Sherlock Holmes: Crimes & Punishments Reviews
All six cases are interesting and brilliantly written, filled with characters that not only fill a role, but perform exactly as you'd expect from the Sherlock tales of old. The developers have wisely avoided pigeonholing the game's moral code into black and white (again fitting in with the original Sherlock character, who was hardly a saint), and it these shades of gray to explore that makes each case as well as the interplay between Sherlock and Watson so interesting. Sherlock's mind is presented in such a way that he is clearly a man treading the line between madness and brilliance, which makes this opportunity to play him all the more riveting and an opportunity not to be missed people who enjoy genuine detective fiction.
Sherlock Holmes: Crimes and Punishments is a member of an unsung breed of games: the kind that rewards critical thinking and judgement over twitchy reflexes, strategy, or putting the right pegs in the right holes.
Despite the nagging feeling that the game's mechanics are held up by a certain amount of smoke and mirrors, there's more than enough substance here to hold your attention for the fifteen to eighteen hours it takes to finish the game.
Over the last decade, Frogwares has been steadily eliminating the impossibly bad elements from their games, and what remains is the closest anyone's ever come to an authentic Baker Street experience.
At the end of a case, the player is given a rating, either highlighting their compassion or their steely sense of justice. They're also given a breakdown as to how other players resolved the case and the option to find out if they identified the right suspect. Your enjoyment of Sherlock Holmes: Crimes and Punishments will depend on whether you want to be guided on a series of baffling murders or have the great detective be fallible.
Sherlock Holmes: Crimes & Punishments is an enjoyable collection of different cases putting you once again in the shoes of the one man that can solve them all. The synapse style deduction board is a giant leap forward for the series, allowing you to finish cases with inaccurate information. I did end up sentencing an innocent man to death, but the game does allow you to go back and adjust your conclusions before proceeding to the next case.
This latest puzzling offering is more than elementary then, we'd say. Multiple cases presented well (ignoring the loading issues) all with a variety of possible outcomes which can be achieved using various tools and the power of your own deduction. You do get to feel like Holmes if we're honest; searching for the evidence, logical reasoning and grand espousing - it's very Conan Doyle. The fact it can all be played in bursts or short sessions given we're looking at discrete cases, and the way the game gives feedback on your choices compared to the reality of the situation - and compared to other gamers - adds to the experience the same way similar feedback does in many interactive novel games around at the moment. Ultimately Sherlock's alright - not much more, but alright might be all you need in the quiet autumn evenings.
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.
Crimes and Punishments is a game that is otherwise fantastic in nearly every aspect it devotes its time to. It's a game that reminds us of how great Sherlock Holmes is, and why the character has endured for so long. But it's also one that reminds us why Conan Doyle wanted to abandon the character. You can't escape him. He'll always decipher the clues, always find you, always see through the most perfectly planned murder. He marches ever onward, against the flow of time, holding on steadily. He'll always be there, Watson in tow, ready to take the next case. And God help us, there's still some appeal in that.
Sherlock Holmes: Crimes and Punishments is the greatest detective experience in the gaming today. As a game though, it's fairly rough around the edges. Interesting game play mechanics and strong cases will make this a must play for any fan of Holmes, mysteries, or point and clicks. If none of those strike your fancy, this game is not for you.
Rough around the edges, and some bad puzzles, but this is an atmospheric detective adventure that actually lets you do some detecting.
With clever puzzles and a dash of modern sensibilities inspired by the BBC show, Crimes and Punishments is an easy recommendation to armchair detectives - and the first to let players really experience being Sherlock Holmes.
Beyond those issues, I really enjoyed my time with Sherlock Holmes: Crimes & Punishments. It's a really solid adventure game that I'd urge console players to check out. It features a host of interesting mechanics that do a great job of capitalizing on the character and world of Sherlock Holmes, and the six cases are very intriguing. Crimes & Punishments is easily one of the best Holmes titles I've played, and I look forward to what Frogwares has in store for the next game in the franchise.
Sherlock Holmes: Crimes and Punishment isn't anything groundbreaking, but it's probably one of the best narrative-focused mystery games on the market. It's definitely a polished experience and may very well be the best Sherlock Holmes video game ever created, with a tense atmosphere, satisfying cases, and varied mini-games and puzzles.
Sherlock Holmes: Crimes & Punishments is one of the best Sherlock Holmes-based games you can buy, thankfully reinstated on digital storefronts by developer Frogwares. This is basically a Sherlock Holmes simulator, become the infamous detective as you solve six mysterious cases ranging from murder to the disappearance of a train – no two cases are the same. The innovative Mind Palace and Sherlock vision are modes which the developers still use today in their recent games, further enhancing your experience and enjoyment. If you like mystery adventure games where YOU decide the outcome, ensure you pick up this game – you won’t be disappointed.
Worth a playthrough. The cases are fun and engaging, even if they don't all pan out in the clearest endings. Could use more work to stand out though.
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.
I’m not going to deny that Sherlock Holmes: Crimes and Punishments isn’t a proper fit for a portable system, and it has aged somewhat weirdly. With that being said, a good game is a good game, no matter the platform it is released for. I still had quite a lot of fun with this title.
As Mr. Holmes comes to the handheld market through Nintendo’s ecosystem, Crimes and Punishments reopens its closed cases to flourishing and withering effects.
Undoubtedly one of the most well-known literary figures of all time, the name Sherlock Holmes carries some clout with it, though over time it doesn't feel like the game world has done him much justice...