Agatha Christie: And Then There Were None

If ever there was a medium for the return of the point-and-click adventure, it’s Wii. And while the critically acclaimed Zack & Wiki: Quest for Barbaros’ Treasure recently proved the genre can still be an original and fun experience, Agatha Christie: And Then There Were None shows exactly why the genre has faded away.

And Then There Were None is essentially a straight port of the 2005 PC game of the same name. Wii specific motion controls have been added, but the graphics, sound and gameplay remain the same. And as you would expect, the experience is extremely dated.

The environments are generally alright, but the character models are stiff and crude.

The most obvious offenders are the visuals. The game wasn’t exactly groundbreaking in its time, and by today’s standard is downright primitive. The pre-rendered backdrops are, by their nature, fairly outdated, although they still look acceptable for the most part. It’s the character models that really show their age. The designs themselves are lacking detail and the animation is even worse.

The gameplay doesn’t fair any better. The puzzles can be satisfying at times, but many of them and confusing and nonsensical. I’m still trying to figure out how I was supposed to realize that pouring apple cider onto a huge thorny thicket would cause a couple goats to clear the way. But of course, the biggest mystery may be why the batteries are hidden in a bag of flour. I suppose it’s all good practice for those aspiring MacGyvers out there, but it doesn’t make for a lot of fun.

Of course! The batteries for the flashlight are inside the bag of flour! Quite obvious in retrospect!

Luckily many of these puzzles are optional. In fact the core game is mostly talking to your fellow housemates. For those unfamiliar with the classic mystery, which originally went under a very different title (go ahead, Wikipedia it), And Then There Were None revolves around a group of ten individuals invited to a private residence on a secluded island under mysterious circumstances. I don’t think I’m spoiling too much by revealing that one by one they are disposed of by a mysterious assailant.

As you would expect, And Then There Were None is at its best when advancing the plot. And despite all the technical flaws and game design missteps, it does a very admirable job in presenting its story. There may not be any flashy cinemas, but the writing and voice acting is very well done. Eventually, all the characters are developed and well-defined, and I was genuinely involved in the mystery.

The character development and plot rise above every other aspect of the game.

But even in these moments, you can’t help but think how much better the overall experience could have been. For example, the voice acting is very good, but the sound quality is not. The music is decent, but loops endlessly. And despite all of the great character development, you have to stare at these horribly rendered and animated models.

And then we come to the Wii specific motion controls. If many of the other aspects of the game aren’t very good, the motion controls are downright bad. Not only do they add nothing to the experience, but most of them are just plain clunky and unresponsive. There is one instance where you must turn the remote to rotate a numeric pad for a safe. The control is so imprecise that it will take multiple tries. Fortunately, most of the other motion controls simply require you to shake wildly until something happens.

Wii controls gone wrong presents The Safe.

Fortunately the IR pointer is generally reliable. Seeing as it is a point-and-click game, it would have been disastrous otherwise. It should also be noted that while the item interface is functional, it isn’t exactly intuitive. It doesn’t help that the game never really explains how to use it. And what’s the deal with the save slots? You can’t overwrite? What is this, the dark ages?

With all this negativity, you may be wondering how Agatha Christie: And Then There Were None even managed to score a 5. The answer is the story. It is really darned good. The writing and voice acting both elevate the game above being a complete failure. Even if the gameplay is only marginally entertaining, you want to get to that next scene. That being said, however, you’re probably better off just reading the book.

Gameplay: 4.5
As far as point-and-click adventures go, the puzzles range from satisfyingly challenging, to frustratingly obscure. But what really sinks the game are the terrible motion controls and repetitive exploration.

Graphics: 5.0 
The game wasn’t much of a looker when it debuted on PC in 2005, and it hasn’t improved with age. The pre-rendered backgrounds are acceptable, but the character models are downright poor. The game does not run in 480p, nor feature a 16x9 widescreen mode.

Sound: 6.0
The music loops endlessly and the overall quality is less-than-stellar, but the voice acting is very good.

Difficulty: Medium
Many of the puzzles are very challenging, but few of them are actually required. Most of the game is simply talking to the other houseguests.

Concept: 5.0 
And Then There Were None seems like the perfect fit for a point-and-click adventure, but the overall game design is extremely flawed. The Wii specific motion controls are very poorly conceived and some of the puzzles border on nonsensical. Still, the emphasis on story over gameplay was a good decision. It is well preserved from the novel, and is head-and-shoulders above even good video game stories.

Overall: 5.0
The gameplay is clunky and underwhelming at best, but the story is so good that it boosts And Then There Were None out of the pits. Even at $29.99, however, you might as well just read the book.