Review for The Lost Files of Sherlock Holmes: Case of the Rose Tattoo Set in Victorian London (of course) go back in time to the 1800’s with Sherlock Holmes and Dr Watson with this point and click murder mystery adventure game. The game starts with The Diogenes club being blown up with Holmes’ brother Mycroft who was inside being seriously hurt. Mycroft and Holmes think it’s just an accident but Dr Watson decides to investigate and the game begins. Holmes takes a while to get over the shock of his brother’s injuries but finally joins Dr Watson on this adventure where they have to find clues and to interview and interrogate people.
Play alternates between Dr Watson and Sherlock Holmes and takes you to famous locations such as 221B Baker St and Scotland Yard. Together they have to solve many mysteries including the Diogenes club bombing, kidnap and murder to name a few. Move them around the game through the locations on the map of London. The characters speech is in keeping with the Victorian times and could have come from any Arthur Conan Doyle novel.
The game also has the added bonus of little puzzles to complete throughout the game as well, with the aid of a laboratory to examine evidence. This game can be hard in places and if you miss something or don’t get a sequence correct it can just be difficult, fortunately
Watson offers and after the fact summary but in some places I found I did need a walkthrough to keep me from getting frustrated and keep the game on track.
This is a long game but it kept me interested and I played it over a couple of days. I found it similar play wise like the Law and Order series of games where you have to find clues and ask the right people lots of the right questions, so if you’re a fan of those games you’ll like this, although I think I found Case of the Rose Tattoo to have a better story line and great graphics and music.
This was my first gaming experience with Sherlock Holmes and Dr Watson and while I did go around in circles till I got the hang of it. It’s a good game and I will definitely be having a look around for the others. For Sherlock Holmes fans or even Arthur Conan Doyle fans like myself this game is a must.
