7 Detective Games With Cloud Gaming Options

The best detective game for an evening depends on how you want to investigate: questioning people, interpreting evidence or exploring a place that hides its own story. These seven picks offer different answers. Each has a positive PC cloud catalog entry in our 27 October 2026 check.

1. Disco Elysium — a detective defined by his own decisions

Disco Elysium makes the investigator’s personality part of the case. Conversations and a distinctive role-playing skill system create as much interest as finding out what happened. Choose it if questioning people and inhabiting a complicated protagonist sound more appealing than a conventional action investigation.

Cloud options: GeForce NOW (Steam / Epic). View Disco Elysium listings.

2. Sherlock Holmes Chapter One — a young Sherlock with a personal mystery

Sherlock Holmes Chapter One follows a young Holmes investigating his mother’s death on a Mediterranean island. It is a strong starting point if you want a recognisable detective figure in a story-led thriller. The personal connection gives the investigation a reason to matter beyond the next clue.

Cloud options: Boosteroid (Steam). View Sherlock Holmes Chapter One listings.

3. Observer: System Redux — an unsettling cyberpunk investigation

Observer: System Redux sends a detective into minds and corrupted memories. It turns gathering information into psychological horror, making it the darkest change of setting on this list. Pick it for the disturbing atmosphere and unusual investigative premise, rather than a comfortable murder mystery.

Cloud options: GeForce NOW (Steam / Epic) · Boosteroid (Steam). View Observer: System Redux listings.

4. Chicken Police: Paint it RED! — an unusual buddy-cop noir

Chicken Police: Paint it RED! combines a gritty case with animal characters and absurd humour. It is worth considering when presentation and dialogue help sell an investigation for you. Its mixture of adventure-game and visual-novel storytelling gives it a different pace from a roaming detective simulation.

Cloud options: Boosteroid (Steam). View Chicken Police: Paint it RED! listings.

5. Blacksad: Under the Skin — a comic-book detective world

Blacksad: Under the Skin places its feline investigator in a dark New York corruption story. Choose it for the noir setting and the central character’s perspective on the case. It is an especially distinct visual alternative to both a historical Holmes story and a futuristic investigation.

Cloud options: GeForce NOW (Steam) · Boosteroid (Steam). View Blacksad: Under the Skin listings.

6. L.A. Noire — cases in a period crime setting

L.A. Noire follows detective Cole Phelps through cases involving murders, conspiracies and arson in Los Angeles. It suits a player who wants the investigator’s career inside a substantial period setting. The surrounding crime world makes it a different proposition from a compact puzzle-only mystery.

Cloud options: Boosteroid (Steam; install-to-play). View L.A. Noire listings.

7. Shadows of Doubt — a detective simulation to explore

Shadows of Doubt places a private investigator in a persistent, procedurally generated city. It is the clearest pick when you want the environment and its inhabitants to support a less tightly scripted investigation. Choose it for the process of working through a case in a simulated place.

Cloud options: Boosteroid (Steam). View Shadows of Doubt listings.

Which should you try first?

For a strongly authored detective character, start with Disco Elysium or Sherlock Holmes Chapter One. Shadows of Doubt is the simulation-led choice, while Chicken Police, Blacksad and Observer offer distinctly different worlds for an investigation.

Before you play

Availability check: 27 October 2026, using positive entries in the importer’s source catalogs. Global source scope is not a promise of access in every country. Confirm your region, exact store version, required plan and input support before buying. A matching game license may be required; install-to-play can involve setup. Multiplayer features must be checked separately with the provider.

Browse the game library or read how cloud gaming works. Screenshots illustrate the games; this is a catalog-based selection, not a hands-on streaming-performance test.