Sherlock Holmes: The Awakened (2007)

All in all, Sherlock Holmes: The Awakened is a highly enjoyable, creepy but enjoyable experience. That almost dead-end moment (thank god for multiple save slots) was a pain and I could have done without that.

Kudos to the design team for presenting an interesting and involving mystery that causes players to think. My only negative opinion is that the unnecessary use of graphic violence precludes letting the teens play, which is unfortunate.

The Awakened is a good romp. It treats the subject matter with respect, always mindful that this is first and foremost a detective game. Get out your pointers, and start clicking.

An engaging story, logical puzzles, and nice visuals combine to make The Awakened a great adventure game.

It might be going too far to suggest that you'll like The Awakened even if you're not a fan of adventure games, but for those adventure fans who are looking for smart puzzles and a sophisticated story, this game has it in spades.

The move to first person works exceptionally well and anyone who has played "Call of Cthulhu: Dark Corners of the Earth" will feel at home straight away.

With a rousing, pulp fiction style story that seamlessly intertwines Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's world famous detective, Sherlock Holmes, into H.P. Lovecraft's Cthulhu mythos, a slew of incredibly shrewd and logical puzzles and a surprisingly beautiful game world to explore, players get a mature, immersive experience that will have them begging for more adventures like this one.

That sloppiness nags at me because it blows what could have been a great immersive experience, but given that The Awakened managed to engage my brain without demolishing it, lets just say I wouldn't kick it out of bed for eating crackers. [Nov 2007, p.74]

Sherlock Holmes: The Awakened is an engaging adventure title, accessible to everyone, but still offers a few challenges to even the most experienced adventure gamer.

Those who are only interested in Eye Candy or who are squeamish at the sight of blood should probably look elsewhere. But those who like a good story and lots of inventory based puzzles should enjoy it.

While the game does deliver a nice bundle of challenges and like a larger number of other adventure titles now it comes with a FPS feel, you could still do better.

Some frustrating puzzles and dark environments certainly take Sherlock Holmes: The Awakened down a notch or two, but the incredible story, terrific presentation and super-fun investigations are more than enough to make this title an easy recommendation for any fans of the adventure genre.

The engine is unusual, but it doesn’t look especially good. The storyline is intriguing, but it’s a lot darker and more gruesome than you’d expect from a Sherlock Holmes tale.

The story and puzzle solving elements work really well, but Sherlock Holmes: The Awakened is badly let down by this insistence on making some clues as obscure as possible.

The plot did lose me, and all the pieces didn't really ever come together until Holmes explained it to me at the end, but those little pieces were enjoyable in their exposition.

Good stuff for adventure fans.

On the one hand, Sherlock Holmes: The Awakened is a modern adventure game with upgraded production values and a compelling premise. On the other hand, it’s kind of a disappointment in terms of gameplay, relying heavily on pixel-hunting reminiscent of the bad old days of the early point-n-click adventure games.

Consider picking it up if mystery games are your genre, as it is a decent sort of game for a sleuth, even if it does sometimes feel rather barren. For others, however, this game is probably not worth its admittedly modest price.

All the while, the voice-acting is of adequately Thespian caliber, terribly British and snooty in all the right ways—hopefully something that won’t be changed as the game makes its way to the American market.

The Awakened will only appeal to those intrepid adventure gamers used to a healthy dose of frustration in their gameplay.

The very mention of Sherlock Holmes is enough to award some merit, and the gameplay isn't half bad either. Players thirsty for a classic adventure should give it a shot.

The story in question is an absolute belter.

The Awakened is a very uneven game, ranging from very poor to rather good, and the only consistent quality is its creepiness. It's worth considering if you need your horror fix, but Cthulhu will certainly forgive you if you decide to skip it.

It's nothing more than average, and occasionally nothing less than irritating. [May 2007, p.76]

By now, you’ve probably forgotten about the killer vagina. But while The Awakened should have been an adventure memorable for its gutsy Lovecraftian/Holmesian hybrid plot – a dark, unpredictable tale of an arcane sect responsible for kidnappings, bloody murders and dismemberments – most of that gets buried behind the sluggish game.

Disjointed and muddled, wth embarrassingly bad acting. [May 2007, p.83]