Hercule Poirot: The London Case review roundup — Is the new Agatha Christie game worth playing?

Can the sequel challenge David Suchet’s own interpretation of the beloved Belgian detective?

By Matt Poskitt

Published: Tuesday, 29 August 2023 at 12:57 PM

Poirot is back. And no, we’re not talking about the upcoming Kenneth Branagh movie.

This is the new Blazing Griffin Studio video game, Agatha Christie – Hercule Poirot: The London Case, where players can don the Belgian detective’s famous moustache for themselves in a high-stakes murder case.

Hercule Poirot: The London Case is a new original story that introduces Arthur Hastings, Poirot’s famed sidekick, as both are charged with the safe transport of a priceless work of art on its way to be displayed in London.

Naturally, things don’t go to plan, forcing the detectives to work together to solve the mystery. This will include scouring the city for clues, interviewing suspects and witnesses, and utilising Poirot’s famed little grey cells to build mind maps and draw the connections together, and ultimately crack the case.

Now launched globally, Agatha Christie – Hercule Poirot: The London Case is available on PS5, PS4, Xbox Series X/S, Nintendo Switch and PC. It acts as a sequel to 2021’s Hercule Poirot: The First Cases, with expectations pretty high – considering the latter earned itself the BAFTA Scotland’s Best Game Award in 2022.

Does it live up to the Agatha Christie name, though?

Agatha Christie – Hercule Poirot: The London Case review round-up

Hercule Poirot: The London Case showing a man in a purple blazer standing next to a painting
Hercule Poirot: The London Case.

So, what are the critics saying about Agatha Christie – Hercule Poirot: The London Case? Well, early reviews point to a mix of average to good responses. It’s also worth being aware that, at the time of writing, there are only a handful of reviews online, with six available on OpenCritic and zero so far on Metacritic.

First off, GodisaGeek‘s Lyle Carr awarded the game a 6/10 score, saying: “Fans of point-and-click games will probably have a decent time with Hercule Poirot: The London Case, but it has its fair share of issues.”

These problems were noted by Carr as “the quality of the voice acting” as well as how “slowly” Poirot himself moves. That said, they did feel it “gets the job done and you still feel like a genius when you find something new and realise how it fits into the overall picture”.

On the other hand, Mary Billington of Video Chums was more positive, with an 8/10 rating.

Plenty of praise was put towards the narrative and how it helped them to really dive “into the lives of quite a large cast”, and there was opposition to Carr’s view of the voice acting, with Billington instead finding it to be of “high quality”.

The same was said for the “enjoyable writing” that helps make up for the character’s stiffness.

Writing for PlayStation Universe, John-Paul Jones commented that “Hercule Poirot: The London Case is an enjoyable, if unambitious detective yarn” with a 6/10 score awarded.

While it was criticised for its “simplicity”, they did find that “the resolutely relaxed and accessible detective beats on offer mean that newcomers will find few better introductions to the genre and should probably feel free to add a point to the review score”.

GameSpew‘s Kim Snaith fell right in the middle of the average score at 7/10. While the reviewer noted that it’s “an intriguing tale that’s filled with twists and turns” they did also lament that “this is a budget title and it shows”.

Finally, Gabriele Barducci of The Games Machine felt it deserved an 8.2/10, saying that Agatha Christie – Hercule Poirot: The London Case “is a game that is better looking, bigger and more fun” than its predecessor.

He further adds that “the developers use the same formula as the previous title, for a game that confirms all the excellent production qualities”.

If this sounds like something you’re interested in playing, Agatha Christie – Hercule Poirot: The London Case can be picked up at Amazon across PS5, PS4, Xbox Series X/S and Nintendo Switch for an RRP of £34.99. It can also be found on PC (Steam) for £24.99.