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Very nice story, up there with Serrated Scalpel

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 3 / 3
Date: October 10, 2004
Author: Amazon User

This is a great improvement over Frogwares' first Sherlock Holmes game, its about time game developers started outsourcing specialied creative elements to the people who know them best. In this case the story actually came from a Sherlock Holmes fanfiction writer, regarded as one of the best fan written stories ever written that was adapted for the game.

A word of warning though, early previews/reviews mention a free movie with the game, this bonus is UK only. I was a bit disappointed after picking up the game, but nonetheless I'll try not to reiterate points that you can find in other reviews online and just say that this is a very solid game, no tedious or annoying elements.

With this and Law and Order Justice is Served, this looks like a resurgence for adventure games, and hopefully a move away from the many myst clones that the market has become saturated with.

Complete disappointment

2 Rating: 2, Useful: 97 / 100
Date: October 11, 2004
Author: Amazon User

I am giving this game two stars - one for the graphics and one for the first half of the game. As already mentioned, the graphics in this game rival those of Syberia I and II. The details are incredible: the fine grain of the wood, individual hairs on the characters' heads or the leaves on a tree branch. In addition the colors were rich and vibrant. I was really encouraged by the graphics and the storyline for the first half of the game: A wealthy Englishman is murdered in front of a hundred witnesses at a party being held for his daughter with whom he has been estranged. In fact, the initial suspect is his daughter. In typical adventure gameplay you, as Sherlock Holmes (and occasionally Watson), wander throughout the deceased's house and other locations collecting and examining clues and interviewing witnesses. While collecting evidence Holmes encounters a number of puzzles.

One puzzle involves placing numbered pieces on board resembling a chessboard so that each column and row of numbers adds up to the same total - very logical and easy (although time consuming) game. Another puzzle involves placing animal statues into "Noah's Ark" in the correct order. This is a more difficult puzzle and requires examining a few clues for the answer. However, two other puzzles (a card game and the combination to a safe) made no sense to me even after consulting a walkthrough. But even that wasn't as bad as the puzzles that occur during the second half of the game.

These are timed puzzles. For the first puzzle Holmes has to get from one location to another without being caught by a guard and a watch dog. One problem with the puzzle is that the characters of Holmes, the dog and the guard are only about the size of a gnat, making them almost impossible to distinguish. Another problem was that I could not figure out where Holmes was supposed end up. The only way I could figure out this puzzle was with a walkthrough along with a whole lot of persistence. It had to have taken me a dozen or more attempts to get Holmes where he needed to go without being detected. I found this so frustrating and it made me so angry that the rest of the game was ruined for me. After all, adventure games are supposed to be fun - not make you want to throw your computer out the window (instead I threw my mouse across the room). But wait - once you get Holmes to his destination successfully, and he is done there, there's a similar timed puzzle to get him to a second location without detection.

Then, just as you think (and hope) that this was the last of the timed puzzles, you're stuck with another one. In this puzzle, Holmes goes through a maze set in a forest and then needs to retrace his steps to fetch a pail of water to put out a fire. This wouldn't have been too bad except that Holmes can be very difficult to manipulate at times. Theoretically, the player should just half to click on an icon (a set of footprints) to get Holmes to move. Unfortunately, Holmes doesn't always move when this icon is clicked or the icon doesn't appear at all (or is difficult to locate - a couple of times it is located on Holmes's body). This makes moving Holmes quickly through a maze very frustrating. It took me another dozen or more attempts to accomplish this task (this time I only screamed obscentities at my computer). Even though I was mad, frustrated and disappointed I had to finish the game to find out who the killers are (a few more bodies pile up during the game). Once all the clues are gathered it is time for Holmes to reveal the killers. But instead of a nice tight conclusion Holmes rambles on for at least fifteen minutes - the answer was so convoluted and contrived that I lost interest - even taking a bathroom break, only to come back to find Holmes still going on and on and on.

This is a game I was really looking forward to. The first half of the game was very promising but then it took a dramatic turn for the worse - I cannot recommend it.

One of the best ever!

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 2 / 2
Date: October 11, 2004
Author: Amazon User

Wow! Just finished Silver Earring, and it was fantastic! It's a great mystery like the Nancy Drew games, beautiful scenes reminiscent of Syberia (gotta be the same design crew). Wonderful, complex story, great acting, beautiful music. The game play is not too hard...Sherlock gives you hints if you need to look around more or move on to the next place...but the puzzles (only about 3 or 4 of 'em) are quite difficult. I had to use the walkthrough for them, but the rest of the time it was easy enough to figure out what to do next. There's also a quiz section at the end of each level, where you have to answer the questions correctly to go to the next level. Nice long gameplay time, too, and many places to explore. One of the best ever! More, please, you talented Ubi Soft people!

Poor Character Movement

2 Rating: 2, Useful: 3 / 4
Date: October 14, 2004
Author: Amazon User

Most of the puzzles are fairly easy...However, the attempt to enter the office at the Cement Works displays the lack of control
one has over Sherlock's movements resulting in a very tedious
and time consuming snag in a relatively interesting game....

Not worth the bother

3 Rating: 3, Useful: 65 / 73
Date: October 15, 2004
Author: Amazon User

First a caution: Read the technical specs before you buy! This game requires a specific chip set and WILL NOT RUN without it, a surprisingly advanced requirement for such a low-level game. Check out the technical requirements before you buy!

That being said, don't bother to upgrade your machine to play this game -- it's not really worth it. Gameplay consists of pixel-hunting, running through a set list of questions, and random combinations of inventory items. The plot, such as it is, is confusing and illogical, though the acting is decent. Each chapter ends with a mandatory quiz that's annoyingly difficult; it mainly provides a reason to give up and go play something else.

Would like to see more by these writers, with perhaps a smoother interface and a better plot.

Frustrating and boring in many places

1 Rating: 1, Useful: 6 / 9
Date: October 16, 2004
Author: Amazon User

I really looked forward to this game. Boy, was I disappointed. The look of the game is beautiful and very detailed, but the character movement is poor. The characters' voices were above average, considering some of the awful voices in lots of games out there. The game is divided into parts, with a quiz at the end of each part. You have to get all the answers correct and show why with documentation and witnesses to proceed to the next part of the story. These quizzes were very tedious to me. If just one part of one question is wrong, you are stuck until you correct it. And all Holmes will tell you is something is incorrect, not which answer(s). The last half of the story has several timed puzzles, which I hate. A couple of them take place in very dark places with very tiny characters to move around at precisely the right time and place or the game ends and you lose. So save your game often. There is a lot of reading of documents and that really slows things down. By the time the inevitable gathering of the suspects and naming of the culprit(s) comes around I was bored out of my mind. The last scene goes on so long that I started straightening my desk and going through some paperwork I had. What a shame. I love Conan Doyle's Holmes so much. This should have been exciting and thought-provoking, but instead it was just a waste of time.

I was Sherlock Holmes!!

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 14 / 16
Date: October 17, 2004
Author: Amazon User

I'm a girl, I just finish the game and I recommend it really! It's so great to play a story so breathtaking: sets, characters, music, voices and plot (oh man what a story!) are perfect. I don't understand how some could have the feeling of poverty because all is so structured, logic, profound, surprising and fun!
Let me develop my point of view:
- each detail has a reason to exist because it has its importance for the investigation
- the atmosphere of the manor, the forest, the theatre or the cemetery for example suits exactly to the situation thanks to the gorgeous graphics, sounds and musics
- every character has someone to reproach for something and you have a lot of suspects so it's a real investigation
- the puzzles are various and funny; yes, you have to save like in every good adventure games! It's not so easy, but the interest is always keeping.
- The cinematic are gorgeous (I loved the dominos one and the Chinese pursuit) and the outcome (20 fine min!) is so inspired!
- Step by step, thanks to the quiz, I guessed the suspects to eliminate; I loved also the documents and the dialogs so attractive.

Well I felt like in a real Sherlock Holmes story with mystery and new developments. I hope there will be other adventure games like that: not "only" beautiful, but intelligent: brilliant.

the best Sherlock Holmes game ever.

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 8 / 8
Date: October 17, 2004
Author: Amazon User

this game is the best Sherlock Holmes game ever. the story is fantastic, complex and purely in ACD style. the graphics are wonderful and I felt like I was in England at the end of the 19th century. the music is superb. the dialogs are perfect, funny and ironic just like in the books.
the gameplay is the best I have seen for a long time, you really feel like being Sherlock Hommes, it might be too intellectual for some players, but for one who got brains you won't be disapointed.

Not the funnest game I imagined!

3 Rating: 3, Useful: 3 / 4
Date: December 03, 2004
Author: Amazon User

I guess if all you are looking for is to find clues and solve the mystery, this game is definitely for you but it does lack imagination. I would love to see a whodunit game that involves some fantacy and some creative problem solving as well as clue finding and mystery solving. The best game I have ever played thus far and have yet to find a game to match it is "The Longest Journey". If anyone knows this game and a game that comes close, please email me at kborba@comcast.net.

Totally Enjoyable

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 8 / 8
Date: December 30, 2004
Author: Amazon User

I enjoyed this beautiful game. The graphics are a delight, the story mysterious until Sherlock's final explanation. Do not be dismayed by having to avoid a watchman and dog in one part and the timed puzzle later on. I used a walkthrough to help with these sequences and after a few tries, succeeded with a lot less frustration than I expected. All games have some flaws that you would like to improve on. But this game is just so beautiful with appropriate music and lots of characters and locations. I thoroughly enjoyed and will probably play again some day.

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