Features

• For 1 player
• Nonviolent 1st-person mystery adventure game
• Solve puzzles to understand a deserted planet
• Immersive 3-D environments
• Nonlinear gameplay

Reviews (30)

Schizm - Fizm
I'm not a much of a gamer. You may buy this game for the discount price.

I got this for the impressive graphics. I fail to see anyone solving this without a walkthrough or a decade. The puzzles have some logic but are not related well enough to solve. Many reset themsleves if you save the game or leave the area. Even with a walkthrough, I spent too much travelling to get from clue to solution.

I saw better acting in my high school drama club. Some of the verbal/audio clues were not understandable.If it were not for the walk through I would not have had them. I even saved the game and ran through a number of times at these spots with no luck.

Running 2 characters was fine but having to gather them up near the end and keep them together was quite an annoyance.

Then the hangs. I ran my P4 with no TSR's and still had crashes. That required full reboots and killing of the TSR's.

The beautiful graphics and intrique do not make up for the shortfalls above. I really felt that I wasted my time when I had experienced the chopped off poorly contrived ending.

Sad adventure.

Beautiful and complex, but not without bugs
This is not an easy game, and even hardcore gamers are likely to find themselves scratching their heads.If you're a newbie to the adventure genre, better to start off with something like Syberia.

The puzzles are what define this game.Yes, the graphics are beautiful -- plenty of pre-rendered, first-person beauty that transition wonderfully from scene to scene.The background sound is reasonable and appropriate, although you won't be begging to buy the soundtrack.And you get to play two characters (often they help each other solve a single puzzle).But it's the puzzles you will remember...and they're very tough.

This is, after all, an alien world, and so the fact that you will be decoding other alphabets, working with strange symbols, and even performing plenty of math (!) somewhat makes sense given the story.You have to assume that the locals prefer to lock door and control bridges with puzzles rather than keys, but I'll press the "I believe" button for that.If it's been a little while since high school trig or conversions between number bases, you may want to prepare for some stretching of the brain.

Don't get the wrong idea, though -- these are praiseworthy puzzles, and I dare you to complete them without a walkthrough.They're all perfectly logical (incredibly logical, in fact), so there are no excuses -- but boy, they can be challenging!

The story is sparse, but then in many ways it is supposed to be.This is an alien world, and your job is to figure out how things work, so a large part of that is not knowing exactly what you're doing.That's great.But when the end of the game comes and you're still wondering what it was that you actually just DID...well, that's somewhat less than satisfying.

I have two main complaints.First: the voice acting is, sadly, very -- very -- pathetic.I mean no offense, but even I could do much better.It's actually kind of embarrassing.Fortunately most of the time you're wandering deserted areas.

Second complaint: There is absolutely much too much traveling.I enjoy wandering around new areas as much as the next gamer -- and with scenery like this, you'll want to, too -- but towards the end of the game, things got absurd.In the first locations, everything you needed to solve the puzzles was more or less within a minute's distance (your minutes, not the characters' minutes).By the end, though, I often found myself traveling ridiculous distances on the mere HOPE that what I found at the other end would be worth the travel.And then, if I forgot to bring the 2nd character along with me, I'd have to travel all the way back, get him/her, and travel back yet again.Couldn't there have been a map or something you could click on to jump to places you've been to already?

In the end, though, it's an enjoyable journey for hardcore adventure gamers.It's too bad that, having just finished it, I still have a bad taste in my mouth about all the needless back-and-forth running around I had to do -- because this is in fact and well-designed, thoughtful, and extremely enjoyable game.Just laugh along at the acting and be patient through the travels...the puzzles are enough to test your mettle.

BUY IT- LOVE the SCENERY, BUT A BIT CONFUSING
I am a puzzle/adventure/story fanatic, all you out there who loved riddle of the sphinx, all myst series, crystal key, longest journey check this out! ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Computer Games    2. Adventure   

Editorial Review

Want to live forever? Get a taste for what it's like withVampire: The Masquerade Redemption, the first computer role-playing game based on the tremendously popular dice-and-paper and live-action RPG from White Wolf Game Studio.Die-hard fans will grumble abit at some of the translation concessions from book to hard drive. Thevampiric disciplines in particular are less flexible and occasionallymore hassle than they're worth--sure, you can turn into a wolf, but youcan't return to your natural form until the time limit expires.Still, these limitations don't interfere with the gameplay, which isfast moving, challenging, and genuinely creepy. Graphics and sounds arewell designed, and along with the plot they evoke the mood of gothichorror that has made Vampire so popular.

The single-player mode locks you into the story line of Christof, amedieval crusader who blunders into immortality at the fangs of anancient Brujah vampire. Christof's damnation and search for redemptionlead him from the Prague of the Dark Ages to modern New York City.Multiplayer options include local area network and Internet play aswell as the ability to create and run your own stories for otherplayers. The manual is beautiful and helpful, a rare combination.Clearly, the designers took their cue from White Wolf, as evidenced bythe clarity of text and carefully chosen illustrations.ThoughRedemption is well worth playing, gamers should be warned thatthe save-game feature is irritating and often beyond the player'scontrol and that the installation requires at least 720 MB (and up to1.3 GB!). Despite these flaws, the game is still wicked fun and meritsplenty of praise. --Rob Lightner

Pros:

• Fantastic graphics and sound
• Rich online storytelling options
• Perfectly captures the mood and settings of Vampire: TheMasquerade and Vampire: The Dark Ages

• Enormous installation size
• Irritating save-game feature
• Not strictly faithful to original White Wolf rules

Reviews (4)

Another great RPG
When I got Vampire:The Masquerade I didn't know a single thing about the entire premise of this title. I know there's books, a pnp rpg and so forth, but I've not come into contact with any of that. But none of that matters because this game is still a lot of fun for a newcomer. This is one of the few titles that kept my attention and full interest up until the very end. I've even played it more than just one time. It is the first game that introduces the DM system in the multiplayer-side.
The game does get annoying at times. For example you have to be careful that your party members don't run amok and get themselves killed or start casting spells in a wasteful manner.
All in all, I'd recommend this title to anyone that likes roleplaying games.

an under-rated game
i thought this game was a lot of fun to play.it wasn't an accurate representation of the Storyteller rules system, but that wasn't what i was after.it is an enjoyable game with an interesting storyline.if you are looking for a game where you'll have to concentrate hard or solve obnoxious puzzles, look elsewhere.if you want about forty hours of fun gaming, then buy this game.

An excellent foray into the world of darkness...
This game was excellent!Admittedly, you were cast as one character, instead of being able to make your own, but this is made up by having an excellent, well fit together storyline.You really feel empathy for Cristof.The graphics are a bit dated by now (4 years later) but it is still an excellent game.The rule system is done well, and a wide array of disciplines are available.Also, I appreciated that the creators didn't shy away from the bloodshed (allowing you to feed on people, not just animals).It adds to the gritty feeling of the dark world.
All and all, worth your money, especially at the price you'll find it now. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Computer Role Playing Games (Game, rpgs, rpg, crpg, crpgs)   

Editorial Review

It's the future, of course, and you're stationed aboard the spaceship Van Braun, waiting for your first soldiering assignment. Luckily, the future resembles the best of science fiction from the last 10 years--something plucked from Blade Runner with pieces from the The Fifth Element (only with an AI-enabled computer/self-proclaimed goddess running the show).

The universe is run by unbelievably huge corporations, and in one of the biggest (TriOptimum), a hacker is breaking the rules. The result is SHODAN, a supercomputer whose beautiful, eerie face glimmers from the box's cover. The engine used for Thief: The Dark Project, ensures that System Shock 2 hums along on systems with the basic requirements.

With a superior plot and engaging, Asian-inspired aesthetics, System Shock 2 is a visceral, visual treat of a first-person role-playing game. All the devices that in theory seem stale and stupid come to life in this game. It's as if you could go back to the 1970s and take a vision of what the future would look like--and make it believable and cool. All the whirs and beeps and pulsing noises sound realistic. In addition, the designers have added in all the creepy elements we never wanted to have come true--such as the voiceovers that greet you when you're at the airport--only in this case, you're visiting the training sessions held by the United National Nominate.

Suffice it to say, the future of humankind is in your hands. With an excellent supporting cast and well-realized sci-fi visuals, System Shock 2 offers insight into an amazing new world order. --Jennifer Buckendorff ... Read more

Reviews (56)

Very good but hard, very hard.
Several things make this hybred shooter / RPG hard: First there aren't large piles of ammo available and most monsters only drop one bullet, shell, etc. You'll almost always be short of ammo, needing to resort to the default weapon, a wrench, especially on the early levels. You really will need to make every shot count. Additionally unlike most low ammo shooters, this game, while having some stealth elements is not stealth game. You sneak around some but there is the occasional large firefight you can't avoid. The last hard part is the slow rate that you acquire weapons and even after you find them, you can't carry them all. It'll take a long time to find and gain the skills to use better weapons and the limited inventory space means you'll be making some hard choices.

Not just a shooter, you find 'cybernetic modules' that you use to upgrade your abilities. Upgrades include the usual statistics (strength, agility, endurance, etc), weapon skills, psonic abilities and technical skills. The technical skills are the most important, you have repair and modify your weapons, research unknown items you find and hack into computers, security systems and other items. This hacking skill is most important skill you have. You won't enough modules for all the upgrades so choose wisely.

Aside from difficulty and RPG features the game provides a good story. Your path is fairly linear and there's a bit too much key collecting there are a couple plot twists.And while the space ship interior graphics are mundane, the sound design is excellent. You'll need a good speaker setup to hear things coming up behind you or in the distance ahead.

One disappointment: most monsters re-spawn. My preference has been to clear out an area and have it stay cleared.

I had no problems running this game on Windows 2000 although switching to the desktop caused a nVidia-based blue screen of death.

Best Ever, but...
This is my favorite PC game of all time. I've been playing since it's release (yep, I've got the original packaging and all). My only negative comment is not on the game itself but that it is almost a crime that no further games in this series were ever produced. I also have SS1 but unfortunately still have not gotten it to run correctly on modern PC's (damn DOS crap!). I still have not taken the wrench challenge on the highest level, too much dancing around with robots I guess..

Folks, this is as good as it gets.
I first played this game in Spring of 2003, by which time the graphics of this game were almost primitive. I stuck through the first few minutes to see what the game was like, and it wasn't long before I was sucked in to what is probably the best game I have ever played in my life. This game will scare you to death. It really makes me wonder why more games like this aren't made. Doom 3 actually took most of its style of play from this game. Its very much like Deus Ex, and in my opinion is actually superior. It has a superb storyline played out through emails and data logs with superb voice acting. The atmosphere will really sink into your skin, and when you hear the monsters hunting you down, you'll be ready to jump out of your skin! Be advised, this game is very difficult, and it takes time to get used to. It is not like a regular FPS, you simply don't have enough ammo to go around blasting everything you see. You have to be clever. Play this game, and you will not regret it. It's true that the later levels are somewhat dissapointing, but the game is still well worth it. Five Stars for this game. Oh, and make sure to check out the System Shock 2: Rebirth modification, which replaces some of the graphics with excellent high polygon versions. It really makes the game look ten times better! Just type the name System Shock 2 Rebirth into a search engine to find it. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Science fiction (scifi sci-fi)    2. Shooters (Shooter)    3. systemshock2    4. two (II)    5. Action    6. Computer Games    7. Computer Role Playing Games (Game, rpgs, rpg, crpg, crpgs)    8. First person   

Editorial Review

Build on the terror and adventure of Diablo with this expansion set. The software adds 12 new weapons, five new spells, 29 new foes, and the Monk, a new and powerful ally. There is also a whole new story to unravel and new demons to destroy. ... Read more

Reviews (16)

Diablo fans must own
If you are a hard line Diablo fan, you must get this expansion otherwize your collection would be incomplete. I dont even have to play the game to enjoy it, just knowing I can play it anytime I want is good enough.

good...but can get boaring...
im surprised that there only selling a used 1 4 $20(can.And i realy like it because u can get a barb and a barbarian from just downloading a file!by the way...the Ka-rul(the evil guy in the game)doesnt match the story...like who heard of a guy named Ka-rul!but there are 8 new levels and new Quests...but is it worth it?I dont feel like getting diablo battle chest 4 $40(can).

Add more life - and death - to Diablo
System on which this was tried out: Pentium III 733 MHz, nVidia TNT 2 Pro, 128 MB RAM, Win98, with a monitor with 1024 x 768 resolution. Hellfire must be installed on top of an existing Diablo install, and requires the Diablo disc rather than its own to actually play.

Being a Sierra product, the installer will install Sierra utilities in your startup menu if you don't already have it, with no option to skip them (although you can uninstall it separately); the utilities are the Sierra-typical uninstall/readme/support/auto-update. Auto-update, if invoked, asks you to connect to the net, searches your system for Sierra products, then queries Cendant Software's site to check for any patches or other updates, including updates to the Sierra utilities package itself. (The original Hellfire release must be patched for the town characters to properly interact with you, for instance - otherwise their Gossip mode will be stuck.) The Sierra utilities wind up under Program Files on drive C, no matter where the user asked the actual game to install, and the icon for the utilities is added to the start menu.

Once you have Hellfire installed and patched, you'll see some differences from (actually, additions to) baseline Diablo right away as you start your next new character. A few new character types have been added. (For a basic Hellfire install, only Monk has been added, but if you download and apply the Purgatory modification on top of Hellfire, you'll get Bard and Barbarian as well; their icons look like Warrior and Rogue, respectively, but they have a different mix of skills.) Also, a new game can be started at any of 3 difficulty levels - but a weak character has little chance against the higher levels, so prudence is recommended.

A nice bonus is that Hellfire gives you the option of *running* in town, regardless of your character.

You'll also see new types of items to pick up.
- Oils. Some allow you to repair your weapons without running to the blacksmith, while others improve their statistics, such as Oil of Accuracy and Oil of Fortitude.
-"Runes". These aren't related to Diablo II's runes; they're plain-looking gadgets that cast a single spell when set off, like crude grenades, such as Rune of Fire, or Rune of Stone.
- New types of scrolls, such as Search (*very* helpful for locating any loot in your vicinity; Search temporarily gives them an aura and marks them on your map).

Hellfire also adds 8 additional levels. A new farmer character has been added to the town of Tristram, and he has a problem that he won't discuss with you until he knows you fairly well - that is, your character must have a minimum expertise before he'll give you the explosives you need to break open the Hive south of town. The Hive is 4 levels deep, and contains 2 new quests that you'll always receive leading to two Level Bosses. Defeating the final Level Boss in the Hive will give you the key needed to enter the remaining four new levels, via a crypt in the cathedral's graveyard.

The Hive's monsters are mostly variants of giant insects covering several different physical types with different kinds of attacks. As well as scorpions, spiders, and boar-like monsters, there are monsters that spit poison or acid, and giant floating orbs with tentacles that shoot energy bolts at you - and hunt in packs, of course. The Hive's labyrinth generates random mazes, as does the original Diablo engine, so the replay value is very high, and its atmosphere is well done - the 'walls' look like a wasp's nest, and instead of breaking open barrels to hunt for goodies, the Hive offers pods.

The Vault has an even wider range of new and interesting beasts: lichs (undead beings with a ranged attack), satyrs, Anubis-like creatures that look like animated metal statues, firebats like those who appeared later in Diablo II. The final Vault level is something of a set piece because of the Level Boss' prison. The Vault also provides the Cornerstone of the World, a place that is the same in all worlds - that is, a mechanism for allowing different single player characters to exchange items. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Fantasy (FRPG)    2. Dialbo    3. Computer Games    4. Adventure    5. Computer Role Playing Games (Game, rpgs, rpg, crpg, crpgs)    6. Havas   

Editorial Review

The Might & Magic series of role-playing games has beenaround for a long time with good reason--they are extremely addictive. Few othergames in this crowded genre give players so much to do at all times, and it isthis never-ending saga of questing that has always let players forgive theseries' repetitive gameplay and drab graphics.

Might & Magic VII: For Blood and Honor unfortunately suffers fromboth of those faults, but that's almost to be expected given the game's enormousscope, vast environments, and dozens of miniquests. The entire game world isrendered in 3-D, giving players hills to climb (or eventually fly over), valleysto cross, and canyons full of traps to traverse. Combat can be a little boring,consisting mainly of shooting enemies or casting spells from a distance, but inthe end the richness of the game universe won us over. We sat mesmerized forweeks, looking for new weapons, searching for better spells, or just seeing howpowerful our characters could get. We even spent countless hours in the game'smany taverns playing ArcoMage, a card battle game where the object is to use theabilities of your cards to destroy your opponent's tower.

ArcoMage is like a microcosm of Might & Magic VII in that you sitthere bleary eyed at 4 a.m. wondering how something with such simplisticgameplay mechanics could possibly be so addictive. We don't care how they didit; all we know is that we have to get back to Might & Magic VII fora few more hours of exploration, questing, and unadulterated role-playing fun.--T. Byrl Baker

Pros:

• Enormous game world to explore
• Hundreds of items, spells, and weapons to collect and compare
• The ArcoMage minigame is a nice addition to an already compelling game

• Shallow, repetitive gameplay (especially the combat)
• Bad graphics

Reviews (23)

Shadow of a great past
It's sad. I always liked the Might and Magic (MM) series. It was fairly simple but the built-in journaling and mapping tools made it less of a pain than other RPGs. Unfortunately MM seems to be frozen in time and this version doesn't appear to have any changes from previous one. There is a new storyline, or more precisely, a new variation of a Might and Magic storyline but graphics, sound, monsters, spells, skills and interface at all the same. I couldn't get the game run with DirectX under Windows 2000, software mode only, although the game is listed as NT-compatible. Keyboard shortcuts would stop working and occasional clipping problems got me stuck and forced a reload to get out. The sound is what really drove me crazy. The character voices can be cut off but not the NPCs. I'll have 'Have a pleasant evening!" ringing in my head for years.

For die-hard Might and Magic fanboys only.

AWSOMe
I didn't buy the game but one of my brothers friends had the mellinum edition and gave it to me and i enjoyed the game because it was easy and yet challenging at the same time but it was still fun and was creative.

great game but not supported by XP
I played this game on windows 98, and (as the other reviewers said) it was a wonderful game.Unfortunately, the following is very important:

IT IS NOT SUPPORTED BY WINDOWS XP.Some have had succcess getting it to work many cannot.Including myself (sadly).

Other then that, i highly reccomend this game. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Fantasy (FRPG)    2. Seven (VII)    3. Computer Role Playing Games (Game, rpgs, rpg, crpg, crpgs)   

Editorial Review

Mad Max, Blade Runner, The Terminator,The Matrix--all the best sci-fi movies set on a futuristic Earthhave one common message: things are going to be bleak, and it'll take aspecial kind of hero to make any sort of difference. Fallout isa superb riff on this theme, letting you play the role of the hero asyou venture across a nuked United States on a quest to help yourimperiled community of survivors.

Three generations have passed since The War, and all that time your"tribe" has been living in a self-sufficient fallout shelter calledVault-13. Unfortunately, its water purification system is broken, andit's your job to find either another chip or a safe water supply beforethe current reserves dry up. Alone, you leave the safety of the vaultand embark on an unforgettable adventure.

There are several elements that elevate Fallout above similarrole-playing games, but the detailed character statistics are at thetop of the list. This is one of the few games that lets you truly fine-tune a character to your liking, and the skills, traits, and attributesyou hone have a real impact on gameplay. A sneaky character with agreat personality can easily steal items and talk his or her way out ofa tough situation, while a character specialized in ranged combat canlet his guns do the talking. Different character types will develop theplot in different ways, and it's worth going through the game againwith a different character just to see how things change.

As the game progresses, you'll find that there are more importantthings happening in the outside world than the troubles your vault ishaving. In fact, it's possible to ignore the plight of your peopleentirely and focus on the bigger picture if that's the way you want toplay the game. There are a few problems with this nonlinear play stylein that you'll occasionally see things or hear conversations that makeno sense, but it's a small price to pay for the chance to play one ofthe most ambitious role-playing games ever produced. --T. ByrlBaker

Pros:

• Compelling story set in a postapocalyptic future
• Detailed character stats and skills lets users play the gameexactly as they want to
• Spiritual successor to the Commodore 64 classic Wasteland

• Nonlinear story line means sometimes events are triggered when theyshouldn't be
• Some characters that join your party can be a terrible burdenduring combat sequences

Features

Reviews (24)

Best computer RPG ever. Period.
I like this game so much I've played it from start to finish about 5 times (and didn't even play it for the first time until 2003!). Fallout is about 8 years old at this point and it still ranks as the best computer RPG of all time. The atmosphere, storyline, and music are all excellent, and the graphics still look good to me. It's a crying shame there aren't more games like this. Forget fantasy and sci-fi RPGs -- let's see some more post-apocalypse scenarios. Fallout is far superior toanything else I've ever played, new or old. I'm glad I found it.

War never changes....
Eighty years after WW3 the landscape is still recovering from the nuclear blasts that rocked the world. Few people survived, among them those of your home, Vault 13, one of a series of underground sanctuaries that were built in preparation for the nuclear devastation. But there's a problem. Your Vault's water chip is dying, and with it's demise the people of the Vault cannot survive. Your task is to head to the post-apocalyptic surface and find another water chip.

That's Fallout in a nutshell. Your task is to essentially rescue your Vault's populace from dying. There's a particular kind of gratification that comes from exploring California in such a setting, like visiting someplace you know but don't know at the same time. There's vagrants, raiders, innocent farmers, and a slew of mutated baddies waiting for you to just stumble across them. From the word "Go" you can super-customize your character to reflect your own ideology, from being a super sharpshooting badboy to a sweet talker, able to work your way around and through problems just by conversing. You can have a super powerful character who has the IQ of a cinderblock, or an agile character that can deftly pickpocket potential opponents, while at the same time unable to take too many hits in combat. The flexibility is unlike anything I've ever seen in an RPG, including Baldur's Gate.

A good plot and rock solid design are good enough, but Interplay didn't stop there. The style of the game itself is a triumph of game design and ideas, using 1950's paraphenalia as a major source of inspiration; Case in point the in-game illustrations and graphics are heavily drawn from 1950's America at it's peak. The only thing missing is Eisenhower!

Depending on what "Traits" you pick up at the beginning (these are initial characteristics for your character that usually give something really good with a major tradeoff, like "Fast Shot" which will let you shoot weapons faster, at the loss of aiming ability. "Gifted" gives you a bunch of extra stats, at the loss of skill abilities, etc), every 3 levels you get a Perk, a permanent asset to your character. With choices ranging from "Sharpshooter", which makes it easier to hit stuff at a distance, to "Night Vision" making it much easier to kill things at night, to "Mutate!", which lets you transform (ala the Incredible Hulk) into a powerful beast in the thick of combat...well, the possibilities for customizing your character are almost endless.

The plot progresses over the course of the game from simply finding a water chip to saving mankind as you know it. Something wants to take over the Wastes, and ultimately it's up to you to stop it. You can pick up NPC's along the way using dialogue or techniques to lure them into your group which helps in the long run but sometimes feels like a hindrance. "Dangit Tycho, get out of the way!"

The first time you hold a Turbocharged Plasma Rifle in your hands is a memorable event, considering you started out at level 1 with a knife. Likewise the first time you don Brotherhood of Steel Power Armor, you think back to the humble origins of your simple Vault Suit. And after customizing your character to death with the Perks and Skill enhancements of your choice it really dawns on you what a true RPG this game is and how well it really does work on the average person.

The most unbelievable thing of all is that they followed this game up with an even better sequel! Interplay definately had thier act together with this game, the perfect representation of it's genre. And nary an Elf or Dragon awaits you! An amazing game with even more amazing replayability and unequalled depth and storytelling, and a healthy dose of addiction!

A perfect game!

Awesome fun!
One of the best RPG's out there it doesn't play like AD&D games but has it own original gameplay. Its incrediably fun with a wonderfully realized setting and world. Fallout 2 is more fun but this game is still great! ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Science Fiction (SciFi, Sci-Fi)    2. Computer Games    3. Strategy (Strategic)    4. Science Fiction (Sci-Fi, Scifi)    5. Computer Role Playing Games (Game, rpgs, rpg, crpg, crpgs)   

Editorial Review

It's not easy being a child of a god. Your character quickly comes tothis conclusion after being imprisoned and tortured by a wizard with anunhealthy interest in your parentage. So begins Baldur's Gate II: Shadows ofAmn, an ambitious role-playing game based on the Advanced Dungeons &Dragons game.

Shadows of Amn is not really a sequel to Baldur's Gate. Instead,Baldur's Gate was merely a prelude to Shadows of Amn. Shadows ofAmn develops the plot lines, characters, and events introduced in the firstgame into a mature, genuinely interesting fantasy tale. Players who thought theoriginal game shallow will be pleasantly surprised by Shadows of Amn'sbold story arcs. Major events are afoot, and the characters' choices have a realimpact on the Forgotten Realms.

In the same way, Baldur's Gate served as a proving ground for the refinedgame mechanics evident in Shadows of Amn. The game's artificialintelligence has been vastly improved, and players have many more choices forNPC AI scripts and party communication. Keeping with Shadows of Amn's moremature theme, the party interaction even includes possible love interests foryour character.

Those who played through the original Baldur's Gate can import theircharacter into Shadows of Amn, or can choose to create a new character.Character kits such as the Mageslayer and Swashbuckler add variety, and the gameeven includes the Monk, Sorcerer, Barbarian, and Half-Orc options from the newDungeons & Dragons 3rdEdition rules. Whether you import an old character or create a new one,you'll begin the game as a fairly advanced character--unlike most RPGs, youwon't have to spend hours slaying puny critters and instead are plunged into ahigh-stakes plot against powerful foes.

A strong plot backed by strong technology makes Shadows of Amn stand outas one of the best RPGs we've ever played. Fans of AD&D will love the classicAD&D feel, and fans of the popular Forgotten Realms setting will delight in thepeople, places, and politics found in Shadows of Amn. --MichaelFehlauer

Pros:

• High-level power gaming
• Quality voice work
• Improves the already great Baldur's Gate interface
• Character kits and D&D 3rd Edition races and classes add variety
• Advances the plot begun in Baldur's Gate

• Based on obsolete AD&D 2nd Edition rules
• Character animations are stiff
• Player's character starts out less powerful than other party members

Reviews (231)

Incantus Pulchur Imperium!
This is easily the best game i have ever played. You can rank a game in many ways, i give this game maximum points in every single category...

Voice Acting

Probably the games strongest area was it's character development giving the game an extra dimension of realism and gravity, integral to this was the awesome voice acting which was/is the best i have ever known, this game showed that voice acting in computer games can be incredibly powerful, the actors who played the characters are real pro's. My favourite was Irenicus, he breathed a realism and a menace into the character which truly brought that villainous character to life. Also in this category is dialogue, which is equally incredible, occasionally i can still here a reedy voice in my head saying...."you should not have come to this place", unforgettable.

Graphics

For their time, these graphics were top of the range, the outdoors are particularly impressive, wether it's the temple district or the wilderness, no two trees look anything alike.

Sound/Music

The sound effects in the game were amazing, when you are in a city you here murmurings (of street traders/hawkers) which blend wonderfully into the background complementing everything. When you enter Suldanesselar you hear the frantic almost deranged chirpings of the birds which convey a sense of order-disrupted. The games musical score is absolutely gorgeous! The main theme (which kicks up when a fight starts) is rousing and exciting and a pleasure to listen to, it adds even more grandeur and scale to the game.

Gameplay

Top marks here too, there are so many ways you can play the game, so many paths you can take, the challenge level varies but overall is suitably balanced. The games replayability was awesome (i won it at least 10 times and each time i was amazed at how new the experience was). When you add to this the extraordinary value for money you get because the game is extremely long, yet it never becomes repetitive.

Overall this game showed me for the first time what the computer role playing genre was capable of, playing this game was like starring in a movie combined with reading a wonderfully gripping novel. You really feel for the characters. I had thought Planetscape Torment was good, this game introduced an entirely new experience. Easily the best game i have ever played (and i have played a lot).

How did they pack it all into five cd's?

sort of.... dreary
It is difficult to stand against the onslaught of love and respect for this game. And I'm not saying don't try this game. Too many people loved it for me to expect you to go by my experience, but I do want to share with you my different perspective.

First off, looking back, I don't hate Baldur's gate. It has it's virtues. Its just that after 20 or so hours it began to weigh on me, leaving me with a feeling heavy, bleak, and insistent.In taking up computer games as a hobby a year ago it was one of the first games I played or really got into.Fascination rolled into addiction and addiction rolled into a kind of dread and tedium.Finally I realized I didn't actually have to play this game anymore.So I didn't.This may seem like an obvious solution to you, but then you don't actually know me so well.

Enough preamble. I like to rate games based on categories that I find important to me and so I will do that below on a scale of say 1 to 10. How's that?

Story:4, I'll admit my predispositions here, and also that not actually getting more than a third of the way through this game limits me a little, but I do feel I got the main idea.My predisposition is that I long for a computer game that is story driven effectively and actually works as a good story. Story is always such a distant second to gameplay that you end up with these half hour stories built into 15 to 60 hour games.Generally they either make little sense, or fade into a weird sequel nothingness in the end (hello half life 2, beyond good and evil (good games both nevertheless)). I have tried so many, do actually like many games, but have been underwhelmed repeatedly as far as story.Baldur's had the advantage that I was new to gaming and so hadn't seen all it's conventions before, even if they were familiar.In this game you wake up in a prison cell and have a secret destiny.Yeah yeah yeah.It's actually not too bad though and the quality of some of the characters helps, but, and I think this might be the key problem, in order to create an open ended world, provide a variety of quests, and give the good/evil option as it were, the whole thing comes completely apart at the seams.The story falls apart into ridiculousness except the game pretends it hasn't and you're supposed to too. Just to start you spend hours struggling to break out of a dungeon you have no knowledge of even though a member of your party broke in to get you.Wouldn't she have some helpful information?How did she manage it in the first place? So much of this game is full of stuff like this. Its been awhile so I'm fuzzy, but could come up with quite a few more examples, like places where the sense of what is good and effective to do in the game defies the reality of your characters as actual people.In my opinion you can have a very linear game (problem is too few options as a player unless it's done perfectly), or a completely wide open, basically questless game (problem is it feels kind of pointless unless it's done perfectly and beautifully) or you can have a reality defying muddle in the middle of the two. Baldur's takes this last path I am afraid.Still, I would have sort of liked to see how it all turned out if I didn't have to slog through so very much stuff and time to get to it.

Characters: 7 or 8,very good.Love the pictures. Voices excellent. Really nicely done, though after awhile hearing them say the same phrases hundreds of times was hard to take.Also the story caused them to do things completely out of character at times.

Gameplay:5, I prefer less difficulty in games and would have appreciated a difficulty level system very much.There is a lot of fighting, managing your stuff and fighting some more and its that d and d dice rolling fighting that can look very strange (big guy with huge sword swings at weakened creature just standing there and misses wildly). It often left me feeling faintly like it wasn't working and that the game didn't do what was in the queues for my characters even though I suppose it really was.

Graphics: 6, nice general visual design and though its dated now its pretty powerful in the sense of mood it imparts (though see below). I mean it really did affect me in an almost dreamlike way for awhile.It was a bit of a letdown in terms of giving me a sense of wonder though.

Dreariness factor:1,cold, chill and frequently joyless.That's how I found it.Some of the character humor helped a little, especially the nicer characters, but so much killing and grim characters and so little relief or oasis or real rewards or lightness in comparison. Plus I felt burdened by the way the quests could just sort of pile up on you and all be emergencies.

Technical issues:I always feel this is so subjective as you never know what will be a problem with your computer, but a few small or weird glitches were really awful for me.I couldn't get downstairs in one place, something crucial disappeared in another.

Learning factor:4, had a tutorial level which maybe I wouldn't find too confusing with the experience I have now in games, but I really wish it had been more clear and specific.

Product materials:5,a nice start, decent book, but really quite incomplete.

Chore factor:2, well, you know, so many rooms of so many monster things to really get anywhere.I really did feel burdened.

Difficulty:3, kind of already discussed but I'll add that everything seemed either kind of hard to kill or quite hard to kill, it would have been nice and even appropriate if some things had been very easy too. I will repeat I might have lasted longer with an easy or moderately easy setting, but it still would've gotten to me in the end.

Game saves:7,a pretty good save anytime system only flawed by an inability to save in combat, which, if I recall, could sometimes sneak up on you and then it was too late.

Conclusion:I find when I write negative reviews of really popular and respected games (gta vice city is a good example) people tend to say its not helpful, and if I like them its very helpful,but sometimes I think they maybe already played the game and think it's some kind of contest these reviews (then of course, maybe they just think its not a very informative review).I'm just telling you my reaction here and my thoughts. A lot of people gave this classic game 5 stars. I really think this game could've been alot better.

Baldur's gate made me think maybe I don't like rpgs too much, but I am currently pretty far along in star wars knights of the old republic and very much like it.

Not verymuch changed...luckily
Baldur's Gate is a first-class game, so why change the formula in the sequal? Yea, you can fight with two weapons at a time now, but who cares? I still use only one. Graphics didn't change that much in my eyes, so it's actually the same game with another story-line. But the story - because of that I fell in love with BG - is again very good. I saw someone complaining that the bad guy (I forgot his name) is too evil..well, did you expect that the bad guy just sold illegal armor or something? I didn't really like that beginning part - there in those underground mines - but the rest is again amazing. Someone complained you don't know how strong the monsters are if you want to attack... doesn't that make it more real. It's kind of silly if you see a number above his head or something.. It's an addictive game and I wished my copy of it didn't brake (just like my copy of BG1). I love this game (maybe because it's one of the few games I'm really good at), it's perfect just like the first BG. Buy it, the game is cheap these days.. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Dungeons and Dragons (D&D)    2. Fantasy (FRPG)    3. Advanced Dungeons and Dragons (AD&D)    4. Computer Role Playing Games (Game, rpgs, rpg, crpg, crpgs)   

Editorial Review

Return to the Pool of Radiance that spawned the golden age of computer role-playing games. Pool of Radiance 2 carries on the story of the first PC Advanced Dungeons & Dragons game: the Pool has resurfaced, and it renders everything it touches undead. The player must create a party of six adventurers and explore the haunted elven ruins of Myth Drannor in order to stop the Pool's evil influence.

Pool of Radiance 2 is the first game to use the Dungeons & Dragons 3rd Edition rules. Playable character classes are Fighter, Barbarian, Paladin, Ranger, Cleric, Sorcerer, Monk, and Rogue, while the races include Half-Orc, Human, Halfling, Dwarf, Elf, and Half-Elf. Characters advance from 1st to 16th levels, allowing spellcasters access to 8th-level spells.

As you explore the ancient ruins of Myth Drannor, the Dungeon Master will communicate all important events and findings. Combat is based on turns, just as in the tabletop game. With a great single-player campaign as well as multiplayer support, Pool of Radiance 2 is ready to carry on the legacy of the famous Gold Box games and lead D&D RPGs into the era of 3rd Edition rules. ... Read more

Reviews (148)

How much can you slow the action in an RPG?
I have owned this game for quite some time but because I was involved in playing several other RPG's I just got around to trying it and boy was I dissappointed.This has to be the slowest game play ever.If you don't mind playing 30 minutes to kill one monster (maybe a SLIGHT exageration) then this games for you.I played for several hours and never made it past level one (and I didn't die).I will be archiving this game in my trash can never to be mistaken for something I might like to play again.

Shame there's not a "0" star rating!
I purchased this game for $4.99 and I would have to say that I really got my moneys worth in annoyance and utter frustration.I have installed the game twice and have the newest patches installed as well.On both occassions the game will tease me with 20-30 hours of game time and then crash when I save.THIS CRASH WILL CORRUPT ALL SAVE FILES AND YOU HAVE NO CHOICE BUT TO START FROM SCRATCH OR UNINSTALL!!!The only positive I can say about this game is that I was somewhat happy when I snapped the disk in two.Don't waste your time or money on this garbage.

Oh my gosh...
I pop in the disc and select install. The game refuses to let me do a full installation because it says I don't have 1 gig of space free on D:\(When I clearly have 5 gigs free). So, I have to do minimal install. I then finish installing it and go to play the game, only to learn that it didn't install on D:\ drive. Apparently, I need to download a patch just to install the game to D:\. Wow, the creators sure messed up on something so fundamental. They must not have even tested the game because apparently, you can't install the game in any specified folder unless you download patch 1.1.

Then I go to play the game only to see my characters walking at 2 miles an hour. I start it up with a paladin, barbarian, and rogue tearing the place up while my mage sits down and rests. I then realize that my characters don't have their long swords equipped. This is odd because I just equipped those long swords. I look at my inventory only to learn that there is no long sword animation. I have the sword equipped but I can't see it because I guess the creators left that out or the minimal installation(which I was forced to use) must not have it. This pisses me off greatly. I then look around for quicksave. Where is quicksave? I have no clue. You can't customize your controls or something. I then give up on the game to play Icewind Dale. The games have the exact same stories, and Pool of Radiance has so many problems that I don't ever plan to play it again. Besides, if you do find a sword that does 585598250298 damage in the first dungeon, you know theres a problem. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Fantasy (FRPG)    2. Advanced Dungeons & Dragons (AD&D D&D)    3. TSR    4. Computer Role Playing Games (Game, rpgs, rpg, crpg, crpgs)   

Editorial Review

The long-running Ultima series is one of the belovedfoundations of the computer game industry. You can see for yourselfjust how great the older games are with the Ultima Collection,which contains everything from the original game to Ultima 8:Pagan.

Bad as the graphics in the early games are, they are still some of themost fun role-playing titles we've ever experienced. We were shockedthat something created more than 20 years ago was still eminentlyplayable and highly addictive. Things just kept getting better as weprogressed through the later games in the series, which peaked withThe Complete Ultima 7. Origin went all out with these titles tocreate living, breathing worlds that were completely interactive. Fromhunting for food to dealing with the passage of night and day, playersalways have something to do.

What makes the Ultima games so great is that their overarchingstories never get in the way of the players' freedom to explore andplay the games the way they want to. Players can interact withpractically every object in the game universe, from monsters to fryingpans to chairs to other characters roaming the streets. There's alwaysso much to see and do that the main goal can seem like a secondaryconsideration at times, and even Ultima 1 managed to maintainour full attention from the moment we created our character. If youwant to see a terrific example of how timeless great game engines canbe, grab a copy of the Ultima Collection. It's an outrageousbargain for those who value gameplay over graphics. --T. ByrlBaker

Pros:

• 10 Ultima games in one box at a low price
• Tons of addictive gameplay if you can suffer through the primitivegraphics

• Hard to get these games running unless you have a lot of computerexperience (lack of printed manuals doesn't help)

Reviews (30)

Ultima is the best overall RPG series ever made.
Ultima 7 (both Black Gate and Serpent Isle) is definitely the best of the series, having the best story and the most interactive world. 4, 5, 6, and 8 are great also. You also get 1, 2, and 3 in this collection, but they're really not worth playing. If you love RPGs, and you've never played any of these games before, you're missing out!

Great historical packing of the RPG classics
I first got in to Ultima thanks to my dad buying Ultima III: Exodus for a then-newly bought Atari 800XL back in 1985. Remembering this was the 1980s, I got hooked on the game rather quickly, and in 1986, I was able get Ultima IV for the same computer and found it even more challenging. After that, I wasn't able to get any more Ultimas, mainly bacause Ultima IV was the final Ultima made available on the Atari 8-bit, and I never was able to get the first two. Far more recently (in 2004)bought the Ultima Collection CD package and I am not one bit disappointed. It's nice they included a player reference card for all the games included, so you know the commands, how to read runes, answers to questions someone might ask you on Ultima VI, VII: The Black Gate and VII: Serpent Isle, and other important tips. My complaint is they forgot to mention the abilities (like strength, dexterity, intelligence, wisdom, etc.) of the humans, fuzzies, elvies, dwarves, etc. on Ultima III like the original packaging did. They also included an Ultima atlas for all eight of the Ultimas, although Ultima II would be easiest to find things since it was set right here on Earth. There is one drawback, and that Ultima III and IV both lack music on this version (III had music for the Atari 8-bit, IV didn't, although music was featured on the Commodore C-64 version). Ultima III, if you were lucky to own the Atari 400/800/XL/XE or the Commodore 64, was the very first Ultima to introduce music, so it's a bit strange to not hear music when you play this PC collection. For those raised on PC games of the 1990s and 2000s, many will be turned off by the crude graphics. Ultima II and III particularly show their age (Ultima I included here is not the original from 1980, but the 1986 remake from Origin in which the graphics were updated to Ultima IV standards). But if you grown up in the 1980s, like myself, the graphics will come as no surprise. Ultima I and II don't take very long to win. In fact on Ultima II, it isn't even necessary to explore dungeons or towers to win, or even visit every planet (although it's nice to, because there are more towns and castles to explore, but there is one planet that is a must to visit in order to win). Dungeons on Ultima I, however, are crucial to winning the game, especially if a king from a certain castle tells you to kill a certain creature (like a liche, balron, gelatinous cube, etc.). Ultima III was the first to include a multi-player party system (up to four players), plus a maximum hit point system (where you need to go to a healer to heal), and a separate battle scene. Ultima IV featured better graphics because you don't get cyan and magenta vegetation and water, and this was the very first Ultima you don't kill an evil ruler (like Mondain, Minax, or Exodus) to win. Ultima V-VII continue to use the same Britannia, with each of the series becoming more realistic (V introducing the day and night cycle, for example, and VI and onward featuring more 16-bit Super NES style graphics). Ultima VIII had been the most reviled of the series, many named it "Super Avatar Brothers" because of needing to hop over platforms to go places. To me, the game isn't bad and the graphics are stunning, for 1994 standards. Ultima VIII was the first Ultima since II to feature only a single player. There are drawbacks to this collection. You must run any Ultima after VI through MS-DOS. Mo-Slo, which is luckily included, is needed for all the Ultimas except VIII, and depending on your system, even Mo-Slo won't work right, as it might end up being a bit choppy. Ultima II works best if you download a program to make it more Windows-friendly. Akalabeth, the 1979 precursor to Ultima is also included in this package. Luckily they made this program PC and Windows friendly, no need for Mo-Slo here. Basically Akalabeth is only a historical curiosity, there don't seem to be much here except go in dungeons and kill monsters, particularly the ones Lord British tells you to kill. Anyway, despite a few drawbacks, and if you're feeling a bit nostalgic for your childhood days of playing Ultima, or if you're an Ultima fan with a curiosity about the game's history, this is the collection to get.

There is an easy way to run Ultima VII
If you look up Exult on the internet, you will find a platform designed specifically to run Ultima VII and Serpent Isle.

I just found at sourceforge.net a way to run Ultima VIII but I haven't tried it yet.Can't wait!

I LOVE these games.They really are in depth and entertaining.I spent forever playing Ultima VI on my old 386 computer, never finishing it!!! Now I can finish it on my new Dell.=) ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Fantasy (FRPG)    2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 I II III IV V VI VII VIII    3. Akalabeth First Age Darkness, Revenge Enchantress, Exodus    4. Quest Avatar, Warriors of Destiny, False Prophet    5. Black Gate, Serpent Isle, Pagan    6. Computer Games    7. Collections (Collections)    8. Bundle (Bundles)    9. Computer Role Playing Games (Game, rpgs, rpg, crpg, crpgs)   

Editorial Review

Diablo is a fantasy role-playing game that captures the spirit of original face-to-face games like Dungeons and Dragons. With a straightforward story line based on fulfilling quests assigned by nonplayer characters, you equip yourself, venture into a dungeon, and slaughter legions of hideous foes. Along the way, you unearth magical treasure, discover mighty spells, and earn experience that can be used to increase your combat abilities.

Almost all of your time with Diablo is spent underground, exploring and conquering ever-deeper levels of the gloomy dungeon. Combat is fast, brutal, and constant. Whether your weapon of choice is a sword, axe, bow, or spell, all forms of combat employ a simple two-click system, which is elegant without being simplistic.

Replayability and customizability are Diablo's strong points; the incredible number of options and possibilities--and the fun that can be had experimenting with different strategies--keeps players coming back for more. All the dungeon levels are generated anew each time you draw up a new character, and are packed with an entirely different set of textures, features, items, traps, creatures, and quests. While one game may stock the fifth subterranean level with an army of skeleton warriors, the next game may pack that level with hordes of winged gargoyles. Multiplayer options exist for two to four players, so you don't have to take on the world by yourself unless you prefer solo play.

Released in 1997, this game is far simpler than newer titles that have expanded on its original concepts; there are only three character classes and a limited number of ways to truly distinguish your character from others. But sometimes there is no beating a classic. Three years old and with a sequel due in mid-2000, the original Diablo has aged remarkably well. Many of its features will seem familiar to seasoned fantasy gamers, just because so many of them have been incorporated into later RPGs.

Players who yearn for uncluttered adventuring and those with older computers will definitely want to check this one out. --Alyx Dellamonica

Pros:

• Endless replayability
• Fun, classic dungeon hack-and-slash game play
• Cool magic items
• Cooperative or competitive multiplay

• Magic items tend to define character
• Multiplay is lousy with cheaters

Features

Reviews (126)

An action classic
This game was and still is a fun adventure.While the game mechanics are fairly repetitive, click to hack and slash, it does offer random maps, a large assortment of items, and strategy in the form of monster resistances/immunities.

By today's standards this sounds weak, yet in reality it has the simple style that makes it easy to learn and hard to put down.Quickly, you get sucked into doing just one more level since you flew through the last one so quickly, only to spend an hour or more carefully picking your way through, so as not to be overwhelmed.

Easily accessible and playable again and again by yourself or with a group of friends, keeps Diablo a worthwhile value.

I'm a non-gamer and I LOVE IT!!
I had a co-worker back in 97 that had this game.I almost had to threaten his life to get him to do any work for playing this game.Now almost 8 years later, I finally picked it up just to see what the big deal was.

This game is like software crack.I haven't had it two weeks yet and I've spent some crazy hours playing this game.I started with a rogue and got up to the 10th level of the dungeon with her before I hit a dead-end.Go down the steps to the next level and DIE!She was surrounded immediately and suffered a severe beat-down EVERY time.

I then started a second game with a warrior.I got him all the way to Archbishop Lazarus where I had a similar situation.Death at every turn and no way out to fix it.Then I found the beauty of Diablo.Just click New Game.You flush the old game but NOT the character.Yes, you're starting back at the first level of the dungeon but you've still got your 23rd level warrior who now laughs at the pithy little creatures of those lower levels.

The Butcher, who made both my rogue and warrior suffer mightily on the first trip down, died after only three hits from my warrior and 10 arrows from my rogue downed him without her suffering even a broken nail.

Diablo II and the Lord of Destruction expansion set are waiting in the wings, but this game still has a few miles left in it before I move on.I still have to bring a wizard up - which stands to be much more challenging.I am looking forward to it.

This game is incredible - I probably won't be able to handle the sequal.

My drug of choice for about six months
When I discovered this game, I lost six months of my life. I went to work, came home, and played this game. Loser? I guess. In my defense, I did maintain contact with the outside world during this period of darkness (I always played the game with the lights out), although perhaps to them I seemed somewhat pale and inarticulate. (I'm kidding.)

For me, this game was hard to master at first. I'd never played a PC game of any kind, for the simple reason that I was afraid I'd become addicted. And, of course, it happened. I struggled with every character through the first few levels of the church, and it must have been two or three weeks of serious playing - well past 3am even on a work night - before I finally made my way down to Diablo's lair.

Maybe it was the lateness of the hour, the darkness of the room, or perhaps more likely both, but when Diablo finally came out he literally scared the tar out of me. What an incredibly well rendered "monster". The rendering of Diablo in Diablo II did not evoke similar fear, even if it was somewhat more impressive.

One of the things I liked about this game was that I never played with any cheats, unlike Diablo II (maphack, etc.). So the game was always dark, and it was always scary. In some ways, it was better than its successor - but not in enough ways. Diablo II (expansion) is the superior of the two, but this isn't a game to overlook. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Fantasy (FRPG)    2. Dialbo    3. Computer Games    4. Adventure    5. Macintosh (Machintosh)    6. Mac    7. Apple    8. Computer Role Playing Games (Game, crpg, crpgs, rpg, rpgs)    9. Computer Role Playing Games (Game, rpgs, rpg, crpg, crpgs)    10. Havas   

Editorial Review

Fallout 2 takes you farther into the desolate wastes of post-World War III California than you'd ever have imagined. Based on the most popular game of 1997, the new system retains the kitschy-cool look and feel of the original while expanding the game world by an order of magnitude (and fixing some problems with combat and ally interaction).

The setup is similar: you have been chosen to save your community (this time a straggly bunch of tribal descendents of the original game's hero) by seeking the fabled Garden of Eden Creation Kit. The game is slower going than the first, which makes building your character up from tribal hick to Nietzschean Ubermensch all the more satisfying. While movement, combat, and inventory are still essentially the same, there are so many more quests to perform and facts to learn and keep track of that you'll find yourself playing again and again long after you've won the first time.

Be warned: There is extremely graphic violence and some graphic sex parading through this game from start to finish. Though you can set the tone down a bit through the main control panel, developments that happen on this adult setting are integral--so if you want a G-rating, try elsewhere.

For those who want great action, intriguing puzzles, and hysterical interactions, all created with a deviously twisted sense of humor, Fallout 2 is a dream come true. As a special bonus, the user's manual is even better than its predecessor; for once you actually want to read the darn thing! --Rob Lightner ... Read more

Features

Reviews (46)

Totally Immersive, incredible depth
Although the graphics are showing their age these days, this game is still as incredible as ever. You will never play a more atmospheric and immersive game. The post apocalyptic world just sucks you in and never lets you go.
One of the key elements to the Fallout series is the fantastic character creator. You are givemn a massive amount of freedom to create the kind of character you want and yoru choice has a massive bearing on the way you can complee certain tasks. Any given task will have several possible solutions, some better suited to diplomatic characters, some to combat characters and some to stealthy characters. Or you could just go for an all rounder. The game is totally non linear with your character's ability (you constantly gain experience) being the only real limitation.
The numer of things crammed into this game is just insane. There is a ridiculous number of weapons. There are so many side quests as well and it's simply impossible to complete all of them in a single sitting. I think I covered just about everything after playing through it about four times. The amount of text is breathtaking and some of the characters really come to life through the dialogue.
The game is not without it's problems. I remember the unpatched version of this being incredibly buggy so the patch is a must. The NPC control system is also pretty woeful.
Still, I can't allow any of these things to detract from the score because this is quite simpl one of the finest games ever made.

Extremely addicting
In my whole life of being a gamer, this is my favorite RPG ever! The game is non-linear at all, meaning you can do whatever you want (and i mean what ever you want!) You can go from being man-hunting slavers, professional boxers, and even being a porn star for crying out loud. The endless possiblities of choice is what makes this game incredibly unique.

The combat system is surprisingly smooth, and its fun shooting people in the groin to stun them. I must warn you though, this game is meant for very mature players. The vision of a post-apacalyptic wasteland is not for the casual gamer. Explicit language is very common, as well as gore (but the graphics are laughable compared to today's more modern stuff,) and abuse of women, and drugs. I can guarentee you that this game is unlike any other you've played.

Simply amazing....

Addicting
The only BIG problem in this game is that it is VERY addicting! I?ve played the game through about dozen of times (and I never used patch) and I will likely install it again since there aint still no rpg even nearly as good as this. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Two (II)    2. Science Fiction (SciFi, Sci-Fi)    3. Computer Role Playing Games (Game, rpgs, rpg, crpg, crpgs)   

Editorial Review

Travel 3,700 years in the past and embark on an urgent mission to ensure the Earth's survival. Travel to lost mythical civilizations and uncover the secret of the Earth's past. As Agent Gage Blackwood, you'll travel through time, assume multiple identities, interact with characters from ancient civilizations, and weave your way through an intricate web of puzzles. This epic, four-CD-ROM story line continues the Journeyman series. The DVD version offers more than 4 GB of data without the need for swapping disks. ... Read more

Reviews (14)

Entertaining (and Slightly Educational!)
The adventure game "Legacy of Time" takes you centuries to the fabled civilizations of the ancients - Atlantis, El Dorado and Shangri La. Each of these advanced cultures is hiding one of three artifacts, artifacts that might the future galaxy from all out war, artifacts that are a key to a civilization, technology and philosophy even older than the Earth itself. On your journey, you'll solve puzzles, learn about historic cultures and share many a joke with your wise cracking computer assistant.

Unlike a lot of games to use ancient cultures as a plot device, this one's pretty historically level headed and accurate. (Mind you, the location of these lost cities are still theory) The cities you vist could actually have looked the way they look in the game. Atlantis is the island of Crete, the Nazca Lines in South America are guiding lines for hot air balloons (not guiding lines for spacecraft, as so many imaginative historical speculators suggest). In fact, the only fantasy element of the cities are the artifacts you have to find and the rooms they are housed in. I found the Shangri La level particularly interesting. Is there a more fun way to learn about the doctrines of Buddhism? If there is, I haven't seen it.

In this game, you can shapeshift to look like people contemporary to your time period. See a person, click them and you acquire their image. The shapeshifting feature really adds to the puzzles. Not only do you have to ask the right questions to people you meet, but you'll have to be a person they'll want to talk to. (For example, if you put on the guise of a Buddhist Warrior Monk and talk to Genghis Khan, there's a good chance he punches you out rather than talk to you.)

The interface is not too shabby. It's point-and-click with 360 degree rotation, set in a three dimensional environment, linked together almost seamlessly by short quicktime movie files. The graphics benefit a lot from this format, particularly the characters, who look and are played by human actors. Though there are times that I wished I could walk a little faster through areas I'd already been to, but it's a pretty effective setup.

Many here have complained about the acting in the cut scenes. True, it is pretty poor, but it's melodramatic B-film like quality really adds to the feel of the game. They were fun to watch, held up the plot, and provided a break and reward for your efforts, like all good cut scenes should. I also enjoyed the assistant's banter. Sure, he has a rather nasal voice and frequently cracks silly jokes, but he provides you with some fascinating facts about the ancient world, along with helpful clues (if you keep asking for clues, they become more and more obvious, which is helpful if you have absolutely no idea how to do something). If you don't like him, you can always go to the options menu and turn him off.

If you've got an interest either in adventure games or ancient history, I strongly recommend this game. It's light hearted, fascinating and a visual treat.

Not good enough to finish
At first, this was a fun game -- not too challenging (I tend to like 'em easy!), a good interface, excellent graphics and an entertaining story line. But after a while, the "go here ... then go back there to get the whazzit you need ... then go there ... go back" routine got old (particularly with all the CD swapping you have to do to transverse "times." Why is it the item you need in location 1 is always found in location 3 ... which requires a CD swap!!!

In addition, you have to change "chameleon" identities several times and talk to the same people again and again.

I did enjoy "Arthur" but the fun went out of it after a while.

Journey Man 1was better
I knowthis version of Journey Man has cool graphics and is suppose to be more up-to-date but I did not like it. The voice of that little guy in the corner(authur) of the screen is so Annoying. The story plot is like for little kids. Very simple like. In additon this game is not supported with a sound blaster sound card. The sound sounds all jarbelled up. I think that this is a great game for little kids but for teens or adults, Myst, Zork, Riven, or any other adventure game is better. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Three (III)    2. Science Fiction    3. Computer Games    4. Adventure   

Features

• For one player
• Special package of both the new CSI game and the CSI novel "Double Dealer"
• Available for a limited time only
• Investigate five cases using 21st-century techniques
• Behind-the-scenes information and unlockables

Reviews (28)

Too short!
This game took me about 2 hours to finish! It was wayyyyy too short! Also, it should have been more challenging! Waste of money.

Great game, bad bug.
I am a CSI freak so when this game came out I was so happy.That was until I installed it and "the bug" appeared.I was soooo frustrated after having to start and restart the game.I went online to UBISoft's website, found the patch and downloaded it.After I installed the patch I haven't had any problems. Nada. It runs smooth and perfect.The only thing is that after doing a full install I still have to use a CD.I thought that the purpose of a full install is to run the game directly from your hard drive. DUH. Anyway, after I fixed the bug I had no problem.The game is fun, graphics are okay. Shame on UBISoft for not releasing a bug free version.I see that it's ticking many people off. I hope they release a new one, bug-free, with more cases. Oh, and one more thing, Nick Stokes is a hottie on the show and the character on the game is yucky looking...they can try to improve on that!!

BUYERS BEWARE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I purchased CSI and played through the entire game with no problems, or so I thought. I could never achieve a 100% on the games. I later dl-ed a walk through and did everything I should... still the game wouldn't let me get a hundred on one case... the company called it a bug, and download their patch- that didn't help!
I tried to play CSI DARKMOTIVES... the game came to a complete halt on the first person I spoke with in the game-it locked up! I uninstalled it and reinstalled it thinking it was me or the computer again I tried to play the game and the same thing happened. I went online to see that many people were having problems and didn't even get through the first case. I later uninstalled then reinstalled it causing more problems even after going to their website and getting a patch for the game it never ran or helped! I exchanged it for a new one and again the same thing happened. Evidence couldn't be collected, pieces of evidence you did collect disappeared, you couldn't talk to people and things started to lock up... and my computer is brand new....
My fiancé found both games in one for the Xbox low price of 19.99 thinking it was wonderful and I would finally get to play... nope! What do you know.... again the things had problems I couldn't get through the first case with out it locking up and having problems. I couldn't collect evidence even locked up my X-box twice once it tried to not let me have the CD back.....I have to try to battle to take it back.
I STRONGLY ADVISE DO NOT PURCHASE ANY GAMES BEFORE YOU ARE SURE THEY HAVE NO GLITCHES THERE ARE TO MANY. I found it is too much of a hassle trying to get the companies to take these games back because they were opened and of coarse no one knows of any problems with the games! Go figure... UBSOFT should do something more for the buyers like us that got burned. I drove out of my way hours to the nearest store to exchange thinking it was sold out... they aren't sold out they are all being returned and exchanged!
... Read more

Subjects:  1. Computer Games    2. Adventure   

Editorial Review

Morpheus is a lushly rendered puzzle game in the same genre as Myst and Riven. You begin the game lost in an arctic blizzard, trying to find clues to the disappearance of your explorer father, who vanished three decades ago in the same frozen wasteland.

The hokey 1950s video of your frostbitten character is thankfully left behind for the haunting visuals of an icebound ship, the Herculania. As you wander through the ship's fabulous art deco ballroom, movie theater, and other rooms you'll manipulate objects and find clues to how the six passengers diverted themselves with evil intentions and forbidden love. Con artists and hypocrites (with one exception), they came aboard the Herculania seeking pleasure--only to become ensnared in their hosts' scientific experiments. You'll also confront the Neurographicon, a futuristic dreams-to-reality device that you suspect trapped your father before you.

Integrated QuickTime sequences, ambient sounds, and the ability to pan 360 degrees enhance the gothic creepiness of this game.The game begins slowly, but the puzzles soon pick up the intellectual pace. Environment is important, and clues can be devastatingly subtle, though not as biographical as one might expect.

Morpheus is a rich, many-layered experience, with puzzles inside of puzzles, and you'll get a lot of play for your money. To finish you'll need a large notepad and pencil, some math, and careful powers of observation--or a lot of time. --Betsy Aoki

Pros:

• Lavish, colorful graphics and ambient sound
• Story rich enough to intrigue without excessive gore
• Engaging--the puzzles require thought and observation

Cons:

• Use of 3 CD-ROMs means you have to switch discs throughout the game
• Occasional crash for Mac users; PC users, note the patch

Reviews (28)

That's What I Like!
The year is 1957.You are an Arctic explorer, intent on solving the mystery of his father's disappearance some thirty years before.Unfortunately, you've become lost and it looks as though you're going to go the same way as dear old dad.You keep having these strange dreams.Coming out of one (or have you?), you suddenly find the icebound hulk of a cruise ship.When you climb on board to find shelter, you discover that the ship is the Herculania, the very vessel that your father was investigating when he was lost.

_Morpheus_ is a great example of a breed of adventure that pretty much started with MYST and is now, unfortunately for people like me, beginning to wane a bit in prominence:first person, point and click, atmospheric.You might call it "Amber on Ice;"like _Amber_ it involves somewhat supernatural phenomena and getting into the minds and dreams of others.The story that is revealed as you wander about the ship--presented in QT movies--is a kind of Phantom of the Opera with a gruesome twist.Unlike the stories in some other games, it is quite well-developed and realised, making for intriguing clues and puzzles integral to the story.The characters are, well, mental cases, but they are believable people and (with one exception) you end up feeling sympathy for them.

The graphics are really quite nice, with a 360-degree view.(My one complaint here was that though you could look around you to all sides, you could not look either up or down).The paths that you could travel were somewhat limited, however.In some rooms, you could, for example, only go into the corner by the desk.There were also a lot of things I would have liked to have been able to examine more closely.On the other hand, there were a few things that didn't seem to have any purpose.On the whole, the look trod the edge between sparse and lush, with backgrounds beautifully rendered but not too many objects.

As in MYST, the puzzles are largely mechanical.You need to make the ship work so you can figure out what's going on;you need to gain access to locked staterooms and so on.Later on there are some puzzles that involve acquiring inventory, but there is essentially no inventory you carry around;you use each item pretty much where you find it.There are no conversations and no interactions.For me, this was great;I prefer "true" puzzles to task accomplishment and mechanics to inventory.Others might find it tedious or difficult.

I ran this game on a brand new AMD 2800 with XP and the only real problem I had was that the mouse cursor was so extraordinarily sensitive that until I learned fine motor control I was all over the place.Fortunately, this didn't take long.I also had some problems with the movies:green screens and the like.I have heard there is a patch for this, but I couldn't find it.

_Morpheus_ took me about 25 hours to play.The start was slow and I wasn't sure I liked it at first.When things started to go together, I liked it a great deal.I was sorry to see it end, and the ending was quite abrupt!

Overall, this is the kind of adventure game that I like.If you're a fan of MYST an MYST-like games, you'll like this, too.

The Strangest Journey
Wow, I really don't know what to say about Morpheus (Does anyone even know why it was called that? The ship was the Herculania?!)It was a little too sci-fi for me. Some of the puzzles were too contrived and at times it was extremely frusterating because I had no clue what was going on. I just didn't know what to do! Belle, Billy and Grace's worlds were great, but Leo's was too strange, and poor Muffy! (Muffy's tag was found at the butchers. Guess why it was found and Muffy was not.) The graphics were luscious, but all togher, I'm not sure if it was worth my money. Would I recommend this game? Well, not to anyone with XP, for me, it didn't work too well. After reading the raving review from JustAdventure, I was positive that I would enjoy it, but after playing it, I'm positive that I would have rather wasted my time on something else. I wanted a game with a ship, not sure why, but I did. Titanic Adventure Out Of Time was more my price range, but I now see the error of my ways. If you like Adventures, try some worth-while ones like Syberia, Beyond Atlantis 2 or The Longest Journey! Spare yourself!

Excellent Escapism
I loved this game.Initially I bought it because of the price...and because I thought it might be interesting.I was hooked right from the jump.The graphics were incredible and the little movie scenes took me by surprise and left me with goosebumps.I'm not a bigtime gamer but I love this type of game where you can just get lost in the world you're playing in.I especially enjoyed the dream worlds...I wish they were more in-depth so I could have explored even more and spent more time there.I recommend this game to everyone who likes the escape of this type of game.Some of the other reviews on here talk about flatness of acting and all kinds of technical flaws, etc...just play the game and immerse yourself.You'll love it... I want to make a return trip to the Herculania and all it's bizarre, magnificent worlds! ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Computer Games    2. Adventure    3. Macintosh (Machintosh)    4. Mac    5. Apple    6. Computer Role Playing Games (Game, crpg, crpgs, rpg, rpgs)   

Reviews (8)

Quirky and fun but difficult
I've heard it said elsewhere that "those with a logical mind will hate this game, since it's based on the skewed logic and warped humour of Douglas Adams".

I have a logical mind, but also enjoy Adams' humour.The difficulty comes with meeting the two of them together in a computer game, where you have to think like he does to solve some of the problems.If you ever wanted to know what it might feel like to be a character in an Adams novel, here's your chance.The surrealistic nature of some of the puzzles in this game made them extremely difficult, and I did resort to a walkthrough frequently.

It didn't help that I think there are several story-related glitches in the game. There are a couple of places where you can find yourself stuck - that is, if you do a certain thing before taking adequate notes, or solve puzzle A before puzzle B, you can find yourself unable to solve a subsequent puzzle. This was extremely annoying because sometimes I would know what I needed to do but be unable to do it. In a couple of places this required me to restart the game from a very early save. There were also several puzzles where there were several obvious possible ways of obtaining an item but the game required you to find only one, much more obscure way - always an annoyance of mine in adventure games.

The system whereby you type what you want to say to the various 'bots on the ship harks back to the old text-based adventures, rather than the more usual dialogue trees that we see nowadays in adventure game. It will also remind you of how annoying these can be - you can be saying the right thing but in the wrong way and the game will not respond. Also, to obtain several key items you have to call in one of the 'bots to get it for you, even though the 'bot isn't normally seen in that area.

The game is non-linear.Without spoiling too much, the aim is to collect a number of items scattered throughout the ship in order to regain control of its central intelligence unit and be able to pilot yourself home.Most of these can be collected in any order so if one puzzle is causing you grief you can work on another.Note that some locations around the ship have multiple uses and play a role in more than one puzzle.

The graphics look pretty good - slightly dated now but still quite lush.The voice acting is good (including Adams himself, and Monty Pythons Terry Jones & John Cleese) and although some speeches go on for a long time you can usually skip listening to the whole speech, and the full text appears in a dialogue window.

The version of the game I played came on 3 CDs in a jewel case, although the game installs fully onto your hard drive.There was no manual, although I understand the initial packaging came with a manual that described some of the controls and the original box had a diagram on it that helps solve one of the puzzles (although the same image can be found hidden in the game).

I found it fun to walk around another Adams-designed starship, but at the same time frustrating to have to apply Adams-style absurdist logic to solve a lot of the puzzles.

Favorite among the many games I've played
I've played lots of games (all the Myst series, all the Monkey Island series, 7th guest, etc etc etc):this one remains my favorite.The puzzles are satisfyingly difficult, the characters goofily absurd (in goofiness I'd compare it to Monkey Island)....the parrot in particular has become a permanent part of our family's vocabulary.My teen son and nephews played this and did well with little or no help, too, which surprised me because it is challenging.DEFINITELY worth the money, especially since the whole family will love it AND it is entertaining, not violent.(PS:Don't forget to keep the robots "tuned up"!)

goofy but good.
This is a fun game, a bit goofy, but that's Douglass Addams.It seems so goofy at times that it doesn't seem like your in space at all, but on a clown barge.Who cares.The characters are quirky and have personality, not "personality" and what I like most is that I can say anything I want to them, for example; flirt to the reseptionist(who looks like a toaster)or threaten her, or tell the broom to go clean the toilet.Or just ask stupid questions to the other beings on the ship.It is a funny and smart game.The bomb is especially funny.You must watch Monty Python to know the answer though. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Computer Games    2. Adventure    3. Space Simulators (Simulation)    4. Science Fiction (Sci-Fi, scifi)   

Editorial Review

Explore an all-new 3-D universe filled with richly detailed castles, dark foreboding dungeons, lush outdoor environments, and more. Create a party of four main characters, and hire nonplayer characters to aid you in your quest to save your home, the peaceful land of Chedian, from the bloodthirsty Beldonian Horde.

... Read more

Features

Reviews (35)

What an Amazing Game!
Unlike most people on this site I think that MM9 is the best RPG I have ever played.The reason I think there are a lot of bad reviews is because it is very different from the other versions of Might and Magic and the long time players of might and magic are too lazy to get use to the new game.I admit, at first I didn't like this game very much, but then after a month a played it again and kept playing until I beat it. The graphics are not the best, but they're not bad.What makes the game great though is the quests.They are so fun to do, much funner than other RPGs (i.e. Morrowind).So, in conclusion, I would strongly recommend this game to anyone with enough patience to really get into this game.

Huge Disappointment
I bought this game over a year ago, and was very much looking forward to it.I loved Might and Magic 6-8 and played each one all the way through (some more than once).I liked the gameplay, the graphics were (at the time at least) pretty good, and most of all they had good stories to them.I had been hearing how 3DO was planning major improvements for MM9, so I had high hopes for this one too.Then I played it, and what a let down.I really tried to like this game, but just couldn't.I played it on and off for a little less than a month and have not bothered with it since.The graphics, even though there is a new engine, are really quite bad compared to other games in its class (things are much to angular).The NPC's are downright aweful looking.The story did not intitally make a lot of sense to me and didn't seem at all compelling or interesting (and I think this is really key to a good RPG).In my humble opinion, this is the worst of the Might and Magic lot (at least since 6 came out).I'd avoid this one.Go pick up Neverwinter Nights if you want a really interesting PC RPG.If you're looking a good console RPG try Arc the Lad: Twilight of the Spirits for Playstation 2.

Might & Magic IX. . .
Facing the facts, 3DO should have switched to a full 3-D engine long ago where its �Might & Magic� RPG franchise is concerned, but, for some reason, that didn�t happen until 2002�s �Might & Magic IX.� The game�s new facelift, though, is anything but pretty, and you�ll immediately feel like you just entered the magical world of Polygon. That�s not to say the graphics don�t have their moments (certain environments look better than others, and certain NPCs or enemies do likewise), but it all looks very much like something you could have been playing in 1998. But, of course, graphics don�t make the game, and for those who can look past the graphical problems of IX, there�s some decent adventuring to be done � primarily if you�re a fan of the past few �Might & Magic� games (which all have a distinctive style of gameplay, for better or worse).

The storyline in IX is a bit on the soft and ridiculous side, but it works, and at least it�s not as cut-and-dry as �kill the Dark Lord, save the universe.� It is your job to unite the six clans of the realm in order to face the looming threat imposed by an Attila-like figure who seeks to conquer the land. Odd twists of fate abound, uniting you with your enemies, and ultimately pit you against the gods themselves. To win the day, you must assemble a party of four adventurers (picking from only two initial classes � warrior or magician), and venture into the fantasy landscape.

Customizing your party isn�t half as fun as it was in earlier incarnations of �Might & Magic,� and gives you far fewer options than the last installment in the series � which poses the obvious question: shouldn�t a sequel outdo its forebears? Only four races are available to you (human, elf, dwarf, or half-orc), and the portrait selection is limited to two generic faces per race, and two more per sex. You can customize your character�s voice, but that ultimately boils down to choosing the voiceover that least annoys you. And, of course, you tweak a few stats and traits, but they too are few. Don�t expect the kind of roleplaying you�d get from �Icewind Dale� or �Morrowind� here.

When you have assembled your party, the story begins. The game plays essentially the same as previous entries in the series: combat is an optional real-time or turn-based affair, and you visit various provinces and cities seeking quests that can transform your humble fighter into a crusader, or your magician into a lich. Wandering the countryside is somewhat gratifying despite the blocky landscapes, because you often run into things you weren�t expecting, or bump into quests that boost your experience. Unfortunately, monster encounters aren�t very intense, primarily because only two or three different breeds of monsters seem capable of stalking any one given province, and most of them look pretty ridiculous. Combat isn�t very exciting either, since you can�t really even tell when your blows are connecting against your opponent unless you read the scrolling text at the bottom of the screen. Only archery reveals sound cues and splashes of blood (even from skeletons and the like who should obviously not bleed when hit).

The more time you spend with the game, the more it will grow on you, and the more addicted you may even become, but it still feels like you�re playing an early beta of what could have been a far superior game. Outdoor and indoor environments all suffer from a lack of detail that makes them feel mostly generic. This pervading lack of polish makes it very hard to suspend disbelief, since you rarely (if ever) feel like you�re in a living, breathing world. There are graphical glitches to further hamper your adventures, and you can sometimes clip into hills or embankments and become stuck in them. Scenery pop-in often raises its ugly head, and you�ll marvel at how an outdoor fog can follow you indoors as well, graying up whatever castle or keep you have entered.

The game�s scripting can also be broken. For example: in a dwarven mine, you are supposed to break through a wall that, for some reason, the dwarves couldn�t penetrate. Behind the wall is a demoness that is freed by your incursion � unless of course you don�t break down every piece of the wall. Break only a section of it, walk into the room, and find that nothing happens until you go back and shatter the rest. Then, and only then, you find yourself in a cut-scene, since you�ve only now triggered it. This is why games are playtested rigorously before release, 3DO!

The list of complaints that can be leveled against IX is pretty lengthy indeed. Many of the game�s quests are tepid and tedious and require too much walking across open country that you�ve already cleared of foes; the inventory and outfitting screen is unintuitive and not half as interesting as that seen in the previous games (why does my female elven warrior have a male dwarf representing her?); the game�s sound effects are sparse and generally grating� All of these flaws make IX a hard game to recommend wholeheartedly, even to fans of the franchise, especially in a year that brought with it great RPGs like �Icewind Dale II,� �Morrowind,� and �Arx Fatalis.� But to those who absolutely adore the unique style of adventure that only �Might & Magic� offers, this should do, provided you brace for some disappointment. I can only hope that 3DO licenses a new engine next time around, and makes sure to take it time polishing up the game before its release. Despite all of the new additions made to IX, it is inferior to its predecessors in almost every respect. This one has all the signs of a game rushed out the door to meet some dreaded deadline � but if you�re a CRPG addict, and have already run through the year�s best, then it�s worth a look (despite the horror stories you may have heard).

Final Score: C ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Computer Role Playing Games (Game, rpgs, rpg, crpg, crpgs)   

Editorial Review

Get two critically acclaimed mystery adventure games in one special-value collection! The new Gabriel Knight Mysteries Limited Edition gives you both of author Jane Jensen's Gabriel Knight Mysteries: The Sins of the Fathers and The Beast Within. Each game features a rich, chilling story highlighted by intriguing characters, challenging puzzles, and an engrossing musical score. New Orleans is the setting in Sins of the Fathers, where you must help Gabriel Knight uncover macabre secrets and his own haunted past. And the Dark Forest of Germany is the setting for The Beast Within, where you must help Gabriel Knight uncover the secrets hidden behind the murder of a young girl.

This special Limited Edition also includes two beautifully illustrated graphic novels: Sins of the Fathers and Blood of the Sacred, Blood of the Damned; plus it gives you a sneak preview of Jane Jensen's next chapter in the Gabriel Knight series: Blood of the Sacred, Blood of the Damned. ... Read more

Reviews (30)

Gabriel Knight 1 will work on XP
Gabriel Knight 1 runs under DOS, and will play under XP if you run it under DOSBox, (http://dosbox.sourceforge.net), an open-source DOS emulator. I've tried it and it works, with sound and everything. You need to press Ctrl-F12 a couple of times to increase the speed though. One reviewer mentioned something about having to set the display 256 colors in XP... this is not necessary as Gabriel is not a Windows program.

Overall, Gabriel Knight 1 is a great game, and it really immerses you into the New Orleans milieu. This game made me want to visit New Orleans, even though I live in Montreal, and it's far more French here than in any other city in North America.

doesn't work for windows xp
The Gabriel knight I game will not install into windows xp because you can't make 256 color, but the gabriel kight II game will so if you want to buy it for only the one game the second one will work.

Classic Third Person Adventure
What can I say?The Gabriel Knight series is to traditional 3rd person adventure what the MYST series is to atmospheric 1st person adventure:the best of its kind.Briefly put, they follow the adventures and experiences of author and bookstore owner, Gabriel Knight, as he unravels various occult mysteries and at the same time explores his odd heritage.

The stories are incredibly engaging and well developed;the author, Jane Jensen, put a remarkable amount of research into the subject matter.The characters are likable and believable, and the voice acting -- and in GK2, the acting -- is some of the best.Everything about these games is excellently done.

For the collector, the GK series is a little history of the adventure genre.GK1 is made with the 2D animation typical of the early 90s, while GK2 explores the FMV trend popular in the middle of the decade.In both the main action consists of finding and applying inventory items and gathering information by talking to a wide range of characters, with a spattering of arcade type puzzles and brain teasers to keep things interesting.One feature that I liked was that you are awarded points for completing puzzles, but you don't have to complete every puzzle to complete the game.This makes the games highly replayable as you can play through once for the bones of the story and then play again to go back and pick up what you might have missed the first time.There are also a lot of fun easter eggs that you can stumble on by chance.

Though the subject matter is sometimes grim, dealing with murders, conspiracies, and such occult subjects as voodoo and werewolves, there is a levening of humour in the character interactions that keeps the darkness at bay.

I found these games totally absorbing; it was not unusual to play for 7 - 10 hours at a stretch without even realising it.They are also very long -- a plus as far as I'm concerned -- taking a week to ten days to complete.You can be killed, but it happens rarely and when it does you are given the option to try again from a point right before you made your fatal mistake, so if you haven't saved recently it isn't such a big deal.

Die Hard fans of first person, MYST-like adventures may have a hard time relating to the Gabriel Knight series because it's so different, and players of shooters or pure action games will probably not like GK at all.If you like games like _The Longest Journey_, however, you will like these.

The collectors edition pack contains a lot of extras -- books, soundtracks, and the like.That's a plus and well worth having, because I was so sorry when the games were over that I wanted to keep reliving the experience again and again.I'd pay twice the price just to have one of these games.They truly are the best. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Horror (Supernatural)    2. Mystery    3. Sins of Fathers, Beast Within    4. One Two (I II 1 2)    5. Computer Games    6. Adventure    7. Collections (Collections)    8. Bundle (Bundles)   

Features

• A thrilling investigative experience with the illusive and deadly Jack the Ripper
• Exploration, inventory-based gameplay with a suspenseful storyline
• A mass-appeal theme based on true historical events
• Virtools Engine allows for special effects and detailed graphics
• Numerous puzzles of varying complexity--environmental, tactile, auditory

Reviews (20)

What a let down
The music was good. That is all I can find good to say about this game. The ending was very disappointing to me. What a let down. The game play itself was boring and dragged on .

Don't even bother....
This is one of the worst games I have ever played.First of all, I like games that make you think.This game is completely predictable.If you don't figure out something right away--you won't have to worry.Your cursor will figure it out for you.There are only a few logic puzzles, and even those are too easy.And if you like visiting the same locations over and over in a game, then this one's for you.I give it a 1 out of 10.

Hope you like to repeat yourself..
Since other reviews touched on gameplay and it's graphics, I just want to say this...

1. Sure, your surroundings are a pretty picture.. but I like games that are interactive.I want to go through drawers, look closer at pictures.. do something besides run around busy rooms that you can do nothing but run through.

2. The plot is weak.I won't spoil the story-line, but each in game day you pretty much go to the same places, talking to the same people.You have to meet certain requirements to make the game progress, and non of it is interesting.

The one thing I did like about the game, there are a couple real nice songs you can listen to while you play, or just wait in one of the bars and listen.

Unfortunately, I got this as a present for my mom, thinking it would be a puzzle game and be creepy.Buzz, wrong!
... Read more

Subjects:  1. Computer Games    2. Action    3. Adventure    4. Computer software (programs)    5. Kids (Children)   

Subjects:  1. Computer Games    2. Action    3. Adventure   

Subjects:  1. Computer Games    2. Action    3. Adventure