A game doesn’t have to reinvent the wheel to be an excellent title. In fact, sometimes what we want from a game is something completely familiar, something comfy that we can throw ourselves into and know exactly what to expect. Loco Motive gives us exactly that in this pixel-art point-and-click comedic adventure that harkens back to both Agatha Christie mysteries and LucasArts adventure games.

An old-timey first-class train carriage. A rich old lady with mysterious finances. A missing will. Multiple suspects. As many times as this combination of tropes shows up in mystery titles, I will never tire of them. Practically all of these conventions owe their popularisation to Agatha Christie, the famed mystery novelist. Loco Motive prevents itself from feeling derivative, though, by paying duel homage to the adventures of LucasArts as well. Three different protagonists work alone and together to find the culprit behind the machinations of the deadly train journey. The game is separated into different sections as all three protagonists play out their actions aboard the train before, during, and after the murder. It culminates in its final parts with all three protagonists working together.

Each of our three protagonists is likable for different reasons. Protagonist number one is Arthur Ackerman, the victim’s state lawyer, who has an adorkable passion for paperwork and is a bit corny. Number two is “Detective” Herman Merman, a failing novelist with a flair for the overdramatic. Finally, Diana Osterhagen is a secret operative keen to prove herself on her first mission working for the American tax office’s secret service. All three of them find themselves on board the Orient expre- I mean, the Reuss Express- for their own reasons, but they all revolve around Lady Unterwald, the elderly and extremely rich victim.

Often, it seems as though so many modern point-and-click adventures use pixel art graphics just because that was the art style de jour for those LucasArts and Sierra masterpieces from which many developers find inspiration. Now that there are so many pixel art adventures, it’s hard to call any one of them a deliberate homage, but there is something about Loco Motive that feels especially Monkey Island.

Loco Motive’s puzzles are generally enjoyable, though not many of them stand out. Some of the puzzles are solved with convoluted solutions that require out-of-the-box thinking, but not always for the better. One puzzle required me to assemble a makeshift container big enough to mix a cocktail in; not a bad concept in theory, but frustrating when there’s a handy vase standing on a nearby window sill that would serve the purpose just as well. However, I can’t say that’s not part of the classic point-and-click experience. The classics are full of nonsensical solutions using your lucky dip inventory; the only question is if the game’s brand of logic lays the foundations for you to figure it all out. Loco Motive achieves this the majority of the time, and for the rest of them, there’s an extremely well-crafted hint system built into the game that will give you increasingly clear hints.

When it was time for the credits to roll, I still felt reasonably satisfied with the mystery’s conclusion, despite where I thought it could have gone bigger. In the end, Loco Motive leans more toward Monkey Island than Agatha Christie, and that’s ultimately to its benefit. Whether you’re a seasoned point-and-click veteran or not, this game is an easy recommendation.