“Any truth is better than indefinite doubt.” Sherlock Holmes

Something in the Water is a game with wonderful, challenging, and fun puzzles, straightforward dialogue, an easy to use interface, and a great online manual. It can be played from any computer with internet access and a supported browser that allows pop-ups. The developer advertises 7-9 hours of game play. However, due to being stuck frequently and to the time involved in solving some of the harder puzzles, I played for much longer than that.

The “solve the mystery by deduction and prove your case” approach is certainly original and tests the player’s skill at laying out her logic. Unfortunately, if you are a “must finish a game no matter what” person, this can be frustrating. I was never able to get to the “real” solution in spite of many, many tries. My logic worked for me, just not for the game. I don’t mind that my logic did not work for them, but I would really appreciate knowing theirs.

In spite of this, Something in the Water was an interesting experience. If you are that person who always knows who-done-it before the end of the book or the movie, you may well enjoy testing your deductive skills in this interesting arena. However, if a walkthrough is a must for you, this game might not be your best choice.