GAMEBOOMERS provides you with all the latest PC adventure computer games information, forum, walkthroughs, reviews and news.

GB Reviews

Latest & Upcoming Adventure Games

GB Annual Game Lists

GB Interviews

BAAGS

GB @ acebook

About Us

Walkthroughs

free games galore

Game Publishers & Developers

World of Adventure

Patches

GB @ witter

GameBoomers Store

Print Thread
Tex Murphy, Overseer #341985
06/09/08 06:02 PM
06/09/08 06:02 PM
Joined: Jan 2007
Posts: 1,525
oldmariner Offline OP
Addicted Boomer
oldmariner  Offline OP
Addicted Boomer

Joined: Jan 2007
Posts: 1,525
Surprisingly no one has written a review on this old classic here at GameBoomers. Well I figure I may as well having just completed it.

Tex Murphy, Overseer, 1997

Interface
There are five cd's and one dvd shipped in two jewel cases. Jewel case one contains cd's 1-4 while case 2 holds the fifth cd and a dvd. The dvd is a fully playable version of the game. It is reported that video quality is superior on the dvd but at the time of release few people had dvd drives and Access was forced to rely upon cds. Since the only availability is likely to be through used game outlets be sure you get both jewel cases.

The Bad
You have to remember that as a mid nineties series the Tex Murphy games were very system demanding. Many systems could not handle the intense requirements. They were designed primarily for win 95 and dos. I recall constant crashes with Under a Killing moon and Pandora. Today's machines have finally caught up, however, now the operating system is left behind. Overseer ran fine on my xp system in win 95 compatibility mode. The game instructions with my set did not claim to be dos compatible. I doubt you can run it in dos or dosbox though I did not test that. As my version was a spartan ebay special my manual comprised of a read me file on the first disk. There is also a trouble shooting read me as well. Unfortunately the dvd was not included. Because of the constant disk swapping required by five cds, the dvd with its better graphics quality is likely a better choice. The game is not alt-tab friendly nor does it respond to the windows key. The primary response from using those controls is the game crashing. Sometimes the windows key did work so be sure to save before attempting that. In fact the only crashing issue I suffered was at the hands of the windows key or alt-tab.

Graphics
The graphics are excellent and looked quite good on my xp system. One of the Caveats was that the video drivers used by the the designer are not commonly present in modern computers. MPEG video drivers have greatly advanced and it is possible newer drivers may interpret the older codex. You do not have to swap drivers, Microsoft, who purchased Access has released a patch to include the video codex and it does not interfere with other drivers on your system. ftp://ftp.microsoft.com/deskapps/games/public/texmurphy/tex5b104.exe
Overseer crashed several times before I installed that patch. Installation of the patch stopped further crashes other than the alt/tab and windows key attempts. The Tex Murphy series was the only one in the FMV format to rival Gabriel Knight in quality. While these games excelled many attempts to use this media in other games failed. I'm guessing to hire quality actors was likely cost prohibitive. Whatever the reason FMV was set aside with very few games produced.

Gameplay
I will include comments here for sound as well as gameplay. Usually background music, ambient sound and voice acting is lumped together under the category of sound quality. It is a bit different here. The music is muted and used sparingly you can hardly find it to be in the way. The noir setting demands use of subtle jazz or that solo horn so often heard in the old black and white 1940-50's detective movies. you barely notice it. Instead of voice acting we comment on live acting or film acting and it ranges from excellent to tolerable. Where it counts it is excellent. Chris Jones plays Tex and most of you will recognize him. He does a credible job as does Suzanne Barnes who played Chelsee through the entire series. Others you may recognize are, Michael York a well known actor with many leading roles in major movies. Clint Howard, and Henry Darrow, names not commonly known but they are highly recognizable character actors seen in many movies and tv shows. Several others lesser known ranged from bad to worse, though a couple were ok.

This is an interactive movie in the truest sense with some very difficult puzzles and some less so. This game is point and click and can be completely controlled via the mouse. However you can navigate by using the arrow keys for direction of movement. Locate your inventory by moving the mouse to the right side of the screen and moving it to the left side brings up your transportation map. When retreating from those positions the screens disappear and are conveniently out of the way. Bringing your mouse to the bottom of the screen a pad becomes visible with directional keys you click for movement. You can look up to view ceilings and down to see the floor etc, even lower Tex's body from standing to squatting. The game is viewed in the first person through Tex's eyes when you are in control. In full motion video you see Tex on the screen. Many objects are well hidden. Open up a drawer and your look tool will tell you there is nothing in there.

One of the controls allows Tex to bend down to change angles. When you do and get a better view of the drawer or whatever suddenly there is an object there, one you definitely need. Then you can examine it and take it. So this is a movie version of pixel hunting, the hidden in the drawer trick? There are two ways to play this game one is called Entertainment mode the other is Gamer mode. Entertainment is easier on the puzzles and allows use of a hints button. Gamer gives you all of the puzzles some of which are timed. You choose when you begin the game. You can switch from entertainment to Gamer during play. But if you do you cannot go back to entertainment. I have no idea what effect this will have on future use of saved games. I was told with use of Entertainment mode the timed puzzles are omitted. I utilized Gamer mode and any comments will be made in that light. The game did provide a forgiving do over at the point of failure when you muffed up the timed puzzles. I will add none of these were overly difficult and as slow as I am I did not run out of time once. Yes Tex can get killed, save often. There are no player involved action scenes those are handled in the movie format. For instance Tex has to escape some bad guys by climbing out of a sky light. You click the required tool on the skylight and the movie takes over. You see Tex climb up and out while the bad guys fail to catch him.

Overseer primarily uses inventory puzzles, yes mix and match items. There are some logic puzzles as well. This is a long game think GK-2 or TLJ. Many conversation choices and Tex keeps a notebook listing questions already asked helping you to avoid repeating the same question. Like Culpa Innata you chose Tex's approach to questioning, like Culpa your result can vary if you choose tough guy over diplomat. No cutting corners here Chris Jones and his team did not cheat you in game play. Nothing smacks of lets add a puzzle or create unneeded running back and forth to make the game longer. Gameplay is not difficult but it will challenge you.

Story
Now we come to the meat of this game, the story. Talk about an involved who done it with rich detail and depth of character. If you played any of the Murphy series then you know this has a great story. As some of you may be aware Overseer caused a lot of player angst with it controversial ending. The dreaded cliffhanger with the intent of another game. When Access sold out to Microsoft it ended any hope of another Tex Murphy leaving fans hanging. After completing Pandora and thinking what a great game it was I could hardly wait for Overseer. Problem was when released my system could not handle it so I had to wait. The controversy was one of the reasons I did not buy the game. Who wants to deal with a cliffhanger that will never be resolved? Perhaps someday another game.

Overseer's narration is in the form of a story that is told to Chelsee by Tex. It is a retelling of his first detective case. Tex met Chelsee in an earlier game and he was chasing her ever since. Overseer opens with Tex going out on a date with Chelsee and she ask how he became a detective. Briefly the story involves Sylvia Linsky who asks the rookie P.I. to prove her father's suicide was a murder. Simple, so Tex thought, but we all know better. The investigation follows a contemporary trail that is believable. but it interjects an intricate web of science fiction extrapolation that is not too far fetched. As the web begins to unravel we come to see Tex is in a bit over his head. Overseer was his first case meaning these events occurred before any other games in the series.This informs the gamer that since Tex is telling the story he obviously survived. The mystery we are examining is resolved. The cliffhanger applied at the end of Overseer is a set up for the next game. This final layer is done in "present" time creating the fan issues. The question becomes can you deal with an ending that was intended to lead into another game, one never provided? Normally I would say no, however, Overseer is a complete story of itself. Yes you have to ignore the cliffhanger because ten years later it still hangs. In spite of this Overseer is a great game one of the best.

Many contend three Tex Murphy games, Killing Moon, Pandora and Overseer rival Gabriel Knight for the best ever series. I'm not sure if I agree as I already have seven games in the top five. It is getting crowded in there. Well if I can force these in with a shoe horn, perhaps I will because they are fairly equal........Bottom line, Overseer may not be the best game ever it depends on the day of the week and what mood you are in. But April, Gabriel & Grace, George & Nico, Phoenix, move over you have company.




Re: Tex Murphy, Overseer [Re: oldmariner] #341994
06/09/08 06:30 PM
06/09/08 06:30 PM
Joined: Nov 1999
Posts: 10,323
gatorlaw Offline
Adept Boomer
gatorlaw  Offline
Adept Boomer

Joined: Nov 1999
Posts: 10,323
Great review and liked the piece on getting it to run on new rigs.

I think one of the things that made the series so exceptional was the high level of personal involvement with the game. Only series where the company co-founder and creator of the games played the main hero smile

Chris Jones is my personal nominee for gaming genius ....

And the entertainment vs Gamer mode ( and that built in treed progress list) was unique and never effectively replicated in other people's products.

Well I am a HUGE fan of the series myself (guess it shows, laugh Can't believe this game wasn't reviewed before but even better that you were here to cover this great classic smile

Thanks!






Re: Tex Murphy, Overseer [Re: gatorlaw] #341998
06/09/08 06:41 PM
06/09/08 06:41 PM
Joined: Jan 2007
Posts: 1,525
oldmariner Offline OP
Addicted Boomer
oldmariner  Offline OP
Addicted Boomer

Joined: Jan 2007
Posts: 1,525
But Gator you guys were pretty creative with the Culpa approach tree.

Trouble is with writing reviews like this you have to take lots of notes.

That actor, Micheal York actually put an effort into it. Wonder what that cost?

Re: Tex Murphy, Overseer [Re: oldmariner] #342033
06/09/08 07:40 PM
06/09/08 07:40 PM
Joined: Dec 2007
Posts: 1,541
Brazil
Phoebe Offline
Addicted Boomer
Phoebe  Offline
Addicted Boomer

Joined: Dec 2007
Posts: 1,541
Brazil
Great review oldmariner thumbsup

I love tex murphy !!!

Love Maria hearts


Yes,though i go through the valley of deep shade,i will have no fear of evil;for you are with me, your rod and your support are my comfort. Salmo23:4
Re: Tex Murphy, Overseer [Re: Phoebe] #342070
06/09/08 08:42 PM
06/09/08 08:42 PM
Joined: Apr 2004
Posts: 48,905
Alabama
looney4labs Offline
Sonic Boomer
looney4labs  Offline
Sonic Boomer

Joined: Apr 2004
Posts: 48,905
Alabama
thanks Oldmariner--I have the game but haven't gotten around to playing it yet.


"Dogs are not our whole life, but they make our lives whole."
-Roger Caras
Re: Tex Murphy, Overseer [Re: looney4labs] #342092
06/09/08 09:32 PM
06/09/08 09:32 PM
Joined: Jan 2007
Posts: 1,525
oldmariner Offline OP
Addicted Boomer
oldmariner  Offline OP
Addicted Boomer

Joined: Jan 2007
Posts: 1,525
If you have the dvd use that, saves a lot of disk swaping.

Last edited by oldmariner; 06/09/08 09:32 PM.
Re: Tex Murphy, Overseer [Re: oldmariner] #342209
06/10/08 06:45 AM
06/10/08 06:45 AM
Joined: Nov 1999
Posts: 10,323
gatorlaw Offline
Adept Boomer
gatorlaw  Offline
Adept Boomer

Joined: Nov 1999
Posts: 10,323
I know those guys had a blast in the early days - James Earl Jones does the voice of the PC god in Under A killing Moon, specially commissioned song by Richie Havens for later game. Back when making games was wild and well funded...

I play UAKM at least once every two years - and it is still great despite being released so long ago.

And thanks for the comments on our treed dialogue system - I just liked the look of their hints feature and how it functioned. To me those games had a layer of perfection on all levels. smile

sniff I want to know what happened to chelsea after she got nabbed...





Re: Tex Murphy, Overseer [Re: gatorlaw] #342362
06/10/08 12:02 PM
06/10/08 12:02 PM
Joined: Feb 2000
Posts: 26,918
Stony Brook, New York, USA
Becky Offline
The Medieval Lady
Becky  Offline
The Medieval Lady
Sonic Boomer

Joined: Feb 2000
Posts: 26,918
Stony Brook, New York, USA
I liked this:

Quote:
...I already have seven games in the top five. It is getting crowded in there.
lol

I own Pandora Directive and Under a Killing Moon, but I've never played them either. One of these days....

Thanks for the Overseer review, oldmariner -- we needed one! thumbsup


Re: Tex Murphy, Overseer [Re: Becky] #342439
06/10/08 02:25 PM
06/10/08 02:25 PM
Joined: Jan 2007
Posts: 1,525
oldmariner Offline OP
Addicted Boomer
oldmariner  Offline OP
Addicted Boomer

Joined: Jan 2007
Posts: 1,525
Looney, you will likely need that patch I linked to in the review. I kept crashing in win95 compatibility mode until I installed it.

Becky, you should play them. Pandora was real sluggish in dosbox. It must be special tweaking I missed. There is an xp installer out there but I have not tried it as yet. Here is a link for those who may need it. Though I have not tried it yet so don't know how good it is, or isn't.
xp installer
Just tested the link, you need to click on downloads upper left of page written in white, rather small notation. It takes you to a second page where in the top right corner of page there is a link to dl xp installer for Pandora and another for UAKM. Have not tried them and don't know how good they are.

As for the crowded top five we can always count them as GK 1-3 equals 1 slot, BS 1 ++ equals 1 slot and so on. But as I said in the review the top five counts a lot on your mood at the time.

I have not played UAKM or Pandora since my pc was a Tandy 486 and they were rather touchy then. So when the tweaking urge strikes I have Pandora on my desk. It is rather difficult to play some of the newer games after redoing something like Overseer. Kinda like trying to enjoy "Ugly Prince Duckling" a few days after playing TLJ, it just does not work.

Last edited by oldmariner; 06/10/08 03:04 PM.
Re: Tex Murphy, Overseer [Re: oldmariner] #342537
06/10/08 05:02 PM
06/10/08 05:02 PM
Joined: Feb 2000
Posts: 26,918
Stony Brook, New York, USA
Becky Offline
The Medieval Lady
Becky  Offline
The Medieval Lady
Sonic Boomer

Joined: Feb 2000
Posts: 26,918
Stony Brook, New York, USA
Thanks for the info on the installer, oldmariner!

Re: Tex Murphy, Overseer [Re: Becky] #342843
06/11/08 09:51 AM
06/11/08 09:51 AM
Joined: Jun 2007
Posts: 890
Illinois
BubbaJake Offline
Settled Boomer
BubbaJake  Offline
Settled Boomer

Joined: Jun 2007
Posts: 890
Illinois
Oh wow! You own them but NEVER played them??? I have Overseer, Pandora and UAKM. They play perfectly in Dosbox 63 (for me) and I replay them regularly. Recently, I installed Dosbox 72 and, well, couldn't play anything in 'dos'. I installed that one because I thought it would enable me to play Ripper (vesa drivers and all that).

Re: Tex Murphy, Overseer [Re: BubbaJake] #342887
06/11/08 11:19 AM
06/11/08 11:19 AM
Joined: Feb 2008
Posts: 1,470
Land of Hamlet
misslilo Offline
Addicted Boomer
misslilo  Offline
Addicted Boomer

Joined: Feb 2008
Posts: 1,470
Land of Hamlet
I replayed UAKM (Under a Killing Moon) in Dosbox not long ago and enjoyed it immensely laugh
I've also started Overseer again on Vista - DVD version - but stopped for some reason - forgot which, lol.

Tex Murphy is game classics and everyone should at least play them once...


"You can not escape your past, but you can make your future" - Diana Melkumova - @wowdane
Re: Tex Murphy, Overseer [Re: misslilo] #342977
06/11/08 02:04 PM
06/11/08 02:04 PM
Joined: Nov 2000
Posts: 34,312
United Kingdom
Mad Offline
Sonic Boomer
Mad  Offline
Sonic Boomer

Joined: Nov 2000
Posts: 34,312
United Kingdom
Hi - And thanks for that excellent review, oldmariner grin

I've played all five Tex Murphy games but UAKM is my favourite and the one I replay thumbsup

Cheers.

Mad wave


Time : The Most Precious Commodity
Re: Tex Murphy, Overseer [Re: Mad] #343027
06/11/08 03:34 PM
06/11/08 03:34 PM
Joined: Feb 2000
Posts: 26,918
Stony Brook, New York, USA
Becky Offline
The Medieval Lady
Becky  Offline
The Medieval Lady
Sonic Boomer

Joined: Feb 2000
Posts: 26,918
Stony Brook, New York, USA
Yes, there they sit on the shelf. I've always assumed it would take a lot of work to get them to run, and there are always new games that are available....

Re: Tex Murphy, Overseer [Re: Becky] #343039
06/11/08 04:09 PM
06/11/08 04:09 PM
Joined: Jan 2007
Posts: 1,525
oldmariner Offline OP
Addicted Boomer
oldmariner  Offline OP
Addicted Boomer

Joined: Jan 2007
Posts: 1,525
I tried that installer for Pandora. I could not get it to work in xp. Followed directions religiously and reinstalled more that once. Finally gave up, made a few adjustments in dosbox and have it going. Try the installer because it most likely was me.

Previous Thread
Index
Next Thread

Moderated by  Draclvr 

Who's Online Now
0 registered members (), 232 guests, and 0 spiders.
Key: Admin, Global Mod, Staff, Mod
Newest Members
PierreLombardo, Dux, WillPowerGoat, Ebalon, J7769mon
9388 Registered Users
Powered by UBB.threads™