The Witness cover art

The Witness

"The Witness was the seventh game released by interactive fiction pioneers Infocom."

Infocom· December 31, 1983· Main Game
96
Critic Score
7 reviews
96
User Score
7 ratings

The Witness was the seventh game released by interactive fiction pioneers Infocom. The player character is a detective who has been summoned to the Cabeza Plana, California office of Mr. Linder, a millionaire. Linder fears that his life is in danger... and indeed, as he sits in his office with the player, he is murdered before the player's eyes. The player then must solve the murder.

Released 31 December 1983 for Amiga, Amstrad CPC, Amstrad PCW and Apple II by Infocom. About 12 hours to beat.

Story

FEBRUARY 1938, LOS ANGELES

FDR's New Deal is finally rolling. Hitler's rolling, too; this time through Austria. But as Chief Detective for a quiet burgh on the outskirts of L.A., you've got other fish to fry. One gilt-edged society dame is dead. And now it looks like some two-bit grifter is putting the screws to her multi-millionaire old man.

Then, unexpected, on this stormy February night, a wealthy but frightened man has asked you for protection. In spite of your best efforts, a death will occur, and you will have twelve hours to solve the mystery and try to arrest the killer - the shakedown turns ugly. You're left with a stiff and a race against the clock to nail your suspect... unless you

get nailed first!

Nobody said a sordid family affair like this was going to be a cinch. Everyone from the knockout heiress to the poker-faced butler may end up in the slammer before it's over. Ahead of you is a Gordian knot of motives and alibis. And the only testimony you can trust is that of your own eyes--because you are The WITNESS.

The Witness screenshots

The Witness screenshot 1
The Witness screenshot 2
The Witness screenshot 3

Other versions of The Witness

Games like The Witness

The Witness screenshots

The Witness screenshot 1
The Witness screenshot 2
The Witness screenshot 3

Artwork & Box Art

The Witness artwork 1
Amiga
Standard
NA
Dec 31, 1986
Amstrad CPC
Standard
EU
Dec 31, 1986
Amstrad PCW
Standard
EU
Dec 31, 1986
Apple II
Standard
NA
Dec 31, 1983
Atari 8-bit
Standard
NA
Dec 31, 1983
Atari ST/STE
Standard
NA
Dec 31, 1985
Commodore 16
Standard
NA
Dec 31, 1984
Commodore C64/128/MAX
Standard
NA
Dec 31, 1983
Commodore Plus/4
Standard
NA
Dec 31, 1984
Mac
Standard
NA
Dec 31, 1984
DOS
Standard
NA
Dec 31, 1983
TRS-80 Color Computer
Standard
NA
Dec 31, 1984
TRS-80
Standard
NA
Dec 31, 1984
Critic Score
96 /100
Universal Acclaim
Based on 7 professional reviews
Aggregated from professional game critics and publications.
User Score
96 /100
Universal Acclaim
Based on 7 ratings
Aggregated from player ratings across platforms worldwide.
Score Comparison
Critics
96
Users
96
Score Guide
90–100
Universal Acclaim
CriticsUsers
75–89
Generally Favorable
50–74
Mixed or Average
20–49
Generally Unfavorable
0–19
Overwhelming Dislike