# Cold Case Bureau — 90 cases. One detective. > A narrative mystery game focused on close reading and deductive reasoning. (iPhone/iPad app by Thomas Masters.) - Source: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/cold-case-bureau/id6775644891 (this page in markdown: same URL + `.md`) - Developer: [Thomas Masters](https://appshunter.io/developer/6773804308) - Category: Games, Puzzle, Role Playing - Price: Free - Rating: 4.10/5 from 8 App Store ratings · 4 written reviews indexed - Age rating: 12+ - Requires: iOS 17.6 · 21 MB - Languages: American English - Released: 2026-06-24 - Data updated: 2026-09-04 - Monetization: free - User reviews in markdown: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/cold-case-bureau/id6775644891/reviews.md ## What is Cold Case Bureau? One case a day. The same case for everyone. Nothing to buy, no ads, no account. Cold Case Bureau puts a case file on your desk: the victim, the suspects, the evidence, and somewhere inside it, one story that doesn't hold together. Read the file. Find the two statements that can't both be true. Pin them on the board and watch the string pull tight. Then build your theory, not a guess from a menu, but an argument, element by element. Get part of it right and that part locks in. Get part of it wrong and the case tells you exactly which part, and lets you keep working. THE DAILY CASE Every day the Bureau opens one case, and it's the same case for every player in the world. Solve it, keep your streak alive, and share your result. A spoiler-free grid that shows how you did without giving anything away. INVESTIGATE Four Case Hours, and a case that offers more than four hours of leads. Press a suspect with a piece of evidence and what they say depends on what you chose to show them. Pull records nobody asked for. Send evidence to the lab. Earn a warrant with proof from your board. A wasted half hour is on you, but the case can always be closed from the file alone. Nothing is ever locked behind a guess. THE INVESTIGATION BOARD Real red string. Connect two pieces of evidence that contradict each other and the connection is established permanently. The board is where you prove people are lying. THE ARCHIVE More than ninety past Daily cases, free to work in any order, from quick Rookie files to five-suspect Senior investigations with paper trails that close like a net. FAIR PLAY, GUARANTEED Every case is verified solvable from its own evidence before it ships. Every question has exactly one answer the file supports. If you reason correctly, you win - that's the whole promise. No ads. No purchases. No timers that want your money. Just cases. ## Key features - Analyze case files and evidence - Identify contradictions in testimonies - Use an investigation board - Progress through difficulty tiers - Offline play - Reputation system ## Recent user reviews (4 of 4) All indexed reviews: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/cold-case-bureau/id6775644891/reviews.md ### 1/5 — Not enough information *2026-08-20* I got through the first two cases before I decided to look at the reviews, which confirmed exactly what I’d seen. This game is, in a single hyphenate, half-baked. It’s next to impossible to find a good mystery game with this premise that isn’t a scam or underdeveloped like this one, so I was really disappointed to see more of the same. Uninstalling, but I’d be willing to try it again after a few months if there are any promising updates **Developer response:** Thank you for taking the time to write this, it was fair and it helped. You said you'd try again if there were promising updates, so here's what's coming: a new version where you can actually dig for more information. Press suspects with evidence you choose, pull records, send things to the lab, get warrants. Verdicts also tell you exactly what held up and what didn't, instead of just saying incorrect. There's a new case every day too, same one for everyone, still free. Apple approval can take a few weeks, but we hope you'll give it a shot when it arrives. Keep the feedback coming either way, it's genuinely useful. ### 2/5 — Impossible to win *2026-08-19* The game has a fun premise and I would love to play but it honestly seems half baked and poorly coded. The information and evidence cards are the only information you get, and while they point you in a clear direction, the solution will be marked incorrect. The investigation board is a fun tool but it’s useless if you cannot get more information. I wish this game was fully realized then it would definitely get 5 stars. **Developer response:** Thank you for your honest review. You were right about this one, we went back and rebuilt the game. We're working on a new version now that fixes the exact thing you hit: the game could mark a correct answer wrong on a detail the case never gave you. That's gone. Your theory gets judged piece by piece, the parts you got right stay locked in, and the board actually matters now. It may take Apple a little while to approve it, but we hope you'll give it another chance when it lands. Your feedback is always welcome, it's what got this fixed. ### 5/5 — amazing game!! *2026-08-03* This app is amazing it’s so fun and there’s no Ads which is amazing!!! I hope you play this game with your friends and family. **Developer response:** Thank you for your feedback! We are working on a new version, and we hope it meets your expectations! ### 5/5 — Fun game 🦋 *2026-06-28* No ads!! Love this to pass the time when I don’t want to deal with annoying ads constantly. I highly recommend! **Developer response:** Thank you for the feedback! You feedback is very helpful. We are releasing a new version and we hope the new one is even better than this version. ## Frequently asked questions about Cold Case Bureau ### How many cases are included in Cold Case Bureau? Cold Case Bureau includes a total of 90 cases, divided into four difficulty tiers: 31 rookie cases, 21 detective cases, 20 senior cases, and 18 major cases. ### Does Cold Case Bureau require an internet connection to play? No, Cold Case Bureau is designed for offline play and does not require an internet connection. Your progress is saved locally on your device. ### What is the age rating for Cold Case Bureau? Cold Case Bureau has an age rating of 12+, making it suitable for teens and older players. ### How does the reputation system work in Cold Case Bureau? Your reputation climbs as you correctly solve cases. Successfully solving enough cases at one tier will unlock the next, more challenging tier, such as moving from rookie to detective. ### Does Cold Case Bureau have ads? No, Cold Case Bureau is ad-free. The game explicitly states that no ads are included. ### Can I play Cold Case Bureau on multiple devices? Progress in Cold Case Bureau is saved locally on your device. There are no accounts or cloud saves, so progress is not transferable between devices. ### What makes Cold Case Bureau different from other mystery games? Cold Case Bureau focuses on a quiet, paper-and-typewriter style of gameplay, emphasizing close reading and slow, deliberate thinking rather than fast-paced action. It also features no ads, accounts, or in-app purchases. ### How often is Cold Case Bureau updated? Cold Case Bureau was last updated on June 24, 2026, with version 1.0. As a single purchase game, major content updates may be less frequent than for live-service titles. ## Version history (last 2 releases) ### 2.0 — 2026-08-30 This is a complete overhaul — the game the reviews asked for. THE DAILY CASE — One new case a day, the same for everyone. Streaks, and a spoiler-free result you can share. FAIR VERDICTS — The old INCORRECT is gone forever. Your theory is judged element by element: what you got right locks in, what didn't hold is named, and you keep working. You can no longer lose to a question the evidence never answered. INVESTIGATE — Spend four Case Hours pressing suspects with evidence of your choosing, pulling records, sending items to the lab, and earning warrants with proof from your board. Every case still closes from the file alone — investigation earns you corroboration, never the answer. THE BOARD IS REAL — Connect contradicting evidence and the red string pulls tight and locks. Proving every contradiction now earns a bonus. CASE FILES YOU CAN SEE — Suspects have faces. Crime scenes have photographs. Phone extracts look like phone extracts, statements are signed, camera stills get the dark chrome. FASTER PROGRESSION — Detective, Senior and Major tiers unlock at a third of the old requirements. To the two reviewers who called the old version half-baked: you were right, this update is for you, and your cases are waiting. ### 1.0 — 2026-06-24 No release notes. ## More apps by Thomas Masters - [Signal Lost: Survive](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/signal-lost-survive/id6773804306) - [Glowherd](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/glowherd/id6779811422) - [Skein - Arcade](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/skein-arcade/id6785116780) All apps by Thomas Masters: https://appshunter.io/developer/6773804308 ## Related topics [point and click mystery](https://appshunter.io/ios/topics/point-and-click-mystery) · [fbi games](https://appshunter.io/ios/topics/fbi-games) · [cold bed on route](https://appshunter.io/ios/topics/cold-bed-on-route) · [roleplay games detective](https://appshunter.io/ios/topics/roleplay-games-detective) · [unsolved case files](https://appshunter.io/ios/topics/unsolved-case-files) · [conspiracy carl](https://appshunter.io/ios/topics/conspiracy-carl) · [case solving games](https://appshunter.io/ios/topics/case-solving-games) · [crime games](https://appshunter.io/ios/topics/crime-games) · [detective games free](https://appshunter.io/ios/topics/detective-games-free) · [the killer isnt alice](https://appshunter.io/ios/topics/the-killer-isnt-alice) · [cold case game](https://appshunter.io/ios/topics/cold-case-game) · [tobias kirkman](https://appshunter.io/ios/topics/tobias-kirkman) · [cold case games](https://appshunter.io/ios/topics/cold-case-games) · [true crime games](https://appshunter.io/ios/topics/true-crime-games) · [murder king game](https://appshunter.io/ios/topics/murder-king-game) · [murder mystery](https://appshunter.io/ios/topics/murder-mystery) · [story games mystery](https://appshunter.io/ios/topics/story-games-mystery) · [wifi free games mystery](https://appshunter.io/ios/topics/wifi-free-games-mystery) · [murder mystery online](https://appshunter.io/ios/topics/murder-mystery-online) · [conspiracy mission](https://appshunter.io/ios/topics/conspiracy-mission) --- *Data collected daily from the US App Store and indexed by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/). User reviews are verbatim App Store reviews. Ratings, prices and chart positions refresh continuously; this snapshot is from 2026-09-04.*