Close to the Sun and Sherlock Holmes: Crimes and Punishments are both free on the Epic Store

(Image credit: Frogwares)

This week's free games on the Epic Games Store will each put you in the role of a sharp-minded sleuth. The first is the Bioshock-styled horror game Close to the Sun and the second is one of the best detective games on PC, Sherlock Holmes: Crimes and Punishments. 

Close to the Sun is a first-person mystery that involves Nikola Tesla (of all people) trapping you on his gigantic ship, the Helios. You play as investigative journalist Rose as she boards the quarantined ship in search of her sister, unknowingly getting tangled in the secrets of the Helios and its inhabitants. 

The second free game, Sherlock Holmes: Crimes and Punishments, puts you into the role of Mr Holmes in six crime investigations. Frogwares has been making Sherlock Holmes games for years, but Crimes and Punishments is the best of the bunch. Although a little rough around the edges, Andy really liked its dense atmospheric crime scenes and detailed clues, giving the game an 84 in his review.

Close to the Sun and Sherlock Holmes: Crimes and Punishments are both free to download until 8 AM PT / 4PM BST on April 16. To claim both the games you'll need to sign in to your Epic Store account and click on the downloads link for each one.  

Rachel Watts

Rachel had been bouncing around different gaming websites as a freelancer and staff writer for three years before settling at PC Gamer back in 2019. She mainly writes reviews, previews, and features, but on rare occasions will switch it up with news and guides. When she's not taking hundreds of screenshots of the latest indie darling, you can find her nurturing her parsnip empire in Stardew Valley and planning an axolotl uprising in Minecraft. She loves 'stop and smell the roses' games—her proudest gaming moment being the one time she kept her virtual potted plants alive for over a year.