The Beekeeper's Picnic
It is 1920, and in a sleepy Sussex village, an elderly beekeeper (who is definitely not the world’s greatest detective… any more) is trying to arrange a very important picnic for his dear friend Watson. The only problem is that a series of pesky mysteries keep getting in the way!
A retro-inspired cosy point and click adventure and mystery(ish) game lovingly inspired by the Sherlock Holmes stories by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. The game will be available for Windows, Mac and Linux.
You can play the demo in-browser above!
(It might take a while to load!)
Features
Visit a Seaside Town
Explore Holmes' bee farm and the picturesque town of Fulworth in the aftermath of the First World War. It's the day of the village fete, a suspicious new neighbour has taken a lease on a long-abandoned cottage and something strange is happening down on the beach...
Interrogate a cast of colourful characters
The Beekeeper's Picnic has a vibrant cast of over 15 characters for you to get to know!
Make deductions
At any time you can visit your 'brain attic', the imaginary place where you store useful information. Combine relevant facts to make deductions and further your investigations!
Puzzles often have multiple solutions, some of which may please your neighbours more than others. What path will you choose? Who will you enlist to help you?
Shape one of the most beloved literary partnerships of all time by choosing the form which the relationship between Holmes and Watson will take: are they platonic friends, found family or romantic partners?
Phone for hints if you get stuck
Unsure what to do next? It can happen, even to the best of detectives! Fortunately your older brother Mycroft is always ready to act as your consultant, just give him a call at his club if you need a hint.
Create the ultimate picnic!
As you solve mysteries collect picnic items so that you can create the best picnic possible as a thank-you to your friend Watson
Download
Install instructions
How to run the Demo
To run the game, unzip and run the file 'holmestest.exe' within the windows folder.
How to Play the Demo
Left click on people and objects to interact with them.
Right click to bring up your inventory.
Development log
- New Demo Available!Sep 07, 2023
Comments
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This game is making me go insane. Omg. The opening dialogue.... the art style... literally everything.... holy shit!
Yay, thank you so much!
I love how bright and scenic this game is. It made me realize how dark most pixel games are.
Amazing, and I love the nods to it being a demo XD
May I ask what you used to build this?
Thank you so much! I'm using Adventure Game Studio, which is free software specifically designed for making adventure games! It uses a programming language based on C# and I found it really easy to pick up (to do the basics anyway!)
This game is adorable :) As much as I love the way the characters comment about being in a demo, I can't wait for the full version!
This was so lovely! I am looking forward to the full version. Thank you for letting me spend time with Holmes and Watson during their lovely picnic.
I'm so pleased you enjoyed it, thanks for letting me know :D
I played this on Steam and it was just adorable! I kept awwing at Sherlock's descriptions of Watson.. I'm sure historians will say they were the closest of friends. The one thing that got me stuck a few times was how it could be difficult to see what objects could be interacted with, especially if Sherlock was standing in front of them. But other than that, I loved the game, especially making deductions!
Very cute and promising demo! The atmosphere and aesthetic come together in a very charming way. Thanks so much for sharing!
If there's one thing I hope is implemented by the time of the final game, it would be some click-able method of moving between screens. That exists for the cottage door, which is good, but for spots like going between the kitchen and the sitting room it feels somewhat finicky with this sort of old fashioned pixel point-and-click.
Thank you so much! I'm pleased you enjoyed the demo, and that's some really useful feedback!
You've made me realise that in the current version of the game, moving between the kitchen and the sitting room is the ONLY time in the whole game you ever have to make the character walk on a specific spot like that to move to a new area.
Every other time you navigate by using doors or clicking on the edge of a screen. I've just done it so many times while testing that I hadn't realised it!
Really liking the color palette used. And the fact that you can call to get help. The deduction part I'm assuming will require more player input in the future, maybe that's the reason for the portrait when looking at people?
Looking forward to future updates. Maybe the mice will come out when Sher... ahem... the main character plays the violin.
The mice coming out if you play the violin for them is a BRILLIANT idea, I'm definitely filing that one away!
Yes, my plan is that observing details of characters and crime scenes will open up dialogue options and further the story. It's tricky balancing that and not wanting to put the player to be put in a situation where they can't progress because they didn't happen to put their mouse over some tiny pixelated detail - so I think having an in-game hint system for what kinds of things you should be looking at is really important!
I thought that was the plan all along, to have the mice eventually be lured out by playing the violin. :) Maybe that could be a way to ... convince a character to leave a room.
Difficulty is quite the task but there are options. I mean, there's already one in the build - calling Mycroft. Another one could be a short highlight of interactive areas. It will be interesting to see how the observation mechanic will work. Will Hol... the player's character be able to "see" details before talking to NPCs? Will you have to go back and forth to see the portrait of the NPCs & pin-point details that unlock new dialogue options?
I think the solution for this one is not elementary Watson...
Oh, and, will Sh... the player's character have any pets?
I've got plans for a dog :D
nice retro