PixlBit

This is one of a long line of Sherlock Holmes adventure/puzzle games by Frogwares.

I made Holmes look a bit like Prof. Layton. 

I finished the 5th and final 6th missions today. That last mission was a real pain. I got stuck in the investigation several times, but I persisted and finished it. The missions are long and complicated. There’s a lot to explore in the realistic Unreal Engine environments. There’s also a lot of different things you can do to gain evidence such as: research at Holmes’ library, chemical experiments at his lab, his wardrobe and makeup table to create an alternate identity, his special powers of observation, his powerful imagination to recreate events in real-time, his lock-picking ability, puzzle solving savvy, and even his dog to sniff out scents. There are even a few moments that show off his pugilist and arm-wrestling ability. Watson is his sharp shooter. Occasionally he steps in to take a shot.

Key to all the investigations are the notebook of facts and the deductions screen (these terms I’m probably botching, but I can never remember them exactly). You can pour over conversations, documents and artifacts in the notebook and put two-and-two together on the deduction screen. It becomes key to choose rightly on the deduction screen as it unlocks new things to investigate.

The game has multiple endings to each mission. You could easily end a mission early if you think you have the answer, but usually it’s wise to keep searching because a more satisfying answer will appear.

I really enjoyed this game. I’m not a regular point-and-click adventure gamer, and I can only take just so many puzzles.