Sherlock Holmes: Consulting Detective Vol. I

n/a

Sherlock Holmes: Consulting Detective Vol. I

Publisher: Sega

Distributor: Ecofilmes (PT)

Genre: Adventure

Number of players: 1

Release	Date	RRP	Code
US	1992-11^[1]
EU	1993		4650
DE	1993-09^[8]	DM 129.95129.95^[8]	4650
FR	1993-09^[7]		4650
PT		€14.40014.400^[9]
UK	1993-04^[2]^[3]^[4]	£44.9944.99^[5]^[6]	4650

Non-Sega versions
CD-ROM² CDTV FM Towns IBM PC Macintosh

Sherlock Holmes: Consulting Detective Vol. I is an adventure game for the Sega Mega-CD based on the Sherlock Holmes series of books. In North America, the game was bundled with launch consoles, along with Sega Classics Arcade Collection (in the same box) and Sol-Feace.

Gameplay

Sherlock Holmes

Desktop

The game presents the player with three different mysteries to solve. It uses live actors and sets as the player assumes the role of veteran detective Sherlock Holmes, assisted by his longtime partner Dr. Watson, trying to collect clues by visiting various locations, questioning witnesses and suspects, and reading the included mock London newspapers.

The player controls Holmes' iconic smoking pipe like a mouse cursor and can move it with the D-Pad and confirm a selection with . The three cases can be played in any order. The game can be saved to and resumed from the console's internal memory.

At the beginning of each case, a full-motion video clip depicts Holmes and Watson meeting a client and learning a few background clues about the case. Then the player must choose a particular location or person from the directory or notebook to visit, read the London newspapers for clues, or ask one of the young "Baker Street Irregulars" to investigate. The object of each case is to gather enough clues in the lowest number of visits possible, then go before a judge who then asks the player to answer the important questions about the case. If the player is successful, Dr. Watson reveals the player's score, based on the number of visits it took to solve the case. The player can view a video clip set in Holmes' and Watson's study that reviews the events that transpired.

Informants

Besides witnesses and suspects, there are several general informants and locations that can be visited to provide additional expertise. Visiting an informant is sometimes necessary to provide a clue that leads to solving the mystery.

Henry Ellis: The foreign news editor of The Times and an expert on international affairs.
Edward Hall: A barrister who can be consulted for his legal expertise.
Quentin Hogg: A crime reporter for The Police Gazette and a former police inspector who possesses a keen deductive mind.
Sir Jasper Meeks: A medical examiner who can be consulted for his technical analysis of cadavers.
H.R. Murray: A chemist who can apply forensics to examine physical evidence.
Disraeli O'Brian: The head clerk of the Office of Records, who can provide legal records.
Langdale Pike: A gossip columnist who covers London's social scene and knows all of the city's scandalous gossip.
Porky Shinwell: A former prisoner and the proprietor of the Raven and Rat Inn who stays connected to underworld dealings through his establishment's seedy patrons.
London Library: A large library full of valuable reference materials.
Scotland Yard: The city's police headquarters where Inspector Lestrade can aid with the investigation.
Somerset House: An archive of records including births, deaths, and records.

Icons

These icons appear on the Holmes' desktop and help the player gather clues and solve the case.

	Holmes' Book
	Returns to the Table of Contents, where the player can save the game, load a previously started game, or select a different mystery.
	Notebook
	Opens the Notebook, which stores the names of people and places of interest.
	Directory
	Opens the Directory, a list of names of people and places in London.
	Newspaper
	Opens a list of newspapers, which can be inspected for clues.
	Travel
	After selecting a name from the Notebook or Directory, Holmes or Watson can travel to a location by clicking this icon. A video sequence plays each time the player visits a relevant person or location. Selecting an irrelevant location to visit results in a short audio clip of dialogue between Holmes and Watson and negatively impacts the player's score.
	Holmes' Files
	After selecting a name from the Notebook or Directory, opens a page from Holmes' file that contains background information about the given person or place.
	Baker Street Irregulars
	After selecting a name from the Notebook or Directory, Holmes can send the "Baker Street Irregulars," street boys employed by Holmes as intelligence agents. The boys can gather inside information that Holmes is unable to collect in a direct interrogation, but they cannot help with every subject.
	Courtroom
	After collecting enough clues, Holmes can visit the courtroom, where the player is asked questions to solve the case and given a score based on the number of visits taken.

Tools

	Holmes' Book
	From the Table of Contents, the player can select any of the three cases to play in any order, save the game in progress, or load a previously saved game from the console's internal memory. There is also a video introduction by Holmes and an "instructions" page that provides audio descriptions of the icons on the desktop.
	Notebook
	A list of names of people and places of interest. At the beginning of the case, it already contains a list of items, but additional names can be added to it from the Directory. It can contain multiple pages of names. The player can select a name and then an icon to travel to the person or place to investigate, open a relevant entry from Holmes' file, or send the Baker Street Irregulars to scrounge for clues.
	Directory
	The London Directory, containing people and places, sorted alphabetically. The Directory contains many names, but it is up to the player to determine which are relevant to the current case. As with the Notebook, after selecting a name, the player can click an icon to travel to the person or place for an interview, open the subject's entry in Holmes' file, or send the Baker Street Irregulars to investigate. The player can also click the Notebook icon to add the name to it.
	Newspaper
	The Times, a newspaper that the player can scan for clues. Each case has several papers that can be inspected. Like the Directory, not all of the entries are relevant to the current case.
	Courtroom
	The courtroom can be visited after collecting enough clues to solve the mystery. If the player has not yet visited enough relevant locations, the judge tells Holmes to investigate more. Otherwise, the player is asked to pick the name of the guilty party from either the Directory or the Notebook. If the correct suspect is chosen, the player is asked to choose the motive from four choices and sometimes asked additional questions concerning the case. If the wrong choice is made, the player fails the case and must start over from the beginning. If the case is solved successfully, the player is given a score based on the number of resources used in the investigation, with the player achieving Holmes' score if the case is solved in the fewest amount of steps possible. After solving the mystery, Holmes and Watson summarize the case in a video sequence.

Cases

	The Mummy's Curse
	This investigation is set on 12 April 1889. Holmes and Watson learn about a series of mysterious deaths of three men who were part of an archaeology trip to Egypt. Each man was found strangled with a sheath of a mummy's wrapping present at each murder. The Times believes the deaths were caused by an ancient mummy, creating mass hysteria. Holmes and Watson decide to take on the case to find the real culprit, but they face a challenge since only one murder was in London, while another was in Egypt and another was at sea. To solve the case, the player must identify who murdered Ebenezer Turnbull, Andrew Weatherby, and James Windibanks, along with the motive for each murder.
	The Mystified Murderess
	This case takes place on 4 July 1888. Frances Nolan is found hovering over the body of her lover, Guy Clarendon, in a London hotel with a pistol in her hand. She is convicted of Guy's murder, despite having no memory of ever being there, nor purchasing the gun that was bought in her name. She insists that she is innocent as Holmes and Watson take on the case to see if she is telling the truth. Along the way, Holmes and Watson investigate the "Society Burglar," a thief who is stealing valuables from members of high society. To solve the case, the player must determine the real murderer of Guy Clarendon, the killer's motive, the reason that Frances went to Halliday's Private Hotel on the night of the murder, and the identity of the "Society Burglar."
	The Tin Soldier
	The investigation takes place on 10 June 1890. An old general is murdered in his home by a mysterious visitor who quickly vanishes from the scene of the crime. Holmes and Watson investigate to see whether the crime was due to the general's part in a veteran tontine, a book he was writing on a missing diamond, a disgruntled marriage, or something hidden deep in his past. To solve the case, Holmes must determine who murdered General Farnsworth Armstead, the killer's motive, why the Napoleon figure was turned around, and what the general used to call his wife.

History

Legacy

The game was re-released as a DVD (for use with a standard DVD player) in 1999. A higher resolution and remastered version of the game was released for the iPad, Windows, and OS X in 2012.

The game was followed by Sherlock Holmes: Consulting Detective Vol. II in 1993. Since the game was only bundled with new consoles and never released as a standalone product in North America, this theoretically means Volume II is a great deal easier to find than Volume I.

A third entry with three new cases was also released for the IBM PC and Macintosh in 1993, but it was not released for any home console.

Production credits

Starring

Sherlock Holmes: Peter Farley
Dr. Watson: Warren Green

Source:

In-game credits^[10]

Magazine articles

Main article: Sherlock Holmes: Consulting Detective Vol. I/Magazine articles.

Physical scans

Sega Retro Average

Publication

Version

Score

1700 igr dlya Sega (RU)

40

^[11]

Consoles + (FR)

86

^[12]

Computer & Video Games (UK)

78

^[13]

Mean Machines: The Essential Sega Guide (UK)

75

^[14]

GamePro (US)

NTSC-U

83

^[15]

GamesMaster (UK)

76

^[16]

Joypad (FR)

63

^[17]

Sega Mega Drive Advanced Gaming (UK)

PAL

85

^[18]

Sega Mega Drive Advanced Gaming (UK)

PAL

85

^[19]

Mega (UK)

PAL

70

^[20]

Mega Action (UK)

PAL

80

^[21]

Mega Force (FR)

75

^[22]

MegaTech (UK)

PAL

79

^[23]

Player One (FR)

50

^[24]

Power Up! (UK)

76

^[25]

Sega Power (UK)

PAL

73

^[26]

Sega Pro (UK)

NTSC-U

91

^[27]

Sega Zone (UK)

PAL

90

^[28]

Sega Force (SE)

78

^[29]

Sega Force (UK)

NTSC

86

^[30]

Video Games (DE)

PAL

46

^[31]

	75
Based on 21 reviews

Mega-CD, US
Cover
Disc Manual Hint Guide

Mega-CD, EU
Cover
Spinecard Disc Manual

Mega-CD, PT
Cover
Disc Manual EU Manual

Technical information

Main article: Sherlock Holmes: Consulting Detective Vol. I/Technical information.

References

NEC Retro has more information related to Sherlock Holmes: Consulting Detective

Sherlock Holmes: Consulting Detective Vol. I
	Main page \| Comparisons \| Development \| Magazine articles \| Reception \| Technical information No results

[:File:SegaVisions_US_10.pdf_p52-1] Sega Visions, "November/December 1992" (US; 1992-xx-xx), page 52

[:File:Mega_UK_07.pdf_p51-2] Mega, "April 1993" (UK; 1993-03-18), page 51

[:File:MegaTech_UK_16.pdf_p29-3] MegaTech, "April 1993" (UK; 1993-03-20), page 29

[:File:SegaPro_UK_19.pdf_p18-4] Sega Pro, "May 1993" (UK; 1993-04-08), page 18

[:File:Mega_UK_07.pdf_p26-5] Mega, "April 1993" (UK; 1993-03-18), page 26

[:File:MegaPower_UK_07.pdf_p79-6] Mega Power, "February 1994" (UK; 1994-01-20), page 79

[:File:SelectRound_FR_01.pdf_p2-7] Select Round, "Septembre 1993" (FR; 1993-xx-xx), page 2

[:File:VideoGames_DE_1993-09.pdf_p43-8] 8.0 ^8.1 Video Games, "9/93" (DE; 1993-08-25), page 43

[:File:JogosV.C3.ADdeo_PT_02.pdf_p15-9] Jogos Vídeo, "Dezembro de 1993; Ano 1, Nº 2'"`UNIQ--ref-0000000C-QINU`"'" (PT; 1993-12-xx), page 15

[:File:Sherlock_Holmes_Consulting_Detective_Vol_I_MCD.2C_Starring.png_p-10] File:Sherlock Holmes Consulting Detective Vol I MCD, Starring.png

[11] 1700 igr dlya Sega, "" (RU; 2001-xx-xx), page 204

[12] Consoles +, "Octobre 1993" (FR; 1993-xx-xx), page 146

[:File:CVG_UK_140.pdf_p106-13] Computer & Video Games, "July 1993" (UK; 1993-06-15), page 106

[:File:MeanMachinesEssentialSegaGuide_Book_UK.pdf_p125-14] Mean Machines: The Essential Sega Guide, "" (UK; 1993-11-18), page 125

[:File:GamePro_US_043.pdf_p62-15] GamePro, "February 1993" (US; 1993-xx-xx), page 62

[:File:GamesMaster_UK_005.pdf_p27-16] GamesMaster, "May 1993" (UK; 1993-04-19), page 27

[:File:Joypad_FR_023.pdf_p78-17] Joypad, "Septembre 1993" (FR; 1993-0x-xx), page 78

[:File:MDAG_UK_08.pdf_p52-18] Sega Mega Drive Advanced Gaming, "April 1993" (UK; 1993-xx-xx), page 52

[:File:MDAG_UK_09.pdf_p50-19] Sega Mega Drive Advanced Gaming, "May 1993" (UK; 1993-xx-xx), page 50

[:File:Mega_UK_07.pdf_p50-20] Mega, "April 1993" (UK; 1993-03-18), page 50

[:File:MegaAction_UK_04.pdf_p27-21] Mega Action, "September 1993" (UK; 1993-08-12), page 27

[:File:MegaForce_FR_Supplement_20.pdf_p20-22] Mega Force, "Mega-CD Force: Le Supplément Spécial Mega-CD" (FR; 1993-xx-xx), page 20

[:File:MegaTech_UK_16.pdf_p32-23] MegaTech, "April 1993" (UK; 1993-03-20), page 32

[:File:PlayerOne_FR_035.pdf_p126-24] Player One, "Octobre 1993" (FR; 1993-xx-xx), page 126

[25] Power Up!, "Saturday, April 17, 1993" (UK; 1993-04-17), page 1

[:File:SegaPower_UK_43.pdf_p48-26] Sega Power, "June 1993" (UK; 1993-05-06), page 48

[:File:SegaPro_UK_18.pdf_p38-27] Sega Pro, "April 1993" (UK; 1993-03-11), page 38

[:File:SegaZone_UK_07.pdf_p50-28] Sega Zone, "May 1993" (UK; 1993-04-08), page 50

[:File:SegaForce_SE_1993_07.pdf_p18-29] Sega Force, "7/93" (SE; 1993-11-04), page 18

[:File:SegaForce_UK_17.pdf_p70-30] Sega Force, "May 1993" (UK; 1993-04-01), page 70

[:File:VideoGames_DE_1993-10.pdf_p113-31] Video Games, "10/93" (DE; 1993-09-29), page 113

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