Site of Note:221B
by Shaun Oakes on 2009/12/07
At Quirk we tend to work really hard, with Rob standing over us, mercilessly cracking his brown leather strap as we toil away in the digital cotton fields of the eMarketing landscape. Sometimes though, I manage to steal away a few hours from the helter skelter agency world and enjoy some online recreation time. Usually this means a few sneaky hours of Football Manager 2009 (my team, Brighton & Hove Albion, has just signed David Beckham for $40 million dollars and I am currently playing in the Champions League of Europe).
Lately however, I’ve been playing an online Sherlock Holmes game, called 221B. It’s based on the upcoming movie starring Jude Law and Robert Downey Jnr., Downey happens to be one of my favourite actors, and someone I have always had a bit of a man crush on - not in a homo-erotic way mind you - but if he ever asked me out for a seafood dinner, I wouldn’t be able to say no.
221B is an ARG, or an alternate reality game, if you are not down with the lingo. The plot is cleverly tied to the movie, and without giving too much away, the climax of the game flows into the beginning of the film.
221B is a novel piece of online adventure gaming. Using Facebook Connect functionality, you can play as either Sherlock or Dr. John Watson. With the Facebook platform, you are able to invite one of your friends to play as your partner, and in many instances you will need to share and compare notes as you make progress and get closer to solving the mystery.
Yes, as it’s a Sherlock Holmes game, there is certainly a mystery involved - well a series of murders to be exact - which you will need all your cunning and analytical skills to solve. The game offers something for everyone, and makes use of a number of different gaming aspects. Last week as an example, I found myself chasing and trying to punch the lights out of a suspect who tried to give me the run around in the streets of London. This aspect of the game was in a classic “run and jump” format, reminiscent of the classic action games such as Contra. Once apprehended, the next phase saw myself in a “chat bot” game format, where I had to use my considerable guile and charm to win the trust of my suspect, and get him to snitch on his friends. As my girlfriend will confirm, I am about as charming as a dry piece of toast, so I predictably hit a stumbling block at this juncture.
The beauty of the game though is that I can easily pick it up again in a few days time, and try my hand once more at charming the pants off my apprehended adversary.
The game, launched in October, is designed to be played over several weeks, culminating in the Christmas day launch of the film. Latecomers and stragglers can register and play at any time though (you could register on the 24th December and start from the beginning).
It’s a clever way of marketing the movie, building both awareness as well as anticipation for the film. I'm having sleepless nights counting down the days till I get to see Robert clad in a deerstalker hat, smoking on a pipe whilst making pithy remarks to Watson. In terms of free online games, it’s probably the most detailed and advanced one I have seen, and it’s clear that considerable budget has gone into this venture.
All in all, 221B is a fun way of passing the time on a lazy Friday when you have your back to a wall and are pretending to work diligently, and is definitely something all detective fans should try. Click here to play.
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