# Sherlock Holmes: Crimes & Punishments
**Sherlock Holmes: Crimes & Punishments** is a detective adventure video game developed by Frogwares and published by Focus Home Interactive, released on September 30, 2014 for [PlayStation 3](https://www.edgepedia.org/playstation-3), [PlayStation 4](https://www.edgepedia.org/playstation-4), [Xbox 360](https://www.edgepedia.org/xbox-360), Xbox One, and Windows PC.[1](https://time.com/3422033/12-fascinating-games-fall-2014/) The player controls Sherlock Holmes as he investigates a series of self-contained cases, gathers evidence, forms deductions, and then decides whether to convict or absolve the person he judges guilty.[2](https://www.pcgamer.com/sherlock-holmes-crimes-and-punishments-review/)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Developer / publisher | Frogwares / Focus Home Interactive[2](https://www.pcgamer.com/sherlock-holmes-crimes-and-punishments-review/) |
| Release | September 30, 2014; PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, Xbox One, Windows[1](https://time.com/3422033/12-fascinating-games-fall-2014/) |
| Switch port | Released February 2022 with a Metascore of 73[3](https://www.metacritic.com/game/crimes-and-punishments/critic-reviews/?platform=nintendo-switch) |
| Reception | Metascore 73 from 36 critic reviews (PS4); user score 7.2 from 336 ratings[4](https://www.metacritic.com/game/crimes-and-punishments/?platform=xbox-one) |
| Steam rating | Very Positive, 89% of 2,368 English reviews[5](https://puzzlebyrinth.com/en/reviews/sherlock-holmes-crimes-and-punishments) |
| Cases | Six cases per Frogwares' trailer and PC Gamer; Metacritic's official summary describes 8 cases[6](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mvi-ZP1Nqzs) • [2](https://www.pcgamer.com/sherlock-holmes-crimes-and-punishments-review/) • [4](https://www.metacritic.com/game/crimes-and-punishments/?platform=xbox-one) |
| Engine | Unreal Engine[2](https://www.pcgamer.com/sherlock-holmes-crimes-and-punishments-review/) |
## Gameplay
**Investigation loop.** A typical case follows a set pattern: Holmes is called to a crime scene, examines the area for clues, questions witnesses, runs experiments, visits secondary locations such as [Baker Street](https://www.edgepedia.org/baker-street) or [Scotland Yard](https://www.edgepedia.org/scotland-yard), and then reaches a conclusion.[7](https://www.pcworld.com/article/435528/sherlock-holmes-crimes-and-punishments-review-the-definitive-sherlock-adventure.html) Players move through the world from a third-person perspective, with a first-person camera also available, and travel between locations on a map.[2](https://www.pcgamer.com/sherlock-holmes-crimes-and-punishments-review/) • [8](https://www.psu.com/reviews/sherlock-holmes-crimes-punishments-review/)
**Deduction space.** Collected clues feed into a screen representing Holmes's mind, where clues are paired to form deductions; clues often support two possible interpretations, and the player must judge which conclusion is accurate.[2](https://www.pcgamer.com/sherlock-holmes-crimes-and-punishments-review/) • [9](https://www.videogamer.com/reviews/sherlock-holmes-crimes-and-punishments-review/) Because a wrong chain of reasoning can be locked in, the player can accuse the wrong person, which gives the cases genuine agency over their outcomes.[2](https://www.pcgamer.com/sherlock-holmes-crimes-and-punishments-review/)
**Moral choices.** After solving a case, the player chooses whether to hand the culprit over to the police or let them go based on their motive and circumstances, a decision that affects Holmes's reputation and the ending cut scene of each case.[10](https://pocg.net/review/sherlock-holmes-crimes-and-punishments/) • [11](https://www.tech-gaming.com/sherlock-holmes-crimes-punishments-review/) The title alludes to Dostoevsky's *Crime and Punishment*, which Holmes is shown reading during loading scenes, and Holmes states that he serves the truth rather than the justice system.[12](https://www.gamespot.com/reviews/sherlock-holmes-crimes-punishments/1900-6415905/) Choices do not carry over between cases, so the game is structured around per-case satisfaction rather than a branching overall narrative.[2](https://www.pcgamer.com/sherlock-holmes-crimes-and-punishments-review/)
**Other mechanics.** During interrogations the player can freeze time to study a suspect's body language and clothing for conversation clues, and Holmes can don disguises to gain information.[2](https://www.pcgamer.com/sherlock-holmes-crimes-and-punishments-review/) • [6](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mvi-ZP1Nqzs) The game also includes minigames and quick-time events, and compares the player's solutions with those of other players when connected to the internet.[10](https://pocg.net/review/sherlock-holmes-crimes-and-punishments/) • [2](https://www.pcgamer.com/sherlock-holmes-crimes-and-punishments-review/)
## Cases and setting
The cases are set largely in and around Victorian London, with locations including Baker Street, foggy railway platforms, ornate Roman baths, and the cells of Scotland Yard.[2](https://www.pcgamer.com/sherlock-holmes-crimes-and-punishments-review/) The mysteries include a sailor pinned to a wall with a whaling harpoon, a train vanishing in the night, and an archaeologist killed in a sauna locked from the inside; crimes range from gruesome murders with links to the occult to cases with seemingly paranormal leanings.[2](https://www.pcgamer.com/sherlock-holmes-crimes-and-punishments-review/) Each case takes roughly a couple of hours depending on thoroughness.[2](https://www.pcgamer.com/sherlock-holmes-crimes-and-punishments-review/)
## Reception
Critical reception was mixed to positive. The PlayStation 4 version holds a Metascore of 73 based on 36 critic reviews, with 56% positive and 44% mixed, and a user score of 7.2 from 336 ratings; the [Xbox One](https://www.edgepedia.org/xbox-one) version scored 71 and the [Nintendo Switch](https://www.edgepedia.org/nintendo-switch) version 73.[4](https://www.metacritic.com/game/crimes-and-punishments/?platform=xbox-one) • [13](https://www.metacritic.com/game/crimes-and-punishments/critic-reviews/?platform=xbox-one) • [3](https://www.metacritic.com/game/crimes-and-punishments/critic-reviews/?platform=nintendo-switch) [PC Gamer](https://www.edgepedia.org/pc-gamer) scored it 84, calling it an atmospheric detective adventure that actually lets the player do some detecting, while noting rough edges and weak puzzles.[2](https://www.pcgamer.com/sherlock-holmes-crimes-and-punishments-review/) On Steam the game holds a Very Positive rating, with 89% of 2,368 English reviews positive.[5](https://puzzlebyrinth.com/en/reviews/sherlock-holmes-crimes-and-punishments)
Reviewers praised the freeform deduction gameplay and the willingness to let players reach wrong conclusions, which Nintendo Life called refreshing compared with more prescribed detective titles.[14](https://www.nintendolife.com/reviews/switch-eshop/sherlock-holmes-crimes-and-punishments) Common criticisms included uneven puzzles, some weak voice acting, lengthy loading breaks between areas, and a morality system that several critics felt needed more development.[2](https://www.pcgamer.com/sherlock-holmes-crimes-and-punishments-review/) • [15](https://www.metacritic.com/game/crimes-and-punishments/critic-reviews/?platform=playstation-4)
## Place in the series
Crimes & Punishments is widely regarded as a high point of Frogwares' long-running [Sherlock Holmes](https://www.edgepedia.org/sherlock-holmes) series. PC Gamer called it Frogwares' best game to that point, improving on its predecessors in almost every regard,[2](https://www.pcgamer.com/sherlock-holmes-crimes-and-punishments-review/) and Nintendo Life's 2022 Switch review described it as the best Sherlock Holmes game the outlet had encountered.[14](https://www.nintendolife.com/reviews/switch-eshop/sherlock-holmes-crimes-and-punishments) Its successor, *[Sherlock Holmes: The Devil's Daughter](https://www.edgepedia.org/sherlock-holmes-the-devils-daughter)* (2016), was received as a step backward, with Spanish-language coverage describing Crimes & Punishments as the excellent entry against which the later game fell short.[16](https://as.com/meristation/2021/11/30/analisis/1638283232_047851.html) Frogwares has said the game marked a shift in how the studio approached making its games.[17](https://frogwares.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/FrogwaresArtbook.pdf)
## References
1. [12 Fascinating Indie and Lower-Profile Games to Watch This Fall, TIME](https://time.com/3422033/12-fascinating-games-fall-2014/)
2. [Sherlock Holmes: Crimes and Punishments review, PC Gamer](https://www.pcgamer.com/sherlock-holmes-crimes-and-punishments-review/)
3. [Nintendo Switch Critic Reviews, Metacritic](https://www.metacritic.com/game/crimes-and-punishments/critic-reviews/?platform=nintendo-switch)
4. [Sherlock Holmes: Crimes & Punishments, Metacritic](https://www.metacritic.com/game/crimes-and-punishments/?platform=xbox-one)
5. [Sherlock Holmes: Crimes and Punishments Review, Puzzlebyrinth](https://puzzlebyrinth.com/en/reviews/sherlock-holmes-crimes-and-punishments)
6. [Sherlock Holmes: Crimes and Punishment | Gameplay trailer, Frogwares (YouTube)](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mvi-ZP1Nqzs)
7. [Sherlock Holmes: Crimes and Punishments review: The definitive Sherlock adventure, PCWorld](https://www.pcworld.com/article/435528/sherlock-holmes-crimes-and-punishments-review-the-definitive-sherlock-adventure.html)
8. [Sherlock Holmes: Crimes & Punishments Review, PlayStation Universe](https://www.psu.com/reviews/sherlock-holmes-crimes-punishments-review/)
9. [Sherlock Holmes: Crimes & Punishments Review, VideoGamer](https://www.videogamer.com/reviews/sherlock-holmes-crimes-and-punishments-review/)
10. [Sherlock Holmes: Crimes & Punishments Review, POCG](https://pocg.net/review/sherlock-holmes-crimes-and-punishments/)
11. [Sherlock Holmes: Crimes & Punishments review, Tech-Gaming](https://www.tech-gaming.com/sherlock-holmes-crimes-punishments-review/)
12. [Sherlock Holmes: Crimes & Punishments Review, GameSpot](https://www.gamespot.com/reviews/sherlock-holmes-crimes-punishments/1900-6415905/)
13. [Xbox One Critic Reviews, Metacritic](https://www.metacritic.com/game/crimes-and-punishments/critic-reviews/?platform=xbox-one)
14. [Sherlock Holmes: Crimes and Punishments Review (Switch eShop), Nintendo Life](https://www.nintendolife.com/reviews/switch-eshop/sherlock-holmes-crimes-and-punishments)
15. [PlayStation 4 Critic Reviews, Metacritic](https://www.metacritic.com/game/crimes-and-punishments/critic-reviews/?platform=playstation-4)
16. [Sherlock Holmes: Chapter One - Análisis PC, MeriStation](https://as.com/meristation/2021/11/30/analisis/1638283232_047851.html)
17. [Frogwares Art Book](https://frogwares.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/FrogwaresArtbook.pdf)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Sports, games, and recreation › Video games and digital play › Games and gameplay › Individual game titles › Individual PC and computer-platform game titles › Adventure and narrative titles*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 21, 2026 · Edited: Oct 15, 2026; Oct 21, 2026 · Last review: Oct 21, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license