Oh I am going to enjoy this! This is the remake of the 1993 game that many people (including me) think is the best adventure game of all time. I've been wanting to find the time to play it for awhile. I learned recently that Blackenrock won't be out for probably a couple of months, so I should have time to play this, even though it's quite a lengthy game.
I'll no doubt be approaching this as though it were a new game to me. It isn't, of course, but it's been so many years since I played it that there will be no way I can remember solutions to most of the puzzles. I played it twice, once without the voices, which weren't available for Mac, and years later, finally, with the voices. I'm a fan of Tim Curry, who voiced Gabriel Knight, and he was of course, excellent and I will miss him in this edition. The actor playing Gabriel in this isn't as good, naturally, but he's still doing a quite credible job and won't be annoying. The actress voicing Grace is really very good, as in the original.
The artwork here is still a cartoon, building on the idea that this story would be a graphic novel, but of course things are far more detailed and less pixelated in this game. I'm really appreciating it that they've re-created the original scenes very well indeed. The bookstore, Gabriel's bedroom, and the police station are completely recognizable.
Yeah! It's Gabriel's bookstore!
Gabriel's bedroom is just a messy as before
The police station is the same too!
The similarities to the original game are really comforting to me, even if I can't have Tim Curry again. The conversation screen has been revamped, and I think this version is better:
However, there is every bit as much repetition in this game as in the original. You have to go through every topic until the characters start repeating themselves in order to be sure that you get everything. But again, it's a complex game!
I discovered something I really like! First, there is an in-game hint system, which is very nice. I only looked at it to see what it did. It was pretty vague, which is good. I'll have to check it later to see if it dispenses actual solutions to puzzles. Actually I hope it doesn't. It's too tempting!
But mostly, I found that they've included notes about the original game, with screenshots, original drawings, and (!) an audio interview with Jane Jensen! Anyone interested in that (me!) is really going to be pleased to find it.
You can view the original screens!
A lengthy audio interview with Jane Jensen!
So this is going to be really nice!
I got as far as the Cathedral, which looks way better than it did in 1993, but it's recognizable.
Yup, it's the cathedral!
So I'm going to have a lot of fun and a lot of frustration playing this. But finally I have time to do it. Hooray!
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