Sherlock Holmes vs. Jack the Ripper

Steam was having some Halloween sales and so I ended up picking up a couple of games for $5, adventure games that I would normally pass over but hey, for $5 why not try them out?  The first one I bought for the title alone:  Sherlock Holmes vs. Jack the Ripper.  That's right.  I was actually expecting to pull this game apart, but surprisingly, it's an extremely enjoyable adventure and a well done game overall.

The latest in a series of Sherlock Holmes created by Frogware, this installment sends Holmes and Watson to the heart of Whitechapel, where...well, you know the history.  Despite the police force's objection to Sherlock intervening in their case, Sherlock takes it upon himself to put an end to his prostitute killing shenanigans.

Although no one would really complain if she was offed...shudder...

Right away, the game has two things working against it: the extreme fanbase of Sherlock Holmes AND the noteriety of Jack the Ripper.  Everyone has their own favourite portrayal of Holmes through the years, my own being the new Stephen Moffat written series (watch it, it's wonderful).  As for Jack the Ripper, there are so many theories and myths surrounding the guy it's almost impossible to bring anything original to the tale.  So how did the characters and story hold up in this game?

Pretty well, actually.  For one, the game sticks fairly close to the historical facts of the Ripper murders, right down to meeting Inspector Abberline, the real life officer in charge of the murders.  I don't know enough details to know if the notes and witness statements the game provides are actual witness statements, but the effort put into the details was appreciated nonetheless.  At the same time though, it doesn't let those details weigh down the game and provides enough mystery to keep you guessing.

Of course I'm not going to give away the ending, but I was pleasantly surprised at the road that they ended up taking with the identity of the Ripper.  After hearing wild conspiracy theories over the years, it was actually a relief to have a far more human story to explain it.

As for Holmes, well, he's still Sherlock Holmes, deeply engrossed in the case, slightly arrogant in in his intelligence and one step ahead of everyone else.  I think he could have been really great had his voice actor not been so one-note for the majority of the game.  Pretty much everything he said was in a tone that indicated he might as well be ordering a sandwich.  That would be okay, I guess, except when he says things like "Hell is down that path.  It is a portal which none should go through"...really...no gravitas to that?

Watson, unfortunately, fell a bit short of my expectations.  I understand he's the yin to Holmes' yang, and that he's a bit more impulsive and human when it comes to judging others, but there were points that he just became unbelievable.  A constant gag through the game is how much Watson hates gore and blood which in any other character might be believable.  But Watson is a doctor, trained to deal with this sort of thing everyday.  Seriously, I felt like if I were to go in with an infection he would need to leave the room to vomit or something.  It was a small detail, but it became jarring.

No no Holmes, you go ahead....I'm just going to cower out here for a bit...

Thankfully, though, the rest of the game is extremely well done.  I honestly didn't expect to enjoy it as much as I did.  Exploring Whitechapel was a lot of fun.  And it looks great as well.  Things are appropriately grimy and grim but individual locations have their own quirks.  The streets are full of people passing by, drinking, selling flowers, and passing out.  It's these kinds of details that make the environment that much richer.

And the prositutes are appropriately buxom.

In a very nice touch, you actually have the option of switching between first person and third person  point and click views.  I personally enjoyed the first person because of the freedom of movement it gave me although finding hotspots became a bit more cumbersome.

1868- when leering was more accepted.

And the puzzles?  My brain was ready to explode more than once during this game, but not from frustration.  The puzzles ended up being pretty damn challenging but enjoyably so.  More importantly, they make sense to the story and aren’t just there for the hell of having a puzzle.  There was only one instant where I needed help really badly, but that was due to some poorly designed hotspot searching.  I was also surprised by just how necessary it became to thoroughly read all documents collected for clues.  Some of them read like a Myst journal, and it took a real time commitment to get through them sometimes.  I personally liked this but the impatience pre-built into gamers now might make it more tedious for others.  Nuts to them, I say.  Nuts!

Really, if I can sum up the game in one word it’s “Care”.  You can see it all over the game.  The developers clearly care about the subject matter and content to send up a very decent homage to the Sherlock Holmes franchise and the legend of Jack the Ripper.  If there’s any faults with the game itself, it’s that there’s just a bit too much hand holding (Sherlock is constantly nudging you to your next destination) and linear gameplay to make it a truly outstanding game.  Still though, it’s 100% adventure and worth far more than the $5 I paid.