| Sherlock Holmes: The Case of the Silver Earring | |
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European cover art |
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| Developer(s) | Frogwares |
| Publisher(s) | NA Ubisoft EU Digital Jesters |
| Designer(s) | Jalil Amr |
| Series | Adventures of Sherlock Holmes |
| Platform(s) | Microsoft Windows |
| Release date(s) | EU August 27, 2004 NA September 29, 2004 |
| Genre(s) | Adventure |
| Mode(s) | Single-player |
| Rating(s) |
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| Media/distribution | Optical disc |
Sherlock Holmes: The Case of the Silver Earring (known in North America as Sherlock Holmes: Secret of the Silver Earring) is a computer game developed by Frogwares and published in 2004 on two CD-ROMs for Microsoft Windows by Digital Jesters in Europe and Ubisoft in North America. While the game is "inspired by The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes," it uses an original plotline — set in London in 1897 — and allows the player to investigate a murder as Sherlock Holmes and Dr. John H. Watson. A version of the game was also developed for mobile phones by Xendex, and released in 2006.
The second in the Adventures of Sherlock Holmes series of adventure games developed by Frogwares, it was preceded by the 2002 game Sherlock Holmes: Mystery of the Mummy, and was followed by Sherlock Holmes: The Awakened in 2006. The game acts as a prequel to Mystery of the Mummy - despite being released two years after the earlier game, it is actually set two years earlier (in 1897 as opposed to 1899).
Contents |
Holmes and Watson must investigate the murder of Sir Melvyn Bromsby at Sherringford Hall. Bromsby's daughter Lavinia is among the suspects.
The game's story and design is credited to Jalil Amr, based on an unpublished pastiche novel by Amr. Both sound and voiceovers for the English version are credited to Pteroduction Sound, Alexander Dudko, and Sergey Geraschenko. Unlike the English version however, the German voice cast is listed at the Internet Movie Database. Music within the game consists of compositions by Antonín Dvořák, Edvard Grieg, Robert Schumann, and Pyotr Tchaikovsky.
Silver Earring is a point-and-click adventure in which you play as both Holmes and Watson. Silver Earring is a point-and-click (mouse-controlled) third person adventure. Clicking in the general direction you wish to go will usually cause your character to move in that direction. When you see the footsteps icon, clicking will take the character to the next “authorized” spot. Double-clicking makes Holmes or Watson run.
Right-clicking brings up the inventory bar. Throughout the game, Holmes’s tools of the trade (a magnifying glass, measuring tape and test tube) are in inventory. These are frequently used. Inventory also includes a notebook, which is essential to understanding the game. The notebook has transcripts of the witnesses’ conversations (thankfully, only the important bits). Also, the notebook contains documents and an analysis of the physical evidence.
As Holmes, you spend time searching for important clues, most of which the bumbling police force will miss. Items are at least partly visible, though some don’t become “hot” until an action in the game triggers them. You also analyze various clues using Holmes’s desktop laboratory.
| Reception | |
|---|---|
| Aggregate scores | |
| Aggregator | Score |
| Metacritic | 68% (28 reviews) [1] |
| Review scores | |
| Publication | Score |
| GameSpot | 7.3 of 10 [2] |
| GameSpy | [3] |
| IGN | 8.3 of 10 [4] |
GameSpot gave the game 7.3/10.[5] Their summary cited "interesting characters, an engaging plot, and beautiful graphics" though they cited a lack of puzzles and a "mystery where you don't actually solve the mystery."[6] Further reviews were published by IGN, 8.3/10, GameSpy 3.5/5,[7][8] while collected reviews can be found at Game Rankings.[9]
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