Published: April 21, 2026
| Happy Broccoli Games (Developer & Publisher) Where to play: PC/Console (Steam) | Mobile (Android, iOS) |
Duck Detective: The Ghost of Glamping was my introduction to the the Duck Detective series, even though it came out a year after The Secret Salami. Luckily, my lack of experience with the original game didn’t end up impeding my enjoyment or understanding of the sequel. You’re a duck detective, and your name is Eugene. Turns out, that’s all you really need to know to get caught up.
I was in the app store, looking for a relaxing narrative game to curl up on my phone with when I came across the Duck Detective: The Ghost of Glamping. This cozy mystery took me about two hours to finish, and I was not disappointed by the end. It’s a simple game with a simple story, but the characters and humor made it worthwhile to play. I never stopped being amused by the deadpan humor and how Eugene is presented as this tortured film noir protagonist.
The Duck Detective’s Next Case
The story begins when Eugene is obliged to go camping with his crocodile friend, Freddy. No spoilers, but Eugene starts wrapping himself up in mysteries immediately. After all, he’s the Duck Detective, and solving mysteries is just what he does. Plus, there’s a creepy Sanatorium and local ghost legend looming over the campsite.
It all starts with a small potential crime—some missing items. However, it quickly becomes clear that the other campers are quite the suspicious bunch. Like any good whodunnit story, the characters and their ties to each other are the heart of The Ghost of Glamping. It does have a fun twist ending but ultimately, there was just not enough to time to fully flesh out each of the characters and their motives.
Deducktions & Clues
You’ll be tasked with doing typical detective stuff: questioning characters, snooping in their belongings, and piecing together narratives about them. That’s where the puzzle part of the game comes in—figuring out which names, words, and phrases go into the blanks using what you’ve learned from investigating your surroundings.
To move the story forward, you’ll need to gather enough information to fill out your notebook. Once you have the right details, you’ll use context clues to complete statements about character relationships, motives, and other aspects of the case. Get everything right, and the story progresses.
Gameplay mostly consists of walking around, talking to characters, scanning things with your magnifying glass, and filling in blanks in your notebook. This last part is called making “Deducktions.” This can be pretty challenging at times, especially since some of the sentences can be worded a bit strangely. But you’re not penalized for guessing incorrectly, so you can make as many attempts as you need.
To save myself the frustration, I chose to play on Story Mode which provides assistance with Deducktions by highlighting incorrect answers. But if you’re a more ambitious detective, you can play on Sleuth Mode, which leaves you completely up to your own devices. I imagine this would make the game much more difficult and extend the runtime 30+ minutes. Even on easy mode, I sometimes found myself stumped even after I had seemingly gathered all the information and talked to all the characters I needed to. Though that could just be an issue with my detective skills.
Moving around is pretty straightforward, but I did find myself backtracking quite a bit since you have to guide Eugene step-by-step around corners or objects. For example, if you want to talk to a character or look at an object, you can’t just tap on them—you have to manually lead Eugene over by gradually tapping your way accross the screen, making sure he navigates around anything in the way first.
The Look of Duck Detective
Happy Broccoli Games designed the Duck Detective series in a hybrid art style similar to Paper Mario where 2D character sprites move through a 3D environment. The characters kind of look like sticker-like cut outs waddling around in a cartoon world. This fit the playful vibe of the game and made Eugene look even more adorably duck-ish. Thanks to the clean, cartoon style, it’s also easy to snoop around and notice all the little details you need for your investigations.
Final Thoughts / TLDR
Duck Detective: The Ghost of Glamping is nice to cozy up with for a couple hours then uninstall and forget about. I don’t regret playing it, but I’m not scrambling to try out the first game after finishing. Making Deducktions was difficult sometimes, but I liked how this game was part story, part brain teaser. If you’re looking for a super light mystery with a sense of humor and some fun characters, go ahead and give The Ghost of Glamping a try. Just keep in mind, you’re in for a short ride. However, if you want a deeper, more satisfying story and re-playability value, keep looking.
| Pros: | Cons: |
| • Good sense of humor, made me giggle • Relaxing, low-pressure • Deducktions serve as fun brain-teasers, making you connect dots and think critically • Puzzle element is not too easy or too difficult, plus there are optional difficulty modes • Likeable protagonist and diverse cast of personalities • Perfect length for a short, cozy gaming session | • Short runtime may leave some players wanting more • Deducktions can feel awkwardly worded at times • Navigation can feel a bit fiddly, requiring step-by-step movement • Not a deeply memorable story |
