Ukrainian independent developer Frogwares has released the first trailer for its next detective game, Sherlock Holmes The Awakened, a full remake of the 2006 original that has been completely reworked and re-written to act as a continuation to last year's Sherlock Holmes Chapter One.

Sherlock Holmes The Awakened is unlike any previous game in the series (aside from the original that is being remade, of course) as the master sleuth and his sidekick Watson get tangled in a twisted Lovecraftian horror that sees Sherlock's Mind Palace fracture and flail as he loses his grip on reality and the dark world around him.

Unlike the studio's previous efforts, Frogwares has taken to Kickstarter to help fund the development of Sherlock Holmes The Awakened. And, incredibly, the modest goal of $71,000 has already been surpassed and, at the time of writing, now sits at a couple of hundred dollars shy of $95,000.

Understandably, given that the developer is based in Ukraine, Frogwares is working through a terrible situation. Explaining as part of the Kickstarter post, Frogwares explains that to safeguard the development of the game, the studio has sought funding on Kickstarter and has offered a number of rewards for its backers.

“We opted for Kickstarter to create a financial safety net for the game but also to try to give back to our closest fans wanting to support us now," said Sergiy Oganesyan, Comms Director at Frogwares. "This way we can give them that bit of recognition by putting their names and photos into the game while it’s still in development.”

It's worth noting that all backer rewards for Sherlock Holmes The Awakened are digital, and with good reason. The developer states on its Kickstarter page that the team is keeping the rewards realistic and doable rather than falling into the trap of over-promising time-consuming, luxurious rewards and not being able to deliver.

If you want to show your support and bag yourself a digital copy of the game at a discounted price, you've got until September 3rd to make your pledge. However, there's no firm date set in stone for the release of Sherlock Holmes The Awakened. The press release sent out by Frogwares states that the internal expectation is that the game will be ready by mid-2023, if not sooner.

Sherlock Holmes The Awakened is being developed for release on PS5, PS4, Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, and PC.