Thanks to a little web-site called Good Old Games, I’ve been able to finally get my hands on Gabriel Knight 1 and 2. Here is my review of the first game in this super-natural adventure game series.
Gameplay: 4/5 – This game is a true to form old school Sierra game with a speed-dial and everything. The amount of icons could have been smaller, but at least there weren’t that many I didn’t use at all (the move icon was probably the most ignored). However, the inventory could have been a little less cluttered and I didn’t like the fact that it needed its own menu-bar. Also, moving the damned flashlight could have been made easier.
Graphics: 4½/5 – I could bitch about how the pixels are the size of pet mice, but in all honesty the amount of graphic variety and the attention to detail in the game is absolutely amazing. I especially like the character facial close-ups during conversations and the scanned comic-book art which looks excellent. However, my biggest criticism goes to the clock-puzzle where it’s really hard to tell what half the objects on the clock face are supposed to look like.
Animation: 4/5 – In-game animation is excellent and very detailed. As mentioned before, I really love the scanned comic-book art and I think the cut-scenes comprised solely from it are probably the most outstanding part of the game’s graphic look. I also quite like how accurately the characters’ mouths move during the interrogation sequences. However, the actual “video” cut-scenes didn’t impress me as much and a few of them looked rather awkward (especially the old CG renders).
Music: 4½/5 – Despite being entirely in MIDI, the music in the game is fantastic. You have the classic recurring themes of the series, intermixed with African sounding music and even some more light-hearted Dixie-style numbers. However, I really didn’t care for the Schloss Ritter theme.
Sound: 4½/5 – With a voice-cast starring the likes of Tim Curry, Mark Hamill, Jim Cummings, Michael Dorn (Star Trek: TNG), Leilani Jones (Monkey Island) and Linda Gary (He-Man), you truly have a lot of raw talent in this one title alone. I wasn’t perhaps too wild about the Jamaican lady narrator, but I got used to her as the game went on and eventually quite enjoyed her. My biggest gripe with the dialogue is the actual structure of the interrogation sequences and the fact that Gabriel talks to all of his friends and relatives as if he’s meeting them for the first time.
Plot: 4/5 – Gabriel Knight, much like Revolution’s Broken Sword, combines actual history and places into its fictional story and creates an excellent and suspenseful atmosphere. However, I strangely felt like the story was a tad rushed in places, especially when you go to Schloss Ritter, and I even found Gabe and Malia’s relationship to be more cheesy and silly than steamy and/or heart-warming. The game’s ending leaves you with a sombre but, still, quite a victorious feeling.
Difficulty: Moderately annoying – At the start, the game’s puzzles are quite logical and pretty clever which I was happy with. The game didn’t hold my hand and I was still able to play through the first four days without much difficulty. However, the opening of the game suffers from a “puzzle cluster fuck”, where aside from the more important story-progressing puzzles, there are a number of smaller and seemingly insignificant puzzles which will, never the less, halt your progress entirely if you don’t complete them. The annoying part about them is that they’re so easy to miss and dismiss. You will likely not realise they should be solved until you finally take a look at a walkthrough. The game also has many sections where you can die, but thankfully most can be navigated easily – just as long as you don’t let the cluttered interface distract you. The thing I was most annoyed with was that the opening screens of each day contain (often a critical) clue to one of the key puzzles but, again, they are easy to miss, dismiss or flat-out forget.
Score: 85% – Gabriel Knight: Sins of the Fathers is definitely worth a try for die-hard adventure game fans. It has an excellent story, a great voice-cast and some beautiful art – but in classic Sierra style is a challenging and, at times, a frustrating title. It mixes great innovation in the genre with some unfortunately archaic adventure gaming traditions, but still comes out a strong title.
