For once, we won't reveal too much of the game's scenario, so as not to spoil the surprise for you. Let's say that the adventure begins with a simple theft of a necklace, continues with a few bloody murders and ends with more or less startling revelations. Obviously, the famous Sherlock Holmes and Doctor Watson play a central role in all this, and the player is led to control them in turn. In a very nice way, moreover, since the developers have paid particular attention to the interface and the character control system. The game can thus be taken in hand in three different ways. At any time, you can switch between a third person view, a first person view and a view using fixed cameras. Whether you are a fan of TPS, FPS or an incorrigible fixed screen classic adventure games, there is therefore something to rejoice. Add to that the ability to play both with a controller and with the keyboard / mouse couple, and you end up with six different ways to control the characters and their interactions with the decor. If with all this you do not find your happiness, you are asked to change your hobby immediately! For our part, we have a weakness for the first person view, which reinforces immersion and facilitates movement. We appreciate it all the more as the series inaugurates with this episode a brand new graphics engine. The result is still not up to what the most beautiful action games can do, but the progress compared to the previous components is significant. While some settings are a little dull or generic (the prison, the warehouses...), others benefit from dazzling textures and frankly seductive light effects (the opium den, the classroom...) . The staging is even more uneven, the fault of animations not always well controlled. In any case, don't rely on the calamitous introductory sequence to judge the work of the developers. Its hideous models, its ridiculous voices and its too slow rhythm are in no way representative of the quality of the game. adventure) that the final credits are a model of elegance and style.
A game of shadows
Enough about form, let's get to the substance. As usual, the progression is essentially made by picking up as many objects as possible and combining them with the interactive areas of the decor in order to unlock various and varied situations. Everything is naturally sprinkled with puzzles that require us to work our brains. If we do not escape the endless and many devices to unlock (most often chests or locks), The Testament of Sherlock Holmes also offers us tables of logical deduction, exhibits to analyze and some other mini-games ranging from the merry roll of the dice to the macabre autopsy. These different activities are quite pleasant overall, especially since they are never too far-fetched and benefit from good difficulty management. Different help systems are there to support beginners, including a "sixth sense" function that displays interesting areas on the screen to watch, as well as the possibility of asking for the automatic resolution of certain puzzles. It is still advisable not to abuse it if you want to make the most of the game and not stupidly start its life. The latter exceeds ten hours, which is rather commendable these days. Moreover, the French version is very honorable, even if we advise English speakers to play the game in English in order to benefit from the British accent of Sherlock Holmes. Be warned that the dubbing is essentially heard during the non-interactive scenes, the multiple-choice dialogues being particularly rare and without much consequence. For their next adventure, the developers would be well advised to dig into this point and draw inspiration from role-playing games in order to further improve their work on Sherlock Holmes. We already know that they don't hesitate to show originality, as evidenced by this sequence where we find ourselves controlling Toby, the detective's dog. However, do not expect to experience a cult moment because, as good as the idea, this passage drags on and turns out to be rather poorly done. But once again, it is important not to throw the baby out with the bathwater. It would be a shame to cast opprobrium on the whole game based on its few very real flaws. Because at a time when many adventure games choose the easy "hidden object" way, The Testament of Sherlock Holmes finds a very good compromise between classicism and modernity.
