Agatha Christie – Death on the Nile is a great new title for fans of the works of Agatha Christie, as well as murder mystery fans in general. The game mixes adaptation with original storytelling. Within this world players are able to interrogate familiar characters (like Linnet Ridgeway, Jacqueline de Bellefort, Simon Doyle) as the legendary detective, Hercule Poirot — created by Agatha Christie herself and featured in her many novels and stories.

Some of the originality comes from this story taking place in the 1970s, which is not your ordinary Agatha Christie murder mystery scene — since she died in the mid 70s. The team at Microids (creators of other Agatha Christie games) has moved the events of Death on the Nile into the 1970s, which also allowed them to introduce a brand new, young detective, Jane Royce — who happens to be a big fan of Poirot. The art style of the game reminds me heavily of Deathloop, even though the gameplay couldn’t be more different.

Throughout the game both detectives work their way through their own respective cases, which happen to intersect at different points. There is a vast difference between these two detectives though. Jane Royce dealt with a big event early on, and is now following leads to get to the bottom of it. Hercule Poirot lives a luxurious life, and it seems that tragedy, misfortune, and mysteries tend to follow him around — still, he’s always ready to solve them.

Personal Inspiration

Playing Agatha Christie – Death on the Nile has inspired me to finally pick up and read that Agatha Christie book I purchased many years ago. I heard Quentin Tarantino was inspired to write The Hateful Eight by And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie, so I purchased it.

It’s a shame that this particular story does not include Hercule Poirot, but I am familiar with him due to my recent binge of the three latest Agatha Christie films featuring him — Murder on the Orient Express, Death on the Nile, and A Haunting in Venice. He was also played by the great Kenneth Branagh, who also happened to direct these films. Either way, And Then There Were None is a great whodunit murder mystery adventure, and I’m sure I will find a Poirot story to read next.

Group Game

So far, I’ve solved a couple of chapters on my own in Agatha Christie – Death on the Nile, but I can easily see this game becoming a cooperative party game. One person can take control of the action, while everyone else is gathered around the TV working together to solve these mysteries.

I’m grateful that the game allows you to go back and re-read transcripts of previous conversations, otherwise I wouldn’t solve anything. As you gain more information you must fill out character profiles in the pause menu. There’s also the mind map which is basically your detective notebook, and how you weave together solutions based on details.

The game also features some bonus objectives. There are plenty of golden mustaches to find hidden throughout each location. There are also golden vinyl records, which I have yet to find — only normal vinyl records.

There are plenty of mini-games and puzzles. Getting any piece of machinery to work (like a jukebox or furnace) is never a simple task. There are always multiple components to repair beforehand. Again, these can all be made more fun with the help of others — or if you are not getting it you can always ask for a hint.

Microids

This isn’t the first time Microids has worked on an Agatha Christie-inspired game, but it is my first time playing one of them. This is definitely a welcomed change from the fast-paced games I’ve been playing elsewhere, like Hollow Knight and Hades — I’m still working on the originals before getting into the sequels.

Agatha Christie – Death on the Nile is more of a thoughtful break from intense games. There are times when you take a break with a mindless game, maybe an indie or sports game that you have spent enough hours with to build muscle memory. This is a different kind of break. The gameplay is slower paced, but it’s more like watching a movie or series. You have to pay attention to figure out what’s going on.

Microids could have easily just created a basic retelling of any Agatha Christie novel. The magic in this game comes from them taking that as inspiration and creating something bigger. They’ve changed the setting, added new characters and storylines.

As you jump from one detective to the other from chapter to chapter each case feels new and different. Characters are always ready to talk to the veteran, Poirot. However, when it comes to Jane, they are more closed off and she needs to find a way to gain their trust. I’ve not made it far enough, but I’m sure their paths will cross — other than the opening chapter.