2023-11-01 15:00:00
The editor and developer Microids puts us once again at the controls of Hercule Poirot, in this adventure and puzzle game based on the world of Agatha Christie
Agatha Christie’s literary works have always been very influential and popular. We could say that Hercule Poirot is, along with Sherlock Holmes, one of the most famous detectives in the world. Like the work on which this title is based, Murder on the Orient Express, it may be the English writer’s most famous work. This has received countless adaptations, both in film and video games. The last of these adaptations in video game form is this work created by Microids Studio Lyon, an investigation and puzzle adventure, in which we must discover who or who have been responsible for a murder that occurred on board this iconic train.
How modern you are, monsieur!
If you thought you knew everything about this famous work by Agatha Christie, this title is a twist on the original story. And this new adaptation takes place in the year 2023 (the original story is set in 1934), with all that that entails, such as smartphones, electronic cigarettes… Certainly, this is quite original, although I personally did not like it too much. I find it very difficult to see Poirot using a mobile phone, or that there is e-cigarette liquid at the crime scene. It is something that does not fit too well with the setting of the title, a train with decoration from the last century and that has little to do with these more current things.
The title story is pretty good. It follows the structure of the original work, but with changes that bring freshness to the proposal. The story is very simple, but that doesn’t make it bad. A strange passenger on the Orient Express has been murdered, and as detective Hercule Poirot we must find out who he was, since the murderer is on the famous train. But everything is not so easy, and this murder seems to be related to another case that occurred years ago. Because of this, Poirot will not be the only protagonist of the game, contributing different scenarios and situations to the title.
My gray matter still works
Gameplay, Agatha Christie – Murder on the Orient Express is very simple. We are faced with an investigation adventure with puzzles very similar to those found in the Professor Layton saga or the most recent Sherlock Holmes games.. It should be noted that in the title we will not encounter any type of combat, so the adventure is much more leisurely. If you are looking for an action title, this, without a doubt, is not your game. One aspect that I really liked is that the game doesn’t help you much to solve various situations. It is true that there is the possibility of asking for hints, if at any time you find yourself stuck. But in general, it is advisable to use a paper and pencil, as in classic games, to write down combinations of numbers, or key conversations with the different characters.
Just as there are things that I liked, there are others that I didn’t like so much. For example, There is not much possibility of exploration, the environments where the adventure takes place are very closed, which limits the player’s freedom to explore and find secrets.. The camera also plays tricks. The camera, when the adventure takes place inside the train, as it is a very narrow and corridor setting, is positioned incorrectly on most occasions. If we talk about the puzzles, these are very simple but quite fun. These are quite varied in concept, and although they are simple, you will have to work hard to solve them without help. The game lasts about 15 hours. The title is not very replayable, the only extra motivation being to get all the golden mustaches from the stages, the game’s collectible.
Lights and shadows on the Orient Express
Agatha Christie – Murder on the Orient Express is not a good game graphically. It’s not that it’s an embarrassing title in this regard, but it doesn’t really work well in this regard. The textures are not very well worked on, as are the faces of the different characters.. These problems may not be very noticeable at first glance, but if you pay attention, you will realize what I am talking about. The really negative thing in this aspect is not that the faces or textures do not have an optimal level, but that on some occasions, the textures of some objects or faces of some characters are important to solve some puzzles, making this task more complicated to solve. what it should be. Not everything is bad in this regard, The lighting effects are quite good and in terms of performance, in Series X I did not encounter any problems.
What I did love is the dubbing of the title. The English dubbing actors have done a great job, and you can see the high level that the title has in this aspect. The soundtrack is also pretty good. Its musical pieces are quite beautiful and match very well with what we experience on screen. The title, based on the famous work by Agatha Christie, is entirely in Spanish, except for the voices, which are available in English, French and German.
Conclusions
Agatha Christie – Murder on the Orient Express is a good adventure and investigation title. Everything that the title proposes is more than correct, but it doesn’t stand out in anything. The title could have been much better if a couple of aspects had been polished, such as adding greater freedom of exploration or a greater variety of situations, or being a more graphically worked title. If we ignore these aspects, we find a quite entertaining title, with a good story, which will keep us busy for a few days trying to solve all the mysteries that this famous train hides.
Agatha Christie – Murder on the Orient Express
39.99€
Pros
A very satisfying twist on the original story Puzzles that will force you to use paper and pen, the old-fashioned way Its dubbing, very good
Cons
No freedom for the player to explore Graphically it could have given much more of itself
#Analysis #Agatha #Christie #Murder #Orient #Express