The Pandora Directive (1996)

In a neo-noir post-WWIII future, an old man hires Tex Murphy, a witty mellow private detective, to find his friend, a former government scientist. The clues lead Tex to a serial killer, NSA and an ominous project called Pandora.

Director:

Adrian Carr

Writers:

Aaron Conners (novel), Aaron Conners (screenplay)

Stars:

Chris Jones, Barry Corbin, Kevin McCarthy

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Chris Jones	...	Tex Murphy
Barry Corbin	...	Jackson Cross
Kevin McCarthy	...	Gordon Fitzpatrick
Tanya Roberts	...	Regan Madsen
John Agar	...	Thomas Malloy
Suzanne Barnes	...	Chelsee Bando
Nicole Tindall	...	Emily Sue Patterson / Luci Luv
Bill Bradshaw	...	Archie Ellis
Sterling Brimley	...	Elijah Witt
Cat Hammons	...	Lucia Pernell
Kevin Jones	...	Mac Malden
Randall Edwards	...	Louie LaMintz
Douglas Vandegrift	...	Rook Garner
Curley Green	...	Zack Williams
John Timmons	...	Nilo Paglio

Storyline

In a neo-noir post-WWIII future, an old man hires Tex Murphy, a witty mellow private detective, to find his friend, a former government scientist. The clues lead Tex to a serial killer, NSA and an ominous project called Pandora.

---

Plot Keywords:

neo noir | serial killer | private detective | puzzle | missing scientist | 

---

Genres:

Action | Adventure | Comedy | Mystery | Romance | Sci-Fi | Thriller

---

Details

Official Sites:

Access Software

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

31 July 1996 (USA)

Also Known As:

Tex Murphy: The Pandora Directive

Company Credits

Production Co:

Access Software Inc.

Technical Specs

Color:

Color

Did You Know?

Goofs

As Tex finds the Cosmic Connection magazine, he recalls that he had a conversation with Fitz about the magazine, but no such conversation occurs within the game.

---

Quotes

Tex Murphy: I'll pick up these clothes next time I'm expecting someone else in my bedroom. Yeah... fat chance of that!

---

Connections

References The Princess Bride (1987)

---

Soundtracks

Tex's Lament
Performed by Richie Havens
Produced by Bernard Fox

User Reviews

An exemplary interactive movie from the highly-acclaimed Access Software team.

The Tex Murphy series of interactive movies has become one of the most prestigious and respected in the business of computer games. Access are always keen to reach a new paradigm in gaming technology (they were the first to release a game on DVD), but the most important thing is that they deliver a solid, strong and entertaining game. Out of the three 'Tex' games made, The Pandora Directive is the best.

Tex Murphy (played by producer Chris Jones) is possibly one of the most legendary characters in the gaming world. He is a bourbon drinking, stereotypical private-dick, right down to the cigarette stubs and the five o'clock shadows. Slowly, he is drawn into a web of bizarre, corrupt characters, and the plot establishes itself to be quite complex and convoluted. After some game time, a mysterious 'Pandora' device emerges, and it becomes known that it has the answers to the Roswell mystery of 1954 (or is it 1952?).

The game is set in San Fransisco, 2043, and from what we gather in the introduction, there has been a schism between the humans and the 'mutants,' a character class that emerged after a nuclear bomb was dropped on the town. Tex lives with the mutants, though he isn't one himself, and tries extremely hard to court the elusive and beautiful Chelsea Bando, the mutant newspaper stand salesgirl. Access Software have done a good job of establishing a believable, likeable protagonist and landing him in a compelling, intriguing plot/sub-plot line.

But all in all, the Pandora Directive is a very entertaining and thoroughly enjoyable experience that can be played multiple times as it has seven different endings.

Nine out of ten.