Turlock Holmes similar games & best alternatives

Turlock Holmes

PC (Microsoft Windows), Mac • 2024

Should you play it?

A detective narrative puzzler without pre-set options! Raise your questions at will, and an AI-host will answer only with 'yes' or 'no.' Drive the investigation with your curiosity; the path to solving the mystery lies in questions you ask. Can you dig out the truth through your questions?

What works
  • Unique ai-driven detective puzzle gameplay
  • Large number of intriguing and varied stories
  • High player autonomy and freedom in questioning
  • Supports creative lateral thinking and deduction
  • Good value for price with extensive content
Things to keep in mind
  • English translation and ui issues
  • Repetitive gameplay and some puzzles can be brute forced
  • Limited social or cooperative features
  • Some stories lack logical coherence or depth
  • Annoying confirmation pop-ups interrupt flow

What to play next

Top picks

Games that feel the closest overall

  • Braid

  • Grim Legends 3: The Dark City

  • Sherlock Holmes: Crimes and Punishments

  • Piñata Go Boom

  • Word Game

  • Adam Wolfe

  • True Fear: Forsaken Souls Part 3

  • Orb of Creation

  • Regency Solitaire

Hidden Gems

Less popular games with surprisingly high similarity

  • True Fear: Forsaken Souls Part 3

  • Regency Solitaire

  • Demetrios - The BIG Cynical Adventure

If you liked…

Recommendations by what you enjoyed most

  • Autonomy

    Event[0]

  • Experimenting

    A Perfect Day

  • Story

    Evening Surprise

Similarity map

Explore nearby similar games and see why they’re close.

How to use the graph
Similarity map

Each dot is a game. They are arranged from the same motivation profile as in the “Why this game works” section below. Closer dots usually mean more similar reasons to play (exploration, competition, relaxation, etc.)—not that one game is “better” than another.

  • Purple star: this page’s game — everything on the map is relative to it.
  • Coloured chips: click to highlight games that mainly differ on that motivation; click again to reset.
  • Dotted line: link between this page’s game and the one selected for comparison.
  • Hover a dot for a screenshot preview, score, and top score gaps; click to compare in the panel on the right.
  • Scroll or double-click the chart to zoom out and see more games.

Why don’t the axes read like a score? This view uses t-SNE: it only keeps who is close to whom. The scales are not “good to bad” or hours played—they separate groups on the map. Read distance between dots, not the axis numbers (hidden on purpose).

Turlock Holmes: A very typical example of its motivational profile. Motivations that often define this kind of title include Fantasy, Violence, Story, Thrill. Here, the score leans higher than usual among comparable games on Story, Violence, Thrill.

Why this game works

A motivational profile of the game, with the closest similar game for each player motivation.

  • Autonomy

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    "Players have freedom to type any input to interact with the AI and influence the story, showing high control over actions and decisions."

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    "Players have high control over their actions by freely choosing which words to guess and questions to ask the AI, with no fixed path or scripted interactions."

  • Competence

    Game with the same Competence vibe

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    "The game offers satisfying puzzle-solving and deduction challenges that engage players' reasoning skills, though some brute forcing is possible."

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    "The game challenges players to deduce and solve puzzles using lateral thinking and language skills, though some puzzles can be brute forced or rely on guesswork."

  • Competition

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    "Game focuses on solo exploration and puzzle solving without competitive elements or player comparison."

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  • Continuation

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  • Creativity

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    "Players engage creatively by interpreting ambiguous story elements and piecing together mysteries; the game’s narrative style encourages imaginative thought."

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    "Players experiment with different words and questions to uncover story elements, and the game supports creative lateral thinking."

  • Domination

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  • Escapism

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  • Expectation

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    "Players engage voluntarily out of intrinsic interest in mystery and puzzle solving, not obligation or pressure."

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  • Experimenting

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    "The gameplay encourages trying different schedules, item uses, and dialogue choices to discover new story outcomes and secrets."

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  • Exploration

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  • Expression

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  • Fantasy

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    "Some imaginative and varied settings, but puzzles and scenarios remain grounded in logic and plausible interactions."

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  • Fellowship

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    "The game is primarily a solo experience with minimal social interaction or community involvement."

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  • Growth

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    "Players develop problem-solving skills and learn to think laterally through puzzles."

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  • Health

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    "The game is sedentary with no physical activity involved."

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  • Idle

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  • Intimacy

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  • Leadership

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  • Progression

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    "Players accumulate items, improve stats, and unlock story outcomes, reflecting progression through gameplay."

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  • Relaxation

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    "The game offers a calm, contemplative experience with some tension from puzzle challenges but generally relaxing pacing."

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  • Sensation

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    "Visuals and audio are simple and functional, providing moderate sensory stimulation without intense excitement."

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  • Status

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  • Story

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    "Strong narrative focus with an engaging and surprising plot twist."

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  • Strategy

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    "Players use reasoning, logic, and planning to solve puzzles and piece together clues."

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  • Thrill

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    "Some suspense and challenge exist, but overall the experience is more thoughtful than adrenaline-driven."

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  • Value

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    "Many players find good value in the amount of content and challenge for the price."

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  • Violence

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    "Some narrative violence and death, but gameplay focuses on puzzle solving and story rather than combat."

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    "No survival mechanics; gameplay occurs in stable, low-risk conditions."

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Last update: 10/07/2026