The Testament of Sherlock Holmes

 PC
Metascore
73

Mixed or average reviews - based on 18 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 9 out of 18
  2. Mixed: 9 out of 18
  3. Negative: 0 out of 18
  1. 4P.de
    Sep 28, 2012
    73
    The conspiracy story is interesting, the detective work is very entertaining. Unfortunately the designers decided to lengthen the experience with frustrating moments and a changing difficulty level.
  2. Vandal
    Oct 17, 2012
    70
    A good graphic adventure game recommended for fans of the character. Some technical issues and a problematic control system lower the overall impression, but still it's a great addition to the genre.
  3. GameWatcher
    Oct 15, 2012
    70
    Fans of the Frogwares titles will be satiated, even with the lack of Creepy Watson shadowing your every move. Inconsistencies and plot, er, 'quirks' aside, this is a pretty solid adventure with some neat ideas and a dog jumping onto a series of wooden pillars.
  5. Games.cz
    Oct 15, 2012
    70
    Another Sherlock Holmes detective story unfolds like its prequels. However, this installment excels in its pattern of puzzles, in its narrative pace, in its screenplay. What a shame the game is technologically way behind along with its dialogues linearity stumbling.
  6. ZTGD
    Oct 2, 2012
    68
    Sherlock fans will enjoy the story and mystery, and puzzle fans will get their fix. If you're a fan of point and click adventure games and graphics are not a big concern to you, you may want to give this game a shot, but keep in mind; it will not control or look too pretty.
  7. PC Master (Greece)
    Feb 6, 2013
    60
    The authentic Sherlock Holmes, never uttered the phrase ‘Elementary, dear Watson’. Instead he said ‘when you have eliminated all which is impossible, then whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth’. Thusly, when after six games, Frogware refuses stubbornly to acknowledge the fact that Sherlock Holmes’s character and nature fits perfectly in a traditional adventure game, the truth is that, as a studio, it cannot, or does not know how to, create correct puzzles. [January 2013]
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  8. Joystiq
    Oct 1, 2012
    60
    I find myself wishing that The Testament of Sherlock Holmes were more like a Professor Layton game than a free-roaming adventure, since the puzzles are where the game truly succeeds.
  9. Absolute Games
    Nov 9, 2012
    58
    Lush visuals are the only saving grace of this Sherlock Holmes. It pains me to see so much style and no substance.
  10. Gaming Age
    Dec 7, 2012
    50
    All I can say is if you're a maniac for Sherlock Holmes stories or adventure games, then there's going to be something here for you. I'm not sure what I'd call it, but it's definitely something.

Awards & Rankings

98
#98 Most Shared PC Game of 2012

User Reviews

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User Score
7.7

Generally favorable reviews- based on 173 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 120 out of 173
  2. Mixed: 38 out of 173
  3. Negative: 15 out of 173
  1. bethegame
    Sep 27, 2012
    10
    This is a good game with good graphics and an up-to-date kind of Sherlock Holmes, not like the ones in the older movies, but not quite as rudeThis is a good game with good graphics and an up-to-date kind of Sherlock Holmes, not like the ones in the older movies, but not quite as rude as the one in A Game of Shadows or the movie before it. You get to experience a new side of Holmes as well as Watson. You can literally become Sherlock Holmes, the greatest detective ever. You will not feel left out or like you got ripped of. I really think this game is worth the forty dollars that you have to pay to buy it. It is a game set in a time and place you will not forget guaranteed. No doubt. If you like Sherlock Holmes, you will LOVE this game. It is a deep game with many conflicts that puts you on the edge of your seat like a movie does. If you don't like Sherlock Holmes, or you don't know about him,give it a try and watch his movies. I just have to tell you one thing. Don't be overwhelmed at how bada** he is. You have been forewarned...… Full Review »
  2. Ndi
    Nov 11, 2013
    2
    I used to be a fan of the franchise. I really did, it was all about mind puzzles, giving out pieces of information, in any order, and then, atI used to be a fan of the franchise. I really did, it was all about mind puzzles, giving out pieces of information, in any order, and then, at the end, Sherlock would explain how they all fit together. This is the ESSENCE of a good book, adventure, game, whatever. You have all the pieces, can you put it together?

    Used to be true. Now, every game is worse and worse. All the puzzles are either chess puzzles (f*** hell, people, chess is not the game of the gods) or stupid combinations. Clues are only revealed once other clues have been found, so you are always hunting for one or two. For the most attention to detail person who ever lived, Sherlock sure misses a LOT of clues. When I notice a shovel and a fresh grave, SH should too.

    And finally, the franchise has been going slowly towards shock and horror. Starting with the Silver Earring, a great game, it has descended into dark pits and snakes in cadavers (Awakened), to point and click games where you have to look at mutilated faces (Jack the Ripper) to f*** horror in this game. Torn flesh, degraded, gashed skin, torture victims, dead meat, anything to stand out.

    Well, this is a review, so let's review:

    a) Games went from talking to people (investigating) and looking for clues to search and discover games you can get in Flash form anywhere, free.

    b) Games went from fun puzzles to boxed puzzles, from ingenious to tedious. There is no puzzle solving involved in the bishop problem. it's either a canned response (if you memorized it) or tedious trial and error.

    c) Games went from high society, high stakes murders where Sherlock would investigate to unimportant events in tasteless graphic detail, shock value alone and nothing else. Dialogue is gone, nobody lies or covers, nobody even tries to be difficult unless the "plot" (I use the term loosely) requires them.

    d) Graphics are slightly better, but controls still suck big time, Sherlock "runs" on double click but doesn't just skip to the next scene, like DOTT did 25 years ago. And all other SCUMM games.

    e) Story is mediocre at best. It would be mediocre if it were a puzzle game, but it's not, is it? This is Sherlock Holmes himself, the master of deduction, attention to detail, a visionary. High expectation creates deep disappointment.

    So there you have it. The height of not caring even a little bit about making a GOOD game, just pumping out another SH game. And FFS, leave the horror to the horror genre. Sherlock Holmes is the hero of the intelligent. Stop trying to make him appeal to 12 year olds.

    This game is incredibly cheap.

    Who the hell makes a combination box with the combination STAMPED ON IT, the only obstacle being how to move the pieces around, but only 2 at a time. Why, a bank, of course, they keep money in them.

    The level of stupid in this game is staggering, and it is aimed, assumingly, at intelligent people.

    There is no way this game is, in 2012, up to par in
    * graphics with any other fresh game
    * story with any other Sherlock game
    * taste with any other Sherlock game
    * sound works with any other decent game. You can barely hear the soup guy because of the street.
    * more ingenious with puzzles than Flash games. Combo lock? Bishop problem? Queen problem? Did you just open a book on recreational mathematics and started copying?    … Full Review »
  3. strav
    Jan 31, 2013
    8
    Being somewhat a seasoned adventure gamer and having enjoyed Conan Doyle's works in my youth, I must say that I had great expectations forBeing somewhat a seasoned adventure gamer and having enjoyed Conan Doyle's works in my youth, I must say that I had great expectations for this game and fortunately, it met and sometimes exceeded them. Considering the numerous and most of the time awful adaptations of Sherlock Holmes out there, I must say that this is one that truly nailed the original stories character and ambiance; they got their details right. Aside from the details, something that really sets this game apart from other adventure games, is the attention given to the deduction process. In most adventure games, once you found the appropriate clues the conclusion is outright given to you while in this game, you must put these clues together and logically deduce the right conclusion. While somewhat limited, this process really gives you some sense of actually solving the case. Another good design decision is the general absence of pixel hunting: most of the relevant items will become highlighted when you pass next to them. As for the puzzles, I must say that this is one aspect of the game that truly shines: they are realistic, logical, not too easy nor too hard or tedious. It's really been a long time since I appreciated that much a game for the consistence of it's puzzles (I guess the last one I had so much fun was Braid). As for the story, it is a really enjoyable, credible Sherlock Holmes case perhaps not as subtle as the original stories but enjoyable in it's own merit. Technically, the graphics are superb are I would place The Testament of Sherlock Holmes amongst the few games that achieved a 3D adventure game without it being awkward in some way. The voice acting is flawless and the music, while being a little bland, still manages to create the right atmosphere.

    As for the bad points, it is to notice that the character animations (lip sync and such) is often a little off and you have to compensate with your imagination. As for the controls, if I remember correctly, the game offers 3 different ways to control the characters but unfortunately, they all get a little tedious at some point (although, I really don't know how they could have done better than offering those 3 different ways (FPS, Third person, and point and click).

    In all, if you're sick of toy games such as Botanicula (where clicking at random can lead you to finish the game in approximately 4 hours), if you appreciate the Sherlock Holmes novels/stories, and happen to enjoy puzzles, then The Testament of Sherlock Holmes is a game you'll surely like.    … Full Review »
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