Puzzle Agent

Puzzle Agent, originally titled Nelson Tethers: Puzzle Agent, is an adventure and puzzle game from Telltale Games, created with Graham Annable. It was the first title released under Telltale's pilot project. The game draws inspiration from the works of David Lynch, Stanley Kubrick, and the Coen brothers, especially *Twin Peaks* and *Fargo*. It is one of two Telltale Games titles to feature an original character, the other being *Telltale Texas Hold'em*.

The game launched on June 30, 2010. A planned WiiWare release for the Wii was later canceled. A sequel, *Puzzle Agent 2*, came out the following year.

In terms of gameplay, the structure is similar to a linear adventure game. The player has no inventory but can navigate dialogue trees with other characters. Certain items or dialogue choices lead to puzzles, though some puzzles have no impact on the game's progress. Puzzle types range from jigsaw and mathematics to logic puzzles. Each puzzle includes a short description of its goal, and some provide basic rules or conditions to help the player deduce the solution. The player can request up to three hints per puzzle, each costing a piece of chewing gum—gum is scarce in the town, as the hotel clerk explains, but Nelson can collect used gum pieces found at various locations. Puzzles do not automatically accept the player's solution, even if correct; Nelson must send the answer to headquarters for approval or rejection. If approved, the player receives a score based on hints used and failed attempts (with failures represented in taxpayer dollars), and an optional explanation of the puzzle's solution is provided.

The plot begins with FBI Agent Nelson Tethers, the sole member of the Puzzle Research Division, receiving his first field assignment. The factory that makes erasers for the White House has halted production, and all attempts to contact it are met with bizarre puzzles. Tethers must travel to the factory in Scoggins, Minnesota, and restart it. In Scoggins, he learns the factory closed after an unidentified accident, and the foreman, Isaac Davner, has been missing since. The factory is sealed with a complex lock requiring three keys, preventing further investigation.