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What Murder in the Abbey offers, however, is an exceptional production of an outstanding story, accompanied by fun, intuitive puzzles that seldom bog down the plot's progression. Those design aesthetics, I believe, are the classical elements that make for good adventure gaming. Really, if animated, interactive storytelling appeals to you, you cannot go wrong by choosing Murder in the Abbey.

Nett, wirklich nett. Als spannendes Whodunit hat mich The Abbey bis zur Auflösung überzeugt, als Adventure weniger. Die Rätsel hätten origineller sein können und die nervige Das-geht-so-nichterei hätte man vermeiden sollen. Dank der schicken Comic-Grafik (das Celshading, mmmh!) und der tollen Akustik hat mich das Spiel dann aber doch zufrieden gemacht. Mehr wäre sicher drin gewesen.

Concluyendo ya el análisis debemos resaltar tanto el acabado artístico del juego, el acertadísimo doblaje y las inspiradas composiciones de Emilio de Paz como el desarrollo clásico y el sentido homenaje al sublime La abadía del crimen. The Abbey no romperá moldes ni llevará al software español al candelero europeo, pero sin duda se trata de un ejercicio estético y de clasicismo que los paladares más exquisitos agradecerán. 

Anyone looking for an adventure game with longer game play than some of the recent episodic games will enjoy playing The Abbey. Be prepared to draw some maps in some areas and to pixel hunt every single time you re-enter a room. There are no action sequences to detract from the puzzles and other game play so fans of pure adventure games should really enjoy this title.

I highly enjoyed the story of Murder in the Abbey. It was well written and the dialogue is pretty good and the graphic blending of cel-shading, 2D and 3D graphics really make this title stand out from the rest of the crowd. The only thing that really bugged me was the voice acting from a few of the character. If you're looking for a tale of monks getting knocked off or perhaps a good read I recommend giving Murder in the Abbey a stab. At 20 bucks it's well worth a try.

The Abbey es una aventura gráfica clásica y hecha en España, que convencerá a los seguidores de este género y hará disfrutar a los fans de La Abadía del Crimen. Sin ser un 'remake' al uso, el juego sabe respetar sus influencias, pero también versionarlas con el estilo característico de Alcachofa Soft. Artísticamente, se trata de una propuesta notable, con fondos pre-renderizados de gran resolución y personajes 3D que, salvo excepciones, se mueven correctamente por el escenario.

Murder in the Abbey is almost exactly the type of game I most like, with great atmosphere and storytelling. I really enjoyed the cartoon animation, too. However, the conversations can get a bit lengthy and even I got tired of the endless talking sometimes. It really needed more puzzles, as well. But still, this is one of the more interesting adventure games to come from The Adventure Company lately. A nice week’s worth of gameplaying.

Absolutamente recomendable para novatos y, sin duda para veteranos. Aquéllos encontrarán aquí una interesante propuesta mientras que los segundos hallarán un producto que proporciona altas dosis de entretenimiento. No obstante, auguramos que resultaría extraño que dentro de unos cuantos años alguien eche la vista atrás y recuerde esta notable aventura gráfica, no ya como uno de los grandes clásicos sino con ese cariño que nace cuando algo ha calado hondo en nosotros. A pesar de su indudable calidad, parece destinada a ser un título que difícilmente perdurará en nuestra memoria.

Na also, jetzt hat es doch noch mit einer fehlerfreien Version von The Abbey funktioniert. Dem Spielvergnügen steht von dieser Seite also nichts mehr im Wege. Dennoch ist The Abbey nicht mehr als ein ordentliches Spiel geworden. Auf der einen Seite glänzt das Comic-Adventure mit einer schönen Grafik, guten Charakteren sowie einer spannenden Hintergrundgeschichte. Viele Kleinigkeiten in allen Bereichen, vor allem aber Gameplay- und Handhabungsmängel, mindern jedoch den Spielspaß.

Wer dennoch einen Abstecher in die alte Abtei machen möchte, sollte für das Lösen der Rätsel rund um die geheimnisvolle Abtei rund zehn bis zwölf Stunden Spielzeit (je nachdem ob man Dialoge wegklickt und wie intensiv man die Reisekarte einsetzt) einplanen.

The Abbey si fa amare immediatamente per lo stile da cartoon disneyano, che sorprende se accostato a una trama dove scorre del sangue. La storia invece non può certo stupire, pescando a piene mani dal romanzo di Eco e da una tradizione in materia di monaci e di esoterismo che non è nuova, ma la solidità con cui si sviluppa e gli ambigui personaggi dell'abbazia sono sufficienti a mantenere salda la presa sul giocatore. Gli enigmi sono verosimili ma poco fantasiosi e siamo costretti a tornare molte volte negli stessi luoghi. Al contrario i temi trattati, e soprattutto il modo in cui se ne parla, sono un grosso punto a favore di quest'avventura. Leonardo è un personaggio di grande spessore, che si definisce bene in contrapposizione a quell'inconcludente del suo novizio, Bruno. Se solo il doppiaggio fosse stato fatto contestualmente al gioco, si sarebbero evitati scivoloni interpretativi inaccettabili. In definitiva, rimane comunque una bella prova di Crimson Cow, che ci auguriamo continui su questa strada.

Attitude and attractiveness are the two biggest characteristics of Murder in the Abbey. Although the pilfered plot won't win any points for creativity, the sensible puzzles and the cheerful charm of the presentation are enough to win you over.

A pesar de llegar meses después de la aparición en Alemania, país del cual ha venido la financiación del proyecto, ahora disponemos en nuestra tierra del producto que con tanto mimo han elaborado nuestros compatriotas y que como premio han incluido numerosos extras inéditos en el extranjero.

Los que adquiráis la versión española del juego, contareis además de con la aventura principal mejorada con menos bugs y puzzles retocados, también con un interesante modo de juego, en práctica, igual al original, pero que en vez de mostrar el acabado final, nos presenta exclusivamente imágenes del storyboard con el que fue concebido.

All in all, Murder In the Abbey is a competent and nicely put together adventure. While seasoned adventure gamers could rumble through this title in under twelve hours, it’s still worth a look due to its good story, nice dialogue, well-done mystery element, and straight-forward gameplay.

So, will you like this game or not? The answer depends on how much its flaws bother you. If you’re more forgiving than, say, me, you could have a really good time with Murder in The Abbey. But if wooden faces, absurdly crossed eyes and baffling line readings bother you, be warned.

Es ist simpel: Wenn es Crimson Cow gelingt, seinem Spiel sämtliche (!) Bugs - von Abstürzen über Installationsfehler bis hin zu defekten Spielständen und verschwindenden Items im Inventar - auszutreiben, dann setzen wir auch die Wertung herauf: Bis in den soliden 70er-Bereich kann The Abbey problemlos vorstoßen, denn Handlung und Charaktere, Grafik und Sound, das gefällt alles sehr. Leider gibt es aber spielerische Unzulänglichkeiten, die mich mehr genervt haben als jeder Bug: Leonardo akzeptiert meine logischen Lösungswege nicht - er folgt lieber dem strengen Diktat der Spieldesigner. Er hebt Items nur dann auf, ja, er betrachtet sie gar nur, wenn es ihm gerade passt. Hilfestellung leistet er höchst ungern und eine bitter nötige Hotspot-Anzeige lehnt er gleich ganz ab. Leonardo, du störrischer Esel - das kostet dich den 80er.

Mäßiger Kloster-Krimi: zu mühsam, zu unlogisch.

Murder in the Abbey is ultimately one of those games that is fairly enjoyable to play through yet leaves you with the feeling that something is missing. The well written dialogue and storyline carry the game respectably, keeping you involved right until the end, but the annoying choice of sidekick, some unfortunate bugs and both the scarcity and unimaginative nature of the puzzles means that the game never feels truly engaging. And while I was generally intrigued by the investigation of Leonardo, it would have helped if I was more personally involved in unravelling the secrets that the abbey had to reveal. Given the striking visuals and rich material at hand, this could have been something special. As it is, Murder in the Abbey is merely a decent rather than an amazing journey into the medieval era.

Despite the boast of having over 1,000 backgrounds and over 40 hours of gameplay, Murder in the Abbey is not an RPG, and veteran investigators may have an easier time with this over a weekend than others might. Murder in the Abbey shines due to its unique graphics, stirring soundtrack, and the care given in telling its somewhat-familiar story. The clunky gameplay has too many problems to make it feel as if it were worth the effort, though, even with the occasional fun moments that manage to creep in. If sweeping your mouse over every scene just to find a vital item tickles your investigative fancy, and if you enjoy taking leaps of logic that make sense only to the NPCs, then you might find have found your calling in this medieval murder mystery. Otherwise, you should simply rent "The Name of the Rose."

Je nach Auffassungsgabe ist der Rätselspaß etwas kurz geraten und bereits nach zehn bis zwanzig Stunden schon wieder vorbei. Dennoch: ein spannender Kriminalfall in ungewohntem Gewand. Die Mönchskutte steht der Geschichte gut, aufgrund einiger Hardware-Probleme reicht es aber dennoch nur für ein "befriedigendes" Testergebnis.

Murder in the Abbey (or just The Abbey, as it is known in Europe) is an adventure game to skip. The cartoon style it uses for its look is effective, but too much of the game feels like a cartoon, with over-the-top voice acting and silly situations, and that forms a disturbing dichotomy with how seriously the game takes itself. Plus, the puzzles are awful and the story is worse, and so there isn’t anything in the game to recommend. Pass this adventure by, even if you see it sitting invitingly in a bargain bin.

The back of the box promises 40 hours of gameplay. You do not want 40 hours of gameplay here. Between the could've-been-awesome art, the never-could've-been-awesome-in-a-million-years voice acting, and the fact that monastery intrigue is a very niche proposition to begin with, even if the writing were stellar (which it is not), Murder in the Abbey utterly fails to be something I can recommend to anyone.

I didn’t know what to expect when I started playing Murder in the Abbey, but I was not anticipating a plot seemingly reworked from a mildly obscure 1986 Sean Connery film. The children’s cartoon art style is at odds with the decidedly adult nature of the story, which includes some disturbingly creepy double entendres (parents, be prepared to answer some uncomfortable questions). The interface, although pleasingly simple, is filled with bugs. Any murder-mystery game that has you spending more time reading than you do playing is bound to lose the interest of its players long before the killer’s identity is revealed. With so many other choices in the adventure genre out there, Murder in the Abbey is one that can easily be skipped.