Agatha Christie - Hercule Poirot: The London Case

Agatha Christie - Hercule Poirot: The London Case is a third-person point & click adventure game. It was developed by Blazing Griffin - the winners of BAFTA Scotland's Best Game Award, which they've received for Hercule Poirot: The First Cases, a game depicting the titular detective's first case. The publisher is Microids, a company also known for publishing series such as Syberia and Dracula.

Plot

The main protagonist - famed detective Hercule Poirot - heads to Great Britain with a seemingly simple task. Acting on behalf of Lloyd's of London, he is to provide transportation, protection and ensure the successful sale of a valuable painting. The work is supposed to be the main attraction of a new exhibition at a London museum with religious art as its theme. The detective travels to London alongside his friend, Arthur Hastings. Though initially everything goes as according to plan, things get complicated on the exhibition's opening night.

Mechanics

Agatha Christie - Hercule Poirot: The London Case is a point & click game tasking us with solving the mystery of the stolen painting. The player must explore varied location, acquire items and talk to NPCs. For the first time we'll also be assisted by Hastings, Poirot's friend known from the original novels.

Our initial task is to protect the painting from any potential threats. The game proper begins when it is somehow stolen in plain sight of all the guests. Poirot must investigate the theft, interrogate potential suspects and gather evidence to apprehend the culprit.

The game features mindmaps, complicated maps of thoughts the detective writes up as he carries out the investigation. Using them we can connect acquired clues, outlining the correct course of events. Additionally, Poirot can also gather information about the suspects and use them to create their profiles, which is crucial to solving the case.

The game also features a match puzzle system used to detect inconsistencies in the suspects' testimonies. Locations are searched through first-person inspection puzzles. We can also use the in-game timeline to grasp certain causes and effects.

Technical aspects

Agatha Christie - Hercule Poirot: The London Case makes use of the isometric perspective. Compared to its predecessor, the graphics are more detailed while the audio is enhanced by weather sound effects. The game features English, French and German voice acting.