Gabriel Knight 3: Blood of the Sacred, Blood of the Damned

The Good
I'm a big fan of the Gabriel Knight series. I admire Jane Jensen, the creative talent behind them, and all the designers and programmers who managed to turn deep and complex stories into engrossing and fascinating games.

Gabriel Knight 3 is no exception. The two previous games did wonders in combining the natural and the supernatural, or, better to say, in making the supernatural look completely natural, feeding the player information on history, religions, philosophy, and occult sciences without becoming boring. In the third game, the story goes even deeper, into the heart of Judaism and Christianity, and shocks you with unconventional ideas about their origins and historical development. If you are, like myself, interested in this kind of stuff, you will be amazed at what Jane Jensen has achieved in this story. Of course, she didn't invent the most shocking revelations; she took them from the same sources Dan Brown later did for his poorly written and overrated Da Vinci Code. The alternate history of Christianity and speculations about apocryphal biographies of Jesus are not new; but it is commendable that Jane Jensen was not afraid of treating such stuff in a video game narrative.

What's more, she treats the material much better than Brown; she doesn't engage in cheap and badly motivated attacks on the Catholic church, or presents fictional accounts of Gnostic philosophy which anyone who has some knowledge about the matter will immediately deem ridiculous. She also adds some cool plot twists which are most probably fruits of her own fantasy. For what it's worth, Gabriel Knight 3 is a great and rare example of a very ambitious narrative that actually passes the test for credibility.

But don't think the story is all about Jesus and the Masons. As much as the historical part of the game is interesting, there are also plenty of more "earthy" moments, mostly involving the relationship between Gabriel and Grace. The new supporting cast is perhaps more interesting than in both previous games; but for the sake of nostalgia, you also meet an old pal from first game's New Orleans.

The gameplay is for the most part even deeper and more varied than it was in the previous games. The game lets you perform many actions which are not necessary to complete it. In fact, it is possible to finish the game and miss a good deal of non-vital, but interesting information. You can really play the detective in this game, spy on everybody, lurk at places that you know will be visited by somebody, take pictures and fingerprints, work with data on your laptop, and so on. The amount of pure adventuring here is huge, from tricky inventory-based puzzles to logical detective work and clue-gathering. Many puzzles need to be solved with the help of your special computer, using all the data you managed to gather. Some puzzles are extremely tough and are sure to give you a headache, but most are fascinating and unusual - such as, for example, connecting particular locations on the map to create a hexagram.

The game is divided into small time periods, that will end and begin according to the actions you performed in order to trigger this change. Although it is not real-time in sense of Last Express, it is quite refreshing and makes the game more realistic.

The game's world is done entirely in 3D, with great graphics and a fantastic engine that allows you explore the world with the camera, and also move Gabriel around - so to say, a combination of first-person exploring and third-person navigation. This works really great, allowing more immersion into the game world and also more interesting gameplay possibilities, such as being able to examine from different distance and angles everything you see on the screen. I could never understand why adventure games kept stubbornly refusing to incorporate real-time 3D. Under a Killing Moon clearly showed the way, but only few followed it; this game is one of those few.

The Bad
The game's biggest weakness are its so-called "traditional" puzzles. The detective/spying work and all the stuff you could do with the computer was really cool. On such background, the few "classical" puzzles, taken directly out of old-fashioned comedy adventures, looked completely out of place. The obvious example is the infamous "cat mustache puzzle" - I won't give you the details for fear of spoiling you this product of mastermind puzzle design, but if you imagine a kind of a weird, illogical, and downright silly action you would normally avoid even in Day of the Tentacle, you'll get the idea. Now imagine you'll have to solve such a puzzle in a game with a highly serious, detailed narrative that deals with religion, mythology, horror, and vampires. This is the equivalent of being kicked out of the story for the duration of the exercise.

This is unfortunately not the only inappropriate puzzle in the game, though probably the most notorious one. There were some other tasks that just made me shrug my shoulders. On the other hand, some of the more clever, narrative-influenced puzzles were extremely hard. The work with the computer was fascinating, but often I was simply overwhelmed by the research possibilities, without always knowing exactly how to conduct this research.

The narrative has some problems with the pacing. Sometimes days pass before you are able to learn anything interesting; at another time, plot twists are thrown at you from all the sides. In particular, the final confrontation felt rushed and not fully satisfying.

The Bottom Line
Cat mustaches and other minor problems don't change the fact that this is an awesome game. Gabriel Knight 3 should have become a bright beacon for adventure games to come; unfortunately, the rapid decline of the genre's popularity brought the series - and the genre in general - to an undeserved demise.

The Good
This is the third and final chapter of the Gabriel Knight series for now. In the previous adventure, Gabriel, with the help of his charming assistant Grace, solved the murders of innocent people who were eaten alive by werewolves.

In this latest adventure, both Gabriel and Grace are invited to stay at the remote French village of Rennes-le-Château, where Prince James of Albany tells Gabriel that his baby son is kidnapped and wants him to bring him back safely from the kidnappers. But as Gabriel pursues the kidnappers, a much darker plot unfolds, involving vampires and buried treasure. The in-game introduction doesn’t show much, but if you read the prologue that comes with the game, you’ll see what the main plot is about. If you’ve lost the prologue, you’ll be supplied with a PDF version when you install GK3.

As I said in my review of GK2, you take control of both Gabriel in the odd chapters, and Grace in the even ones. In GK3, it is the same deal, but we’re not talking about chapters here. Instead in GK3, you only have three days to find the baby and solve several vampire killings, but each day is split into timeblocks, and this is indicated in the game (eg: Day 1, 10am-12pm). Each timeblock ends when either Gabriel or Grace completes a certain amount of tasks. Some are short, while others are quite long. Also, you won’t be able to control Grace until Day 2 as she arrives at Rennes-le-Château on the tour bus the previous evening.

Joining them at the hotel is your average tour group. These include Estelle and Lady Howard, the two British lasses who get worked up over something; Vittorio Buchelli, the Italian; Emilio Baza, who is of Middle East origin; and John Wilkes, the Australian who would like to get his hands on the treasure before anyone does. Leading the tour group is the beautiful French woman, Madeline Buthane. Everybody involved with the tour group is a suspect. Both Gabriel and Grace are not restricted to investigating inside the village, but once they get access to the Harley, they may continue their investigation elsewhere.

During the investigation, as both characters, you have to do some detective work such as speaking to people about both the kidnapping and the killings, and dust objects for fingerprints then put them into a plastic bag. You then scan those fingerprints into SIDNEY (Schattenjäger Informational Database) that Grace brought with her when she first comes here. SIDNEY is also useful for receiving new e-mail, researching topics, making false IDs, and analyzing items that are scanned into SIDNEY.

The interface is easy to use. You use the mouse to click on an object, which brings up the verb menu basically consisting of icons. Depending on the object, you can use, move, climb, and look at, and much more. You can even inspect them to see a close-up view of the object, and this works for all characters as well. I’m glad that Sierra decided to stick with the mouse, and not use the keyboard-only method that LucasArts stuck with in their adventures such as Escape from Monkey Island and Grim Fandango, where you have to figure out which key does which. Furthermore, you can view the game at several camera angles by sliding the mouse up or down, forward or backward, to adjust the view. This makes it useful for getting objects that you can’t see at a certain angle.

The graphics in GK3 are great and make full use of 3D. GK3 does not require a 3D accelerator, although one is recommended. Without one, the graphics appear much darker unless you adjust the gamma slider included in the graphic options. If you find the resolution too big, you can adjust this to either 800x600 or 1024x768. With the 1024x768 resolution, I found that I couldn’t read what score I’ve got so far properly, so setting the resolution to 800x600 did the trick. The resolution wasn’t a problem for me in the other two GK games, as one had a fixed resolution at 320x200, and the other 640x480. The sound, on the other hand, is excellent as well. The music can be quite dramatic at times, such as when Gabriel inspects crime scenes or being pursued by kidnapped. GK3 comes on three CDs and each one of them has a day on it (eg: CD 1 has Day 1, CD 2 has Day 2, etc.).

The Bad
The speed slider that controls the speed of your character is not present in the game, so I had to suffer watching Gabriel and Grace walk slowly toward their destination. Even GK2 doesn’t have a slider, but at least Dean Erickson walked a lot faster. Like the last two GK games, GK3 tends to be a history lesson rather than an adventure game. In GK1, Gabriel asked for information about Voodoo and in GK2, Grace had to visit German museums where she researched about King Ludwig and Richard Wagner. In this game, you access SIDNEY and research topics, then when the results come up, you have to click link after link to get the information that scores you a lot of points.

When you install the game, you can access a promo of the Nightmare of Elm Street series, digitally remastered, but this has nothing to do with the game.

On its current setup, my system also can’t take the heat. First, when I played this game for long periods of time, and then left the game, many programs refused to work, and when I shut it down, Windows decided to lock up. There are many Easter Eggs in the game, but I can’t access them. When I do this, GK3 reports “unrecognized fatal exception”.

The Bottom Line
Apart from the history lesson, this game is very good. ***½

The Good
Every once in a thousand years, the developers make a mystery that marks a millennium, hehe, and this game definitely proves that no suspense movie can compete with minds of developers, designers, and story writers when they focus on something. And being an honest fan of mystery and detective adventure games such as Gabriel Knight series, Tex Murphy series, or such, I can say that without a doubt, playing such an intriguing, deep, sometimes complicated, turnover, investigator's role is much better then just sitting in front of screen and watching some Humphrey Boggart playing Sam Spade or Philip Marlowe. Hey, I'm not saying I don't enjoy that either, I do :)

Okay, everything started when "The Beast Within" me awakened as I way sleeplessly playing through the second installment of the series, for which I consider it to be the best of the series, and officially decided to get "GK I" and "GK 3". Thanks to my great vendor, just next month he said he got the games, and soon afterwards I was unwrapping the package. Okay, I wanted to finish the first installment from the series to get even more acquainted with the main character's past and how he got into that schattenjaegger business. I dunno how have I managed, but for next couple of weeks I was finishing "Gabriel Knight: Sins of the Fathers" without even checking the third one. And then the time has come to unravel the mystery larger than all so far seen and unseen.

It was a great to notice how they kept each of those three games so different by the stories, so connected by the characters, so great within the music element, and so stylishly parted from 2d point-and-click graphic adventure, through blue-screen video-post adventure to 3d point-and-click graphic adventure. Yup, this time Gabe definitely looked above expectations, hehe. And so did Grace if I may add :)

The game gives you opportunity to play in different resolutions (unlike the other two), and to use (or not) your 3d acc. graphic card. Shadowing and mapping lokes much smoother and more true that way. But the best point of all was that you could move camera independently of your main character. Seeing and hearing what he does not, adjusting your investigative skills with his wit and charm, and solving mysteries piece by piece. As much as it seemed hard to master at the moment, it all became real easy to handle.

Now, the story starts as you arrive with a train at some God forsaken place called Rennes-le-Chateau in France, carrying a bump on your head alongside. You were following the kidnappers of a Prince James' child, but being hectic and unpredictable as you always are, Grace decided not to follow you at the moment. Hmm, now this place looks really strange, and more you visit it, more mysteries you'll reveal, and more then you'll want to for sure. Guess you better phone Grace and let her know where to come.

The story really becomes tense and suspensseful at many points, and brings you practically to unimaginable point when unraveling. You'll have many ways to play, many opportunities to meet someone, but only you choose when and where to do so. You will control both Gabriel and Grace characters, with Gabe being more a man of an action, and with Gracie being more a woman with a brain. The dialogues between them and the other characters are simply brillians, every accent, every word, it's amazing. And Tim Curry, who was voice-actor or original Gabe in "Sins of the Fathers" is back now playing Gabriel again, and even better. As for Grace Nakimura, I must admit Charity James was the best voice I have ever heard in my life. She was is also voice-actress of Elaine in "Escape From Monkey Island". LucasArts was always leading when it comes to voice acting, and still is, but it's really nice to find something amazing in Sierra or other companies form time to time, no? :)

The music, as in prequel, is divided into segments that are like 5 to 30 seconds each, so they change to create atmosphere and ambient accordingly. But hey, there are many longer songs and great ones, they should've make a soundtrack from this game for sure. Robert Holmes sure knows his work when it comes to piano songs. Yup, piano is my fav, so go figure why I like the music so much :) Plus, it's really great.

The Bad
A-a, no way! This game is amazing. If they never make a sequel to it, then that will be the biggest failure and injustice they'll make to loyal players and fans of this amazingly great mystery adventure series.

The Bottom Line
Well, the game is simply great. And if you don't have it already, then you're wasting your time reading this... go get it! C'mon, go for it. Don't wait 'til it runs outta stocks.

This game has absolutely nothing to disappoint you with, it has deep and very unique story, nicely drawn characters and animations are very very much okay, hehe. The music at its best, suspense active as always, adventuring spirit always aside, never know who to blaim 'til the very end, solving ancient mysteries with a class, speech and humour at the high level for certain, and interface cannot be easier then it is with all it complicity at first sight.

Okay, if you're trying to find a game that will scare you a lot, or give you too chilling moments and are a fan of horror games, then this is a wrong bet. The great games like this are usually based on the story, atmosphere and practically everything, so scarring player may not be included at its best. Well, it did work for me though, I remember my expectations when I was playing with a Grace in that vine cellar not knowing to whom I approached (still don't, though, hehe), or when playing with Gabriel in the dank dark always expecting for someone to pop-up behind some tree or a rock. Well, the suspense is at its best, and twist are more then you will expect. Trust me on this one, 'cos if you're reading this review, and are doing that just because you're bored and don't intend to get this game, then I can only say 'wrong direction kid, go play Wolfenstein', but if you're considering getting this game, trust me and get it. You won't have anything to complain about. You'll get all you wish for, and more to throw around.

Frankly, I dunno how Sierra became popular with games like "King's Quest", but if Jane Jensen worked on those, I sure wouldn't think twice before getting them, hehe. I just hope this game will be getting sequel so much "Final Fantasy" series will seem like a humble collection aside this. I'm guessing making a great game sucks time bigtime, and there are too many people on this globe to realize the greatness of such games. Just check "Deus Ex" and you'll see what I'm pointing at. ON the other side, if this game sold on millions and became hit, Sierra would definitely made another one, but guess what... they would make it to achieve another profit of masses, and the game's quality would go down. So I guess, it's better three but breathtaking three, then ten games but nothing much.

Are you still reading this?? 'nock it off and go buy it!

The Good
An adventure game that is both new and old in many aspects, Gabriel Knight manages to dazzle the mind once again as he stars in yet another perfectly crafted storyline written by series creator Jane Jensen. As usual for the series, the game puts you in the middle of a complex and genuinely interesting plot that revolves around actual facts sprinkled with some supernatural elements and with some dashes of lighthearted sexual comedy. The results are once again, as usual: magnificent.

The storyline progresses smoothly, and introduces plot-points and revelations at a pace that manages to keep you interested yet doesn't overshoot, even if it does lean heavily towards being a "Whudunnit?" plot and ditches most of the supernatural elements (more on that later). Further praise must be awarded to Mrs Jensen for finally putting a closure to one of the most annoying aspects that plagued the series: the Gabriel/Grace love/hate relationship, It always seemed like a cheap gimmick to keep ratings up and this is Gabriel Knight, not "Friends". The resolution is open to interpretation, but for the most part ends the "will they ever get toghether?" question, and lets us focus on the storyline instead of the shitty "loves me / loves me not" soap opera. I personally would have preferred it to be more final, but at least it's something.

The real innovation in the game comes of course, in the gameplay and graphics area. It seems that the GK are the only game series that have passed all the major gameplay/graphic fads of the videogame industry, first the SCUMM-ish sprite-based engine, then the FMV interactive-movie one, and now the flashy polygonal world comes to the GK franchise. As far as I'm concerned, the engine and the gameplay mechanics work perfectly with the game since nothing allows you to explore with as much leisure and freedom as a fully-polygonal world. Basically, you don't just control the characters, but you also have full control of the "camera" that serves as your pov, so you can move anywhere you want and get a good look at whatever the hell you want. The puzzles respond to this engine change, and tough there are still plenty of "typical" inventory/deduction puzzles, there are also new ones that involve visual coordination and less obvious mind skills. In all, the new engine is a marked improvement, and the puzzles and general gameplay are extremely well made.

The production values for the game are also top-notch, with great voice acting (who the hell says this game has bad acting??? The accents are a bit on the rough side, but it's still far from being Deus Ex!) fantastic music (tough a bit far too folky for my taste), and (on a more superfluous note) a kickass box and documentation. The manual is as flimsy as they get nowadays, but the game includes a wonderfully drawn (if a bit to artsy) comic as a prologue to the game just as in the original.

The Bad
Well, I loved GK3 and in fact the entire GK series is one of my personal favorite adventure series, but regardless of my enjoyment, I am not fanboyish enough to ignore the game's flaws.

First of all the gameplay introduces a highly controversial addition to me: time-based puzzles. In other words, there are some actions in the game that take place in real-time whether you are there or not, and if you manage to get them good, if not it sucks to be you pal!!.... Geez, I assume this was done as a means of artificially enhancing the replayability factor, but it's a very anal way of doing so. Plus most of the time there are no logical pointers to tell you whether X thing is going to happen at Y moment, you just have to pray that you are at the right time in the right moment. None of these moments are game-stoppers if you miss them, but that doesn't mean it doesn't suck to miss them.

Furthermore, the storyline is good and all, but unfortunately ditches all the horror and suspense the previous games were known for. Jane Jensen focused on telling a tale more about conspiracies, secrets and developing her characters. So that leaves little place for the terror. In fact, if it weren't for the occasional murder the game pretty much forgets about it's "vampiric" setting and instead plays more like a whudunnit adventure with a lot of historical and occult references. There just isn't enough room between Gabriel and Grace's romantic comedy, the conspiracy theories and the historical mumbo-jumbo to jam in the terror, which leads me to believe that the series has finally turned into it's creator's fetish outlet where she just does whatever the hell she wants regardless of whether it fits the role or not. That's respectable, but Mrs Jensen would benefit from going back to the humble roots that started her road to fame instead of using GK as some sort of open mike for her historical interests. When you think about it, it's better to have the series die now instead of having to endure sequels that fully cross the border into "edutaiment" brrr.... Now THAT's terrifying!!!

Sure, the GK games were as scary as forgetting the keys to your car, but at least they had a lot of suspense, and managed to create some serious atmosphere. The game still retains the quality in writing and all, but suspense/horror-wise it doesn't hold a candle against the previous GKs. And don't get me started on the vampires!! I meet scarier anorexic black trenchcoat-wearing dumbasses on my local goth-club... mmmmh.... goth chicks.... hmmmmm!....... What? Oh yeah, the vampires on GK3 suck. And what's with the Indiana Jones ending sequence??? Let's just move on...

Last but not least there are some weird graphic issues. I don't have a monster system, yet I can perfectly run massive 3D games like the new Wolf, GTA3, etc.. yet GK3 still chugs like a bastard whenever I try to turn on full detail! Furthermore there are clipping issues and other interesting glitches that make it seem as if the engine needed another couple of hours on the Q&A program, but the main issue that I bring this up is that while far above average, the quality of the graphics never justify the problems it causes! I still laugh whenever I remember Gabriel's "cardboard" underwear or the visible joints on every character model. To be fair tough, the quality of the textures is still amazing.

The Bottom Line
GK3 is a perfect example of when an artist has waaay to much power. Even if she were on drugs and with handcuffs, Jane Jensen could still write a fantastic storyline. Yet I feel if someone had bothered to remind her aim should have been making a great game instead of "Jane Jensen's Gabriel Knight 3" the game would have been as memorable not just as a well-crafted 3D adventure but also as a horror/suspense classic. As it is now it's a great adventure, but don't let the box deceive you, this is a "conspiracy mystery placed in a history lesson". That doesn't mean it's bad, mind you, but it's far different from the "suspense thriller based on actual historical facts" that the previous games had us used to. Ask yourself what your interests are before you dive in. Regardless of that it's a fantastic game that should keep you interested for quite a while.

The Good
I have been a Sierra adventure game fan for 15 years, since the release of the original Kings Quest. I have purchased and played every game they have put out. In recent years I had moved out to other companies due to Sierra's (uh-hum) lack of quality. But with the third release in the GK series Sierra has reclaimed the crown (or at least showed that it still remembers how to put out a good game when it wants too).

Gabriel Knight 3 is a revolution for adventure games. While modern machines have far surpassed the traditional adventure game layout the genre has stagnated, urging many to claim that the end was finally near for adventure games (I think this argument started about the time that Kings Quest 2 came out). The game has taken what was best about adventure games, added in the brilliant writing of series creator Jane Jensen, and mixed with a new graphics engine that is close to the one used in Kings Quest 8 but moved beyong just killing everything that moved.

The world is fully 3D and the control of the game is based on a camera system. While I have seen this approach fail miserably in other games Gabriel Knight finally uses it not only well but exceptionally. The puzzles reqire intelligent use of the camera and rethinking of the traditional adventure game approach (pick up everything that is sharper in the background, indicating that it is important). The interface is quick to learn and once learned is very easy to navigate and use.

The graphics are also wonderful. Scaled to adjust to your machine automatically upon startup, the game graphics played beautifully on my Pentium 233 with a voodoo 2 card. On a higher end machine they are even more stunning (Pentium 2, 450 at work).

But even with the graphic and interface this game would be nothing without gameplay. It has that in abundance. The Gabriel Knight series has been the thinking man's adventure game for years and this installment only reinforces that. In addition, Jensen appears to have really had her time to develop the story as it is more detailed and rewarding than the first two games (which is saying a lot).

The Bad
Nothing. Not a thing. Other than it eventually ended.

The Bottom Line
Sierra seems set on recasting their image. With the release of both HalfLife and Homeworld they have demonstrated that they can still make games worth playing. This game is Sierra's demonstration that they can still make adventure games. If you ever were an adventure game fan, this is worth your time. If you ever wondered what the fuss was about, this is your game. If you played Mist (God help you) and wanted more, this is your game. Basically, if you are a computer game player you should check this game out. You will be seeing more just like it over the next few years and will probably hear enough about it to justify a good play through.

The Good
A game can't go wrong with Jane Jensen at the helm. This third, and likely final, installment of the classic adventure series is once again endowed with a rich plot, fascinating characters, and mind-boggling puzzles. The new interface and free-form approach to the mystery (puzzles have multiple solutions, and you can miss a good 30% percent of the game if you're not on top of it) provide an added level of depth. Fingerprint kits and a functioning laptop computer bring Gabriel's archaic and intuitive techniques a modern flare. This time, Gabriel fully shares the bill with Grace as co-protagonists.

The Bad
While the previous two games were practically honed to perfection, this one retains some significant, if excusable, flaws. Infighting meant the development was rushed, and you can feel this at the end, when the game abruptly shifts into climax mode without provocation, leaving a significant puzzle introduced only a short time before unaddressed (Lady Howard's fang picture). The polygonal models are awkwardly shaped, and Curry's voice acting, while familiar, sometimes falls ridiculously flat. The atmosphere is distinctly lacking in this game -- the environments are almost cheerfully colorful and bright, and the free-roaming camera ability eliminates suspense in key elements of the game. Unlike the previous two entries, Robert Holmes' powerful and pervasive score is missing, a key element of the series success, replaced with David Henry's sometimes-obnoxious lounge jazz ambiance. The final puzzle of the game is a bit Tomb Raider-ish, but that's not necessarily a negative.

The Bottom Line
All in all, this is a fantastic game, and a good note for the series, and indeed the genre as a whole, to go out on. While not as timeless as its predecessors, it's replayability factor gives it added value. The plot is deep and interesting enough to be a novel (and was indeed portentous of Dan Brown's DaVinci Code), and its an essential play for any fan of the series or the genre. Unfortunately, it spelled the death of intellectual gameplay. Play it once through for the experience, and again with a walkthrough to cover the things you inevitably missed.

The Good
Graphics and sound - what works

Gabriel Knight 3 has solid, well designed graphics in full, ‘real’ 3D. No slow-down whatsoever, the camera roams high and down ahead and back and rotates 360-degree as you wish all the time with no hiccups.

What’s most important, most of the people and things in the game still look cool 15 or more years after release. Takes little to appreciate what hard work went into the good looks of everything, from the characters to buildings and the various landscape.

Music and sound fxs are there doing their job too. Scary when it ought be scary, more emotional or straight fun when ought to be so, music keeps up helping the story’s whole atmosphere the whole of time.

In a nutshell, nice graphics and good sound add up to a game experience likable to the eye and thrilling.

Gameplay - what works

In a 3D world designers could hide secrets and caveats pretty much anywhere, which opens up the game for more quirks and things to do than your average 2D adventure maybe. The game interface works smooth and isn’t gonna bother you.

You control Gabriel Knight some days (chapters), and his female buddy Grace Nakimura the rest of time. She kind of steals the game. Makes the game feel up-to-date with today’s equality ideas and is a nice touch, too bad you have to control Gabe in the final.

High fun factor overall, specially thanks to many of the puzzles are not too hard, so they won’t make any players feel they want to leave the game b4 they finish it. Also, the in-game help feature is a fine touch and in 1999 meant designers where keeping in step with the times.

Plot and replay value - what works

Well, you have a quite long thriller story full of things to do and surprises. Many interesting characters and locales too. It’s at least 20 hours of playing, maybe 30. Replay value is OK, as you’re gonna miss some hidden things in your first playthrough, and the score system provides the grounds for trying again and get everything.

The Bad
Graphics and sound - what doesn’t work

Quite everything is perfectly ok with the graphics and sound, but some of the art sucks, the voices are campy, low-res textures were applied across large areas.
Anyway, you still get into the game.

Gameplay - what doesn’t work

A big issue is the infamous cat mustache puzzle. This puzzle, as other reviewers said, is difficult not because its clever but because your simply left stumped by the idiotic kind of solution. Issues with some puzzles, so tough some of you may quit and leave the game. Even the research material into Grace’s SYDNEY computer can confuse some people. In-game hints are available only sometimes, so maybe go straight to a FAQ whenever you get stuck.

Plot and replay value - what doesn't work

To say it bluntly, nothing’s wrong with the plot and replay value. Anyway you don’t have achievements to collect, and they should be there IMHO.

The Bottom Line
After great experiences with GK1 and GK2, I was quite looking forward to playing the third game and in no way it let me down.

In a nutshell, what you gonna get with Gabriel Knight 3 is around 20 hours of pretty decent, streamlined, fleshed-out adventure gameplay for $6. That’s a fine deal. The game is often on sale, which sure makes it a bargain nobody wants to miss.