Play Sherlock Online

Game Overview

Sherlock on MS-DOS is one of those games that makes you feel like an actual detective—if detectives spent half their time squinting at pixelated crime scenes and typing "examine pipe" into a parser. You start off in Holmes' study, and within minutes you're knee-deep in witness statements, cryptic notes, and that one suspiciously placed candlestick everyone keeps lying about.

The magic here is in the details. You’ll cross-reference alibis, notice when someone’s left boot is muddier than their right, and occasionally hit dead ends because you forgot to ask the butler about his weird pocket watch. It’s unapologetically text-heavy, so if you’re not into reading descriptions like "the wallpaper’s floral pattern is slightly frayed near the secret compartment," maybe grab something flashier. But if you love methodically dismantling a mystery, this is as close as DOS gets to wearing a deerstalker and muttering "elementary."

Fair warning: you might start mentally inventorying random objects in your house afterward. I did.

Each game uses different controls, most DOS games use the keyboard arrows. Some will use the mouse , "Alt" ,"Enter" and "Space bar".