Platform 17, Rain
The 23:41 from North Sluice comes into Old Harbour at 00:12, four cars, rain running off the roof in ropes. It is the last train of the night and it always takes Platform 17, the long one at the seaward end, because nothing else needs it.
You are the night duty inspector. Most nights that means lost umbrellas.
Tonight the conductor, Qin, is waiting for you at the rear car with his ticket log open under his cap. “Seven,” he says. “I checked seven tickets in car four at 23:47. Count who got off.”
You count on the platform camera. Six people step out of car four. Nobody else comes out of it. Nobody is hiding in it. The seventh passenger, a man of about sixty with a brown document case, is not on the train.
A train does not lose a man between two stations.
“The depot wants her at 00:52,” Qin says. “Wash line. After that she’s clean inside and out, and the unit gets reset.” He looks up at the platform clock. “Forty minutes.”
The six are in the waiting room with a pot of tea and a constable. The car is standing open and empty behind you.
A murder case game you solve on your own
Platform 17, Rain is a murder mystery game you play online, on your own. You are the night duty inspector. Seven tickets were checked in the last car and six people got off. You take the statements, walk the car, and name someone before the train goes to the wash.
It plays fair. Everything you need is on the page before you accuse anyone, and what you find goes into a notebook. Which ending you reach depends on what you noticed. The line, the stations and everyone in the case are invented.
If you enjoy murder solving games, the work here is in the text: compare times, notice what a witness leaves out, and decide which details belong together. The forty-minute deadline belongs to the story; you can take your time reading. It is a browser story, with choices and a clue notebook.
Questions people ask
Is Platform 17, Rain free to play?
The first chapter is free: the arrival, the empty car and the first three statements. US$4.99 unlocks chapters two to four and all four endings. The US$19.99 Archive Pass also includes the full story. Both are one-time purchases.
Can I play this murder mystery alone?
Yes. It is written for one player, on a phone or a computer, with nothing to download and no account.
How long does the case take?
About six minutes for the free chapter and about twenty for the whole case. Going back for another ending takes a few minutes more.
Is it based on a real case?
No. It is fiction and is labeled that way. The real unsolved cases on this site are in the Cold Case files.
Do I need a group or a printed murder mystery kit?
No. This case is written for one player and played on the page. You read statements, make choices and collect clues in a notebook; no host or printed documents are needed.