Agatha Christie And Then There Were None Game

Agatha Christie And Then There Were None Game
Agatha Christie And Then There Were None Play Script Pdf
Agatha Christie And Then There Were None Play

Since thelate 1980’s Agatha Christie’s works have been adapted into video gamesavailable on the PC and, more recently, the Nintendo Wii. Past adaptations havebeen based on Christie classics including And Then There Were None, Murder on the Orient Express, Death on the Nile, Dead Man’s Folly and 4.50 From Paddington. Agatha Christie: And Then There Were None is the title of a 2005 point-and-click adventure game developed by AWE Productions and published by The Adventure Company for Microsoft Windows. It was the first in The Adventure Company's Agatha Christie series. The game is a detective murder-mystery; it begins with nine people, including Patrick Narracott, the playable character, who meet and journey. This is the video game adaptation of one of the world's most renowned mystery stories, written by the illustrious author Agatha Christie and originally published in 1939 under the name Ten Little Niggers and again in 1940 as And Then There Were None. The story from the book: eight strangers receive an invitation to a gala party. Big Fish Games Forums All Game Forums Agatha Christie: And. Welcome to Agatha Christie: And Then There Were None forum 1 2 3. Agatha Christie: And Then There Were None is a smart adventure game with solid puzzles and a top-notch mystery, but its dated visuals and slow pace will have limited appeal for players who are used to more modern fare.

Home

News

Reviews

Gallery

Videos

Calendar

Blogs

Cheats

Demos

Contact Us

Agatha Christie: And Then There Were None (c) The Adventure Company

Windows, 850MHz processor, 256MB RAM, 32MB video card, 1.5GB HDD, 16X CD-ROM

79%

Monday, December 5th, 2005 at 11:08 AM

By: Steven Carter

Agatha Christie: And Then There Were None review Game Over Online - http://www.game-over.com Agatha Christie wrote the book Ten Little Indians in 1939. Just to show you how long ago that was, and how different a time it was, Ten Little Indians was only the American title for the book. In the UK it was published as Ten Little Niggers. Fortunately, the book wasn’t about the title; instead, the title referred to a nursery rhyme quoted in the story, and so the book only contained offensive words rather than offensive subject matter, and so it became one of Christie’s more popular works, generating half a dozen films (generally named And Then There Were None), countless stage plays, and now a computer game.Ten Little Indians is a dark thriller. In the story, ten people are invited to an island, only to have their host accuse them of murder via a recording. Then the people start dying in accordance to a nursery rhyme, and, as their numbers dwindle, they get more and more paranoid, finally turning on each other. The game Agatha Christie: And Then There Were None uses the same premise as the book, but you play as Patrick Narracott, the boatman who takes the guests to the island. In the book, the boatman does his job and then leaves, but in the game somebody sabotages the boat after landing on shore, and so you’re stuck on the island along with the guests / victims.At this point you might guess that And Then There Were None would do what a lot of computer games do -- that is, take great liberties with the subject matter. I mean, if you’re going to add in an extra character who wasn’t in the book, and if you’re going to add in some puzzles to make it into an adventure game, then what else might you do? In fact, at the start of the game it looked like developer Awe Games was going to make up all sorts of new stuff, as you find out things like that one of the guests is really a spy, that the British Navy used the island for some secret experiments, and that your character has a history with one of the other guests -- none of which is in the book.But, surprisingly, And Then There Were None is pretty faithful to the source material. About half of the dialogue in the game is quoted directly from the book, the murders happen as they’re supposed to, and the layout of the house, and some of the activities you’re allowed to perform, are right out of the 1945 movie And Then There Were None. But don’t worry; even if you’ve read the book and seen the movies, Awe Games put their own spin on the ending, and so you’ll still need to keep a close watch on the guests to figure out what’s going on.Oddly, although And Then There Were None is a game of investigation -- among other things, you’re allowed to jury-rig a system for collecting fingerprints -- you won’t find a whole lot for Patrick Narracott to do. Using a simple point-and-click interface, you’ll need to explore the house and grounds, pick up a few clues and other objects, and solve a few puzzles, but mostly what you’ll do is talk to the surviving guests over and over to advance the plot. The dialogue is acted competently, so it’s not a chore to listen to it, but the game doesn’t do a good job of capturing the tension and paranoia of the book, and so it’s not always especially exciting, either.Speaking of the puzzles, they’re generally pretty bad, and so it’s just as well that there aren’t very many of them. The game is not at all friendly about giving you clues to solve puzzles, half of the puzzles, if you solve them at all, don’t lead to anything, and for a few of the puzzles my reaction was (after invariably looking up the solution in a walkthrough) “You’ve got to be kidding!” That’s never a good sign.As an example -- and skip this paragraph if you don’t want a spoiler -- at one point you’re walking down a path, but an aggressive goat blocks your path. Examining the goat doesn’t generate any sort of helpful description, and the most obvious answer, to befriend the goat by feeding it an apple, doesn’t work. So what do you do? You fill up a nearby trough with water, because obviously the goat is simply thirsty, and blocking the path is how it encourages people to give it a drink. Uh huh. That might be an ok puzzle if the game gave you a clue about the situation, or if it indicated that the trough was an object you could use, or if you could even tell that the trough was a trough (it looked like part of a fence to me), but it doesn’t do any of those things, and the puzzles aren’t a lot of fun.All in all, Agatha Christie: And Then There Were None, feels incomplete. It feels like developer Awe Games worked out all of the dramatic scenes in the game, but then had trouble figuring out how to incorporate puzzles into the story, and then ran out of time before they could come up with an answer. As a result, the puzzles in And Then There Were None are equal parts laughable, bizarre, and inconsequential, and the game isn’t one you’ll likely enjoy if you buy adventures to test out your “little grey cells” (to quote another Agatha Christie character). But if you enjoy adventures simply to take part in a story, then And Then There Were None works out well enough, adapting as it does a time-honored and engrossing book, and putting you center stage in it. I like both sorts of adventures, and I enjoyed the 10 hours I spent with And Then There Were None enough that I’m giving the game an above-average score, but I can’t shake the feeling that people would have a better time just reading the book (which, conveniently, is included with the game). Rating: 79% Written By: Steven Carter Game Over Online - http://www.game-over.com

Agatha Christie wrote the book Ten Little Indians in 1939. Just to show you how long ago that was, and how different a time it was, Ten Little Indians was only the American title for the book. In the UK it was published as Ten Little Niggers. Fortunately, the book wasn’t about the title; instead, the title referred to a nursery rhyme quoted in the story, and so the book only contained offensive words rather than offensive subject matter, and so it became one of Christie’s more popular works, generating half a dozen films (generally named And Then There Were None), countless stage plays, and now a computer game.

Ten Little Indians is a dark thriller. In the story, ten people are invited to an island, only to have their host accuse them of murder via a recording. Then the people start dying in accordance to a nursery rhyme, and, as their numbers dwindle, they get more and more paranoid, finally turning on each other. The game Agatha Christie: And Then There Were None uses the same premise as the book, but you play as Patrick Narracott, the boatman who takes the guests to the island. In the book, the boatman does his job and then leaves, but in the game somebody sabotages the boat after landing on shore, and so you’re stuck on the island along with the guests / victims.

At this point you might guess that And Then There Were None would do what a lot of computer games do -- that is, take great liberties with the subject matter. I mean, if you’re going to add in an extra character who wasn’t in the book, and if you’re going to add in some puzzles to make it into an adventure game, then what else might you do? In fact, at the start of the game it looked like developer Awe Games was going to make up all sorts of new stuff, as you find out things like that one of the guests is really a spy, that the British Navy used the island for some secret experiments, and that your character has a history with one of the other guests -- none of which is in the book.

But, surprisingly, And Then There Were None is pretty faithful to the source material. About half of the dialogue in the game is quoted directly from the book, the murders happen as they’re supposed to, and the layout of the house, and some of the activities you’re allowed to perform, are right out of the 1945 movie And Then There Were None. But don’t worry; even if you’ve read the book and seen the movies, Awe Games put their own spin on the ending, and so you’ll still need to keep a close watch on the guests to figure out what’s going on.

Oddly, although And Then There Were None is a game of investigation -- among other things, you’re allowed to jury-rig a system for collecting fingerprints -- you won’t find a whole lot for Patrick Narracott to do. Using a simple point-and-click interface, you’ll need to explore the house and grounds, pick up a few clues and other objects, and solve a few puzzles, but mostly what you’ll do is talk to the surviving guests over and over to advance the plot. The dialogue is acted competently, so it’s not a chore to listen to it, but the game doesn’t do a good job of capturing the tension and paranoia of the book, and so it’s not always especially exciting, either.

Speaking of the puzzles, they’re generally pretty bad, and so it’s just as well that there aren’t very many of them. The game is not at all friendly about giving you clues to solve puzzles, half of the puzzles, if you solve them at all, don’t lead to anything, and for a few of the puzzles my reaction was (after invariably looking up the solution in a walkthrough) “You’ve got to be kidding!” That’s never a good sign.

As an example -- and skip this paragraph if you don’t want a spoiler -- at one point you’re walking down a path, but an aggressive goat blocks your path. Examining the goat doesn’t generate any sort of helpful description, and the most obvious answer, to befriend the goat by feeding it an apple, doesn’t work. So what do you do? You fill up a nearby trough with water, because obviously the goat is simply thirsty, and blocking the path is how it encourages people to give it a drink. Uh huh. That might be an ok puzzle if the game gave you a clue about the situation, or if it indicated that the trough was an object you could use, or if you could even tell that the trough was a trough (it looked like part of a fence to me), but it doesn’t do any of those things, and the puzzles aren’t a lot of fun.

All in all, Agatha Christie: And Then There Were None, feels incomplete. It feels like developer Awe Games worked out all of the dramatic scenes in the game, but then had trouble figuring out how to incorporate puzzles into the story, and then ran out of time before they could come up with an answer. As a result, the puzzles in And Then There Were None are equal parts laughable, bizarre, and inconsequential, and the game isn’t one you’ll likely enjoy if you buy adventures to test out your “little grey cells” (to quote another Agatha Christie character). But if you enjoy adventures simply to take part in a story, then And Then There Were None works out well enough, adapting as it does a time-honored and engrossing book, and putting you center stage in it. I like both sorts of adventures, and I enjoyed the 10 hours I spent with And Then There Were None enough that I’m giving the game an above-average score, but I can’t shake the feeling that people would have a better time just reading the book (which, conveniently, is included with the game).

Ratings:
(31/40) Gameplay
(11/15) Graphics
(12/15) Sound
(07/10) Interface
(08/10) Storyline
(05/05) Technical
(05/05) Documentation

See the Game Over Online Rating System

Rating
•••••79%•••••

The first licensed game based on author Agatha Christie's works is an interactive version of the novel And Then There Were None, originally published as Ten Little Indians. Players are cast in the role of new character Patrick Narracott, a ferryman, who finds himself trapped on an island estate with ten invited guests, all of whom are strangers. Each visitor has been accused of murder by the estate's enigmatic host, and it is up to players to piece together the mystery of what is happening around them. As with most titles in the genre, the game is composed of pre-rendered 3D environments filled with icon-based 'hotspots' that allow players to walk into another room, examine items, speak with suspects, and so forth -- all by clicking a mouse button. To keep things fresh, the developers have incorporated new twists to the original plot, offering multiple endings that branch away from the best-selling book's conclusion.

'One choked his little self, and then there were nine.' Most of us have read or are familiar with the great Agatha Christie novel, Ten Little Indians, a.k.a. And Then There Were None. Ten individuals are invited to a weekend 'party.' This event is held in a large mansion on a deserted island, with a storm raging, a scuttled boat, and no communication with the outside world. Further, the host only appears by way of a most unpleasant and accusatory gramophone recording. He is appropriately named U.N. Owen.

'Nine little sailor boys stayed up very late. One overslept himself and then there were eight.' As this gruesome 'nursery' rhyme, posted over the fireplace mantle, suggests, our guests begin to die, one by one, presumably at the hand of their host, for crimes real or imagined. Since Mr. Owen cannot be located in the house or on the island, suspicion falls on the guests themselves. And then, as Holmes would say, 'The game is afoot.' (Or, as Gil Grisom would say, when discovering a dismembered corpse in the first CSI - 'The game is a foot. Sorry, I just had to slip that in.)

ATTWN, the game, not only builds beautifully upon the Christie premise, but also takes some twists and turns of its own, including presenting a different killer than did the book. Using famed writer and game creator Lee Sheldon, the development team went to considerable trouble to both honor Christie's work and make an interactive game that would bring a fresh approach to this delightful murder mystery. Generally, they have succeeded quite nicely.

In this third-person, point-and-click adventure, you play as Patrick Narracott, the boatman who ferries the guests to Shipwreck Island. But even you are not necessarily who you appear to be. Even you have depths and hidden motives. Of course, you couldn't be the killer, could you? And, of course, you'll be sure to survive at the end, won't you? Perhaps, and perhaps not. Nothing is guaranteed at this Shipwreck Island party!

Adventure game players will feel very comfortable with the 'live' cursor. The large arrow not only shows footstep directions Patrick can use, but also clearly depicts a whole range of interactive options - taking an object, speaking to a character, opening a door, and even the unusual peeking through a keyhole and eavesdropping on conversations!

Our Patrick must have some kind of huge and invisible backpack! You are able to accumulate an amazing number of objects in your inventory, accessible with a right mouse click or a tab at the top left corner of the screen. These range from jars, pliers and pouches to the incredible sheets, tripod and boat oars! The inventory allows for detailed examination as well as combination of objects to create a desired outcome - batteries into a flashlight, for example. This act can get a little picky if you're not careful with location of materials in the inventory.

'I don't need it; I'm no packrat,' exclaims Patrick if you come across an item that looks interesting but isn't really needed in the game. Further, Patrick will sometimes comment that 'There's something here I need,' and 'I'll need to come back to that later.' This all helps your already huge inventory not become an irrelevant garbage bin. Mr. Sheldon, our writer, often injects a bit of humorous relief into an otherwise grim tale. For example, when I tried to have Patrick pick up a whiskey glass from the bar, he comments: 'I shouldn't do that, I need to have my wits about me.' Indeed. Interestingly, he later needs to come back to that bar and glass.

Agatha Christie And Then There Were None Game

When Patrick comes across an object in writing (letters, books, etc.), he can place and examine it in his journal, accessible by a tab on the upper right corner of the screen. This also allows for general information about the island and guests to be conveniently stored. Interestingly, I wondered about what a guest is supposed to think if an important letter is found missing from the top of his/her dresser due to Patrick's compulsive snooping about. The guy picks up most everything he lays his eyes on! Apparently, the developers show the object as gone for our benefit - we know we picked that one up - but the guests do not realize anything is missing since Patrick instantaneously is able to 'copy' the information into his journal and replace the object. A neat gimmick.

Finally, in terms of technical features, you are able to save anywhere in the game, and there are an unlimited number of save slots. A save depicts your exit scene and time. This is a great feature for experimenting a bit with different responses and approaches.

Agatha Christie And Then There Were None Play Script Pdf

Agatha Christie And Then There Were None Game

Agatha Christie And Then There Were None Play

The opening cinematic, using the graphic engine, demonstrates the kind of visual richness you'll see throughout the game. Indeed, like any great story, the first fifteen minutes will draw you in. Together with a haunting piano theme, the introductory experience is very compelling.

However, one of the annoyances rears its head early on. Whenever Patrick has to maneuver in the dark, without his flashlight available for use, he and critical objects are almost impossible to discern, even with the brightness setting turned full up. I had to adjust my monitor to have any chance at all during these 'blackouts.' This could be a patch issue, or it could be my system; I'm not sure.

Other than those times, the presented scenes are richly detailed, carefully tailored to the 1930s setting. Character depictions and animations are varied and appropriate, although sometimes a bit wooden. This is particularly true of Patrick, as he walks like a tin soldier from spot to spot. And he can't go anywhere in a room, only to specific and defined 'footstep' locations. Sometimes, as well, the pathfinding is awkward. Perhaps, though, the largest disappointment with the game engine is the inability to rotate perspective around the static scenes presented. Every three to five scenes, there is a three-second black screen delay while the engine shifts to another set of fixed scenes. They're lovely, to be sure, and this is a 'character-centered' kind of game, but it would be nice to have more mobility of view and movement.

As Hargrave implies, there is a lot of conversation in ATTWN. From early on, it's clear there are layers upon layers with each of the guests, and even yourself! The script is tight and involving, with superb voice acting. You'll learn a lot about each guest, and you will need to make notes even beyond your journal entries. Conversational trees offer choices, often ranging from a kindly to not so kindly question or response on your part, presumably something that might affect how the party you're questioning may feel about you afterwards. It's been implied in some prerelease previews that how you're received by the guests (friendly versus a pain) might affect game direction and outcomes. I couldn't pick that up, even with experimenting. Generally, you move along from ten to nine to eight to seven 'little sailor boys' with critical item accumulation, conversational discoveries and related activities being the only obvious triggers for the next chapter.

There are, however, as advertised, four possible endings! These are fun, and they occur at 'Chapter Nine - And Then There Was One.' Be sure to save at that point so you can work with each outcome.

And any good adventure game needs to include puzzles! Thankfully, the puzzles in ATTWN are as good as any I've experienced in adventure titles. They're in context, make sense and aren't the kind of bizarre sorts of mathematical or musical conundrums found in some titles, which should more appropriately be termed 'puzzle,' not 'adventure,' games, in my opinion. Having said that, ATTWN is hard, sometimes very hard. Thankfully, clues are presented. But still, the occasional need to combine several items in your inventory can be elusive, as can be hidden door handles and how to access rooms without clear entrances. Yet the puzzles are ultimately fair, and you feel satisfied when the resolution dawns on your tired brain.

The script and character development are so well-done that I can see why the Christie estate gave its approval to ATTWN: The Game. A good part of your deductive experience is spent interviewing, thinking, sorting though hints and nuances of responses, which may or may not be fully truthful. Each of the ten has a different background and story. Each of the ten has something about which they're guilty or ashamed, or at least ought to be! We have a physician, a retired general, a judge, a grim spinster, a private detective, and others. They're all well-acted and nicely fleshed out, and you can see why someone might have something against every one of them. Plus, to top it all off, the mansion and island have their own mysteries.

Except for the initial piano theme, the rest of the background music is forgettable, particularly since it seems to repeat ad infinitum. The theme is fitting, it's just that hearing it loop over and over again can become tiresome. You can turn it down or off.

Ambient noises are another matter altogether, and most welcome. The cold rain coupled with lapping of the waves on the dock makes you want to run for cover. Thunder and lightening often enliven the windows of the otherwise static room scenes. Footstep sounds vary from the ground to a metal catwalk to the wooden hallway floor. A range of other touches make this factor one of the highlights of the game.

Thankfully, two maps are included in the nicely done manual. These are of the upstairs and downstairs of the mansion, and they become invaluable tools in your initial explorations. You'll spend the first third to half of the game exclusively on these floors. There are other locational hints (a potted plant) to give you clues, but these maps really help.

And Then There Were None is, as the developers hoped, a 'loving tribute' to the classic Agatha Christie novel on which it is based. With a sterling script, fascinating characters, superb voice acting, beautifully detailed graphics, and sensibly practical puzzles, it ranks among the best adventure games of the last couple of years.

What leads ATTWN to fall just short of our coveted Gold Star rating relates to the game engine. It's dated and not up to the level of modern 3D and full-movement titles. We've seen this static scene, restricted point-and-click ambulation approach many times before. Some may feel comfortable with this style, but we can do better with today's technology. Further, there seemed to be some glitches related to item location and brightness.

Still, this is a fine game and highly recommended. With an outstanding combination of intriguing story and ingenious puzzles, And Then There Were None is sure to delight Christie fans and adventure game players.

People who downloaded Agatha Christie: And Then There Were None have also downloaded:
Agatha Christie: Murder on the Orient Express, Agatha Christie: Evil Under the Sun, Agatha Christie: Death on the Nile, 7th Guest, The, 9: The Last Resort, Alfred Hitchcock Presents The Final Cut, Black Dahlia, AGON