all the cases. (On a side note, both books in ''EEM London'' contain exactly 25 cases, which means you get to solve 50 mysteries in all - not counting the [[JustifiedTutorial introductory mystery]] that you get when you first start playing the game.)
23
24	Its [[https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Characters/EagleEyeMysteries character sheet]] is complete (for now).
25
26	----
27	!!This video game series provides examples of:
28
29	[[foldercontrol]]
30
31	[[folder:Tropes in Both Games]]
32	* ActionPrologue: Each case begins with a bit of dialogue that sets the stage for the upcoming mystery to be solved, sometimes involving activity that's happening InMediasRes and that the kids are only just getting wind of.
33	* AdultsAreUseless: [[AvertedTrope Actually, no]], most adults are ''very'' helpful when it comes to giving information. [[PoliceAreUseless The police's ability to solve cases without the Eagles' help, on the other hand...]]
34	* AllThereInTheManual: The manuals for both games show you how to work your way around the various menus and maps and how to select clues in the TRAVIS to solve each case. ''EEM London's'' game manual contains guides for semaphores, hieroglyphs, train schedules, and the names of British monarchs and when they reigned. The game also comes with a map of in-game London that the player can use to find his/her way around.
35	* AlliterativeName: Most of the case-names in both games, although it's stretched a bit with ''EEM London''[='=]s "Case of the Sherlock Holmes Hoax" and "Case of the Robin Hood Hacker."
36	* BadLiar: Many of the guilty suspects turn out to be this when you're interviewing them.
37	* BreakingTheFourthWall: A necessary part of both games' [[JustifiedTutorial practice mysteries]]. In-story, in ''EEM London''[='=]s "Case of the Marlford Murder," Count von Coburg does it constantly, forgetting that he's supposed to be playing the murder victim and is therefore supposed to be playing dead.
38	* CatchPhrase: "Cool!", "Aha!", "Hmmm...", "You got it!", "You figured it out!", "Excellent!", "Let's check the evidence!" (this last one in the first game only), and "Let's go!" (at the partner select screen when you start the game).
39	* CityOfAdventure: Richview in the first game, London (and a few outlying towns) in the sequel.
40	* ConvictionByContradiction: This tends to be how you can finger a suspect, but not always.
41	* ConvictionByCounterfactualClue: This also shows up occasionally, though it's often justified if the case is about proving whether a historical artifact is real or not. For example, in ''EEM London'', four artifacts related to Literature/SherlockHolmes have been donated to the official fan club, and one of them is a fraud; you need to prove which one is the fake.
42	** This also gets played with in [[spoiler:the Challenge Book's version of "Case of the Attacking Aliens" in ''EEM1''. An alien challenges you to prove that it is real to the rest of the world. Nothing it says outright contradicts the facts and there are no obvious culprits, so the correct answer is to say that the alien is real!]] Naturally, [[spoiler:it ''isn't'' real, just an experiment by some local university professors to test peoples' acceptance of new and impossible ideas.]]
43	* DeathIsASlapOnTheWrist: If the player selects the right clues but accuses the wrong suspect, Jake/Jennifer will simply tell you that you're wrong, and then you have to select the clues again.
44	* DevilInPlainSight: Many characters, many times.
45	* DickDastardlyStopsToCheat: In mysteries where competitions are the focus of the case to be solved, it often transpires that ''someone'' was doing this in an effort to get an edge over a rival.
46	* EagleEyeDetection: {{Trope Namer\|s}}.
47	--> '''Jake/Jennifer:''' That's why we named ourselves the Eagle Eye Detective Agency, (player's name). [[LampshadeHanging Because we never overlook a clue!]]
48	* EdutainmentGame: There's always something to learn from the cases in both games, usually history-related.
49	* EvenEvilHasStandards: One of the suspects in the first game's "Case of the Reckless Robber" is stated to have perfect manners. Also, Macavity in the sequel goes the extra mile to ensure that his/her criminal schemes don't actually harm anyone, as Inspector Gage admits.
50	* EveryoneIsASuspect: In quite a few cases. They include "Case of the Midnight Masquerade" and "Case of the Basketball Blooper" in ''EEM Original'' and "Case of the Marlford Murder" in ''EEM London''.
51	* TheFaceless: The first person perspective is given with you, the player.
52	* FairPlayWhodunnit: For seasoned players.
53	* {{Foreshadowing}}:
54	** Pay keen attention to anything that is learned regarding [[spoiler:Mrs. Harper's family finances]] in ''EEM Original''. It'll be important later on.
55	** In the same game, in Book 1's version of "Case of the Midnight Masquerade," there's a slight animation error that will later prove to be a vital clue in Book 2. [[spoiler:The tear in the gorilla costume.]]
56	** Anything regarding [[spoiler:the Cheswicks]] in ''EEM London'' will be important to the outcome of the game's final mystery.
57	* HiddenInPlainSight: Sometimes, in-universe, clues tend to be this.
58	* HintsAreForLosers: An averted trope; in both games, at the screen where you can select clues from your TRAVIS to accuse the guilty party, you can click on Jake/Jennifer's head to get up to two hints as to the clues you need to pick.
59	* HyperAwareness: The player gets to develop this with repeated playing, as each scene he/she visits has bright blue box outlines around people who can talk to you, or around clues in the area. In the sequel, the boxes can be disabled in the game's menu screen to increase the difficulty of sleuthing (also lowering or canceling the Hyper Awareness in favor of making the player actually search the screen for the mouse icon to change, indicating that something of relevance can be checked).
60	* IdiotBall: Handled often by people who you would expect ought to know better, especially when it comes to their [[InformedAbility field of expertise]]. Read: cops, scholars, and other people in authority.
61	* JustifiedTutorial: Both games have a practice mystery where the player can get a feel of how game-play works. In ''EEM London'', when you begin playing for the very first time, you're immediately launched into the practice mystery, although you can quit it midway through and go straight to the main cases to be solved.
62	* LimitedWardrobe: It's rare to see any of the characters in anything other than their regular outfits.
63	* MagicalComputer: The TRAVIS.
64	* MasqueradeBall: A few cases have the kids solving mysteries at one of these.
65	* MeaningfulName: Most characters across both games. For the protagonists, in the second game's "Case of Bronwyn's Bequest," Jake and Jennifer's cousin Nigel remarks that the family got its surname because their ancestor, Perceval Eagle, was a falconer who trained a great eagle for a monarch. On a related note, the term "eagle-eyed" means to be sharply observant, especially given that the bird itself is reputed for having excellent eyesight.
66	* NotNowKiddo: Averted; despite the main characters being children, nobody ever brushes them off. This is justified, as by the time your character joins the Eagle Eyes at the start of the first game, they've already established themselves as competent detectives.
67	* OhCrap:
68	** Bobby Garcia in ''EEM Original'' when he realizes he may have allowed a con artist to clean him out of all his birthday money, some of which he should have put in the bank like his mother had instructed him to.
69	--> '''Bobby Garcia:''' If my mom finds out I spent it all...I'll be grounded till I'm ''65!''
70	** Politician Sir Toby Uppingham has a very similar reaction in ''EEM London''[='=]s "Case of the Envelope Espionage," when he realizes that the seal on a top-secret government envelope in his possession has been tampered with.
71	--> '''Sir Toby:''' Oooohhh...the Minister will send me to be Postmaster of an uninhabited island...!
72	** Inspector Gage has an ''epic'' dismal reaction in "Case of Macavity's Mace," when he realizes that [[BigBad Macavity]] is very likely among a group of guests touring various sites throughout London...who are, at that moment, touring the Tower of London, where the Crown Jewels are kept.
73	* OurGhostsAreDifferent: In this case, they always turn out to be someone or something that's been mistaken for a ghost.
74	* PlayerHeadquarters: The Eagle's Nest in the first game, and the Eagle family's upstairs garret in the second game.
75	* ThePlayerIsTheMostImportantResource:
76	-->Our most important resource is you. You're our partner in all the Eagle Eye cases, and we depend on you to notice things we might miss and help us out during the course of our investigations. And in the end, it's up to you to point to the guilty party.
77	* PointAndClickMap: The two games provide maps of Richview (in the first game) and London (in the sequel). When you're at the map screen, the locations you need to visit are identified by flashing diamonds, with the scene of the crime marked by a flashing red diamond (and thus it being the first place you should go to). Once you've collected all the information at a given location, its diamond will stop flashing and turn solid blue (including the crime scene diamond). In ''EEM London,'' if new information is available at a previously-visited site, its diamond will flash again.
78	* PoliceAreUseless: Evidently, wherever the Eagle Eyes are (Richview or London), the local police can't completely solve crimes without their help.
79	* PunnyName: All over the place, sometimes overlapping with MeaningfulName.
80	* ReasonableAuthorityFigure: Most of the authority figures in both games fit the bill.
81	* RedHerring: Not all suspects are the obvious ones, especially in those cases where the difficulty setting is increased.
82	* RememberTheNewGuy: Happens several times in both games, where characters are introduced who the player has never seen before but who Jake and Jennifer have apparently had prior off-screen acquaintances with.
83	** One of the most glaring examples of this is found in the first game, where late into the game two brothers, Michael and Christopher Gallin, are introduced who have certainly never shown up at any earlier point in the game but who the Eagles are evidently familiar with.
84	** Noticeably averted in ''EEM London''[='=]s "Case of the Perilous Pixies." At the start of the mystery, Rae Maringh--who you've never met in any of the cases prior--phones the detectives at the Eagle family home and acknowledges that you and she have never met, but that she knows of your exploits through Nigel, who's a good friend of hers.
85	* TheReveal: At the end of each case, when the player has correctly identified the guilty party.
86	* TheRival: In ''EEM Original'', Willy Barr has at least two rivals for his skateboarding skills, Mike Walker and Dave Grant. ''EEM London'' has musical rivals Astrid and Regina, and their respective bands Stiff Upper Lip and Tone Def.
87	* RoguesGallery: Consists mostly of one-shot criminals who are never mentioned again at the close of a case. Recurring antagonists between both games (that can be included without spoilers) include [[EvilCounterpart Mark Moriarty]], [[JerkJock Dave Grant]], [[SnakeOilSalesman Jackie King]], [[BlackMarket Mr. Griffin]], [[SmugSnake Ned Bassett]], and [[TheChessmaster Macavity]]; of these six, three have engaged in borderline or outright criminal behavior, and the rest are largely [[JerkAss jerks]] on the worst of days.
88	* ShownTheirWork: Regarding the research put into assembling the factual details pertaining to each case.
89	* TooDumbToLive: Some of the guilty suspects come across this way.
90	* TrophyRoom: After each mystery is solved, clippings of newspaper headlines praising the detectives' work or letters of gratitude from those who were helped are kept in scrap-books by the Eagle Eyes.
91	* UrbanLegends:
92	** In ''EEM Original''[='=]s "Case of the Ghastly Ghost," it's revealed that the town of Richview has a legend about a woman named Niagara Tumbel, who supposedly fell off the balcony of the Egyptian Theater after fainting while watching a horror movie there in 1925. In reality, as the Eagle Eyes soon learn, Ms. Tumbel was an actress who pretended to faint while watching the movie, in order to attract publicity for the film.
93	** In ''EEM London''[='=]s "Case of the Perilous Pixies," it's discovered that most of Dartmoor's residents believe very strongly in the existence of faeries, pixies, and the like. Plus, there are all the familiar stories about King Arthur and Camelot, which are the focus of "Case of the Crumbling Castle."
94	* WorthyOpponent: Both Mark Moriarty and Macavity consider the Eagle Eye Detective Agency as this.
95	* YouMeddlingKids: The actual words are never spoken, but some guilty parties will acknowledge that you and the Eagles are the only reason their schemes failed.
96	[[/folder]]
97
98	[[folder:Tropes in ''EEM Original'']]
99	* ClearMyName: The underlying mission in Book 1's version of "Case of the Runaway Reptile."
100	* ClearTheirName: The focal point of Books 1 and 2's versions of "Case of the Basketball Blooper" and "Case of the Midnight Masquerade."
101	* DenOfIniquity: Mark Moriarty's fort, in the extreme southwestern corner of Richview. He and Dave Grant generally hang out here, and the place is dirty, unkempt, and littered with trash (the scenery animation shows a rat scurrying in and out of a corner every few seconds).
102	* DownInTheDumps: Again, Mark Moriarty's fort. The land itself is adjacent to the Arnold couple's land.
103	* EverythingsSparklyWithJewelry: Amy Jolanna and Mrs. Harper are the two most noteworthy examples; in Amy's case, during Book 2's and the Challenge Book's versions of "Case of the Midnight Masquerade," she wears (respectively) a blue sapphire tiara and an emerald pendant, and in her avatar picture she wears a necklace and earrings. Nicola Hamble, a recurring character from the same game, is always seen wearing a necklace in her avatar picture, and a few other women in the town wear very noticeable earrings.
104	* EverytownAmerica: Richview itself.
105	* ItsPersonal: "Case of the Pilfered Pop" starts with the gang's private soda stash having been stolen from its place at the bottom of their treehouse base, and "Case of the Runaway Reptile" centers on finding out who stole the Eagles' pet iguana Watson. In Books 1 and 2's versions of "Case of the Midnight Masquerade" from the same game, the case becomes this when Nancy Marx, one of the Agency's members, is made a suspect in the case's robbery mystery.
106	* GeographicFlexibility: Richview, as stated above.
107	* LocalHangout: Pisa Pizza Palace and Sweet Treats, a pizza restaurant and ice cream parlor, respectively.
108	* TheMall: Richview Mall.
109	* MaltShop: Sweet Treats.
110	* PetTheDog: Bobby Garcia, the resident ButtMonkey, gets a break in the aftermath of Book 2's and the Challenge Book's versions of "Case of the Authentic Autograph."
111	* RemixedLevel: Book 1 and 2 each have twenty-four cases with the same names and almost identical setups, but the clues are different and the culprit is someone else. The Challenge Book has only six cases from the list, but each one is now significantly harder.
112	* SecretTest: [[spoiler:"Case of the Attacking Aliens" in the Challenge Book.]]
113	* {{Suburbia}}: Richview as a whole. At its north end is a farm area; northwest is the local Buccaneer Beach; downtown has two jewelry stores and a bank; and most of the map's lower half is residential.
114	* TrademarkFavoriteFood: Most of the kids in Richview, including Jake and Jennifer, love pizza. In one mystery, [[BigEater Mark and Dave polish off an extra-large "Pig Lovers' Pizza," which contains ham, sausage and Canadian bacon]].
115	* TreehouseOfFun: The Eagle's Nest. They've got a phone line, a computer, their iguana's tank, and a police scanner!
116	* TwoTeacherSchool: Richview's local Kennedy School only ever has three of its teachers revealed: Mr. Minas, the math teacher; Sgt. Morrow, the football coach; and Ms. Skerzo, the music teacher.
117	* WhereTheHellIsSpringfield: All we really know about Richview's location is that it's somewhere in the United States. They sometimes refer to a much larger nearby town called Mount Vernon, but that doesn't narrow it down any further.
118	[[/folder]]
119
120	[[folder:Tropes in ''EEM London'']]
121	* AndTheAdventureContinues: Hinted at the end of the game.
122	* AntiVillain: The game's BigBad Macavity never does much to actually harm anyone, and all of his/her actions are designed as protests against animal abuse.
123	* BewareOfViciousDog: "Case of the Horrible Hound."
124	* BlackSheep: In "Case of the Vaporous Victorian," the kids investigate the supposed appearance of the ghost of a teenage tennis star's ancestor, who has long been ostracized by the family for defying the norms of Victorian-era England. [[spoiler:In fact, after she left England, she got to enjoy the life she'd always wanted to lead in America, but her family never knew it!]]
125	* BrainwashedAndCrazy: The kids ''think'' Greenbeard's crew has done this to Aunt Miranda in "Case of the Pirate Prank," but she quickly informs them that the crew [[ThePiratesWhoDontDoAnything actually doesn't do any real piracy at all]].
126	* TheButlerDidIt: [[spoiler:In two murder-themed mysteries in ''EEM London''. Both times, the murders are part of an annual game with the "victim" either playing dead or being a very lifelike doll.]]
127	* ContinuityNod: It's established in ''EEM London'' that Macavity learned about the Eagle Eyes by reading newspaper clippings of their exploits in Richview, as documented in ''EEM Original.'' Also, ''EEM London'' makes reference to one of your cases in ''EEM Original'' where you and the Eagle siblings come to the aid of movie star Amy Jolanna.
128	* CoversAlwaysLie: ''EEM London''[='=]s box art displays Jake and Jennifer using a flashlight, which they never do in-game. And the mysterious man standing underneath the street lamp? He is only ever seen in-game during a transition cut-scene when you traverse London by bus, where he sits beside your partner reading a newspaper.
129	* DrivingQuestion: ''Who is Macavity?''
130	* FantasticRacism: A number of British-born characters in ''EEM London'' have the much more mundane type of prejudice toward Americans. On the other hand, in the same game's "Case of the Renegade Raven," French journalist and minor character Mademoiselle Le Chaton has nearly nothing good to say about the British.
131	--> '''Le Chaton:''' So-called security here in England is no better than the dreadful English cooking!
132	* FrothyMugsOfWater: Averted with the Sherlock Holmes Pub (in London proper) and Smuggler's Inn (in the Dartmoor area); both are very obviously bars that serve alcoholic drinks as well as non-alcoholic beverages, and at one point your partner will inform you that Smuggler's Inn has a "no kids allowed after dark" policy.
133	* LoveMakesYouDumb: The motive behind [[spoiler:"Case of the Pilfered Phone".]]
134	--> '''Jake/Jennifer:''' (player's name), sometimes people do foolish things in the name of love!
135	* MyLocal: London's Sherlock Holmes Pub and the Smuggler's Inn in Dartmoor.
136	* {{Paparazzi}}: In "Case of the Renegade Raven," one of these tries to get a story on apparent laxness in security at the Tower of London by hounding the head warden and groundskeeper on the furor being caused by the disappearance of one of the eight local tower ravens (according to legend, if all the ravens leave the Tower, the monarchy will crumble).
137	* PaperThinDisguise: Done in "Case of Blood's Bold Bauble." Aunt Miranda wants to get information from Ritz Hotel desk clerk David Herrick, but he won't co-operate. You and your partner volunteer to try and get the info from him instead...so your partner borrows Aunt Miranda's glasses and puts them on you, then pretends to Herrick that you're the star of a new TV show, "Kid Detective," and that he/she is your promoter/agent. Herrick's a bit suspicious, as he's never heard of "Kid Detective," but Jake/Jennifer tells him that's because it's not on the BBC—yet. Then you get the info you want.
138	* PutOnABus: Everyone in the first game who's not the player (you) or named Jake or Jennifer Eagle is put aside to make way for the new characters in the sequel. Justified in that at the start of ''EEM London'', the detectives are going on holiday to a place that is an ocean away from their home town. [[spoiler:[[TheBusCameBack Amy Jolanna does make a cameo, though.]]]]
139	* RuleOfSymbolism: Cats play a frequent and crucial role in ''EEM London'', always connected to the mysterious Macavity.
140	* SeparatedByACommonLanguage: Serves as a plot point in three of the sequel's cases.
141	* SeriousBusiness: Animal rights is this for Macavity. Capturing Macavity is this for Inspector Gage. Keeping silence in the library is this for Mr. Sneed. Chess practice is this for Philip Mynd in "Case of the Chess Club Caper."
142	* WhatHappenedToTheMouse: [[spoiler:The ruby in "Case of the Rajah's Ruby" is covertly bought by Macavity at the end of the case and never shows up again for the rest of the game—not even among the wealth left behind by Macavity at the end of the game.]]
143	[[/folder]]
144

Context VideoGame / EagleEyeMysteries