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Genre: Adventure Developer & Publisher: Revolution Software Released: September 19, 2024 Requirements: OS: Windows 10 Processor: 1.6 Ghtz Memory: 2 GB RAM Graphics: 1 GB Storage: 10 GB available space
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Genre: Adventure Developer & Publisher: Revolution Software Released: September 19, 2024 Requirements: OS: Windows 10 Processor: 1.6 Ghtz Memory: 2 GB RAM Graphics: 1 GB Storage: 10 GB available space
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By flotsam Broken Sword - Shadow of the Templars: Reforged Revolution Software Through a combination of Steam sales and a desire to play something ‘oldy worldy’ I came across this, an undisputed point-and-click classic (and a member of the GB Hall of Fame) that spawned numerous sequels and which had a completely inappropriate title (Circle of Blood) in some parts of the world. That this reforging ignored that circle is the first of a number of positives. Giving an older game a bit of spit and polish is a positive in itself. I accept that this might not be a universally held view, but I do tend to like a spruced-up version. Sprucing though doesn’t guarantee a worthy experience. Like many things, a game is a product of its time, and it might be that it should have been left there. The original was released 30 years ago, and while there are some slightly cringy bits, on the whole the game stands up really well. It’s a grand Euro-romp, but in short you play George Stobbart, an American tourist in Paris who, following a café explosion, gets drawn into an elaborate mystery involving treasure and the Knights Templar. Before its done, George will have travelled to Ireland, Scotland, Syria and Spain, eluded death more than once, and winkled his way into and out of places through an imaginative use of all manner of items. His main ‘accomplice’ is Nico, a French journalist he meets just after the initial explosion. Regrettably, and all the more so given the Director’s Cut version (more of that in a minute), Nico’s role is limited to say the least, spending almost all her time sitting in her apartment and providing George with an item or an insight here and there as he drops in and out and lounges on her couch infatuatingly. She is more than a love interest, but only just. The Director’s Cut (released in 2009) gave her an active and playable role, and like other Director’s Cuts is all the better for it. I would have liked that version to be this ‘reforged’ version. But it isn’t, so let’s move on. While you could nit-pick some aspects, the reworked visuals look good. Vibrant and detailed, you can play with the originals by hitting the Tab key, but one hit should be all it takes to send you back here. Screens slide and are largely static, but character motion and some other activity (e.g., fluttering flags) ensure it isn’t a sterile environment. The shadows and ambient sound, as well as the soundtrack, play a part as well. Its smartly and sassily written, and whilst I never laughed out loud there is a lot of wry humour to be had. Which encourages a chat, which is also essential to many of the puzzles. Much of your chatting is depth and interesting side-notes, but quite a few conversations are essential to triggering the capacity to move on. So be willing to be loquacious. Inventory conundrums provide most of the other puzzling, some solutions being more than a tad opaque. Which is what we expect from these games, especially those from this era. Why do something in a straightforward way when it can be so much more elaborately done? Some puzzles involve timing (e.g., do this before that happens) and you can die as a result of making a wrong choice. However the game allows you to just try again so if death surprisingly befalls you it isn’t fatal. And then there are puzzles like the goat. What to do about it? It’s a legendary bit of cantankerousness. In terms of gameplay there is a lot that is customisable. Right up front you can choose between Story and Classic modes, the former promising automatic hints and the removal of various actions you have already attempted. You can also set how often a new hint is available, whether nearby hotspots are revealed and how walking George about occurs. Within the game, hotspots will generate icons about what you can do there, generally look and something else (e.g., take, inspect, interact). Your inventory is a rucksack bottom left, and just click an item and then try and use it in the game world. Moving the mouse to the top of screen gives access to the menu items, which includes saving at will and the game hints. You can do some things with the keyboard as well as the mouse (e.g., Space opens the inventory) but everything is do-able with the mouse. There are easily about 15 hours of playtime awaiting you. It's been about 15 years since I played Broken Sword, and I wasn’t disappointed. Which is pretty good for a 30 year old game. Sprucing up the Director’s Cut would be my ultimate preference, but if you have never played, or might want to experience it again, this is worth your attention. I played on: OS: Windows 11, 64 Bit Processor: Intel i7-9700K 3.7GHz RAM: Corsair Dominator Platinum RGB DDR4 32GB Video card: AMD Radeon RX 580 8192MB
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