TR-49 review – the dark secrets of Bletchley Park

The makers of 80 Days and Overboard! return with a detective mystery involving a disturbing alternative history and the invention of the computer.

The story of Bletchley Park, and the breaking of the Nazi Enigma code, is one that is never told as much as it deserves to be, for the fairly obvious reason that the US had nothing to do with it. But you’d think video games would be a little keener than Hollywood, given that it involves the creation of the world’s first ever digital programmable computer.

Since developer inkle, makers of the likes of Overboard! and Expelled!, are British they’re very aware of the history and although TR-49 is purely a work of fiction the plot does reference real events and revolves around you using a version of that original, prehistoric device.

The game that results is unlike any of inkle’s previous work but while it’s primarily a narrative thriller it’s also a properly interactive video game, with echoes of the groundbreaking Her Story. It’s a darker tale than it initially seems too, as you use the computer to search through books and snippets of audio to discover a secret that could imperil the whole world.

The gameplay conceit is that all the books (some real and some invented) and other information have been fed into the computer, resulting in lots of broken up bits of garbled text and unintelligible audio clips. Your goal is to slowly make sense of what at first seems to be merely random gibberish, as you slowly begin to build a picture of what’s going on, in a manner reminiscent of modern detective games like Return Of The Obra Dinn.

We’re going to try and not be too specific about how the story evolves, because the game itself suggests that the less you know before going in the better. But you play as a character called Abbi, who has no idea what’s happening but is in constant contact with someone called Liam, via an intercom, who clearly knows a lot more than he’s letting on.

At first you don’t even have any idea where you are, until you discover you’re trapped in the crypt of a cathedral. The main computer has a circular screen and a box next to it to input codes for reference cards and books, such as the titular TR-49. Liam reveals that it’s a variation of the Bletchley Park computers but remains vague as to what it’s used for, other than it’s not decoding German ciphers.

Entering new codes unlocks new pieces of information, but to work out these codes you have to sift through what you can already access, looking for uncorrupted text that allows you to add keywords to your journal. Once you’ve worked out what the name and author is of a book, the text becomes ungarbled and you can finally read what it says.

That probably all sounds very daunting, and not necessarily very interesting, but if you’ve played games like Return Of The Obra Dinn or The Rise Of The Golden Idol you’ll know that slowly piecing together the clues is hugely satisfying. And because TR-49 is so focused, on just using the computer, there’s a much steadier stream of revelations and dopamine hits, as you slowly creep closer to understanding the mystery.

The journal is excellent at recording and sorting all the information you recover, although at times its hints can be a bit too helpful, making connections for you that you might not have figured out for yourself yet. At the same time, it’s possible to just stumble on new codes by accident, without really understanding how you got them.

You can also just guess a book’s full code once you know the first two characters, which relate to the author’s name. This is particularly unfortunate because at times it’s not clear whether that’s actually what you’re supposed to be doing or not, as the game’s faint signposting can become virtually non-existent at times.

Although TR-49 is technically all about deciphering books (and exploring the purpose and value of fiction itself), inkle describe it as an audio drama, as once a book has been identified the voice of the author will read out the snippets to you. The voice-acting throughout is great, and the different bickering personalities are a lot of fun. So too are the notes from the people who initially entered the books into the computers, whose comments are your initial starting point.

At just shy of 10 hours long, the game is in danger of overstaying its welcome, especially as the denouement feels a little rushed, while also remaining fairly vague. There is a satisfying explanation for everything, but its lack of detail is certain to frustrate some.

Given the ridiculously small asking price, the game is shockingly good value and perfect for a grim winter’s night of sleuthing and discovery. The detective genre is still a new one for video games, but TR-49 shows that it doesn’t have to be a whodunnit for similar mechanics to tell a compelling, yet still interactive story.

Formats: PC (reviewed) and iOS
Price: £5.89
Publisher: inkle
Developer: inkle
Release Date: 21st January 2026
Age Rating: N/A

Email gamecentral@metro.co.uk, leave a comment below, follow us on Twitter.

To submit Inbox letters and Reader’s Features more easily, without the need to send an email, just use our Submit Stuff page here.

For more stories like this, check our Gaming page.