The Infectious Madness of Doctor Dekker- It is an underrated gem among interactive fiction games- but should you really invest your time in it?

-Robin Bhuyan 

The Infectious Madness of Doctor Dekker is not one of those typical mystery thriller games where you need to explore, find clues, and eventually arrive at your conclusion. It is a game that locks you at the psychiatrist table, and you need to keep talking to them again and again, till you find out who the culprit it. The Infectious Madness of Doctor Dekker is indeed an overlooked gem among interactive fiction games. Blending live-action FMV footage with slow-burn psychological storytelling, this title stands apart from typical murder mystery games. Developed by D’Avekki Studios, it challenges players to solve a surreal crime while untangling the minds of multiple deeply disturbed patients. Let us discuss the game in detail to know if it is worth your time.

A Genuinely Unique Experience

Unlike many interactive fiction games, The Infectious Madness of Doctor Dekker never tries to rush you through flashy action sequences. Instead, in this game, you spend the entire game stuck in the psychiatrist’s chair, patiently interviewing patients through text-based questioning.

While the concept sounds engaging, it can honestly feel boring or tedious at times. If you’re expecting rapid-fire dopamine hits like you’d find in cinematic action-adventure games, you might be disappointed. Though the game is not very long, (around 7-8 hours), you might still struggle with the pace. The repetition of typing out or choosing questions and listening to long monologues demands real patience and focus. Hey, but at least it has a good story, so if are invested, it won’t bore you that much!

Impressive Production Values and Creepy Atmosphere

Despite being an indie release, The Infectious Madness of Doctor Dekker impresses with realistic visuals, thanks to its FMV presentation. The acting is often terrific—particularly Mariana’s hypnotic performance and Bryce’s creepy and unsettling confessions. Combined with minimal but effective sound effects, the game creates a creepy, claustrophobic vibe that lingers long after you stop playing.

Storytelling That Blurs Reality

What sets The Infectious Madness of Doctor Dekker apart from other interactive fiction games is how it never confirms whether the supernatural elements are real or delusional. The patients spin stories about time loops, shapeshifting, and reviving the dead. Meanwhile, you—the silent psychiatrist—must decide who is lying and who is insane.

The game’s commitment to ambiguity is both its strength and weakness. On the one hand, it creates a narrative that rewards deep analysis. On the other, the slow pacing and the constant loop of questioning can feel more like work than entertainment. Still, if you love murder mystery games with genuine depth, this is a rare example worth trying.

Story Explained: Three Major Theories Behind The Infectious Madness of Doctor Dekker

One reason The Infectious Madness of Doctor Dekker sticks in the memory is that its story can be interpreted in multiple ways. Here are the three most convincing theories that fans and critics have proposed:

The Rational Interpretation

If you look at the game this way, nothing supernatural ever happens. Doctor Dekker was either corrupt or deeply disturbed. He manipulated patients into believing their delusions to declare them insane—sometimes in collusion with a crooked lawyer.

• Mariana pretended to be a siren to avoid responsibility for drowning her lover.

• Nathan, unable to cope with his girlfriend’s death, invented time-travel fantasies.

• Elin claims to have the power to transform herself into the loved one of any person who is on their deathbed.

• Bryce, who claimed to stop time, was simply a paranoid grave digger going insane due to the nature of his work.

• Claire, who claimed that she can revive the dead, used threats and bizarre stories to push Dekker into certifying her insanity.

You, as the new psychiatrist, are left to clean up the wreckage of Dekker’s manipulative therapy.

The Supernatural Interpretation

This is where The Infectious Madness of Doctor Dekker becomes a paranormal thriller among murder mystery games.

In this reading, the patients’ powers are real. Dekker discovered them and used them to absorb their supernatural abilities. His obsession with quantum suicide, the grandfather paradox, and the unexpected hanging paradox all hint that he attempted to transcend death itself. If this interpretation is true, then the killer is just a victim of Dr Dekker’s twisted games.

When Dekker dies, he doesn’t really disappear. Instead, his consciousness transfers into you, the player, to continue his experiments from inside a new body, as a new psychiatrist.

The Metafictional Interpretation

Perhaps the most unsettling theory: You are Dekker.

In this version, Dekker committed suicide—maybe to test quantum suicide or maybe out of despair. The entire game is a looping purgatory where you interrogate patients in your own mind, reliving the same stories over and over in search of absolution. This theory makes sense because each playthrough gives you a different killer. Unlike most mystery games where the killer is always fixed.

• Each patient is a fragmented part of Dekker’s psyche.

• The endless questioning and re-questioning is a metaphor for guilt and denial.

• The inability to escape the psychiatrist’s chair represents Dekker’s eternal punishment.

Final Verdict

The Infectious Madness of Doctor Dekker is not for everyone. Its slow pacing, constant dialogue loops, and minimal interactivity will frustrate players who prefer faster, more conventional and action-oriented murder mystery games. But if you enjoy interactive fiction games that can even challenge your perception of reality, this title can become something of a hidden masterpiece.

Whether you interpret the story as a psychological case study, a supernatural experiment, or a metafictional confession, The Infectious Madness of Doctor Dekker is a haunting experience that lingers long after the credits roll.

8 out of 10 stars 

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If you love interactive fiction, check out our reviews of Killer Frequency and Life is Strange – Double Exposure