83
With its great graphic style and the mysterious, captivating music, we are led through FBI-Agent Nelson Tether's awesome story. The various characters, the abrupt story twists and the numerous puzzles, are combined a great game, which hopefully continues.
60
Perhaps, considering the industry's rampant "borrowing," it's a little unfair to complain about Puzzle Agent feeling gratingly uninspired. But Telltale forgot one of the most basic rules: If you're going to crib enough to be compared to a franchise as solid and beloved as Professor Layton, that's got to be a comparison you want to invite, and one to which you can stack up well. Poor Nelson Tethers just can't.
67
Aside from a handful of disappointing puzzles, however, I still see loads of potential in Puzzle Agent. Its goofy, Coen-brothers-do-Twin Peaks storyline kept me glued to my computer monitor for the roughly three hours it takes to finish the game.
10
I remember playing this a very long time ago. One of the best games I've played. I was able to solve 90% of the puzzles which I think is an achievement for me and the developers of this game. Really great job creating such a fun game! :)
10
Puzzle Agent is an adventure/puzzle game by Telltale Games. It released in 2010 and was the first game in their experimenting with other ways to make and play games. I loved this game, though it should be known that Puzzle Agent and Puzzle Agent 2 are actually one full game. This first game will end on a cliffhanger that is picked up and resolved in the second game. The puzzles were quite difficult but also a lot of fun. And I certainly didn’t expect the spookier elements but it totally made the game. I loved the main character Agent Nelson Tethers and all of his reactions to the townspeople and their mystery. It kind of reminded me of the Professor Layton series as well. This is a must for those who like to solve a mystery and puzzles.
7
Nice little point & click adventure in which you have to solve puzzles to make progress.
Puzzle Agent
Released On:
Jun 30, 2010
Metascore
Mixed or Average
70
User score
Mixed or Average
7.1
My Score
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Metascore
Mixed or Average
33% Positive
8 Reviews
8 Reviews
67% Mixed
16 Reviews
16 Reviews
0% Negative
0 Reviews
0 Reviews
100
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.
80
With all of its ingenuity and charm, this episode is a great first step in Telltale's Pilot Program.
User score
Mixed or Average
38% Positive
33 Ratings
33 Ratings
56% Mixed
49 Ratings
49 Ratings
7% Negative
6 Ratings
6 Ratings
Oct 18, 2025
10
I remember playing this a very long time ago. One of the best games I've played. I was able to solve 90% of the puzzles which I think is an achievement for me and the developers of this game. Really great job creating such a fun game! :)
Aug 3, 2025
10
Puzzle Agent is an adventure/puzzle game by Telltale Games. It released in 2010 and was the first game in their experimenting with other ways to make and play games. I loved this game, though it should be known that Puzzle Agent and Puzzle Agent 2 are actually one full game. This first game will end on a cliffhanger that is picked up and resolved in the second game. The puzzles were quite difficult but also a lot of fun. And I certainly didn’t expect the spookier elements but it totally made the game. I loved the main character Agent Nelson Tethers and all of his reactions to the townspeople and their mystery. It kind of reminded me of the Professor Layton series as well. This is a must for those who like to solve a mystery and puzzles.
74
The humour, too, is a little underplayed. [Sept 2010, p.95]
70
Some of that pleasure is tempered by an imbalance in the games puzzle progression and the reuses of a handful of puzzle templates, but with a little tweaking and another exotic case to be cracked, Puzzle Agent could become a series consistently worth solving.
67
Aside from a handful of disappointing puzzles, however, I still see loads of potential in Puzzle Agent. Its goofy, Coen-brothers-do-Twin Peaks storyline kept me glued to my computer monitor for the roughly three hours it takes to finish the game.
60
After tons of really good adventures, TellTale tries to make something different with this Layton's clone that fails because of a lack of depth and gameplay diversity.
50
If you're a puzzle fan, then the game does have some thought-provoking puzzles; however, it moves so slowly, you might not be able to stay awake long enough to get to them.
Jun 21, 2014
10
My boyfriend and I loved this game! It has a fun story, its full of jokes, and has this ambient mystery vibe. Seriously, it's easy to get startled! I would definitely recommend this game to anyone who enjoys puzzles and mysteries.
Mar 24, 2025
7
Nice little point & click adventure in which you have to solve puzzles to make progress.
Jul 28, 2012
4
Puzzle Agent is a puzzle game, much like the Professor Layton series. Naturally, being a Telltale game, the story is pretty interesting and fairly goofy. It's short; I completed it in 3 hours. However, the tragedy of this game is that it's a puzzle game with sub-par puzzle gameplay. Several of the puzzles are very poorly made. They're ambiguous, and you need to make odd assumptions about the puzzles for them to make any sense. Most of the rest of the puzzles are dead simple. There are one or two genuinely difficult puzzles, but it's hard to identify them among the poorly-made ones, and you just start assuming that they didn't tell you enough on every hard puzzle. It's really just a sign of incredibly careless puzzle design, and it would make Professor Layton cry. The puzzle's solution, as described by the "How?" button, almost never actually describes the solution. Ultimately, I can recommend the game's short story, but it's sure to piss off any puzzle enthusiasts. Try not to pay any money for this one... should be easy since Telltale loves giving it away.
Jan 3, 2012
2
Vaguely interesting game, if you like puzzles. The story is humorous, the art appealing, and the ease of dropping into the game and out of it was nice. However, the puzzles leave a lot to be desired, either being way too easy to be worth it, or having several non-unique answers, and for reasons of its own not accepting the one it was given. The end (which came WAY too early, we might have spent 2 hours on the game, max) left my wife sputtering, as you were just getting into the plot. Should have been called Puzzle Agent, part 1, to make it obvious that there was not even the vaguest resemblance of a conclusion at the end of it. Not recommended.
SummaryTake the Professor Layton games, throw in a dash of that Telltale humor, and layer on top the sharp artwork of renowned artist and animator Graham Annable, and you get Puzzle Agent, an episodic puzzle adventure. [GameSpot]
Platforms:
- iOS (iPhone/iPad)
- Wii
- PC
- PlayStation 3
Initial Release Date:Jun 30, 2010
Developer:
Publisher:
