I really enjoyed this. Thanks for taking the time to do a review. My wife and I have done a series of videos looking at the locations used in Gabriel Knight 2 - basically going around Germany to the locations and interspersing game footage (and poking fun at the characters where appropriate). I'm currently in the process of rebuilding my channel (the original was lost due to a google account problem) reposting all the videos. Love the game, love the characters and the atmosphere :)
@IPKISS4LIFE - Man, that is pretty cool! You are definitely a hardcore fan of the game! A few years ago I traveled through Germany and Austria and visited many similar sites as well. Such a beautiful part of the world. And Neuenstein Castle is truly stunning! I got to tour that and it was incredible.
8:09 one of my favorite musical scores in the entire game. I love the piano melodies they used for the soundtrack, especially all the piano themes where you play as Grace.
They need to do a Gabriel Knight HD collection and Re-Release this game with all the FMV blurry pixelated cutscenes remastered in Hi-Def 1080p Blu-Ray quality and 5.1 surround sound. This is the best Werewolf related form of entertainment on Planet Earth right now PERIOD!
A bit of trivia for ya, the man who plays Gabriel Knight in this game was the barista at the cafe in the sitcom Frasier. I thought it was funny when I noticed him... I expected him to be a bigger character because of how well the game was acted haha
Nice review and great to see some clips from that game. I must have played it 3 or 4 times back in the day. Some of the characters are great. I loved the "creepy bartender" guy. That actor is fantastic.
And damn that clock puzzle! Oh, that sucked.
I also recall taking letters/call about the actor for GK2 and how his accent was different and "Why didn't he try to sound more like Tim Curry?" I believe the actor IS from the region and wasn't affecting an accent as much as talking normally!
@TheBigJB - Josh, I seriously considered bringing you in on this video, because you are such a big GK fan...but I just didn't have the time. Is there another Sierra game you'd like to help me review, or a classic series you'd like to help create a Restrospective? It would be an honor to have you on my channel again!
Hey there ! I loved that game when it was out... And furthermore, I had just visited Neuschwanschtein casttle right before playing that game... Still have it as well :-)
Neat looking game, never knew games like this even existed. MetalJesus, I found a PS2 game I think you would really like, it has a sort of metal-ish soundtrack, with great characters and voice acting, it's called Primal, I highly recommend this, one of the best unknown PS2 titles out there, awesome graphics for its time too.
@bpryor01 - Bernadette, I did...with the help of other Sierra folks too. But I wish I would have kept more, now that it's hard to find the original boxes for a lot of those classic games. Unfortunately I threw a bunch of them out a few years ago.
@TequilaCT Cool! I just bought all 3 GK games, Realms of Haunting, Sanitarium, both Phantasmagoria games (I know part 2 was awful but I love Sierra, lol!) all for less than a third of the price of a new 360 or ps3 game. I seem to get more play out of classic games than a lot of the cash-cow games that have been churned out lately. :)
One of my all time favourite games... my main gripe with it is the lack of subtitles.
That bugged me so much that I wrote full subtitles for the game (actually, the game already has subtitles for non-movie stuff hidden in its files... though it does not have any subtitles for any of the videos, and that makes up a large part).
Because of a patch another guy had made, to have Spanish subtitles, I could get them into the game by simply replacing every line in that patch with English ones.
Great episode! I loved those old Sierra and LucasArts games. My favorites were the Hero's Quest series, especially the 2nd one in EGA. Keep releasing your videos on Friday...you are the PERFECT gateway into my sacred weekend. Thanks again.
@GAMERSHARK100 - This is my original 1995 CD-Rom copy, but I'm using a fan made patch to copy all the CDs to the hard drive...and sometimes I am turning off video interlacing.
@austinmackert The Phantasmagoria games aren't held quite as high in regard as Gabriel Knight, primarily because the stories aren't quite as strong... But from an FMV perspective, they are top notch productions! Personally, I liked the 2nd Phantasmagoria game better than the 1st, because it was so weird & edgy.
Great review and one of the finest moments of Sierra :) Anyway, i'm a German (half Polish :) and setting of that game is really close to my home country :)
@04mzwach - I just saw that this morning! Buying this game for only $3 is a great deal! They are also including in the sale the original Gabriel Knight 1, and Phantasmagoria 1 & 2. Not bad!
Great review! I've always been a fan of the GK games. Aside from the incredible stories, each one was at the cutting edge of technology for the day: GK1 is one of the best "traditional" adventure games ever made - especially the CD release with the great voice acting, GK2 is the best FMV adventure ever made, and GK3 is considered one of the best 3d adventure games (though I still haven't played that one yet). Cool to get your insight as a former Sierra guy too.
In FMV games, I always wonder about the actors. Do they treat starring in a game differently? How do they feel about starring in a video game as opposed to other work? Because unlike movies or TV shows, these old games kinda get lost and forgotten.
@RyanRightN0w - I read an interview recently with Dean Erickson, who played Gabriel Knight, and he was very positive about his experience making the game. I think part of that is just because Sierra and Jane Jensen took story, dialog and acting very seriously with GK2. Other than the annoyance of acting in front of a blue screen, it was a decent job to get. You can read it here: gk4ever(dot)com
I agree GK2 is a prime example on how to do FMV right, if only SegaCD, CDi, or 3DO games could have been this good. Why most FMV developers thought you could get away with bad writing and a complete lack of player interaction I'll never know. I had to say that as I hate most FMV games. Schattenjager, I thought that was a strong drink. ^_^ Great review MJR as you really drew us into what makes GK2 great which will more than likely have people trying to track down a copy. :D
@TheBladeJunker - Thanks buddy! Unfortunately a lot of game companies thought you could take B-Actors and a video camera and make money... Instead, Sierra during the glory years, really stood for quality games and top-notch story telling. It was only natural they would be the ones to do FMV right!
Excellent game and review. Probably one of the few examples of a well designed FMV game?
AnonDracula 4 days ago
Wow, Peter J Lucas in Computer Games, I didn't know that the polish dude who lives in USA, starred in Gabriel Knight 2. Impressive.
bunciaknconquer 1 month ago
Have you played XFiles?
GabrielKnightz 1 month ago
nice review. and its on sale untill the holidays for 3 bucks :D
JintuTCG 2 months ago
I really enjoyed this. Thanks for taking the time to do a review. My wife and I have done a series of videos looking at the locations used in Gabriel Knight 2 - basically going around Germany to the locations and interspersing game footage (and poking fun at the characters where appropriate). I'm currently in the process of rebuilding my channel (the original was lost due to a google account problem) reposting all the videos. Love the game, love the characters and the atmosphere :)
IPKISS4LIFE 2 months ago
@IPKISS4LIFE - Man, that is pretty cool! You are definitely a hardcore fan of the game! A few years ago I traveled through Germany and Austria and visited many similar sites as well. Such a beautiful part of the world. And Neuenstein Castle is truly stunning! I got to tour that and it was incredible.
MetalJesusRocks 2 months ago
8:09 one of my favorite musical scores in the entire game. I love the piano melodies they used for the soundtrack, especially all the piano themes where you play as Grace.
They need to do a Gabriel Knight HD collection and Re-Release this game with all the FMV blurry pixelated cutscenes remastered in Hi-Def 1080p Blu-Ray quality and 5.1 surround sound. This is the best Werewolf related form of entertainment on Planet Earth right now PERIOD!
fernandoiscrazy 2 months ago
Great game, I played just cuz this review. But I can't se the "horror" in the game, I'll say it's more a "mystery" game.
Rocko0030 3 months ago
You do excellent reviews. Always look forward to them, regardless of what you are covering.
mercurynrw 3 months ago
great review. Really interesting to me since I missed out on most PC titles back then. Great job dude!
RPGMachine86 3 months ago
Great video! You're a natural!
stojrum 3 months ago
New fan thanks to All Gen Gamers meet up at PAX11! Loved this review, looking forward to more and going through your past videos as well.
iceburg81 3 months ago
Comment removed
iceburg81 3 months ago
Great review of a real classic game! And please, please, do a review of Phantasmagoria! :)
mitcharts 3 months ago
A bit of trivia for ya, the man who plays Gabriel Knight in this game was the barista at the cafe in the sitcom Frasier. I thought it was funny when I noticed him... I expected him to be a bigger character because of how well the game was acted haha
woocifer 3 months ago
Nice review and great to see some clips from that game. I must have played it 3 or 4 times back in the day. Some of the characters are great. I loved the "creepy bartender" guy. That actor is fantastic.
And damn that clock puzzle! Oh, that sucked.
I also recall taking letters/call about the actor for GK2 and how his accent was different and "Why didn't he try to sound more like Tim Curry?" I believe the actor IS from the region and wasn't affecting an accent as much as talking normally!
TheBigJB 3 months ago
@TheBigJB - Josh, I seriously considered bringing you in on this video, because you are such a big GK fan...but I just didn't have the time. Is there another Sierra game you'd like to help me review, or a classic series you'd like to help create a Restrospective? It would be an honor to have you on my channel again!
MetalJesusRocks 3 months ago
This along with the rest of the GK series are currently on sale at GOG for $3 instead of $6.
Ponimaju 3 months ago
Hey there ! I loved that game when it was out... And furthermore, I had just visited Neuschwanschtein casttle right before playing that game... Still have it as well :-)
TheVampyrebe 3 months ago
Neat looking game, never knew games like this even existed. MetalJesus, I found a PS2 game I think you would really like, it has a sort of metal-ish soundtrack, with great characters and voice acting, it's called Primal, I highly recommend this, one of the best unknown PS2 titles out there, awesome graphics for its time too.
JGene87 3 months ago
You really saved your vulture bin stuff! That's awesome Jason!
bpryor01 3 months ago
@bpryor01 - Bernadette, I did...with the help of other Sierra folks too. But I wish I would have kept more, now that it's hard to find the original boxes for a lot of those classic games. Unfortunately I threw a bunch of them out a few years ago.
MetalJesusRocks 3 months ago
i dont consider these games...games more of a movie that you can control
yoeycrack1 3 months ago
Hey that was a really cool ass video dude, the GAME CHASERS where right, you are preety damn interesting.
DEBTCOLLECTDOG2 3 months ago
I might download a copy off GOG :) then again its a toss of a coin between this and Phantasumgoria...Damn spelling XD
TequilaCT 3 months ago
@TequilaCT Buy both! I know I will! They are both really cheap until midnight tonight!
ElegyForTheMasses 3 months ago
@ElegyForTheMasses Done :) just waiting for it to download on a slow connection.... 10% at the moment XD
TequilaCT 3 months ago
@TequilaCT Cool! I just bought all 3 GK games, Realms of Haunting, Sanitarium, both Phantasmagoria games (I know part 2 was awful but I love Sierra, lol!) all for less than a third of the price of a new 360 or ps3 game. I seem to get more play out of classic games than a lot of the cash-cow games that have been churned out lately. :)
ElegyForTheMasses 3 months ago
@ElegyForTheMasses Realms of the haunting is a classic! I still have my CD version up in the attic... Somewhere LOL
I must of spent more time on retro games this year than playing games on the 360.
TequilaCT 3 months ago
The fashion is sooo 1990's lol, anybody remember psychic detective?
Colonelbasic 4 months ago
i bought the game for only $2.99 it was on sale thanck;s
bigymike808 4 months ago
wow I remember seeing this game on the shelves in software etc all those years ago, definitely grabbing the series off of gog!
ReturnToMotherBase 4 months ago
Hello!!! What do I need to create this kind of games? Do you know a professional engine o program for windows? in high resolution... ;)
bobby1551970 4 months ago
Never played this but great, insightful video as always!
ra5kit 4 months ago
WOW Dean Erickson looks alot like Nick Knight of the cult classic tv series Forever Knight played by Geraint Wyn Davies !! Hahahahaha Great review
P0V3RTY09 4 months ago
cool video man, if i ever jump back into pc games i will have to check it out
Saleenr3 4 months ago
One of my all time favourite games... my main gripe with it is the lack of subtitles.
That bugged me so much that I wrote full subtitles for the game (actually, the game already has subtitles for non-movie stuff hidden in its files... though it does not have any subtitles for any of the videos, and that makes up a large part).
Because of a patch another guy had made, to have Spanish subtitles, I could get them into the game by simply replacing every line in that patch with English ones.
laffer35 4 months ago
Great episode! I loved those old Sierra and LucasArts games. My favorites were the Hero's Quest series, especially the 2nd one in EGA. Keep releasing your videos on Friday...you are the PERFECT gateway into my sacred weekend. Thanks again.
willgraham13 4 months ago
what version is this?
GAMERSHARK100 4 months ago
@GAMERSHARK100 - This is my original 1995 CD-Rom copy, but I'm using a fan made patch to copy all the CDs to the hard drive...and sometimes I am turning off video interlacing.
MetalJesusRocks 4 months ago
It's actually only $3 right now on gog.
Gizmondo23 4 months ago
I played the German version of the game and it was so extremly cheesy and slow to control. This game showed me that graphic is not everything...
;-)
DJKOZI 4 months ago
Hmmm. I'd have to disagree with your opinion, but I respect it! Thanks for the video man! :)
Blurillaz 4 months ago
well... lucas arts did make fullmotion 3d pre rendered video:
Star Wars Rebel Assault 1
kinmanyuen 4 months ago
I loooove this game!Great review as always MJR!
frejden 4 months ago
Comment removed
jumpman574 4 months ago
Great review! I recall seeing this around as a kid in the '90s, but I never tried it myself, likewise with Phantasmagoria.
austinmackert 4 months ago
@austinmackert The Phantasmagoria games aren't held quite as high in regard as Gabriel Knight, primarily because the stories aren't quite as strong... But from an FMV perspective, they are top notch productions! Personally, I liked the 2nd Phantasmagoria game better than the 1st, because it was so weird & edgy.
MetalJesusRocks 4 months ago
gabriel kind of looks like evan stone
whocareslol222222 4 months ago
Great review and one of the finest moments of Sierra :) Anyway, i'm a German (half Polish :) and setting of that game is really close to my home country :)
michalmarek77 4 months ago
Plus it's a part of their promo at GOG.com! Thanks! Three dollars!
04mzwach 4 months ago
@04mzwach - I just saw that this morning! Buying this game for only $3 is a great deal! They are also including in the sale the original Gabriel Knight 1, and Phantasmagoria 1 & 2. Not bad!
MetalJesusRocks 4 months ago
Great review! I've always been a fan of the GK games. Aside from the incredible stories, each one was at the cutting edge of technology for the day: GK1 is one of the best "traditional" adventure games ever made - especially the CD release with the great voice acting, GK2 is the best FMV adventure ever made, and GK3 is considered one of the best 3d adventure games (though I still haven't played that one yet). Cool to get your insight as a former Sierra guy too.
cityside75 4 months ago
In FMV games, I always wonder about the actors. Do they treat starring in a game differently? How do they feel about starring in a video game as opposed to other work? Because unlike movies or TV shows, these old games kinda get lost and forgotten.
RyanRightN0w 4 months ago
@RyanRightN0w - I read an interview recently with Dean Erickson, who played Gabriel Knight, and he was very positive about his experience making the game. I think part of that is just because Sierra and Jane Jensen took story, dialog and acting very seriously with GK2. Other than the annoyance of acting in front of a blue screen, it was a decent job to get. You can read it here: gk4ever(dot)com
MetalJesusRocks 4 months ago
I agree GK2 is a prime example on how to do FMV right, if only SegaCD, CDi, or 3DO games could have been this good. Why most FMV developers thought you could get away with bad writing and a complete lack of player interaction I'll never know. I had to say that as I hate most FMV games. Schattenjager, I thought that was a strong drink. ^_^ Great review MJR as you really drew us into what makes GK2 great which will more than likely have people trying to track down a copy. :D
TheBladeJunker 4 months ago
@TheBladeJunker Oh wait you tracked it down for us, thanks. :)
TheBladeJunker 4 months ago
@TheBladeJunker - Thanks buddy! Unfortunately a lot of game companies thought you could take B-Actors and a video camera and make money... Instead, Sierra during the glory years, really stood for quality games and top-notch story telling. It was only natural they would be the ones to do FMV right!
MetalJesusRocks 4 months ago
There is a part of me that really misses FMV games. I remember thinking how cool they were back then.
bobafettjm 4 months ago
Such a good game! I need to go play it back now! :)
OctoRoss 4 months ago
I really enjoy the first one, never played the 2nd one, the 3rd one I actually liked alot.
ARProductions2010 4 months ago
I loved the Phantasmagoria games as cheesy as they were
callmemarc 4 months ago
@callmemarc - At some point in the future I'd like to review Phantasmagoria 1 & 2. Especially the 2nd game, because Drunken Master Paul is in it!
MetalJesusRocks 4 months ago
@MetalJesusRocks And we could always use more Drunken Master Paul :)
bobafettjm 4 months ago
Man this game was awesome. I never got far in it though.
Polaventris 4 months ago
Great vid man, that museum really kicked my butt too.
I thought the guy playing gabriel was a terrible actor though.
Kharnivore2099 4 months ago
Beat Call of Duty and Halo all at once
UndeadSpaceMonkey1 4 months ago