- September 29, 2014
- Frogwares
- 15h median play time
Sherlock Holmes: Crimes & Punishments
Rough around the edges, and some bad puzzles, but this is an atmospheric detective adventure that actually lets you do some detecting.
Platforms
About
"Sherlock Holmes: Crimes & Punishments" is a single-player, open world mystery game with an interesting plot and marvelous gameplay. As the famous detective, you must solve six varied cases, making moral choices that affect the game's outcome and your character's reputation. Featuring awesome graphics, stellar music, and a good atmosphere, the game is full of humor but can also have bugs.
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- Engaging and intriguing storylines with multiple conclusions for each case.
- Beautiful graphics and well-designed environments that capture the Victorian atmosphere.
- The deduction system allows players to piece together clues and make their own conclusions, enhancing the detective experience.
- Frequent loading screens between locations can disrupt the flow of gameplay.
- Some puzzles and mini-games can be frustrating or overly simplistic, leading to a lack of challenge.
- The game can feel linear at times, with certain actions required before progressing, which may limit exploration.
story
468 mentions Positive Neutral NegativeThe game's story is structured around six self-contained cases, each with its own intriguing plot, allowing players to engage in detective work without the burden of a convoluted overarching narrative. While the episodic format offers variety and maintains interest, some players feel it lacks depth and connection between cases, leading to a more linear experience. Overall, the storytelling is praised for its engaging character development and moral choices, though some plot holes and predictability detract from the overall impact.
“The story is absolutely incredible.”
“Each case was really well done story-wise, as well as the characters and voice acting.”
“The story progresses along well enough that it's quite easy to watch someone else play the game without feeling too bored.”
“The unfortunate downside to this title is the lack of a story; sure, each case has its own story, but there wasn't anything holding them together.”
“The game isn't one big storyline; it's more like an interactive story with a few added case-solving mechanics and mini-games.”
“There is no underlying or continuous story, which is a significant loss, as you face six different and unrelated cases without a narrative linking them together.”
Sherlock Holmes: Crimes and Punishments Review
Overall, this is the best Sherlock Holmes game we've encountered and a very auspicious debut for the consulting detective on Switch. This is far from a lazy downgrade, with developer Frogwares presenting a full-featured and compelling experience from start to perhaps-too-soon finish. It looks great and plays brilliantly, with only occasional annoyances and some weak (though thankfully skippable) puzzles to knock it down a peg. The fact that the game is willing to allow you to get it wrong means it feels less prescribed and inevitable as other titles in the detective genre, and that's quite refreshing. A little ironic that it took one of the form's oldest characters to finally land such a novel approach.
80%Sherlock Holmes: Crimes and Punishments Review
Overall, Sherlock Holmes: Crimes and Punishments is good. It's intriguing and quite easy to get swept up in. There are always things to do, and before you know it, you've spent three hours in a timespan that felt more like one. Sure, the game has issues, but they're not impossible to overlook in favour of the more thought-through aspects. Crimes & Punishments is one of the better, if not the best, Sherlock games out there, and if that's not saying much to you, it's also one of the better investigation-style games. The balance and variation of gameplay should be applauded. The developers are definitely onto something here.
70%Sherlock Holmes: Crimes and Punishments Review
Sherlock Holmes: Crimes and Punishments dazzles visually, but disappoints with murky conclusions to its cases.
75%