Review
Release Date: 03.19.2002
Platform:
Game Boy AdvanceDeveloper:
RevolutionPublisher:
BAM! Entertainment, Inc.Reviewed by
Colin on 4.27.2003
| Review Rating: 9/10 | User Rating: 7/10 |
There was a time long, long ago, when developers cared about making games for adults, games that were humorous, suspenseful, and insightful. Ok, so the early 90’s were not that long ago, but from a point-and-click fan’s standpoint, it has been a rough ten years. Before first-person shooters conquered the PC market and refused to let go, development studios like LucasArts and Sierra cranked out what (at the time) seemed to be an endless slew of well-produced, thinking men’s games that came to define the graphical adventure genre. Part puzzle game, part adventure, with a fair helping of gumshoe and a hint of high-brow comedy, graphical adventures were in a class all by themselves, driven by gripping storylines rather than monotonous killing; in fact, in most graphic adventures a player never risked death, merely the threat of the unsolvable puzzle (scary, no?… do remember, this was years before GameFAQs was a twinkle in a webmaster’s eye). It was indeed a good time to be a gamer…
And like that, the genre’s mainstream popularity died off.
In 1995, Revolution released Broken Sword: Circle of Blood on the PC to critical and commercial success in Europe. Revolution followed the PC release with a European Playstation port in 1996 and a domestic Playstation port in 1998 (renamed, you guessed it, Broken Sword: Shadow of the Templars), to critical success but marginal commercial sales. Then Revolution would attempt the unthinkable: port their groundbreaking PC and PSX title to the GBA, with no loss of graphical style or compelling storyline. At it’s worst, it would push the graphical limitations of the GBA to the ultimate limit, and at it’s best, it would prove the viability of the GBA for any genre… even one that’s been hibernating for a decade.
Broken Sword follows the exploits and adventures of American tourist and all around busy body George Stobbart as he investigates a terrorist bombing of a Paris café, with the help of several newfound confidants. However, as George sleuths his self deeper and deeper into the crime, century old conspiracies are uncovered and George’s safety becomes increasingly endangered. Thankfully, it’s not all heavy dramatics, and George will find a way to make any situation humorous, such as unplugging a janitor’s vacuum cleaner in order to dress up as a doctor or hiding in a sarcophagus to steal a priceless relic after a museum closes, all the while making smart-ass comments.
Wait a second… isn’t Broken Sword a point-and-click game? Well, on the PC and PSX, yes, but until the day a mouse peripheral is developed for the GBA (which is surely in the works at Mad Catz as we speak), PC to GBA ports will have to make some sacrifices. In all honesty, I actually like the GBA’s control scheme for Broken Sword more than it’s PC counterpart, much to the chagrin of my old school brethren, I’m sure. While controlling George with the d-pad is a lot more natural than telling him to go places with the mouse and then waiting for him to get there, Revolution did make one aspect of the game a little too easy: instead of having to hunt around the screen with the mouse for hot spots (which you can still do by walking George around the screen), you can now cycle through every hotspot in a given area with the R shoulder button. This makes the game far, far too easy, and I suggest not using the cycle button if you want the game to last the time it was originally intended to, and it better reinforces the whole detective idea if you find the clues yourself.
Progression through Broken Sword is broken (ha-ha!) down into two parts: questioning people for clues and finding items to solve puzzles that will further George’s investigation. Anyone familiar with modern RPGs will be right at home in the questioning department, it’s the standard walk up to an NPC, and begin text bubble fun. Get used to the text bubbles, because almost the entire story is played out through character speech, be it NPC or George’s internal monolog. Collecting items is the fun part of the game, because you never know when or why an item might end up being useful, for example: at one point, George has in his possession some plaster of Paris and a towel, and he must get through a door that has a five point hole in it as it’s unlocking mechanism. On the ground in front of the door is an identical five point hole structure. George must go to a pub, gain access to the basement through a series of steps, break a faucet, soak the towel, travel back to the door he needs to open, fill the holes on the floor with plaster of Paris, and wring the soaking towel out onto the plaster, thus creating a replica key to open the door in question. Puzzles like this confront George at every turn, though all make sense when thought about logically (unlike Monkey Island, another classic graphic adventure series), and, along with the storyline, really provide the meat of Broken Sword’s draw.
The real question that fans of the original game wondered was would the detailed environments and cartoony characters make the transition to portable. In a word, yes. Broken Sword is by far the most visually impressive GBA game released to date. Breathtakingly beautiful pre-rendered backdrops are alive with hand drawn characters and animals, utilizing the GBA’s palate of colors to the ultimate stress test. While the resolution is no where near that of it’s PC or PSX counterpart, Revolution did a great job of transferring as much of the original game’s splendor to the handheld: characters make subtle movements, birds fly away when George wanders too close, certain walls can be broken down with seamless environment changing animation. With so many “rooms” and characters packed into the little cart that one begins to wonder why more GBA games aren’t as expansive and technically advanced as Broken Sword.
Then there’s the music, which is fitting and, while not amazing, manages to fit the mood of each scene. Most as little more than ambient tunes, a little loungy or jazzy, and add to the tension without impeding the real stars of the show, the graphics and story. One point of brilliance, however, involves a woman playing the piano in a hotel. While left to her own devices, the woman will play a haunting melody as George inspects the surroundings, but once he interrupts her playing, all music stops. Just a little touch, but it’s the little things like this that make Broken Sword just that much cooler than the average portable title.
It seemed flawless, but unfortunately, Revolution accidentally left in a glitch that will, if stumbled into, permanently keep George from progressing in the game. The glitch is well documented (even on the game’s own website), and can easily be avoided if the player pays attention to the progression of the countries George visits. Surely, a glaring glitch like this should have been discovered and rectified prior to release, but it was not, and will forever tarnish the luster of this fabulous game.
Play Broken Sword if you’ve never played a point-and-click graphical adventure before, it’s good to know the history of your hobby, and it might end up as something you really enjoy playing. Play Broken Sword if you played point-and-clicks “back in tha day,” I promise it’ll live up to the Space Quests and Sam ‘n’ Max’s of that era. However, please, don’t play it if you’re not willing to give a non-action/twitch game a chance, because you’ll be sorely disappointed; Broken Sword is the digital equivalent to a good crime novel. The open-minded, on the other hand, will be in for a treat, and if Revolution gets their way, two sequels will be not too far off.
