Sherlock Holmes Chapter One

Sherlock Holmes Chapter One is gorgeous in graphics, with in-depth gameplay mechanics, and a deep, emotional story about mental health and trauma compile it into the masterpiece that it is.

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"Sherlock Holmes: Chapter One" is an open-world detective adventure where players step into the shoes of a young Sherlock, solving mysteries and building reputation. Utilize deception, violence, or deduction to tackle problems, and explore diverse locations for clues. The game offers a unique look at Sherlock's early years, showcasing his arrogance and naivety before he becomes the legendary detective.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player Play through the game's story or campaign solo

Reviews

77%

Audience ScoreBased on 1,419 reviews

story312 positive mentions

optimization20 negative mentions

The detective work in Sherlock Holmes Chapter One is top-notch, with a story that’ll keep you hooked like a good whodunit should.
The game features a beautiful open world with a vibrant setting, allowing for exploration and discovery of side cases.
The character development, particularly the dynamic between Sherlock and Jon, adds emotional depth to the narrative.

The combat mechanics are clunky and feel out of place in a detective game, often detracting from the overall experience.
Many cases lack a definitive solution, leaving players unsure if their deductions were correct, which undermines the satisfaction of solving mysteries.
The open world can feel empty and tedious, with a lot of running around and not enough engaging content or interactions with NPCs.

story
989 mentions
32 % positive mentions
64 % neutral mentions
4 % negative mentions
The story of "Sherlock Holmes: Chapter One" is a compelling origin tale that delves into the emotional complexities of a young Sherlock as he investigates his mother's mysterious death. While the main storyline is engaging and features well-crafted character arcs, some players feel it is too short and lacks the depth of previous installments, with side quests often being more interesting than the main plot. The open-world design allows for exploration and additional cases, but some critics argue it detracts from the narrative focus that has traditionally defined the series.
- “The detective work in Sherlock Holmes: Chapter One is top-notch, with a story that’ll keep you hooked like a good whodunit should.”
- “The main storyline, focusing on the Holmes family and Violet Holmes, is also worth attention.”
- “The story is compelling and the cases are overall very fun and engaging.”
- “The countless side missions scattered across the city feel completely unnecessary, and there’s no compelling reason to engage with them.”
- “The story is not well-told, and many things are left unexplained.”
- “The main story is bad, let's be honest.”
gameplay
449 mentions
22 % positive mentions
66 % neutral mentions
12 % negative mentions
The gameplay of "Sherlock Holmes: Chapter One" has received mixed reviews, with many players appreciating the detective mechanics and open-world exploration, while others criticize the clunky combat and convoluted systems. The introduction of new mechanics, such as the "pinning" of evidence and the mind palace, adds depth but can also lead to confusion and frustration. Overall, while the game offers engaging storytelling and a rich atmosphere, its gameplay mechanics often feel repetitive and less polished compared to previous titles in the series.
- “The gameplay is intuitive and the story is nice.”
- “I loved the open world aspect, the mechanics, the environment, and the disguise aspect.”
- “The core mechanic of this game, which is detective work, is amazing.”
- “Gameplay is a copy of The Sinking City and that's not a good thing.”
- “The puzzles and investigative mechanics failed to provide the challenge and satisfaction that one would expect from a detective game.”
- “The gameplay is tiresome and repetitive.”
graphics
224 mentions
47 % positive mentions
46 % neutral mentions
7 % negative mentions
The graphics of the game have received mixed reviews, with many praising the stunning visuals and detailed environments of the fictional island of Cordona, while others criticize optimization issues and occasional graphical glitches. Some players find the graphics to be beautiful and immersive, enhancing the overall experience, while others feel they are dated or underwhelming compared to modern standards. Overall, the game's aesthetic appeal is a highlight, but technical performance can detract from the enjoyment for some users.
- “The fictional island of Cordona is a great place to inhabit at first, with surprisingly varied locales, an impressive level of detail, and overall stunning visuals.”
- “Top-notch visuals: beautifully crafted environments and detailed character designs.”
- “The graphics are outstanding, and you can freely explore so many places.”
- “Like the graphics are even struggling on a 3060ti and i5 gen 12, wtf.”
- “The graphics are on this weird balance-beam between potato and requiring a 3080.”
- “Even after setting all graphic settings to ultra on a 2k monitor and getting an average of 170fps, I couldn't say this game looked good.”
emotional
76 mentions
99 % positive mentions
-3 % neutral mentions
4 % negative mentions
The emotional aspect of the game is widely praised, with many players expressing that it deeply resonated with them, often leading to tears during pivotal moments, particularly the ending. Reviewers highlight the game's ability to explore complex themes such as mental health and personal trauma, while also showcasing a more vulnerable side of Sherlock Holmes, making the narrative both touching and impactful. Overall, the combination of well-written characters, a compelling storyline, and emotional depth creates a memorable experience that leaves a lasting impression on players.
- “The game captivated me not just with its gameplay but especially with its attention to detail and emotional depth.”
- “This game's story emotionally wrecked me, so I will never play it properly again, but other people definitely should play it.”
- “The story about Sherlock's mother is emotional without being sappy, and I genuinely cared about the relationship between Sherlock and Jon.”
- “The story is boring, and Jon in this game is so unlikable that nothing stands out.”
- “The emotional depth is lacking, making it hard to connect with the characters.”
- “I felt no attachment to the storyline; it failed to evoke any real emotions.”
music
67 mentions
52 % positive mentions
43 % neutral mentions
4 % negative mentions
The music in the game has received widespread acclaim for its quality and ability to enhance the atmosphere, with many reviewers praising the soundtrack as beautiful and fitting for the game's setting. While some noted minor issues with sound effects and repetition in certain tracks, the overall consensus is that the music significantly contributes to the immersive experience, making it a standout feature of the game. Many players found themselves enjoying the soundtrack so much that they added it to their personal playlists, highlighting its memorable and emotional impact.
- “The music in this game is phenomenal and better than it has any right to be.”
- “The soundtrack is truly amazing (I spend some time just sitting in the main menu listening to it) and I like how every district of the island has its own sound design.”
- “The music is heart-wrenchingly beautiful, the graphics are stunning, and young Sherlock Holmes' character design is absolutely dashing.”
- “The musical accompaniment only emphasizes how different the areas seem to be on a small island, and the music also plays in emotional and tense moments, but not always properly.”
- “Music and other sound effects can just not play if you toy around with the menus too fast.”
- “Like clicking in and out of the map will sometimes stop the music and it takes a few moments for it to kick back in again which definitely feels a bit cheap.”
optimization
56 mentions
20 % positive mentions
45 % neutral mentions
36 % negative mentions
The game's optimization has received widespread criticism, with many players experiencing significant stuttering, frame rate drops, and performance issues even on high-end PCs. While some updates have improved performance slightly, the overall consensus is that the game is poorly optimized, particularly in open-world areas, detracting from the otherwise appealing graphics and gameplay experience.
- “The graphics are nice, the story is nice, the gameplay mechanics are pretty much garbage and it feels like they skipped almost all optimizations required for an open-world game if you can even call it that.”
- “I got a 24mb update today, and that improved performance significantly, though it still probably needs a few more days to be ironed out completely.”
- “Indoor areas or secluded areas with their own maps ran perfectly, not even a slight hitch performance-wise, but the outdoor areas of Cordona did stutter quite a lot.”
- “The game is good but very poorly optimized; it runs like crap on a high-end PC.”
- “I've tried every resolution setting and I still average about 15 fps at 1600 x 1200, and I'm playing with a pretty beefy dedicated gaming setup... it's like this code was never optimized.”
- “This is the best-looking Sherlock game ever, but it is riddled with performance issues, especially while traversing through the open world.”
atmosphere
48 mentions
54 % positive mentions
40 % neutral mentions
6 % negative mentions
The atmosphere of the game is generally praised for its immersive and richly detailed world, enhanced by excellent sound design and music. While some players appreciate the vibrant setting of Cordona and its intriguing narrative, others miss the darker, grittier tones typical of previous Sherlock Holmes games. Overall, the game's atmosphere is seen as a strong point, though opinions vary on its effectiveness compared to earlier titles.
- “Immersive atmosphere: richly detailed world and excellent sound design.”
- “The open world is beautiful and a pleasure to explore, with a lovely atmosphere throughout and an intriguing narrative.”
- “Great setting and atmosphere, a good storyline.”
- “Nothing of this really serves a point, but it really distracts from the whole story and prevents any type of suspenseful atmosphere.”
- “The atmosphere of the city felt really off to me - one of my favorite parts of any Sherlock Holmes media is the dark and gritty atmosphere, as well as the intriguing and foul cases.”
- “The game's atmosphere is a total divergence from that - being set on a sunny Mediterranean island - and ends up looking like something out of the Adventures of Tintin.”
grinding
45 mentions
2 % positive mentions
4 % neutral mentions
93 % negative mentions
Overall, players find the grinding aspect of the game to be excessively tedious and frustrating, with many citing the cumbersome mechanics of clue-finding, backtracking, and combat as major detractors. The open-world exploration, while initially engaging, quickly becomes monotonous due to the repetitive nature of tasks and the lack of meaningful interactions. Many reviewers express a desire for a more streamlined experience that prioritizes engaging gameplay over unnecessary complexity.
- “You'll need a second life for grinding.”
- “Any enthusiasm for this melts away grinding to find a randomly misplaced clue, mind palace, and pinned evidence for NPC dialogues.”
- “The problem with 'chapter one' is not that the cases are hard to solve (they are rather easy), it is just very difficult and tedious to make progress.”
- “While a lot of the UI looks really nice in this game, it was really tedious for me to continuously set a new pinned clue in order for the case to progress.”
humor
36 mentions
100 % positive mentions
0 % neutral mentions
0 % negative mentions
The humor in the game is a mixed bag, with many players appreciating the comedic relief provided by John, whose snarky comments and antics often elicit genuine laughter. While some found the humor to be light-hearted and fitting, others felt it detracted from the overall tone, with certain jokes landing flat or becoming repetitive. Overall, the game successfully incorporates humor into its mystery-solving gameplay, though opinions vary on its effectiveness and execution.
- “It's fun, challenging, well rendered, hilarious, full of easter eggs, and better continue in this format!”
- “John's sass, oh dear lord John's sass, please never change, I am laughing so hard with your sass!”
- “The humor in this is fantastic and I hope to see more of this down the road.”
stability
24 mentions
4 % positive mentions
0 % neutral mentions
96 % negative mentions
The game's stability has received mixed reviews, with many players reporting various glitches and bugs, particularly related to graphics and NPC interactions. While some users experienced minimal issues and found the game enjoyable, others noted that the frequent technical problems could detract from the overall experience. Overall, stability appears to vary significantly depending on individual setups and play styles.
- “Very nicely done! If you liked all the previous SH games, you will find a lot of the mechanics in this game familiar. The game runs great, with very little to no bugs, and the story is really great in this one.”
- “Don't waste your time on a buggy game.”
- “Visual glitches in some places (flicker, ghosting) and bugs (walking in air, inability to interact, etc.).”
- “The graphic is good overall yet at the time of writing this you will encounter a lot of graphical glitches and bugs; it might ruin the experience but it didn't affect me personally and it might vary from one person to another.”
character development
14 mentions
43 % positive mentions
36 % neutral mentions
21 % negative mentions
Character development in the game receives mixed reviews; while some players appreciate the emotional depth and struggles of characters like Sherlock, others find it lacking or overshadowed by inconsistent character designs. The visuals and environments are praised, but the character designs, particularly for Sherlock, are seen as jarring and not historically accurate, which detracts from the overall experience for some players. Overall, the storyline is touching, but opinions vary on how effectively character development is executed.
- “The storyline is very touching, and the character designs are quite impressive.”
- “I love the character development and Sherlock's struggle that made me really feel for him.”
- “His character development was amazing and the other characters as well.”
- “The reason I stated that is in the scenes with more than two people involved, the character designs are vaguely hard to be distinguished due to their similarities.”
- “My main issue is that the character design is so jarringly different from the other games or the original books, and not different in a way that helps the story.”
- “Character development is the most lackluster thing in the game.”
replayability
11 mentions
45 % positive mentions
27 % neutral mentions
27 % negative mentions
Overall, the game's replayability is mixed among users. While some appreciate the morally complex cases and new mechanics that enhance exploration and non-linear gameplay, others find the linear story and lack of significant replay value disappointing. The potential for replayability is noted, particularly with achievements and DLC, but many feel that once completed, the game offers limited incentive to revisit.
- “Crimes & Punishments and The Devil's Daughter were great games and are totally replayable!”
- “Cases (most of them anyway) are morally complex and interesting, giving replayability.”
- “The new game mechanics, like reading characters by their environment and the open world, make the cases non-linear, so I can see cases having a high replay value even through several rounds of DLC.”
- “While I was actually saddened by the linear story and, thereby, minimal replay value for their previous games.”
- “There does not feel like there is really any replay value to the game at all.”
- “However, like most of the games of the same genre, there really is no replayability after completing it.”
monetization
1 mentions
0 % positive mentions
-200 % neutral mentions
300 % negative mentions
The monetization strategy has been criticized for being exploitative, with DLCs perceived as cash grabs rather than meaningful content additions. Additionally, the overall gameplay experience, including shooting mechanics, has been deemed underwhelming.
- “The shooting mechanics are mediocre, and even quick-time event fist fights would be more engaging. The DLCs feel like a cash grab.”
- “The monetization strategy is frustrating and detracts from the overall experience.”
- “I feel like the game is designed to push players towards spending more money rather than enjoying the content.”