I have been playing a lot of animal-themed games lately. Earlier this year, I played Donut Country and now I have finished Backbone. Playing as a Raccoon is entertaining, to say the least. Backbone is a neo-noir game focused on a Raccoon PI uncovering corruption at every turn.

Backbone begins with Private Investigator Howard Lotor as he’s preparing to see his first client. He’s greeted by Odette, a well-dressed mouse who’s missing her husband. The case seems pretty standard to Howard. Through Howard’s investigation, he discovered Odette’s husband died under suspicious circumstances. Howard flees in terror and realizes this case may be much more dangerous than he previously thought.

One of the first things I noticed about Backbone was the music. I don’t normally pay attention to music in video games, but the music in Backbone was unsettling. For a game starring animals, I found myself on edge as Howard slinks through the town. There’s a part of the game where Howard is captured and the music becomes more intense where I found myself sitting on edge throughout that moment. The music helped capture the neo-noir experience Backbone was going for.

Besides the music, I liked the options throughout the game. For example, Howard is tasked with breaking into a nightclub. He can either go through the backdoor or go onto the roof. I liked being able to pick and choose how I wanted to proceed through the game. I chose the roof and that seemed to work out splendidly. Additionally, there are different dialogue options with different characters. Depending on the dialogue options chosen, this can lead to secret achievements being earned. I liked that about Backbone because it leaves some replay value to the game.

Backbone was a fun surprise as I wasn’t expecting to like the game as much as I did. Backbone can be downloaded on Xbox Game Pass or purchased through Steam.