Another month has already died and gone. The time goes fast, too fast for us mortals, and there never really feels like there’s any time sometimes to really enjoy life with how quickly it goes. But it is what it is, I suppose, but at least there is free games month to month to keep us from thinking about such grim things, and November’s Games with Gold got announced today.

The two headlining entries are the narrative-based mystery title Sherlock Holmes: The Devil’s Daughter on Xbox One, available all throughout November and the Xbox game Star Wars: Jedi Starfighter that will be available from November 1st to 15th. Along with them will be The Final Solution for Xbox One (11/16-12/15) and Joyride Turbo for 360 (11/16-11/30).

All of these games will be available throughout November and will be available to all Xbox One systems, with Star Wars and Joyride also being available via the Xbox 360.

Developer Frogwares has made a name for themselves as a solid midrange developer who specializes in detective games. Their most recent, The Sinking City, is a solid Lovecraft-inspired title. Before that, they were largely known for their Sherlock Holmes games, which followed a similar structure to The Sinking City. Now, though, it seems those games could very well vanish, as a dispute with the publisher of those titles, Focus Home Interactive, has seen most of them be delisted from digital store.

In a statement released by Frogwares, they confirmed that all of their Sherlock Holmes titles have been pulled from digital storefronts with the exception of Sherlock Holmes Crimes & Punishments, which will suffer the same fate on September 29th. Apparently, the deal they had in place with Focus ended, and Focus is refusing to transfer rights to those listings to Frogwares, leading to delisting.

“As it stands right now, the only game left is Sherlock Holmes Crimes & Punishments which only has until September 29th,” Frogwares said. “It is possible that it will be taken down at this date or earlier if nothing is done. The players will no longer be able to buy and play the game. We will also lose all our Wishlists on those store pages. As the creators and IP owners of all those games, we have no control and no say in this. The decision of Focus Home left us voiceless.”

The developer is working on new store profiles, but due to the length of time and multiplatformed nature of some of these titles (many were released crossgen on PS3 and Xbox 360), it makes creating listings either costly or impossible.

What’s happened here is very unusual, and it seems as if it’s very possible some of these games, or at least, some versions of those games will never see a downloadable option again. We’ll keep you updated on this with hopes that all of this can be resolved.

Sony’s ongoing streaming service continues to add games this month, and it looks like May is going to be a pretty big one. Not only will we see the latest installment in the megahit Batman: Arkham series, there’s a little something for everyone this month even beyond that, with a lot of different games joining the catalog.

As detailed via the PlayStation blog, May boasts a pretty impressive list of new titles. The headliner is, without doubt, Batman: Arkham Knight, the conclusion to Rocksteady’s Batmansaga. Not too far behind is Konami and PlatinumGames’ Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance Ultimate Edition, which includes not only the base game, but all the DLC as well.

For the younger audiences there’s, Lego Ninjago Movie Video Game. There’s also something for the mystery minded in Sherlock Holmes: The Devil’s Daughter, and a PS3-to-PS4 upgrade for Tales of Zestiria, along with a lot more. You can check out the whole list below.

These games will be available this month on the PS Now service for subscribers, which you can stream to any PlayStation 4 or capable PC. It also allows you to download any PS4 or PS2 game directly to your PlayStation 4.

• 8-Bit Armies (PS4)
• Batman: Arkham Knight (PS4)
• Brawlout (PS4)
• Dangerous Golf (PS4)
• Lego Ninjago Movie Video Game (PS4)
• Majin and the Forsaken Kingdom (PS3)
• Metal Gear Rising Revengeance Ultimate Edition (PS3)
• Miko Gakkout Monogatari: Kaede Episode (PS4)
• Sherlock Holmes: The Devil’s Daughter (PS4)
• Tales of Zestiria (PS4 Upgrade)

Unfortunately, the new Sherlock Holmes game appears to be a step down from how great some of the last few entries in the series have been. Maybe it’s because of the technical transition that accompanied this new game, but it’s not as compelling an adventure as the previous Sherlock Holmes games have been known to be.

But if you do play it, you’ll still find yourself up against some fiendishly difficult puzzles and conundrums, that will need all of your brainpower to solve. And if you find yourself bested by them, there’s no shame! It doesn’t hurt to ask for some help, and that’s what we are here for. This video walkthrough below will help you through the entire game- be warned, though! This video walkthrough will have spoilers for the game, and for the story. If you would rather not know what the story is building towards, you’d best be careful with how you approach the walkthrough.

"To Frogwares’ credit, solving each puzzle and gathering clues is what makes the game the most fun. If a particular puzzle is too difficult, you’re afforded the option of skipping it."

First it’s important to note exactly how the story plays out. Rather than a large over-arching story, Holmes explores several different cases – which all feed into each other en route to the climax – and discovers suspects. Baker Street and London in general is crafted with eloquent detail and it’s easy to find Holmes and Watson as endearing characters. You’ll still see much of the same eagle-eyed observation and logical deduction that made Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s detective a massive hit combined with a healthy bit of swagger and arrogance. It’s kind of fun when you first start out.

Another positive about The Devil’s Daughter is how much emphasis is placed on actual detective work. Having not played the previous game, it was interesting to roam about, collecting evidence and linking clues together. One particularly interesting mechanic was the ability to observe minute details on characters during conversations, allowing even more clues to be unearthed. The logical connection of all these clues within Holmes’ mind presents its fair share of suspects.

And like Crimes and Punishments, there are a number of different conclusions you can come to. Some might be correct while others could very well lead you to the wrong suspect. There’s a fair amount of fact-checking that has to be done to ensure justice is done.

To Frogwares’ credit, solving each puzzle and gathering clues is what makes the game the most fun. If a particular puzzle is too difficult, you’re afforded the option of skipping it. You can also explore London for the first time in the series but there wasn’t really much on offer gameplay-wise aside from taking in the overall ambience of the Victorian era. That being said, the locations where your cases take place look very good and highlight the game’s attention to detail. Scouring these areas for clues is fun, especially as the puzzles begin to ramp up in difficulty.

"It’s odd and mixed with the rest of the game, it feels unnecessary. Of course these action sequences can be skipped but that’s not a solution for bad design."

And that’s pretty much where the positives end with Sherlock Holmes: The Devil’s Daughter.

For the life of me, I’ll never understand how a game that’s all about puzzle solving, adventure and morally complex dilemmas would ever need to imbue so much action into its proceedings. Sure, you could throw something unique in every once in a while as long as it makes sense and doesn’t prove too janky for the player. Unfortunately, a majority of Sherlock Holmes: The Devil’s Daughter concentrates on QTE sequences, a tailing mission, running through the woods and hiding, and other such odd sequences that feel so out of place with the rest of the game.

For instance, the tailing mission sees you playing as Wiggins, a street urchin under the employ of Holmes who is charged with following a suspect, taking caution and avoiding notice. The entire ordeal takes place from the third person perspective and movement is anything but fluid. Problems with movement further manifest when you’re running through a temple and switching between Holmes and Watson to solve puzzles. It’s odd and mixed with the rest of the game, it feels unnecessary. Of course these action sequences can be skipped but that’s not a solution for bad design.

I had heard that Crimes and Punishments implemented a good number of these sequences but ultimately let the cases do the talking. The cases in The Devil’s Daughter are…alright. When your biggest exposure to Sherlock Holmes has been through the originally published stories, they aren’t exactly the crème of the crop. They’re especially lackluster compared to the best that the adventuring genre has to offer. For the life of me, I can’t understand why Frogwares wouldn’t play to its strengths and open up these cases to be something so much more rather than padding them out with ridiculous sequences and QTEs. The overall story itself is only let down further by the boring ending.

"This isn’t Holmes’ greatest adventure till date and hopefully like season 3 of the BBC’s modern reboot, it’s only a minor setback in the grand scheme of things."

If that weren’t enough, Sherlock Holmes: The Devil’s Daughter looks good but nothing here that should really weigh on your system. Weigh it does though with some frame rate hiccups and some annoying screen-tearing. It also doesn’t help that you’ll be doing most of your travelling from location to location with fast travel and the loading times can be annoyingly long at times. Major glitches are absent but you’d expect better performance than this, especially given the number of Sherlock Holmes titles that Frogwares has already developed.

Sherlock Holmes: The Devil’s Daughter has its plus points. It puts you in the mind, quite literally, of the greatest detective of all time and invites you to experience his world without filters. It wants you, the player, to gather and connect all these clues. Missing out on anything vital could hamper your overall investigation and at the end, what you choose may not necessarily be the best possible decision for your conscious.

London looks great and despite some imminently limited side character depictions, Holmes and Watson are least at compelling leads. It’s just mind-boggling that such a formula would be hampered by all these annoying “action” pieces in an attempt to inject variety when the writing behind the cases and overall story is so ham-fisted as a whole. This isn’t Holmes’ greatest adventure till date and hopefully like season 3 of the BBC’s modern reboot, it’s only a minor setback in the grand scheme of things.

This game was reviewed on the Xbox One.

Mirrors Edge Catalyst

Faith returns in Mirror’s Edge Catalyst, the much anticipated sequel to the original game. That being said, this is no ordinary sequel – Catalyst will be a reboot and origins story for Faith, presenting a whole new tale of oppression and intrigue in a futuristic authoritarian city. A lot has changed from the original Mirror’s Edge, including the addition of a skill tree and a huge open world to explore. Players will have the chance to create races that can stretch through the city or take part in the expansive story (which isn’t nearly as forgettable as the first game). Mirror’s Edge Catalyst is out on June 7th for North America and June 9th for Xbox One, PS4 and PC.

Mighty No. 9

The long-in development, often-delayed spiritual successor to Mega Man will finally be upon us. Mighty No. 9 has seen its fair share of issues and controversies, ranging from failed additional Kickstarters to controversies with its community manager. That’s not even getting into the awful launch trailer that recently released and was apparently publisher Deep Silver’s fault. That being said, we’re still interested in what Mighty No. 9 has to offer with its combo-based gameplay, level design and call-backs to the Mega Man franchise. It’ll be available on just about every home platform on June 21st and June 24th

Umbrella Corps

What do you get when you cross a competitive multiplayer shooter with the zombies of Resident Evil? A horrifying monster, for one, but actually it’s Umbrella Corps. This shooter focuses on teaming up with friends as part of various mercenary groups sent in by bio-weapons corporations. Though primarily third person shooter-based, Umbrella Corps allows for aiming down sights in first person and melee combat. Numerous modes and levels, some which call back to previous games like Resident Evil: Code Veronica, also exist to be explored. Zombies are also a key factor, disrupting your operations when you’re not being gunned down by enemy groups. It’s out on June 21st in North America and Europe for PC and PS4.

Lego Star Wars: The Force Awakens

You knew it was coming. The Lego Star Wars franchise has been a proverbial juggernaut in its own right and the saga continues with Lego Star Wars: The Force Awakens. Interestingly, Traveler’s Tales is working on incorporating a number of new features into the series such as cover shooting; Multi-Build, which gives you more freedom for building and expanding on paths to explore; and much more. Classic characters like Rey, Poe Dameron, Finn, Kylo Ren and Han Solo are featured and the game will actually include content taking place between the period of Return of the Jedi and The Force Awakens. Will we finally experience the battle of Jakku firsthand? One can only hope. Lego Star Wars: The Force Awakens is out on June 28th in North America and Europe.

Star Ocean: Integrity and Faithlessness

The Star Ocean franchise returns with the game’s first PS4 outing (though it’s also out on PS3 in Japan) Integrity and Faithlessness, which comes to North America on June 28th. The RPG will be unlike any of its predecessors with a seven member party and seamless transitions from the cut scenes to gameplay. We’ll find out just how good it is when it actually releases next month.

The Technomancer

Spiders has been rather hit-or-miss with its action RPGs (mostly miss with efforts like Mars: War Logs and Bound by Flame). The Technomancer will nonetheless continue this string of efforts, taking place in the same setting as Mars War Logs. With three styles of combat, four skill trees, crafting, varying choices for completing quests and a choice of numerous companions, The Technomancer will also be the developer’s first current gen exclusive, releasing on PC, Xbox One and PS4. It’s out on June 28th worldwide.

We Happy Few

Imagine a dystopia Wellington Wells during an alternate World War 2 era. Something has happened to the city in order for it to win the war but it’s citizens resorted to the drug Joy in order to forget it all. What happens when you play as someone who hasn’t taken the drug and is subsequently hunted by those around them? We Happy Few balances survival horror with a sandbox element, challenging you to escape Wellington Wells without arousing the suspicion of those around you. It’s been in development since February 2015 and despite no solid release date, we know it will be coming in June to PC and Xbox One to inflict some Unreal Engine 4-powered trauma upon us all.

Sherlock Holmes: The Devil’s Daughter

Frogwares’ Sherlock Holmes: The Devil’s Daughter won’t be its last Sherlock Holmes title but it may be a while till we see the famous detective again. With five linked cases, a “deduction board” to piece together various clues and multiple conclusions, The Devil’s Daughter will continue the series’ penchant for compelling mysteries and consequences. It’s out on June 10th for PS4, Xbox One and PC.

Bigben Interactive is the publisher Frogwares will be working with this time around. That wasn’t the only change Frogwares decided to make with the game. Kenny Shale had long been the voice actor who played Sherlock Holmes but it was announced the developers wanted a more hip actor to play the detective. Sherlock Holmes: The Devil’s Daughter is set to come to the PC, PS4 and Xbox One on May 27, 2016.

• 1. Development
• 2. Story
• 3. Gameplay
• 4. Characters

Development

Frogwares announced Sherlock Holmes: The Devil’s Daughter on May 8, 2015 and was said to be coming to the PS4, Xbox One and PC. During the announcement, Frogwares said it will be bringing state of the arts graphics to the game. Along with the official announcement the company released three screenshots for the game.

During the Paris Games Week, Frogwares and Bigben Interactive shed a bit more light on the new chapter in the series. The companies allowed members of the media to get their hands on the game and watch a couple of demo videos. Sherlock Holmes: The Devil’s Daughter is still running on Unreal Engine 3, but the development team has incorporated Physically Based Rendering (PBR) into the output in order to have sharper graphics and more detail when it comes to lighting and shading. The developers also said they will be outputting at a resolution of 1080p and 30fps. The development team has said this game is not an action heavy title, so it won’t need to have graphics that go much beyond those parameters.

On March 1, 2016 the company released the very first trailer for the game. This trailer introduced Sherlock Holmes in this revamped game world, as well as a young girl that appears to be central to the theme of The Devil’s Daughter. On April 10, 2016, the development team released a seven minute trailer that showed off the gameplay aspects of Sherlock Holmes: The Devil’s Daughter. The game is due to release for the Xbox One, PS4 and PC on May 27, 2016.

Story

Sherlock Holmes: The Devil’s Daughter is set in Victorian London just as all the other Sherlock Holmes games in the long-running series have been. This time around Bigben Interactive promises the game is going to have an emotional and moving storyline and while there aren’t a ton of details to go off of, the development team has said the title will include, “family stories, irresistible emotions and an occult revenge” tale. The development team has laid out the mystery by asking what led to Katelynn, who is the little girl in the reveal trailer to the famous detective’s front door.

There is a question as to whether the girl, who is led away by a mysterious character at the end of the reveal trailer, has possibly found out the dark secret behind her family’s wealth. As part of a separate and yet apparently connected story, there is a charming practitioner of the occult who has just moved into 221C Baker Street. This new neighbor of the esteemed detective seems to have a few mysteries of her own and it will be up to the players to figure out everything that is going on in this story.

Gameplay

The layout of the gameplay for Sherlock Holmes: The Devil’s Daughter is quite similar to what players have seen in previous titles in the series. This is an adventure game that mostly centers around the players unraveling clues and investigating scenes in order to figure out how the mystery at the center of the story will unfold. There is not a ton of action in these types of games, though Frogwares has said there will be a bit more action in this title than in previous games in the franchise.

The game is also said to be a bit more open world, which means that players will not be directly transported from 221B Baker street to the site of the crimes or the places the players need to go in order to gather clues. There is said to still be some linearity to solving the various mysteries that are all tied together in order to help the young girl. When it comes to solving the mysteries, players will have to tie clues together in order to figure out what’s going on. Sometimes the clues players are fed and will lead to small discoveries like a character is sick, instead of sad.

There are said to be five mysteries in total that players will need to solve in order to solve the bigger mystery encased in Sherlock Holmes: The Devil’s Daughter.

Characters

The usual characters from the long running series will all appear in this game. Sherlock Holmes, as well as Watson are back, though they have both been given an updated look. There is also Katelynn a little girl that seems to have both a mysterious past and a mysterious future. There is also a practitioner of the occult that has moved in next door the Sherlock. The game is also full of other NPCs that will become known as the game unfolds.

Note: This wiki will be updated once we have more information about the game

Sherlock Holmes: The Devil’s Daughter is the next entry in the Sherlock Holmes video game series, and this is a pretty big one- the first entry in the series that is made exclusively for the current generation spec, and one that looks to shake things up significantly. The Devil’s Daughter seems to offer a full open world-esque mechanic to enable free player exploration, and it also seems to feature far younger looking versions of Holmes and Watson than previous games did.

If you so far have not been sold on these changes, you are in luck- these 15 minutes of gameplay footage for the title, just uploaded today, will probably do a better job of selling you on the game than anything else so far has. You can check out the video below, and see for yourself what you think.

Sherlock Holmes: The Devil’s Daughter launches on May 27 on Xbox One, PlayStation 4, and PC.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_XPzkbBxas4

"Everyone has his own breaking point. Even Sherlock Holmes. We are playing with the deep feelings of the detective in Devil’s Daughter, his contradictions and of course his strengths."

When you developed the first Sherlock Holmes game, Mystery of the Mummy, in 2002 did you imagine that the series would become as popular as it has?

Wael Amr: Not really, but who can predict in the video game industry one studio can still be here in 2-3 years. However, we’re really happy and grateful it happened to us. It’s a lot of hard work to create games, and being rewarded over the years with a growth both in audience and quality of our titles is a great achievement.

Will Sherlock Holmes: The Devil’s Daughter really be the final title in the series? If so, what prompted you to end things here?

Wael Amr: I’m not sure where this is coming from, we will make a pause maybe as we have to concentrate on one game at a time, but I do not see why Frogwares would stop making Sherlock Holmes games.

What can you tell us about the five cases that Holmes will have to solve?

Wael Amr: The cases are probably more intense emotionally than in Crimes and Punishments. That’s what I can tell you for now without spoilers.

How will the “irresistible emotions” aspect of the game play out, especially when Holmes is known for his logical thinking?

Wael Amr: Everyone has his own breaking point. Even Sherlock Holmes. We are playing with the deep feelings of the detective in Devil’s Daughter, his contradictions and of course his strengths.

"We intend to deliver different emotions that can be in line in your own way of being. Having different endings is a reflection of those different emotions."

How will player choices affect the eventual outcome of the game? Are there various endings that could be achieved in the process?

Wael Amr: Devil’s Daughter is a detective game similar to Crimes and Punishments in terms of gameplay. We have different cases, and there are different outcome for all of them.

Your decisions matter, not only game wise. Many reviews of Crimes and Punishments, a game we worked very hard at Frogwares to do the way it was, underline the fact you stop thinking about the game but start instead to think about yourself, your choices and what leads you to make them. Hours or days after you played.

Overall that is what we are looking for in term of narrative and gameplay. We intend to deliver different emotions that can be in line in your own way of being. Having different endings is a reflection of those different emotions. Said otherwise, endings are not finality, they are a part of your own logic.

Tell us about the “expansive landscape” the game will have. What can players discover if they wander around enough?

Wael Amr: Marketing words…The levels are significantly bigger than in Crimes and Punishments and compared to investigation games overall. We also have dynamic game mechanics for which large landscape are playing a major role in the game.

What major problems from the previous game are you looking to avoid with The Devil’s Daughter? What new mechanics can aspiring detectives look forward to?

Wael Amr: The main issue we had with Crimes and Punishments was the loading before a lot of actions: dialogs, cut scenes, puzzles and between locations. We have changed that to have more direct control from the player. In return, Devil’s Daughter is more fluid and plays without interruption, it’s a very interesting turn and as the focus test shows, we are very happy about the results.

"Hopefully, everyone realize Sherlock Holmes Devil’s Daughter is not a competitive FPS that requires such render performances at the expense of scenery details."

The Devil’s Daughter will be the first game in the series to focus on current gen platforms. Did you encounter any issues when developing for the PS4 and Xbox One especially compared to PC?

Wael Amr: We didn’t encounter a lot of problems on Crimes and Punishments on Xbox One or PS 4. PS3 was more tedious. But it was for almost everyone.

When exactly can we expect the game to release in Spring?

Wael Amr: I guess the publisher will announce that in due time, that is to for them to say.

Is the game going to run at 1080p and 60fps on both PS4 and Xbox One?

Wael Amr: Hum, no, and hopefully, everyone realize Sherlock Holmes Devil’s Daughter is not a competitive FPS that requires such render performances at the expense of scenery details.

What kind of engine upgrades have you made compared to the last entry in the series?

Wael Amr: Mostly the Character controller, the Physically Based Rendering and dynamic feature. Also some deep architectural changes as the size of the game is very big now.

"The Lovecraft universe has been around me since 1986. We feel that after Sherlock Holmes that could be the right move in term of gameplay and innovation."

Are there any plans to release a DX12 version of the game in the future?

Wael Amr: Not at the moment, we are not sure it will impact significantly the game rendering.

Are you using the 7^th core CPU on PS4 and Xbox One to improve performance?

Wael Amr: Yes, for physics simulation mostly.

What kind of graphical improvements can players expect in the game?

Wael Amr: Mostly Physical Based Rendering, it’s another way of rendering scene, it brings more immersion than the previous system we used. It’s very well felt when playing and moving around. We use to say that before PBR we were playing the game and now with PBR we “are” in the game.

What’s next after The Devil’s Daughter? We heard you have a Call of Cthulhu game in development. Care to share more details about the same?

Wael Amr: We will do proper announcement about our new project. When I say new, it’s not really true; The Lovecraft universe has been around me since 1986. We feel that after Sherlock Holmes that could be the right move in term of gameplay and innovation.

Wael Amr, CEO, Frogwares Game Development Studio

Sherlock Holmes: The Devil’s Daughter has just gotten a brand new trailer that gives us our first long look at what this game is actually going to be about. This is just the latest in what is now becoming a rather long running series with the latest being Sherlock Holmes: Crimes and Punishments. Perhaps not coincidently, that particular game is being offered for free on Games with Gold for the Xbox One on the same day when this new trailer surfaced.

This new trailer for The Devil’s Daughter seems to give us a much darker look at the world of Sherlock Holmes. We see the intrepid detective spotting a pretty young girl out on the street and after noticing there seems to be something a bit off about the girl he has a flash of something that seems quite occult. Once the vision has subsided, he notices that the girl is suddenly gone and also appears to know that something is very, very wrong with her being gone.

He chases the girl around the corner, only to see her being led off by someone who is rather sinister. The girl and sinister figure get away and we’re left to wonder just what in the world is going on here. Sherlock Holmes: The Devil’s Daughter is due to launch on the Xbox One, PC and PS4 on May 27. Check out the video below to see what you can expect.