Agatha Christie: The ABC Murders

I came into this one with modest expectations, and The ABC Murders mostly met them in the best possible way. It's a faithful, unhurried adaptation of the Christie novel, played out as a third-person point-and-click investigation across several UK locations. You take the role of Hercule Poirot, accompanied by his friend Hastings, tracking a taunting serial killer who signs each murder announcement with the letter ABC. The tone is cosy crime rather than psychological thriller, and the cel-shaded art style, a little cartoony for the material, but charming in its own way, fits that mood once you stop expecting grit. Gameplay is built around three interlocking activities. Scene exploration lets you comb crime scenes and talk to suspects, observing their expressions and nervous tics before pressing them with questions, a mechanic that draws obvious comparisons to Frogwares' Sherlock Holmes games, particularly Crimes and Punishments. The mind-map deduction system then has you connecting gathered clues to answer key questions about the case, though critics are right that it lacks real stakes: plug in options until Poirot nods approvingly, and you'll get there regardless of whether your actual reasoning was sound. The third pillar is the "Thinking" puzzle screens, where a 3D object floats in mid-air and you manipulate it to uncover hidden compartments, secret buttons, or coded panels. These are genuinely the game's highlight, tactile, satisfying, and occasionally quite clever, even if it strains credulity that every tobacco clerk in 1930s England locked her cough syrup inside a Riddler-style puzzle box. The short play time is the honest sticking point. Most players finish the three interconnected cases in five to seven hours, and once the credits roll there is very little pulling you back. Replayability is slim, and if you already know the novel's solution, the main dramatic hook is largely gone before you start. Voice acting is a mixed bag, the Poirot characterisation lands well enough, but several supporting roles have drawn wincing reactions from players familiar with the regional accents being attempted. Controls on PC are clean and comfortable, which is genuinely where this game belongs; mouse-driven navigation suits the pacing far better than a controller. What the game does well, it does with quiet confidence. The atmospheric soundtrack stays subtle without getting repetitive, the visuals are clean and well-lit across varied British locales, and the story, built on Christie's original architecture, stays compelling right to the rewarding final deduction. For a genre where good licensed adaptations are genuinely rare, that counts for something. Going in with calibrated expectations, a single-sitting mystery experience rather than an expansive investigation sim, leaves you satisfied rather than shortchanged.

Alex · Scout Team

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