Deadline

Deadline is a 1982 interactive fiction game published by Infocom and written by Marc Blank. One of the earliest murder mystery interactive fiction games, it is Infocom's third title. Developed with ZIL, Deadline was easily ported to popular computer platforms of its era, including the Apple II and Commodore 64. In Deadline, you play an unnamed police detective summoned to a sprawling Connecticut estate to investigate the apparent suicide of wealthy industrialist Marshall Robner. The case initially appears simple: Robner's body was found in his library, locked from the inside, and he died from an overdose of his prescribed antidepressants. Yet the evidence does not feel right. Was Robner killed for his money, did his business dealings create an enemy, or was another motive involved? With the help of the level-headed Sgt. Duffy, you have twelve hours to solve the mystery before the case is closed forever.

Wealthy industrialist Mr. Marshall Robner locked himself in the upstairs library of his New England colonial estate one night and died from a lethal overdose of antidepressants. It appears to be suicide, but was it? As the Chief of Detectives, you are asked by Robner's attorney to investigate the case and "quash the suspicions which are inevitable" when a wealthy man dies suddenly and unnaturally. The Medical Examiner found nothing unusual, while interviews with family members and associates support the conclusion that Robner committed suicide. Yet everything fits almost too neatly. Suspecting foul play, you have 12 hours to solve the case. To make an arrest, you must establish the three traditional elements of an ironclad prosecution: motive, method, and ample opportunity. This detective mystery has multiple endings determined by your actions and deductions from the evidence. However, one ending fits the facts better than any other, and you will recognize it when you reach it.