Sherlock Holmes: The Mystery of the Mummy

First off: If you're trying to see what the fuss is about with Frogware Sherlock Holmes, DO NOT START HERE. The more modern games are miles above this one. I know this is the free one, but seriously just shuck out some cash for Crimes and Punishment or Chapter One. Save this one for later when you're just looking to keep the magic alive. There is a guide in the discussion that explains how to make the game playable on current devices. I have absolutely no tech savvy and could still follow the instructions to get it to work. I ended up needing to rename a few more files than the guide mentioned before unloading the zipfile. Their tip on mouse speed is absolutely necessary. And I followed a commenters suggestion to change the game properties to 640x480. The game is very simple in design, but complex in puzzles. The puzzles are definitely more just a collection of Egypt themed puzzles than any deduction/mystery solving. The mystery story happens around you, but you do none of the crime solving (AGAIN this differs greatly from the other games which is why you should try one of the others first). Definitely needed to have the walkthrough handy to know where to find certain unmissable…

I really wanted to like this game, and there is occasionally something to enjoy here, but to actually play through this game was a genuinely horrible experience. The main thing holding it back in 2026 is the fact that it just does not run well on modern hardware. There are a few guides on Steam that can help getting it running and solve the mouse bug (fairly straightforward, but requires downloading a newer version of the DXWnd software the game needs and setting up a game profile in this programme), but in the end despite my best efforts to get it to run in fullscreen, I eventually ended up playing it in an 800x600 window, in which my mouse behaved very erratically (moving faster left and up than right and down, which was infuriating and disorienting and honestly made me almost travel sick; fine control for puzzles and even turning the view was nightmarishly difficult). Even then, it seems almost guaranteed to crash when loading the next chapter unless you skip the preceding cutscene with spacebar. It often crashes during other cutscenes as well, or when trying to load after getting a game over screen. It would often fail to launch after a crash unless I restarted Steam, or in so…

It's honestly a miracle I was able to not only get this working but somehow get through this weirdly confusing game. Yes, it is being given away for free and for that, thanks Frogwares. Now, at least, I can move on to perhaps another Sherlock Holmes game, I heard they get better.

Game has a ton of crashing, glitching, and soft lock issues. I've spent more time trying to fix such issues than playing the game, and when I do get to play it, essential steps to solving the puzzles are nearly impossible to find and are anti-intuitive. ultimately gave up trying to play the game as soon as I reached level 4 'cause it's just not worth my time.

Played this game way back in the day and only once, which is telling, lol. I love the Frogwares Holmes series but this one is definitely an early attempt (it is the very first one), and it shows. It is just feels jank AF and poorly implemented. The voice acting is TERRIBLE, like most adventure games at the time had some pretty hit or miss VA, but this one is just beyond the pail, with Holmes sounding super nasally and whiny. However, despite the dated appearance and heavily-pixelated backgrounds, I think the setting is very interesting--a secluded English mansion, full of ancient Egyptian artifacts, on the outskirts of London with an apparent mummy running around loose and the occupants of the house mysteriously vanished. The mystery starts off rather intriguing but ultimately is a bit of a letdown, but not horrendously so. The music is boring and repetitive and very "90s mystical synth," which feels out of place. Actually a lot of this game feels both very outdated and ahead of its time for 2003. The game feels very much like a 90s game similar to Myst but you've got almost-360-degree camera movement (which is VERY jank on today's hardware). And the setting, ambience, and…

THAT ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ LAST PUZZLE Nonetheless, great game, wouldn't mind playing again, but figuring everything out is part of the fun, so a second playthrough is not possible at all. I think I've managed to make it run using DxWnd, which worked great.