| Sherlock Holmes Consulting Detective Volume 1 | Viacom / ICOM Simulations | 1991 | |
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Use your wits, interviewing skills, logic, and reasoning to solve three cases as Sherlock Holmes. Arguably the first multimedia PC CDROM title ever produced, with over 90 minutes of motion video of Mr. Holmes' interaction with everyone on Baker Street. This game is based on the role playing game of the same name. In it, you are given the background of some crime (usually a murder!) and you have to play Holmes and solve it in the shortest time possible, cutting to the heart of the matter in the least number of turns. You can consult The London Times, Holmes' directory, the Baker Street Irregulars and a host of other resources including Porky Shinwell, Inspector Lestrade and Langdale Pike. Of course you can also interview other people connected with the crime, visit hotels and railway stations etc. The CD ROM version retains all the complexity and fun of the original game. A lot of the fun of the computer version is in the filmed sequences which play on your computer screen as you interview suspects and talk to sources. These are live action sequences, not animation, and have been quite nicely done. The product, being American made, is full of American actors trying to do convincing British accents. They are mostly successful, but there are a few painful exceptions. The actor playing Holmes is actually very good - a little avuncular, but with a certain acerbity and wit. Watson is from the Nigel Bruce School of Bungling to some extent, but is still an engaging character. Sepia-tone illustrations are also used to give it a period feel. The three games on the first volume are "The Mummy's Curse", "The Case of the Mystified Murderess" and "The Case of the Tin Soldier". Each one is fairly complex but solvable - all the clues are there, if only you are observant enough to pick out the important ones from the red herrings! We found that it was important to peruse The London Times around the period of the crime as there was always some small but essential clue to be found there. Other sources such as the Baker Street Irregulars were less useful, but still produced hints from time to time. Holmes' regular sources such as Shinwell and Pike were only helpful when the crime intersected with their sphere of influence, so it was important to consider whether they would be able to help before visiting them. We also found it imperative to take notes as you progressed to avoid losing track of names, dates and places. It was later re-released on regular dvd in 1999 to avoid problems of configuring old games on modern pc's. In 2015, a re-mastered version was released enhanced with recaptured full-screen video to take advantage of today's high resolution displays. | ||
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