Product Description

Famous detective Hercule Poirot is back in typical style, turning up at just the right time to begin an investigation into the murder of a famous actress during what should have been the start of a relaxing holiday. Taking on the role of Hercule Poirot, players can scour a stunning tropical island for clues and delve deeper into the mysterious relationships between over 20 unique characters to search out the killer.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #4240 in Computer & Video Games
• Brand: Dreamcatcher
• Model: PCO54350MB
• Released on: 2007-10-16
• ESRB Rating: Teen
• Platforms: Windows Vista, Windows 2000, Windows XP
• Dimensions: .75 pounds

Features

• Play as world renowned Belgian detective Hercule Poirot
• Over 20 unique characters to interact with each with their own motives
• Cinematic camera perspectives emphasizing character facial emotions
• Shadowing ability allows Poirot to stealthily follow suspects from a discreet distance
• Advanced in-game hint system including automatic journal recording

Customer Reviews

not a good game
I am a point and click gamer and I love Agatha Christie unfortunately this game doesn't provide much enjoyment.
The plot is there, the graphics are OK and if you love clicking over the place in many areas to find what Poirot is supposed to do next then fine. But if you are looking for a good mix of plot with some puzzles thrown in to break the tedium then you are in for a disappointment.

There are only 2 puzzles - one piece together a letter and once a puzzle box. the rest is all find the items and use them but that doesn't really rescue the game as there is so much dialogue. If you haven't read the book and wish it to be like a more interactive book then this game might be for you but for gamers looking for some puzzles etc then keep on looking.

You don't even get the book with this game. the 1st game in the series was the best (and then there were none) the second one is more like this game, long dialogue so if you liked that one you might like this one.

Beautiful And Engaging Game
This game has the most beautiful scenic graphics of any game I have played to date. I was blown away by them. The characters are also very well drawn and rendered.

The interface is easy to operate once you get acquainted with it. There is a drop-down bar at the top of the screen with icons for accessing inventory, the main menu, Poirot's journal (which contains a checklist of to-dos), your alter ego (to switch from Poirot to Hastings, sort of) and a stopwatch. The voice over on this one was apparently not done by the wonderful David Suchet, but was very well done, nonetheless.

The puzzles are mostly intuitive, and not too hard or too easy. Also, there are just about the right number of them. I really love a game that challenges me without driving me insane or forcing me to play by using a walkthrough. I had to consult the walkthrough on this game twice when I had missed picking up a vital piece of inventory.

The only real dislike I had about this game is that there is no zipmap. Poirot got a LOT of exercise with me playing. There is a double click option where Poirot will move directly to the next scene instead of ambling along. I used this constantly for about the second half of the game. A zipmap would have made this portion of the game much more enjoyable, and the four stars are because of the above lack of map.

Overall, the game is of wonderful quality and has been given an honored place on my "I must play this again later." shelf.

Never again...
The third Adventure Company game based on an Agatha Christie novel, Evil Under the Sun is disappointing evidence that this series - never great to begin with - is actually getting worse over time.

Puzzles are few and far between, and nearly all of them are simple inventory puzzles. As with the previous games, you just pick up anything the game will allow you to take, and tote it around, ridiculously, until you eventually have need of it. In a couple of cases the game even gives you detailed instructions for how to solve a puzzle. If you think that following instructions (complete with diagrams) is a lot of fun, well, this is the game for you.

Otherwise, you can just sit back and watch Poirot walk around. There is no way to fast-travel between locations, so much of your time will be spent walking. Hopefully you'll find that very entertaining, because the pace of this game is astonishingly slow. The game is composed of eight chapters, and the murder doesn't even occur until chapter five. Until then, most of the "action" comes from two new storylines created for the game: a Fifth Columnist hunt (the game takes place during WWII), and a plot about a glowing green ghost that even Scooby Doo would find silly. And don't even think about skipping any dialogue - if you don't painstakingly work your way through the dialogue tree, you're likely to get stuck.

But far and away, my biggest gripe with this game is the "new ending." Do not be fooled by this - the murderer is the same as in the novel! Apparently the "new" part comes from the, um, action scene that follows (in cut scene, of course, because heaven forbid the player have to do anything during the climax of the game). The new ending doesn't even make much sense, really, but I was so happy to see the game end that I won't nitpick.

Bottom line: this game is a joyless, plodding exercise that never would have been made if not for the Christie name. Read the book instead. If you're looking for a good detective game, check out the Nancy Drew series. Honestly, you could just watch paint dry and it would still be more fun than this game.