Vigil: Blood Bitterness

Blood Bitterness is the first (and final) episode in what was meant to be the Victi/Vigil series. It is a third-person 3D point-and-click adventure game with fixed camera perspectives, using a distinct black-and-white style with a scarce accent of colour, inspired by the art of Frank Miller and Philippe Druillet, and reminiscent of the French animation film Renaissance.

The player is Dehon, the last remaining grand disciple of Gomend, the former ruler of an ancient civilization of masked creatures. He has just killed his three brothers - Livos, Pithon and Armon - out of selfish reasons and he is left alone in the palace invaded by a disembodied force of evil. His aim is to escape the palace and understand the original of this evil presence slowly but steadily devouring the universe.

The art, sound effects and music create an atmosphere of isolation, inspired by the works of Franz Kafka. Many actions, objects and room are drenched in confusing design, and require trial-and-error, also often resulting in death. The game is entirely controlled through the mouse. The left mouse button moves Dehon around, while the right mouse button is used to manipulate objects or to pray. There is no inventory system. While playing, memories, clues, sounds and images are collected in a gallery, where they can be examined for clues.

Puzzles require a lot of exploration, pattern recognition, timed sequences and obscure clues or actions, where opening or closing one of the many doors can trigger an event. There is no save system and the game has been divided into different acts. When Dehon dies, due to traps, certain passages or seemingly random events, the entire act needs to be replayed. Additional clues are given through video cut-scenes, where the characters' unintelligible language, with heavy breathing, is subtitled.