Criminal CaseHow to Get the Most Free Energy in Criminal Case
In Criminal Case the resource that sets the pace is not a standard premium currency but the energy you spend combing each crime scene. Stars are the second gear.
What is the fastest and most efficient way to get Energy in Criminal Case?
Criminal Case, by Pretty Simple, charges energy for every visit to a crime scene: a standard run costs 20 points. The bar refills on its own over time, but it stops regenerating above 110 points, so stacking above that ceiling only happens through bonuses. Stars are the other side of the economy: you earn them by completing scenes and spend them on case tasks, although they can also be traded for energy when you have some to spare.
Every day
- Scales up in tiers; from the fifth day in a row it reaches 50 energy a day
Claim the daily bonus without breaking your streak
The daily bonus does not hand out the same amount on day one as on day five. It starts giving energy once you chain two days in a row and grows until it settles at 50 points a day if you keep the streak going past five days. The practical consequence is that logging in for thirty seconds on a day you have no intention of playing is worth it: you protect the tier you have reached. If you lose it, you drop back to the low band and it takes almost a week to climb back to where you were.
- Stars at a reduced cost instead of 20 energy per visit
Replay scenes you have already perfected
A scene where you have already earned all five stars costs far less energy to visit again: 5 points against the usual 20. If what you need is stars to unlock tasks, farming those scenes pays off far more per energy point than opening a new scene. The logical routine is to clear a couple of easy scenes early in the case and then use them as a cheap source whenever the script asks you for extra stars.
- Small daily sends that depend on how many active contacts you have
Energy gifts between players in the browser version
The browser version keeps the original social component: players connected to each other can send one another energy every day. Each individual send is modest, but with a reasonable list of active contacts it adds up to a full bar over the course of the week without having waited for regeneration. The key is that it has to be reciprocal, because whoever does not give back stops receiving. On the mobile versions this route is not available in the same way.
Every week
- 20 energy for every star you no longer need
Trade spare stars for energy
When you finish a case and its Additional Investigation, any stars you have left stop being useful in that file. The game lets you convert them into energy at a rate of 20 points per star. It is best to do this only once the case is fully closed, because until then the tasks keep asking for stars and coming up short forces you to replay scenes. It is the most reliable way to start a new case with a full bar without having waited for natural regeneration.
One time only
- Energy and item finds when you close investigations, on an irregular basis
Keep a police pet active
Department pets add an extra when you finish an investigation: on top of the usual loot, they can find energy or consumable items that restore it. It is not a constant or predictable source, so it is not worth planning sessions around it, but as it piles up across dozens of scenes it ends up making a noticeable difference. It is a one-off investment: you adopt and feed the pet and from then on it works on its own in every run.
Events only
- Scenes at 15, 10 or even 0 energy while the window is active
Make the most of Happy Hours
The game runs periods where the cost per scene drops from 20 to 15, to 10, or to zero. They are short windows announced inside the game itself. The strategy that pays off most is arriving with a full bar and the hard cases still pending, rather than spending them beforehand. If you know one is coming, stop playing for a few hours and stockpile: during a zero-cost Happy Hour you can complete in one session what would normally take you two or three days.
What does not work
No generator can add Energy to your Criminal Case account: the balance is handled on the game’s servers and there is no way to touch it from outside. If you arrived looking for one, we explain in detail how they work on the inside and why they always end the same way.
See why Energy generators are a scam →Frequently asked questions
How does energy regenerate and how long does it take?
The bar refills on its own point by point, at a slightly different pace depending on the platform: in the browser version each point takes around three minutes and twenty seconds, while on mobile the interval is shorter. The important detail is the ceiling: if you have more than 110 points stored, regeneration stops, so spending before claiming big bonuses stops points being lost to overflow.
How should you split energy between new and replayed scenes?
It depends on what you are short of. If you need to move the plot along, there is no way around paying the 20 points for a new scene. If what is blocking you is stars to pay for lab tasks or interrogations, it is far better value to go back to a scene you already have at five stars, because the cost drops to 5 points. Alternating between the two stops you stalling halfway through a case.
Why is it sometimes not worth spending all your stars at once?
Because the case tasks consume them at a rate that is not always obvious at the start. If you empty the counter buying energy halfway through a file, you will have to go back to expensive scenes to earn them again. Converting stars into energy makes sense once the case and its Additional Investigation are closed and the stars are not going to be useful for anything else in that file.
What is the risk with sites that promise unlimited energy?
None of those pages can modify your game: resources are stored on the game's servers, not on your device. What they do is ask for your account identifier, show you chained adverts or suggest you install a modified file. That can end in losing access to your account or installing unwanted software. The routes above are slow, but they are the ones that genuinely exist inside the game.
