Hope in the City Beginner Guide: Sketchbook Clues and First Tips

Platforms, price and the Game Pass tier warning

Hope in the City launched on almost everything at once. Lofty Sky Entertainment developed the game, with NAGA Games as co-publisher, and it is the same team behind Sky of Tides, a 2026 GDC Best in Play winner, and Eternal Spring, a 2024 Peabody Award nominee. The price is $19.99 on both stores, and Steam lists a 10 percent launch discount to $17.99 until November 25.

The Game Pass point is the one that will catch people out. Xbox Wire lists Hope in the City as a day one release for Game Pass Ultimate and PC Game Pass only. If you pay for Game Pass Premium, the game is not included, even though it is a day one Game Pass game. Premium members who want it have to buy it, at $19.99 before any launch discount. Our November Game Pass roundup lists the full wave, so you can see which other day one games share the same tier rule.

One purchase covers both Xbox console and Xbox on PC through Xbox Play Anywhere, and the Xbox listing also promises cloud saves and achievements. That is an Xbox store feature, and it does not mean your Steam save moves to Xbox, so treat the two versions as separate saves.

Your sketchbook is the detective tool

Hope is not a detective, and the game never pretends she is one. She has no badge, no lab and no police backup. What she has is an artist’s eye. Wherever she goes and whoever she speaks with, she finds details that do not add up, and each one is recorded as a sketch in her notebook. The sketchbook is both your case file and your puzzle board.

The core loop is simple to learn. You gather thoughts from places and conversations, then pick any two and combine them. A good match forms an insight. Keep adding new thoughts and insights grow into breakthroughs. The presskit says each connection can unlock a new location, new dialogue or a fresh lead, and you can follow leads in the order you choose. A wrong pair is not a wasted move: the developers wrote a response for every combination, even the ones that do not move the case forward, so a miss still tells you something.

Shenyang is more than a backdrop. The presskit calls it a city that looks calm and beautiful on the surface, with clues and secrets hidden underneath. Every street, storefront and shadowed alley is built to be explored, and the people Hope meets are part of the puzzle too: they seem keen to avoid trouble, so asking the right question matters as much as finding the right clue.

Story Mode or Detective Mode: pick before you start

Before your first session, the game asks you to pick a mode. Story Mode is the casual way to play, and Detective Mode is the harder one. Lofty Sky has not spelled out the exact rule differences between them, so pick by feel. If you want the story first and the pressure low, start with Story Mode. If you like a stiffer challenge, Detective Mode is waiting for your second run.

A free demo is live on Steam, and it offers both modes, so you can try the opening and feel the difference before you buy. The demo also shows the language setup. The game comes in five languages, and the English version is fully voiced, with Angela Tran as Hope. The cast also includes Chelly Li as Leah Liu, Courtney Lin as Lin Meng and William Jung as Police Officer Zhou Kai.

Your first investigation: six tips that hold up

1. Talk to everyone before you combine anything. A thought you have not collected yet cannot be part of an insight, and the people around Hope know more than they first admit.
2. Sketch first, guess second. Walk a place slowly, look at the small details, and let the notebook fill up before you start pairing thoughts.
3. Pair thoughts that share a person, a place or an object. If two sketches point at the same thing, they are the most likely match.
4. Follow a breakthrough right away. A new insight can open a new location or a new question for someone you already met, so go back and ask.
5. Carry what you learn to other people. A fact that means little to one character can unlock a straight answer from another.
6. Start on Story Mode if you only care about the story. You can always replay on Detective Mode once you know how the notebook works.

Before you buy: the short version

Hope in the City is single-player only, and the Xbox store rates it TEEN for Mild Violence. There is no multiplayer and no co-op, so this is a solo evening with a mystery, not a party game.

On PC the minimum spec is modest: Windows 7 64-bit, an i7 2600K, 4 GB of RAM, a GTX 560 and 3 GB of storage. One honest note: the Steam client itself now needs Windows 10 or later, so the Windows 7 line on the store page is not the whole story. The recommended spec is Windows 10, an i5 10400F, 8 GB of RAM and a GTX 1060.

The notebook art is hand-drawn by artist Callista Antonio, and the game is fully voiced in English. If you like slow mysteries where the clues sit in the small details, this is built for you. If you want action or combat, look elsewhere: there is none here.

Hope in the City questions

Is Hope in the City on Game Pass Premium?

No. Xbox Wire lists the game as a day one release for Game Pass Ultimate and PC Game Pass only. Game Pass Premium does not include it at launch, so Premium members need to buy it, at $19.99, or upgrade their plan.

Do I need to draw to play Hope in the City?

No. Hope does the drawing for you. When she notices something, it is recorded as a sketch in her notebook. Your job is to notice the right details and pick which two thoughts to combine.

Which mode should a beginner pick, Story Mode or Detective Mode?

Story Mode. It is the casual way to play, and it lets you learn the sketchbook system without extra pressure. Lofty Sky has not detailed the exact rule differences, so start with Story Mode and switch to Detective Mode on a second run if you want a harder case.