Metascore
70 out of 100

Mixed or average reviews - based on 24 Critics

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 8 out of 24
  2. Negative: 0 out of 24
  1. Nelson Tethers is also smart enough to mock itself for the frequency with which puzzles unnecessary crop up: The hotel owner doesn't see anything odd in the fact that her assistant wrote your room key down in code, but Tethers roll his eyes before rolling up his sleeves and tackling another puzzle.
User Score

Mixed or average reviews- based on 46 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 5 out of 10
  2. Negative: 2 out of 10
  1. This is a fun little game that suffers from poor puzzle directions. What I mean by that is that not all the information that's necessary to complete a puzzle is given in the direction and the rules. Sometimes, the information even contradicts itself. You'll read one thing in the rule and another thing in the directions leaving you with no choice but to do the hints in an attempt to figure out what the objective of the puzzle actually is. This, to me, is just a sign of poor quality control/proofreading. If you just accept the fact that you won't get a perfect score the first time through and focus on enjoying the story this game, while short, can be rewarding. It's a fun story that does a good job of setting an atmosphere for the game.

    Provided they fix quality control issues this could be the beginning of a fun series.
    Full Review »
  2. Puzzle Agent is apparently the first of some new "pilot project" from Telltale to test new kinds of gaming, and while the hand-drawn imagery has its own undeniable charm, the game suffers in on particular other way: It's WAY too short!

    The story of FBI agent Nelson Tethers, and his investigation in the quiet town of Scoggins is interesting, if a bit hard to understand at times. You immediately get the feeling that something isn't right in this town, but when the game ends, you still don't really know what happened, and that's highly unsatisfying. The eerie music helps the atmosphere, and along with the unique graphics at times scares the **** out of you.

    The puzzles themselves are pretty decent, and range from "ahhhh.... yes of course!" to "how the hell was I supposed to know that?!" Luckily, you have a hint system which often provides relevant clues without giving away the solution.

    In the end, Puzzle Agent is a fun little game with unique graphics, nice music and an intriguing, if ultimately unsatisfying, story. But it's simply too short to be worth the money, which is a shame.
    Full Review »
  3. 7
    Telltale Games delivers yet another masterpiece with Puzzle Agent--a charming puzzle adventure with a mildly amusing story about an eraser shortage. As always with Telltale, voice acting is top notch, but this time they use crayon style graphics to set up a casual atmosphere that really gives this game a leisurely feel. Each puzzle is self-contained so there are no multi-level puzzles. It differs from traditional point-and-click puzzle adventures where you usually have to find several items or perform a specific sequence of actions before you can advance. Most of the puzzles are on the easy side, but they do throw in a few brainteasers that aren't obvious at first. There is a hint system which, if used, lowers your ranking for that specific puzzle, same as if you submit a wrong answer--although it is completely casual so there is really no reason to care about rank anyway. Puzzle gamers will certainly enjoy this. Full Review »