Under a Killing Moon (1994) is the third installment in the Tex Murphy series of adventure games produced by Access Software. In Under a Killing Moon Tex again fights the forces of evil as he tries to stop a dangerous cult from destroying the world. Under a Killing Moon combined full motion video (FMV) cutscenes with a 3D virtual world to explore. Under a Killing Moon was in its day one of the largest video games ever, arriving on four CD-ROMs (although some material was duplicated among the four to reduce the amount of swapping).
After its creators reacquired the rights to the series, it was re-released on Good Old Games on June 16, 2009.
Like all Tex Murphy games, Under a Killing Moon takes place in post-World War III San Francisco in December 2042. After the devastating events of WWIII, many major cities have been rebuilt (as is the case with New San Francisco), though certain areas still remain as they were before the war (as in Old San Francisco). WWIII also left another mark on the world: the formation of two classes of citizens. Specifically, some people have developed a natural resistance against radioactivity, and thus are normal or "Norms" -- everybody else are Mutants in some form. Tensions between the two groups have risen dramatically since the end of the war, and Norms and Mutants usually do not get along. The Mutants are usually forced to live in the run-down areas of cities such as Old San Francisco. Tex lives on Chandler Ave in Old San Francisco. All his friends are Mutants, though he himself is a Norm.
In Under a Killing Moon the player plays as Tex Murphy, Private Investigator. Tex has hit rock bottom. Recently divorced from his wife Sylvia, out of work, low on cash, and living in a rundown part of Old San Francisco, Tex realizes that he has to get his act together. Tex sets out to hunt for work. He finds it quickly once he discovers that the pawnshop across the street from his apartment has been robbed. Tex quickly solves the case, and feels his luck has begun to change. Then a mysterious woman calling herself Countess Renier, having heard good things about Tex, hires him to find her missing statuette.
Under a Killing Moon has many unique characters, and stars several well-known actors such as Brian Keith, Margot Kidder, Russell Means and the voice of James Earl Jones.
A novelization of the game was written by Aaron Conners in 1996. Although the basic plot, characters, and setting remain mostly the same, it differs significantly from the game, providing a great deal of extra information, new characters, character deaths, and more detailed character motivations related to the main plot involving the Moonchild, while removing scenes and characters from the game that did not relate to the Moonchild plot, creating a more singular Chandler-esque mystery novel. The final ending of the game (meeting The Colonel and Eva in the bar, and dancing lessons with Delores Lightbody) is also changed to continue this style.
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