The making of Silly Suspects

Silly Suspects is a new role-playing game made by Classy Games Studios, a UAE-based indie studio founded during the pandemic to create games that provide an escape. We spoke to the founder and CEO Jamie McClenaghan to discuss the team's latest game Silly Suspects.

IsaKaba: Can you tell us a little bit about Silly Suspects? 

Jamie: Silly Suspects is a first-person detective role-playing game that immerses players in dynamic cities where they investigate bizarre crime scenes, analyze clues, and interrogate quirky suspects to uncover the culprit. Each case presents a fresh challenge, requiring players to think critically and piece together evidence to solve the mystery.

What makes Silly Suspects unique is its AI-driven generation which can create over three trillion distinctive characters, each with unique backstories, motives, and personalities. No two cases are ever the same, ensuring an unpredictable experience with every playthrough. The environments, character interactions, and case scenarios adapt in real-time, offering players an engaging and replayable mystery-solving adventure.

The game appeals to a wide range of players—detective role-playing enthusiasts who enjoy solving intricate cases, explorers drawn to immersive and dynamic environments, puzzle lovers who thrive on cracking complex clues, and narrative-driven gamers who love connecting with unique characters and uncovering their hidden motives.

What initial spark led to its creation?

The idea for Silly Suspects came from my partner’s love of murder mysteries. But honestly, I was getting tired of the usual dark, gory, horror-filled side of the genre. I wanted to create something that kept the intrigue and deduction but wrapped it in a more comical, light-hearted package.

We also noticed a gap in the market—there aren’t many games out there that approach detective work with humour and charm. It felt like a niche worth filling, and we knew players were craving something different. Silly Suspects is our way of scratching that itch while keeping things fun and fresh.

Were there any moments where you felt the game might not come together? How did you push through?

One challenge we focused on was localization. From the start, we wanted Silly Suspects to feel authentic, no matter where players are from. With so many generated characters, it was important they didn’t just feel random but had names that made sense for their background.

This meant ensuring characters from specific regions had names that reflected those cultures, rather than something that felt out of place. It wasn’t the hardest task, but it did require proper understanding, thorough research, and the right resources to get it right. We pushed through it with solid teamwork, collaboration, and clear communication, making sure everyone stayed on the same page throughout the process.

Can you share a funny or memorable moment from the development process?

One of the funniest parts of development has been the character generation. With such a wide range of random possibilities, we’ve seen some truly bonkers combinations.

There were moments when a super-serious detective would end up loving rubber ducks, or we'd get a suspect from a bustling city dressed like they were headed to a medieval fair. It was pure chaos at times, but it kept us laughing and showed how much personality the game could have, even when we weren’t expecting it.

Were there any features or mechanics that didn’t make the final cut? If so, why? 

We originally planned to have an online database that tracked every character’s history—how often they’d been a victim or criminal, their most common traits, and even their typical jobs. Players could have looked up the backstory of any character they interacted with.

But when we crunched the numbers, it quickly became clear that hosting a database with over 3 trillion entries just wasn’t feasible. As much as we loved the idea, the technical demands were far beyond what made sense, so we had to shelve it.

How does this game fit into your studio’s long-term vision?

At our studio, we’re passionate about creating games for audiences that often get overlooked, those niche communities that don’t always have experiences tailored to them. With Silly Suspects, we wanted to deliver something that fills that gap, offering a game to players who have been missing out.

Our long-term vision is to keep making games that ignite the imagination and bring out your inner child. Silly Suspects does exactly that, combining playful creativity with lighthearted mystery in a way that’s been missing from the market. We’ll continue to create niche games we’re truly passionate about, ensuring every project brings something unique and meaningful to players.

Silly Suspects is currently available on Steam for PC, are there plans to bring it to other platforms? If so what platforms are you considering? 

It's currently available on PC because it offers the best control over performance and player experience. Our in-house generation tools, while optimised, truly shine when they have the resources a PC can provide. Players have loved the PC version, but many have expressed how much they’d enjoy experiencing Silly Suspects on mobile or in their browser.

We’re pleased to share that development builds for both are already underway and coming along nicely. Keep an eye out—we’re excited to bring Silly Suspects to more players, whether they're solving cases on the go or straight from their browsers.

What part of the experience do you most want players to enjoy?

Games with a unique twist stand out. Too many studios play it safe, repeating the same formulas, while players are craving fresh experiences that break the mould. Silly Suspects is unique, weird, wacky, and wonderful. It’s the perfect blend of comedy, chaos, and mystery, offering a fresh take on the murder mystery and detective genre, which can sometimes feel stale.

We believe players love the experience of uncovering clues in such a playful world, where every case feels like a new, unpredictable adventure. But honestly, the best way to understand what makes Silly Suspects special is to jump in and experience it yourself.

Do you have any plans for updates, expansions, or sequels? What's next for the team after Silly Suspects?

Silly Suspects will be featured at Steam Next Fest, where we'll be gathering player feedback and opinions. We’re committed to iterating and updating the game based on what our community shares with us.

We also heavily encourage players to get involved. They can submit crimes, crime items, character details, and even voice lines to be added to the game. We want Silly Suspects to be a community-driven experience, where players can leave their mark on the world.

Once Silly Suspects has settled and continues to be well-received, we'll shift focus to our next project. That said, we’re not planning to leave Silly Suspects behind. We’ll continue to support the game and its players, making sure it stays fresh and fun for everyone.

You can check out Silly Suspects Demo for PC via the Steam page.