@article{ART003310487},
author={Park, Inseong},
title={The Evolution of the Mystery Genre as a Digital Game and the Game of Inference - Focusing on Uncover the Smoking Gun and the Integration of Generative AI},
journal={Journal of Popular Narrative},
issn={1738-3188},
year={2026},
volume={32},
number={1},
pages={11-48},
doi={10.18856/jpn.2026.32.1.001}
TY - JOUR
AU - Park, Inseong
TI - The Evolution of the Mystery Genre as a Digital Game and the Game of Inference - Focusing on Uncover the Smoking Gun and the Integration of Generative AI
JO - Journal of Popular Narrative
PY - 2026
VL - 32
IS - 1
PB - The Association of Popular Narrative
SP - 11
EP - 48
SN - 1738-3188
AB - This study examines the evolution of the mystery genre within digital games and analyzes the paradigmatic shift in narrative structure brought about by the integration of Generative AI. Traditionally, script-based mystery games followed linear structures that limited player reasoning to searching for predetermined “correct” paths within fixed clue trees. However, cases like Uncover the SMOKING GUN, which utilize Large Language Models (LLM), transform narratives from static databases into probabilistic latent spaces, expanding the act of deduction into real-time rhetorical interaction.
This paper defines the linguistic interaction emerging from this process as Process Language and analyzes it through the lens of literary generation. Players are elevated from mere detectives finding culprits to collaborative creators and Transversal Subjects who perform critical judgments while filling narrative gaps through dialogue with AI. This research clarifies how the process of prompt engineering expands narrative volume and sublimates deduction into a literary experience.
Ultimately, this study suggests that Generative AI mystery games are reconstructing the essence of the shonkaku (authentic) mystery genre in the digital environment through an evolution from “reading mysteries” to “writing (dialogical) mysteries.”
KW - Generative AI;Mystery Games;Process Language;Uncover the SMOKING GUN;Transversal Subject
DO - 10.18856/jpn.2026.32.1.001
ER -
Park, Inseong. (2026). The Evolution of the Mystery Genre as a Digital Game and the Game of Inference - Focusing on Uncover the Smoking Gun and the Integration of Generative AI. Journal of Popular Narrative, 32(1), 11-48.
Park, Inseong. 2026, "The Evolution of the Mystery Genre as a Digital Game and the Game of Inference - Focusing on Uncover the Smoking Gun and the Integration of Generative AI", Journal of Popular Narrative, vol.32, no.1 pp.11-48. Available from: doi:10.18856/jpn.2026.32.1.001
Park, Inseong "The Evolution of the Mystery Genre as a Digital Game and the Game of Inference - Focusing on Uncover the Smoking Gun and the Integration of Generative AI" Journal of Popular Narrative 32.1 pp.11-48 (2026) : 11.
Park, Inseong. The Evolution of the Mystery Genre as a Digital Game and the Game of Inference - Focusing on Uncover the Smoking Gun and the Integration of Generative AI. 2026; 32(1), 11-48. Available from: doi:10.18856/jpn.2026.32.1.001
Park, Inseong. "The Evolution of the Mystery Genre as a Digital Game and the Game of Inference - Focusing on Uncover the Smoking Gun and the Integration of Generative AI" Journal of Popular Narrative 32, no.1 (2026) : 11-48.doi: 10.18856/jpn.2026.32.1.001
Park, Inseong. The Evolution of the Mystery Genre as a Digital Game and the Game of Inference - Focusing on Uncover the Smoking Gun and the Integration of Generative AI. Journal of Popular Narrative, 32(1), 11-48. doi: 10.18856/jpn.2026.32.1.001
Park, Inseong. The Evolution of the Mystery Genre as a Digital Game and the Game of Inference - Focusing on Uncover the Smoking Gun and the Integration of Generative AI. Journal of Popular Narrative. 2026; 32(1) 11-48. doi: 10.18856/jpn.2026.32.1.001
Park, Inseong. The Evolution of the Mystery Genre as a Digital Game and the Game of Inference - Focusing on Uncover the Smoking Gun and the Integration of Generative AI. 2026; 32(1), 11-48. Available from: doi:10.18856/jpn.2026.32.1.001
Park, Inseong. "The Evolution of the Mystery Genre as a Digital Game and the Game of Inference - Focusing on Uncover the Smoking Gun and the Integration of Generative AI" Journal of Popular Narrative 32, no.1 (2026) : 11-48.doi: 10.18856/jpn.2026.32.1.001
