Windows

Golden Gate

Golden Gate has an engrossing storyline full of challenging puzzles. Its blend of real history and mystery is masterfully done, providing a rich world to explore. The combination of gorgeous artwork, well-planned plotline, and excellent musical score make this an excellent choice for adventure game enthusiasts.

A treasure, lost to time, is hidden somewhere in the city of San Francisco. Hints and clues that date to the very beginnings of this city are scattered throughout its width and breadth. Only perseverance and a sharp eye will reveal the secret of its whereabouts. A mysterious box is at the heart of this mystery, a box guarded by the spirit of an evil beast. A beast to make the bravest man quake and drive the sanest man to madness. Only one way exists to avoid the beast and the solution is hidden deep in the shattered history of the box.

Golden Gate is an old-fashioned, point-and-click, slide-show style adventure. But before you write it off as just another Myst clone, take a good look. Golden Gate is a very simple, albeit classy, game that has aged well, and it has a style that is not seen in other adventure games. For this fact alone, it's worth playing.

Warning. The gameplay and exposition are initially extremely slow, but patience pays off as the intrigue and inventory build. Full motion video flashbacks and ol' FMV Jake don't integrate well with the rest of the artwork, but some vintage video clips and the musical score are very engaging. This is an above average title " a diamond-in-the-rough " with some of the best artwork you're likely to encounter. If you're at all entranced by the ambiance of San Francisco, it's a must-have.

Golden Gate is an hours-long virtual slide show with a few moments of puzzles and video thrown in for good measure. This game is a very good implementation of a very small idea. If the point was to create a computer picture show, why bother to throw in a half-hearted attempt to turn it into a game? Usually I encounter games which are based upon a good idea, but they utilize technology or interfaces which prevent the game from actually being enjoyed. The problem with Golden Gate is exactly the opposite of this; the interface and technical implementation is wonderful, but there isn't a lot of meat underneath the wrapper. If you are interested in viewing watercolor slides of San Francisco, then this is the product for you. If you are looking for a product with a lot of gaming content, look elsewhere.

I enjoyed Golden Gate simply because of its beauty and atmosphere. It is absolutely the shortest game I have ever played. Considering the game's shortcomings, this is probably a good thing. If the game had been longer I would been more irritated with the uninspired or simply bad puzzles, the aforementioned bad acting performance, and the bottom-heavy story.

The conclusion is rather disappointing, but probably in keeping with the 300-year-old mystery of the Box. The story as a whole was not terribly engaging. There was far too much written material, and it was far too disjointed to make a whole lot of coherent sense. I just let it wash over me, getting the vibes of the thing without paying much attention to detail.