Solve a murder in Hollywood with your partner.
Most Wanted is a Visual Novel released as part of the Pixelberry Studios (creators of High School Story and Hollywood U Rising Stars) game, Choices: Stories You Play. It was released in August 2016 as one of the app's three debut books, along with The Crown & the Flame and The Freshman. This book is a Spiritual Successor to Cause of Death, and according to the latest post made on that game's Facebook page
, it even shares some of its creators.
In this Detective Drama, the cool and collected Detective Dave Reyes of the LAPD, and the Cowboy Cop from Texas US Marshal Samantha Massey, pursue the notorious and dangerous fugitive and hitman, John Tull.
The series was released in one volume ("Book 1"). For years, a second book was promised, but it was always TBA/TBD. In January 2021, after years of uncertainty, Pixelberry officially announced that Most Wanted was one of several Choices books that was not getting a sequel.
Tropes:
- Action Girl: Sam is a tough-as-nails marshal with a talent for shooting.
- All Bikers are Hells Angels: Paying diamonds in chapter 6 allows Sam to tell the story of how she got into a fight with a biker gang known as the Centurions.
- Ax-Crazy: John Tull. Even Randall Grimes, leader of the Centurions, is scared of him.
- Bar Brawl: Sam gets into one against the Centurions during a flashback in chapter 6.
- Belligerent Sexual Tension: Dave and Sam clash quite a bit, especially at the start, but they grow to respect each other and it's hinted that there's a mutual attraction.
- Big "NO!": Chapter 14 has John Tull yell one out when he's sucked out of the plane while holding a live grenade.
- Sam and Dave will say it right before you make fatal choices. Chances are you’ll hear it more than once.
- Bitch in Sheep's Clothing: Hayley turns out to be in cahoots with Tull, who is revealed to be her father.
- Black Boss Lady: Captain Dana Beckham, Dave’s immediate supervisor who does NOT play around and has no patience for insubordination.
- Brutal Honesty: Mirasol, being the resident psychologist, can read people accurately and tell them directly her thoughts. Sam can get on her good side by agreeing with her.
- Chekhov's Skill: Dave casually mentions that Cassandra is applying for a pilot license. This helps to save the day during the climax.
- Cliffhanger / Cut Short: The book ends with Sam and Dave finding out that someone decapitated Hayley Rose. Unfortunately, we're never going to see this cliffhanger be resolved thanks to the book's sequel being canceled.
- Cowboy Cop: Sam is a loose cannon who came all the way to LA from Texas to catch John Tull and does not like playing nice.
- Daddy's Little Villain: Hayley Rose is John Tull's daughter and was in fact the reason why he went to jail in the first place: she stabbed a guy with a bottle and he took the blame. In the climax of the book, they battle Sam and Dave.
- Dark and Troubled Past: Hayley Rose. Until you realize her true origins.
- Decoy Protagonist:
- At the start of the game, you can pick a character appearance and choose their name, just like with most Choices stories. However, this character inevitably dies in the first scene trying to stop Tull; for the rest of the book, it's Dave and Sam who are the protagonists/playable characters.
- In the old version, Theresa Holland was the sole decoy protagonist. She could survive, but the focus would still shift away from her afterwards.
- Defrosting Ice Queen: How Sam can get over time if you make the right choices.
- Downer Beginning: The story starts with Theresa-Logan having a conversation with Logan-Theresa until the character you are playing is murdered.
- Emotionally Tongue-Tied: Dave is. Every time Sam asks him about his past or anything remotely personal, Dave changes the subject and doesn't respond. You'll have to spend diamonds just to get him to talk about a small detail about his life.
- Exactly What I Aimed At: During the final battle with John Tull, he takes out a live grenade on a plane. Sam shoots the door, and Tull laughs at her for missing. She points out that she didn't miss as Tull gets sucked out of the plane and blown up by his own grenade.
- Fridge Logic: In-Universe, Sam calls out Josh Neely's idea of using an icicle to kill someone in Los Angeles as ridiculous since the thing would melt long before they get the chance to use it as a weapon, as well as where he would get one in LA anyway.
- Hairpin Lockpick: Chapter 7 has Dave using a paperclip to pick the lock to John Tull's trailer if he has enough points, otherwise Sam kicks the door in.
- Hipster: Nikhil Mantha, the precinct forensics analyst, is this.
- Hoist by His Own Petard: John Tull gets blown up by his own grenade when it detonates after he's sucked out of the plane.
- I Call It "Vera": Bill Holton's shotgun, Old Genevieve. It ends up as a trophy of John Tull's.
- It's Personal: Sam seeks to stop John Tull because he killed her boss.
- The Knights Who Say "Squee!": Sam is a big fan of Cassandra Leigh. When she actually meets her (and also finds out that she and Dave are close friends), words barely come out. By the end of the case, Sam asks Cass to sign her an autograph.
- The Lad-ette: Sam is tough, no-nonsense, and much more prone to using her fists than Dave is. Mirasol also counts to a lesser extent, being a blunt and abrasive criminal profiler who dislikes her name for being too "flowery".
- Made of Iron: John Tull, who shrugs off multiple injuries that should be fatal or incapacitating as minor inconveniences.
- Mentor Occupational Hazard: Sam's boss, Bill Holton, was killed by John Tull when he escaped transit.
- Men Use Violence, Women Use Communication: Inverted. Dave tries to solve problems by talking, while Sam prefers to shoot first and ask questions later. Sam even mocks Dave for this in one scene when they are surrounded by flames and she sarcastically suggests that he can talk the fire into leaving them alone.
- The Most Wanted: Different from the other entries on this trope, the protagonists are an LAPD Detective and a Texas Marshal going for the Big Bad, a notorious hitman wanted for justice.
- Never Bring A Knife To A Gunfight: Ryan Summers shoots a scene where he takes down sword-wielding ninjas with a gun.
- No Celebrities Were Harmed:
- Sam's old boss, Bill Holton, prior to a redesign, was a ringer for Sam Elliott.
- The male Decoy Protagonist in the first scene looks like Chris Evans with a beard.
- No Such Thing as Bad Publicity: In-Universe. Hayley Rose doesn't mind that Gavin Routh leaked some revealing pictures of her, especially since she's been doing lots of Pilates.
- "Not So Different" Remark: If the player pays to have Reza tag along to Venice Beach, he will convince Jessica to surrender by relating to her about how being smart isolates her from others.
- Paparazzi: The first premium choice you get has Dave deal with a paparazzo named Donnie Brine. Dave can either give him a big scoop or threaten to have him followed.
- Papa Wolf: Subverted. John Tull seems to be one, given that he was imprisoned because he took the fall for his daughter Hayley's murder of her boyfriend and he hunts down anyone who threatens her public reputation, but in the final confrontation, he's willing to blow up everyone present in the plane—including Hayley—just to kill Sam and Dave.
- Pet the Dog: Before getting into Tull's RV, Dave and Sam spot a puppy at the trailer park, which Dave finds adorable. The dog ends up distracting Tull and giving them a chance to get him off. After they escape the fire, Dave has the option of adopting the puppy for a few diamonds, or let him get taken away by Animal Control.
- Plot-Triggering Death: The death of one of the characters that the player controls in chapter 1 is the starting point for the entire plot, which begins a hunt against John Tull.
- Press X to Not Die: There are action sequences that require pressing the right choice from a list while under a time limit.
- In some chapters, this is actually averted. If you press any choice, you'll end up dead and having to start over from a checkpoint. The right answer is to let the clock run out.
- Professional Killer: John Tull is one.
- Red Oni, Blue Oni: Sam being the red and Dave being the blue.
- The Reveal: John Tull is Hayley Rose's father.
- Sequel Hook: Hayley Rose is killed in prison even after she surrendered. Unfortunately, the sequel's confirmed cancellation means it won't be resolved for the foreseeable future.
- She Is Not My Girlfriend: Sam denies that she and Dave are romantically involved when others bring up the subject.
- Shipper on Deck: Cassandra for Sam and Dave.
- Shout-Out:
- In-Universe, Reza is a moderator on a forum for The Crown & the Flame.
- Early on, "Rise of the Maskmaker," a fictional movie about the events that took place in the first volume of Cause of Death, and "San Trobida", a fictional location appearing in Cause of Death, are mentioned.
- The Social Expert: Dave is a smooth talker who has formed a lot of connections in Los Angeles, even with celebrities. He is also good at reading people.
- So Proud of You: In Sam's flashback in Chapter 2, Bill tells Sam he's proud of her with his last words.
- Stalker Shrine: Tull has one dedicated to Hayley Rose. It seems to be because he's deluded and thinks her song "Outlaw" is about him, until it later turns out that it was the non-romantic kind of shrine because he's her father and her song is indeed about him.
- Stern Nun: A premium choice in chapter 7 allows Sam to have a flashback where she asks about the namesake of Old Genevieve. She was a nun in Bill Colton's boarding school when he was younger. She also killed a thief who took Bill hostage with a shotgun.
- Strange Cop in a Strange Land: Sam is from Texas, but she goes to L.A. to hunt down John Tull. Her cowboy cop attitude and lack of knowledge of the local culture can get her into trouble.
- Street Smart: Dave has grown up in Los Angeles and knows every corner of the city and how to interact with any people.
- Sugar-and-Ice Personality: Ana de Luca, Cassandra's fashion designer friend, starts out very hostile toward Sam. If you take the diamond choice, Sam stands up to her and tries on one of her dresses, which causes Ana to immediately apologize. Ana thus finds Sam's attitude so inspiring that she declares Sam to be her new muse. During Sam's farewell party, she yells angrily at Sam because she is leaving her without her new muse.
- Switching P.O.V.: The story regularly switches from Dave's perspective to Sam's and back again.
- Taking You with Me: During the fight against John Tull and Hayley Rose in chapter 14, he takes out a live grenade eager to take out everyone on the plane, including his own daughter. He fails when Sam shoots the door out, causing him to get sucked through and blow himself up when his grenade detonates in the air.
- Tattooed Crook: John Tull is an unhinged criminal with tattoos on his upper arms.
- Randall Grimes, the leader of the Centurions, has one for every crime he pulls, and he's covered in them.
- Unbuilt Trope: Logan/Theresa, the first POV character, is a gender-customizable protagonist with big dreams, resembling many of the Choices protagonists, but then they end up being John Tull's first victim. This seems to be a subversion of the usual formula for these games, but it's actually the second one ever made, and later games generally avoided this kind of twist.
- Underdressed for the Occasion: If Sam goes to a fancy restaurant or formal party in her normal clothes, everyone will comment on her inappropriate attire. It costs the premium currency to get her to dress in something more appropriate. Nikhil, being a Hipster, loves it when he sees the footage and praises Sam for being nonconformist.
