Under a Killing Moon

aka: Tex Murphy: Under a Killing Moon, UAKM
Moby ID: 850

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Critic Reviews add missing review

Average score: 84% (based on 32 ratings)

Player Reviews

Average score: 4.1 out of 5 (based on 85 ratings with 6 reviews)

Whow! Heartbeating adventure.

The Good
The moment I took a step into my office, the smell of a cheap parfeume started to tickle my nose. Yeah, there she was, sitting on my working desk, lovely as alwas, with legs to die for. Another customer for sure. Uhh if she was only more, but sure will try to work our diplomatic relationship a bit better than is. She saw me some coverup story, and wanted me to find her father, presumably dead, but missing. I smell trouble all the way, but I took the case anyway. It was my ticket out of my paperwork. I took my old trusty .38 and accidently threw it out my window. Damn, I guess I'll be off the gun in this case. But that won't be enough to stop hard-boiled p.i. like myself, nope baby.

I couldn't feel more like a detective than when starting this game. A big case was warming up, and there was only me to left. A hard-bioled from up 40s, the only old fashioned detective in 21st century, not to mention how effective. I wouldn't need much close, only a set of about dozen fedoras with the same shoes. When something suits you perfect, detective rule No1. is - stick to it. Many rules there are in a p.i. line of work, but you must know them all and live by them all.

This game is third in a row where you play Tex Murphy, 21st century detective with a touch of class from old 40s. Following steps of your idols like Philip Marlowe & Sam Spade you use their kind of investigation, confident and always solving a case. Tex Murphy has some great cases solved as you could see if playing "Mean Streets" and "Martian Memorandum". But this time, the game gets totally new fedora to try.

I played this game five years after it came out, but you couldn't pull me off my chair even if you wanted to. Acting is absolutely great, and this adventure game gives you freely walking/running through the streets of San Francisco in the run down part of city, through your office and other rooms and places. That Tex Murphy (played by Chris Jones) is really something. I take my bow to Access Software for this game. You feel like your in the movie, or better, a part of that virtual reality scene. It's time for you to feel how Humphrey Bogart or Robert Mitchum felt as in Philip Marlow role, and tell it out loud 'Who said I can't be a good p.i.?'.

The Bad
Not a damn thing against this one (pardon my french).

The Bottom Line
You ever wanted to feel p.i., solve couple of mean mysteries and got a hot chick as a reward? Well, first two you can get the moment you start the game. The last one, well, you'll see how you affect women. Music is really amazing, like from Perry Mason mysteries. If you ever appreciated adventures or detectives, try this please, you won0t regret it, I guarantee with my p.i. word on it.

DOS · by MAT (240217) · 2012

You can't keep a good man down...

The Good
The presentation...WOW! When I first got my hands on the the demo way back when, I was COMPLETELY blown away. I couldn't believe what I was seeing. Just walking around, opening trash cans, etc. was too cool for words. This is an A+ production, and you can tell the creators really put their best into it. It was hard, too...give this one to "the guy who can beat anything without any help" and watch him cry like a baby. Nice to see some returning characters from the old games, too.

The Bad
Like I said, it is hard. REAL hard. Like the previous title, it is far too easy to miss something, only to have it bite you in the rear later on. I suppose the greatest reason for the challenge was in the perspective, at the time, gamers didn't really "think" in the 3-D. You really need to comb each and EVERY inch of EVERY location if you want to succeed.

The Bottom Line
A landmark in gaming, setting a new benchmark for years to come. Hey, it's Tex!

DOS · by Toka (13) · 2001

How to become a true PI

The Good
Under a Killing Moon is Tex Murphy's third adventure as a lonely PI. WWIII has resulted in San Francisco being divided into two sections: “Old San Francisco” and “New San Francisco”. The war also created the formation of two classes of citizens. Those that were effected by radiation are called Mutants, and those that weren't are called Norms. Tex lives in “Old San Francisco”, among the mutants.

UAKM starts out with Tex looking for some work, and eventually finds some work in the form of finding out who robbed Rook's Pawnshop. Unfortunately, Tex's investigation leads to much bigger things – things like doomsday cults plotting the end of the world, releasing a deadly virus into the atmosphere capable of wiping the Earth clean.

Seeing UAKM's introduction almost made me feel that I was actually watching a movie. The introduction has Tex telling the user that San Francisco is split into two sections, labeled “Old” and “New”, and that he is staying at the Ritz Hotel. Fortunately, this feeling was shattered when I could move around Tex's office and interact with the various gizmos that he has in there. You walk around in a 3D virtual environment, and do things a true PI does, such as looking in drawers, looking under (and on top of) desks, entering information into computers, dealing with security systems, plus other things a good PI does.

Like his last case, Tex has to deal with several characters, which are voiced by actors I haven't even heard of. Brian Keith plays the crusty old Colonel, while Suzanne Barnes plays Chelsee Bando, Tex's love interest. Characters that make an appearance from the last game include Lowell Percival and Mac Malden. Rook Garner is responsible for starting Tex with his investigation. When you interact with characters, there are a variety of conversation choices that you have to make, and these conversation choices can either be positive or negative. Unlike the last game, UAKM does not tell you what Tex will say, so it is up to the user to find out.

Okay, I lied. Before I played UAKM, I heard of Chris Jones, who plays Tex. As every Tex fan should now, Chris also happens to be one of the designers of the game. He looks like Tex in the previous games, too, which made me think that when Access were designing Mean Streets back in 1989, the company decided to make future Tex games “interactive movies”, with Chris as the starring role.

Tex's investigation is within a six-day period. And every day, Tex is faced with a new assignment. These include digging up the dirt on the husband of Francesca Lucido (Jeri Christian; dealing with the scary Chameleon (Russel Means), an Indian who has the ability to change shapes and sets up Tex; and finally, getting off the planet to destroy the doomsday cult.

The graphics are excellent. They show you that Chandler Avenue (where the Ritz Hotel is situated) is a grimy city with no activity whatsoever, apart from the people who are operating some joints. Outside it is a different story. Tex is either likely to enter mansions that are laid out nicely and have the state-of-the-art security systems, or enter company headquarters where other forms of security exist. The graphic quality depends on how much RAM you have. I remember running UAKM with 4MB RAM, which is the minimum memory requirement, and I had to put up with blocky graphics, but getting an extra 12MB fixed things.

A detailed map of San Francisco is used to travel between locations. I like how the locations are color-coded, and how it is accompanied by an small FMV clip showing Tex traveling to his destination. The FMV clips are good to watch, with interesting conversations between two characters that attempt to plot Tex's doom. The clips are well scripted, and it shows you how good or evil the character is.

There is some humor in the game, especially when it is coming from Chris Jones himself. One of the funniest things he can do at the start of the game is where he accidentally throws his gun out of the window. And later, he poses as Inspector Burns in order to gain entrance to the Golden Gate Hotel.

UAKM uses an installation program that I believe is more advanced than any program that I seen. One of its features worth noting is the ability to assign multiple CD-ROM drives. This feature is very useful for those that have more than one CD-ROM drive, since it means that there is no disc-swapping throughout the game. Access supports a wide range of video cards and sound cards that were commonplace at the time, and if any one of these causes the install program to crash or lock up, there is a text-only installation that users can run.

The Bad
When a cut-scene is played, and it involves two people talking, the person who is listening to the other person talking acts like a mannequin, except when he does things like scratching his head or moving his body.

As a true PI, you have to solve puzzles, mainly by getting pieces of shredded paper and putting them together to form a message, possibly getting a new lead. While I was putting them all together, I always ran out of room, and I had to move them around a limited area and try again. These shredded pieces of paper must be in an exact position before they can become of any use. Every letter must be clear and not have immediate cuts to the next one. I found this hard because my mouse often slips just after I get it in the right position, and I also have to try again.

The Bottom Line
Under a Killing Moon is the third Tex Murphy adventure. It is far more advanced than the previous games, with greater freedom of movement, the use of actors, and the fact that sometimes it acts like a movie. As Tex, you have to do all the things a good PI does, and that probably means solving puzzles in order to get a good lead.

You also need to talk to people, mostly asking them about others. The good thing about this is there are various conversation paths that you can go on, and whether it is a positive or negative response is a mystery. In the six days of Tex's investigation, there is plenty of interesting shit to do. The game allows you to assign multiple CD drives. Even if you do not have multiple ones, the disc swapping that you have to do won't stop you from enjoying a fine detective game.

I recommend reading the UAKM novel by Aaron Conners, and I recommend reading it after you have completed the game. It differs from the game, in that it enhances the story, taking elements out that was not relevant to the game's main plot. That and the second novel, based on The Pandora Directive, are both good reads. I believe that you still can by a copy from Amazon.

DOS · by Katakis | ă‚«ă‚żă‚­ă‚č (43092) · 2007

The world's worst P.I against the a world destroying mad man

The Good
Story: You are Tex Murphy, the star of Access's previous games, Mean Streets and Martian Memorandum. You are down on your luck, living in what is called "Old San Fransico" among mutants and by chance asked by the antiques dealer to find a missing jade crystal. This then leads to other parts with the main plot leading up to a plan to kill off the world and make the better people of the world in a space station a-la the James Bond movie: Moonraker.

Menu: Neat orginised tabs at the bottom of the screen is your menu.

Graphics: At that time I had never seen anything like it, it was like Myst, but you could walk around in Myst style graphics. So real, so fluid. The characters were done good as well, shot against a pre-rendered 3D graphic backgrounds. They reacted with what you said in well thought out conversations that are full of humor. locations range from the streets of San Fransico to the halls of a space station. Crisp and clear, the graphics will hold for a long time.

Sound: Brillant, the music was good as well, the sound from footsteps to the glub of Pug, the mutant's head in the water cooler.

Gameplay: The game stretches for about 7 days (Game time) and each day brings new clues, new mail and new people. The puzzles are well thought out but are a bit too easy in some cases. You can look in any direction and even move up and down, opening and closing stuff is done by a simple click and is accommpanied by an well drawn animation. You can also inspect stuff in your inventory, accommpanied by a crass comment. You collect a lot of stuff over the course of the game, inculding a "Giger Pet" a mini green raptor. The gameplay is interesting as well, in one part you have to doge a security system while collecting vital information. Characters are well developed too, some of the acting is a little weak in the knees.

The Bad
Some of the FMVs had been shot seperately so one person would freeze while another still remained moving. A few of the sounds were a little bit off colour in terms of the volume being a bit too low and it was too easy.

The Bottom Line
Very good, very fun, buy it.

DOS · by Sam Hardy (80) · 2001

Save The World!!! (again)

The Good
UAKM puts you in the shoes of Tex Murphy, a gumshoe in a future world much changed. Tex lives amongst the mutants in the ghetto because he feels he has more affinity with them and lives from hand to mouth with litte work coming his way. Sniffing a job when the local pawn shop get burgled he's straight on the case - but gets more than he bargains for when a simple robbery leads to the uncovering of a plot so large that the fate of the world will lie in Tex's hands.

Yup its up to you to save the world again!

One of the things which i feel adventure games live and die by is the storyline and if they can throw a little humour in there as well then all the better! UAKM has both of these by the bucketload! The story is excellent and you'll soon be drawn into the web of intrigue which unfolds before you and Tex's sarcastic humour, which accompanies virtually every single action in true Marlowe voice-over style, will have you laughing as well. great story AND it'll make you laugh - almost 5 stars just for that!

I should mention this is a point and click adventure, driven by lots of FMV sequences so you know what kind of game it is. The interface is VERY simple to use. you can select between action and movement modes, one allowing you to move about your environment, the other freezing the screen and letting you talk to characters and manipualte objects to solve puzzles. The interface is very intuitive and you'll get the hang of it very quickly.

The characters here are wonderful as well, talking to them is never boring even though you often have to jump between one and the other repetedly as more of the story is revealed and more questions are revealed to ask of them. Check out the likes of the chocaholic mutant who lives in the dumpster for example...

Puzzles are pitched at just the right difficulty so that they are actually solveable although it is all rather linear so you are left in no doubt where the puzzles are and a little random clicking without too much thought will solve them.

This is one of the most fun adventure games I've played.

The Bad
Problems with this game are quite minor to be fair. ts not faultless by any means, but what problems it does have are quite negligible

Its looking a little dated now - go figure, its old! Fortunately it was somewhat ahead of its time when it was released so it has weathered quite well, but some of hte FMV sequences are looking a little creaky. Characters look like shop dummies until spoken to and then suddenly spring into life for instance and the human characters seem to 'float' on the drawn backgrounds rather more obviously than in more recent games.

Sound effects too are good as stated, but sometimes seem too low or muffled and there is a distinct lack of ambient sounds in some parts as well.

Finding it may be a problem these days.

Its a little easy for experienced adventure gamers. I would say the first day or two are quite challenging and then its all a bit of a rush through to the end with little in the way of challenge inbetween! The final day is really one long FMV sequence too, so there really are only 6 days to play across.

The Bottom Line
UAKM is a superb game. Its getting on a little but at this price and with this kind of gameplay you can NOT fault it!! Its almost a must purchase game.

DOS · by wampyrii (9) · 2002

Best adventure gaming around!

The Good
First and foremost. When you buy a Tex Murphy game you get the hint book inside the game. In the sub menu you can choose to cheat and get hints for a cut in your score. For those who are pureists (not me) then this option is useless if not insulting. But for the other 99.9% of us that get stuck and want to finsh NOW! then this is the jem of all jems. Good clean fun WOW! No bad language minimual violence maximum gaming goodness. One of the other great things about this game is its length. Killing Moon is a long game but not in a bad way. When you finish the game you feel like you really accomplished something. I know that when it was all over I could not believe how much fun I had. As soon as I was done I RAN to get the next one in the series. This series just continues to preform. A lot of younger gamers will find the idea of a game without violence and topless women boring. But if you can look past that for a moment and try one of these classics you just might begin to see what good PC games really are. When your mind is stimulated not just your... well you know.. then you get to experience what PC have to offer. Thank you I will now get off my soapbox.

The Bad
Nothing. This was one of the infiately few games that had no flaw that I could determine.

...well I take that back. When this first came out it required a system that most people did not have untill years later. It took a while for this game to catch on. But I didnt play it untill years after it came out. So that did not bother me.

The Bottom Line
Everyone should be required to play this game.

DOS · by William Shawn McDonie (1131) · 2001

Contributors to this Entry

Critic reviews added by Scaryfun, Tomas Pettersson, Jeanne, Renat Shagaliev, Patrick Bregger, SlyDante, EonFear, Sun King, Alsy, RetroArchives.fr, Cantillon, shphhd, Tobias Maack, Kayburt, Wizo, WONDERăȘパン.