Sherlock Holmes vs. Jack the Ripper is the latest entry in the popular Sherlock Holmes mystery game series for the computer. Developed by the same company, Frogwares, that has designed the most recent Sherlock Holmes games, this game follows the same format of a traditional adventure game with conversation, puzzles and a compelling mystery.

The year is 1888, and London is being terrified by a serial killer who is savagely killing prostitutes. There are no witnesses to the crimes, and the police do not have any clues as to the identity of the murderer. Sherlock Holmes and his friend, Dr. Watson, are concerned and want to help with solving the crimes. They begin by visiting the police station in the area of the murders, and solicit information. Soon, they are investigating clues and questioning possible witnesses. With Holmes and Watson on the case, it is only a matter of time before the perpetrator is caught!

This Sherlock Holmes Mystery adventure is similar in design to the other ones in the series, but has some changes. Players can now play in either a first-person or third-person perspective, and toggle back and forth between the two modes during the course of the game. There is also a deduction board for use in putting together clues found near the bodies, in order to formulate a theory as to the circumstances of each murder. Similarities include manipulative puzzles, and conversation dialogues. The conversations cannot be revisited, but each is saved in Sherlock’s personal case notes. There is a map for traveling, as well. I can’t remember if the map was present in the previous games, or not.

The adventure begins with Sherlock and Watson visiting the police station near White Chapel, the area where the murders take place. The first tasks are “fetch and carry” errands commissioned by various characters who will only give information or objects in exchange for certain items or favors. I was struck by how silly these errands were, given the nature of the person carrying them out, but then Sherlock Holmes made a remark about having to hurt himself if he had to run any more errands, and I was amused. The rest of the game concentrated on investigating the actual crimes, and evidently these errands were to get the player used to the mechanics of the game.

The interface is easy to use, and presents players with the usual choices of action. The action icons are footsteps for walking, a speech bubble for conversation, and a magnifying glass for object examination. The menu choices include journals for dialogue and documents, a deduction area that is used in certain points of the game, a map for easy travel, and the ubiquitous inventory bag.

There are a few technical issues I encountered during the course of the game. Several times the Save function would freeze, and it would be impossible to save the current game session. During the first deduction puzzle in the game, where Sherlock must examine the scene of the murder and make deductions on a board work area, the game would not recognize that all the hot-spots had been visited and examined. I ended up having to go back to an earlier saved game and redoing the whole scene in order to advance.

For the most part, players will spend their time talking to people and gathering clues, and solving puzzles. The game is linear, but the format is designed to lead the player to the next needed step. However, because of the difficulty of some of the puzzles, this linear design can be a problem. The player will be stuck until the puzzle is solved. Most of the puzzles make sense and aren’t too problematic, but there are a few that not only are not relevant to the story, but are quite difficult to solve.

The last Sherlock Holmes game was set in a strangely deserted London, with empty streets and docks. That is not the case now, as Frogware has populated the town with all sorts of people. The rich, the poor, and the drunk walk, stroll and stagger around in all directions. These people really add to the sense of being in London in the 19^th century, and I thoroughly enjoyed watching them walk around. Well, except when they got in Sherlock’s path, though. He kept getting stuck behind the people on the streets.

I love all things British, and absolutely enjoyed the atmosphere of the smoggy, dirty London of that time. The artwork is just right, and the voice acting of the characters was well-done. Even the spelling in the dialogues is British.

Taking a notorious real case from the same time period as a well-known fictional detective and placing them together is a good idea. Any historical buff will be interested in Jack the Ripper, and detective fans will enjoy playing as Sherlock Holmes. This game isn’t quite as good as The Awakening, as the puzzles and clues aren’t as thoughtful or interesting, but the plot and location makes up for it.

I recommend this latest Sherlock Holmes adventure to any adventure game enthusiast, and especially to adventure fans who also like mysteries and historical trivia.

Gameplay: 7.0
It’s just kinda cool playing as Sherlock Holmes. Add a real unsolved mystery from the 1800’s, and the result is good entertainment. The game could have been better designed, with more logical puzzles and better clue-finding quests, but overall it is an intriguing adventure.

Graphics: 8.0
Everything is dark, smoggy and dreary. That’s because it was pretty dank and dark back then! The coal fires burning all across London ensured some bad air quality days and nights. The designers captured the essence of London very well with the backgrounds, and the characters.

Sound: 8.0
The music and sound effects are good, but there could be more variety in the background music.

Difficulty: Medium
This game as a whole is not difficult, but it some of the puzzles are hard to solve. Given the linear nature of the game, this can be a show stopper unless a walkthrough is used.

Concept: 7.0
This type of game has been seen many times before, but the execution is good.

Overall: 7.5
Adventure games have seen a resurgence, and there have been several Sherlock Holmes games these last few years. Sherlock Holmes vs. Jack the Ripper is a decent adventure game with a lot of historical nuance, and one that most will enjoy. Better integrated puzzles and more thoughtful clue finding missions would improve the overall quality, but what is here is still fun.