Broken Sword - The Shadow of the Templars (E) ISO
Description :
Uncover the identity of a jester assassin. Unlock the legend of the
Knights Templar. And unravel a plot as twisted as the catacombs you'll
be prowling.
As American in Paris George Stobbart, you find it odd when an accordion-playing clown darts out of a cafe clutching a briefcase. Moments later, you're sent flying from the force of a massive explosion right into a sinister world of intrigue. The coveted contents of the briefcase? A fiercely guarded manuscript penned by a clandestine medieval order - the Knights Templar.
Steal it back before a group of Megalomaniacs fathoms its mysteries and overturns the very balance of life.
As American in Paris George Stobbart, you find it odd when an accordion-playing clown darts out of a cafe clutching a briefcase. Moments later, you're sent flying from the force of a massive explosion right into a sinister world of intrigue. The coveted contents of the briefcase? A fiercely guarded manuscript penned by a clandestine medieval order - the Knights Templar.
Steal it back before a group of Megalomaniacs fathoms its mysteries and overturns the very balance of life.
The tale of the outspoken one.
Revolution decided to make it's Playstation debut with impact on this game. And it worked globally. The company, who crossed the river of Denial, were looking for appraise considering the more than reasonable feedback from the classics Lure Of The Temptress and Beneath A Steel Sky. While their previous collaboration with Konami terminated and they for awhile laid low, Broken Sword was their last man saloon to crack open as a strong gaming industry. Luckily the game became a cult hit and sold next to two million copies worldwide.
Broken Sword was the first major adventure game to hit the playstation, with the concept of the point and click being meshed into the fold. Also, would it be fair to say that Broken Sword brought voice overs to the playstation in general? The angst of Revolution for hitting back at the failing market of adventure games was nothing but bold, adventurous and very risky. The script alone of Broken Sword was the largest created for any game - already commiting video game history.
At the time it was gearing up for it's release, people were in mixed opinions of the game would work well in the gaming markets of it's era and that it might be classed as too boring or too different, therefore Broken Sword maybe stayed underrated by the public in general whilst scoring high in game reviews. The element of suprise paid off miraculousy and amusingly, Broken Sword also became famous for that goat in Ireland. (Which I won't give away because if anyone is as dopey as me, I'd like to pass on the sheer frustration of it all, I doubt it will).
So what gave Broken Sword the x-factor? Was it the colourful rendering graphics, that were only an aspect of the game in general being a revolutionary to the world of gaming. Maybe it was the spellbounding plot, that would put many of today's Hollywood contrived films to shame. Or maybe, just maybe, that the simple logic and intelligence of the puzzles made the gameplay enjoyable, defying skeptics and stereotypical views of the game being classed as "boring". The simplification (And if that's not a word, then I say neologism) is that all these things contribute to the masterpiece Broken Sword actually is. Charles Cecil cleverly conceived the formula of this game because he believed in his passion for games and the importance of entertainment. He got in touch with what he could provide, which in my opinion, makes him something of a gaming saviour. Cecil recognises how to grasp all types of gamers with "geek" orientated games such as Broken Sword.
Look, a clown! And a terrorist! And a beautiful French woman!
All this talk of Broken Sword, what is it actually about? In an ironic but endearing sense, it's quite heartwarming towards movies and towards the imagination of a persons mind. You take the persona of George Stobbart, an American patent lawyer on vacation in Paris. Whilst enjoying the French ambience at a sidewalk in a cafe; drinking your coffee and eyeing up the waitress, you notice a childhood fear of yours- A clown. Trying to distract your attention to the clown, you get back to sipping your coffee before the clown enters the cafe. Moments later, the Clown bursts out of the cafe and sprints across the alley leaving you puzzled. It is only after you feel the intensity of the blast and the heat that you learn the cafe exploded and a man inside has been killed. Luckily for you, you were protected by the umbrella, shielding you from physical harm.
Now a normal guy would probably leave the country and write an expose on the whole situation. And since the game is full of stereotypical values, a normal American would have sold Paris down the river and maybe World War III might have occured. However, George takes interest in the matter and vows to catch the killer/bomber/frequent fancy dress partier with the help of a French photojournalist Nicole "Nico" Collard, who is also intriqued and, beautiful. As the two unravel in the murder case, they discover that murder wasn't the real agenda of what is happening.
This, my friends, is where the Templars come in. History plays a part in this as well as mysticism. The Templar Knights were once a powerful force for the King in France during the 15th century (I think) but were eradicated by the King himself. George and Nico uncover supremacists trying to recreate the Templar and wreck havoc on the world. And it seems that you're dealing with two forms of evil as the Clown isn't on par with the Templars.
What's truly engrossing about this plot is that you vision this as a movie. And as criticism to other games, George Stobbart takes on meglomaniacs, psychopaths, murderers and bogus cops without the use of a gun. Just the powerful use of the brain. Cecil placed all of his devotion into the plot and formula and it works to perfection. There is the over informative stereotypical values that annoyed some people. This is because of the way George portrays other characters of other nationalities. For instance, you have Lady Piermont, an English woman who is so posh (and perhaps insinuated a snob) you'd think she was the Queen. Is this a sign of arrogance in the English that we are being told? And are the Irish drunks? But then, there are a few quips on the main character, so it is marginally balanced out. Personally, I managed to enjoy the game without noticing this in the first play, and it still doesn't bother me. Predujice is only a thing if you believe in it.
He looked at me as if I had farted at a funeral.
Characters are important in this game because they all have different personalities and are all acted. George is the witty and intelligence of the game who will actually mock you in some circumstances if you act the dumb player. His character is the non violent sort and for that, you feel dignified by him, a la Guybrush Threepwood from the Monkey Island series. Nicole is a little to quiet, lazy and overall passive to be classed as a sidekick but she does make a nice arrangement to George's plans. I particuliary like Seargeant Moue, the dim police officer and Flap and Guido, gangsters. For characters, this is a deluxe package with the characters all proving to be significant at one point or another even if they are planted to be a side trip from you completing the game.
Ooh, bright.
Nowadays it's important to back up a good plot with beautiful visuals. In fact, it's essential in terms of sales. And Broken Sword doesn't make any exceptions with it's 2D but colourful graphics. The cartoon effects of the graphics also give it a serious look and display the characters and locations beautifully. Some areas tend to be murky and gloomy to which the graphics display a scary and nerving affect.
The graphics can also generate a comic feel which makes the game more varied and suited to all sorts of gamers. I picked the game up a year and a half later from when it was released and considering the market of graphics that are in the industry today, the graphics are more than adequate. The items in the inventory can be a little blurry but the examine determines any difficulty in guessing what they are. And because of of the camera interface, you don't really get any facial close ups or expressions apart from FMV sequences and phone calls you make to Nico.
The rekindle of the point and click affair.
Broken Sword ressurects the concept of the point and click in the gameplay and it serves to be powerful in the success of the game. The great thing about the gameplay is probably the kleptomism of using banal items to carry off the greatest of things. And the escapades of George is always brutally intense, such as impersonating doctors, traversing the French sewers, escaping assassins and overcoming a dangerous goat. Yes, Broken Sword has it all.
If anything, sometimes the solutions can become a little predictable (like most games of the same genre). But there are the very tiresome solutions that will keep you on wits end for a long period of time (dare I say it, it took me a year to figure out how to get past that damn goat). But Broken Sword is also a treasure hold for some very good one liners and dry wit which is explored through the very interesting and hilarious conversations between the characters.
The puzzles do seem to be missing and there is only ever really one puzzle accounting for. And it's a chess board. Now, contain your excitement because I'm afraid that's about it. Broken Sword doesn't make a terrible mistake by consisting of less puzzles but more item solutions. More puzzles that could have been enclosed just would have made it a stronger title.
But if you like Broken Sword the way it is, you wouldn't also mind the fact that it explores through various regions. From Paris to Ireland, to Syria to Spain and finally to my home country of Scotland. The exploration is fantastic and something the gameplay needed for it's one dimensional baseline.
Pah, puh-lease, I'm an actor..
Voice acting is very popular in games today. Tomb Raider was the first major game to export this trend. Metal Gear Solid, Resident Evil and Broken Sword have all toned this "skill" to perfection (if you like Resident Evil's camp affair). Rolf Saxon delivers a solid performance as George Stobbart that should entertain most. But what is most impressive and outstanding in this game is the musical score, composed by an orchestra and a famous composer, Barrington Pheulong. The music creates the ambience in each location and each situation you are in as a gamer. Sound effects are not a conversion in this game solely but it is appeasable all the same.
Criticisms? Well as much as the charismatic but with foibles George Stobbart is, his stereotypical views will also lead him to be judgemental and slightly prissy at times with the character examinations he diagnoses during the game. Nico too, suffers at the hands of being the silent partner, and for a sidekick (and a romance lead), she seems passively mute. The loading time is compiled every time you leave an area to around half a minute (which also borders onto minutes considering there is a lot to do in different places).
All in all, this game is what will remind us in years to come what a marvel adventure games really are. Charles Cecil and the team behind Revolution deserve all the praise in the world for creating such a wonder. It is likely that you will play this game again because you know the puzzles and will breeze through the game, enjoying the dialogue and witty one liners e.g "He looked at me as if I farted at a funeral".
That is only one of many immortal lines in Broken Sword that can be laughed at or admired several times. And hey, for the occasional skeptic of the game, the lines are nice and effective for shutting them up. A true classic adventure game sums Broken Sword up. A standout in it's dying genre.
Revolution decided to make it's Playstation debut with impact on this game. And it worked globally. The company, who crossed the river of Denial, were looking for appraise considering the more than reasonable feedback from the classics Lure Of The Temptress and Beneath A Steel Sky. While their previous collaboration with Konami terminated and they for awhile laid low, Broken Sword was their last man saloon to crack open as a strong gaming industry. Luckily the game became a cult hit and sold next to two million copies worldwide.
Broken Sword was the first major adventure game to hit the playstation, with the concept of the point and click being meshed into the fold. Also, would it be fair to say that Broken Sword brought voice overs to the playstation in general? The angst of Revolution for hitting back at the failing market of adventure games was nothing but bold, adventurous and very risky. The script alone of Broken Sword was the largest created for any game - already commiting video game history.
At the time it was gearing up for it's release, people were in mixed opinions of the game would work well in the gaming markets of it's era and that it might be classed as too boring or too different, therefore Broken Sword maybe stayed underrated by the public in general whilst scoring high in game reviews. The element of suprise paid off miraculousy and amusingly, Broken Sword also became famous for that goat in Ireland. (Which I won't give away because if anyone is as dopey as me, I'd like to pass on the sheer frustration of it all, I doubt it will).
So what gave Broken Sword the x-factor? Was it the colourful rendering graphics, that were only an aspect of the game in general being a revolutionary to the world of gaming. Maybe it was the spellbounding plot, that would put many of today's Hollywood contrived films to shame. Or maybe, just maybe, that the simple logic and intelligence of the puzzles made the gameplay enjoyable, defying skeptics and stereotypical views of the game being classed as "boring". The simplification (And if that's not a word, then I say neologism) is that all these things contribute to the masterpiece Broken Sword actually is. Charles Cecil cleverly conceived the formula of this game because he believed in his passion for games and the importance of entertainment. He got in touch with what he could provide, which in my opinion, makes him something of a gaming saviour. Cecil recognises how to grasp all types of gamers with "geek" orientated games such as Broken Sword.
Look, a clown! And a terrorist! And a beautiful French woman!
All this talk of Broken Sword, what is it actually about? In an ironic but endearing sense, it's quite heartwarming towards movies and towards the imagination of a persons mind. You take the persona of George Stobbart, an American patent lawyer on vacation in Paris. Whilst enjoying the French ambience at a sidewalk in a cafe; drinking your coffee and eyeing up the waitress, you notice a childhood fear of yours- A clown. Trying to distract your attention to the clown, you get back to sipping your coffee before the clown enters the cafe. Moments later, the Clown bursts out of the cafe and sprints across the alley leaving you puzzled. It is only after you feel the intensity of the blast and the heat that you learn the cafe exploded and a man inside has been killed. Luckily for you, you were protected by the umbrella, shielding you from physical harm.
Now a normal guy would probably leave the country and write an expose on the whole situation. And since the game is full of stereotypical values, a normal American would have sold Paris down the river and maybe World War III might have occured. However, George takes interest in the matter and vows to catch the killer/bomber/frequent fancy dress partier with the help of a French photojournalist Nicole "Nico" Collard, who is also intriqued and, beautiful. As the two unravel in the murder case, they discover that murder wasn't the real agenda of what is happening.
This, my friends, is where the Templars come in. History plays a part in this as well as mysticism. The Templar Knights were once a powerful force for the King in France during the 15th century (I think) but were eradicated by the King himself. George and Nico uncover supremacists trying to recreate the Templar and wreck havoc on the world. And it seems that you're dealing with two forms of evil as the Clown isn't on par with the Templars.
What's truly engrossing about this plot is that you vision this as a movie. And as criticism to other games, George Stobbart takes on meglomaniacs, psychopaths, murderers and bogus cops without the use of a gun. Just the powerful use of the brain. Cecil placed all of his devotion into the plot and formula and it works to perfection. There is the over informative stereotypical values that annoyed some people. This is because of the way George portrays other characters of other nationalities. For instance, you have Lady Piermont, an English woman who is so posh (and perhaps insinuated a snob) you'd think she was the Queen. Is this a sign of arrogance in the English that we are being told? And are the Irish drunks? But then, there are a few quips on the main character, so it is marginally balanced out. Personally, I managed to enjoy the game without noticing this in the first play, and it still doesn't bother me. Predujice is only a thing if you believe in it.
He looked at me as if I had farted at a funeral.
Characters are important in this game because they all have different personalities and are all acted. George is the witty and intelligence of the game who will actually mock you in some circumstances if you act the dumb player. His character is the non violent sort and for that, you feel dignified by him, a la Guybrush Threepwood from the Monkey Island series. Nicole is a little to quiet, lazy and overall passive to be classed as a sidekick but she does make a nice arrangement to George's plans. I particuliary like Seargeant Moue, the dim police officer and Flap and Guido, gangsters. For characters, this is a deluxe package with the characters all proving to be significant at one point or another even if they are planted to be a side trip from you completing the game.
Ooh, bright.
Nowadays it's important to back up a good plot with beautiful visuals. In fact, it's essential in terms of sales. And Broken Sword doesn't make any exceptions with it's 2D but colourful graphics. The cartoon effects of the graphics also give it a serious look and display the characters and locations beautifully. Some areas tend to be murky and gloomy to which the graphics display a scary and nerving affect.
The graphics can also generate a comic feel which makes the game more varied and suited to all sorts of gamers. I picked the game up a year and a half later from when it was released and considering the market of graphics that are in the industry today, the graphics are more than adequate. The items in the inventory can be a little blurry but the examine determines any difficulty in guessing what they are. And because of of the camera interface, you don't really get any facial close ups or expressions apart from FMV sequences and phone calls you make to Nico.
The rekindle of the point and click affair.
Broken Sword ressurects the concept of the point and click in the gameplay and it serves to be powerful in the success of the game. The great thing about the gameplay is probably the kleptomism of using banal items to carry off the greatest of things. And the escapades of George is always brutally intense, such as impersonating doctors, traversing the French sewers, escaping assassins and overcoming a dangerous goat. Yes, Broken Sword has it all.
If anything, sometimes the solutions can become a little predictable (like most games of the same genre). But there are the very tiresome solutions that will keep you on wits end for a long period of time (dare I say it, it took me a year to figure out how to get past that damn goat). But Broken Sword is also a treasure hold for some very good one liners and dry wit which is explored through the very interesting and hilarious conversations between the characters.
The puzzles do seem to be missing and there is only ever really one puzzle accounting for. And it's a chess board. Now, contain your excitement because I'm afraid that's about it. Broken Sword doesn't make a terrible mistake by consisting of less puzzles but more item solutions. More puzzles that could have been enclosed just would have made it a stronger title.
But if you like Broken Sword the way it is, you wouldn't also mind the fact that it explores through various regions. From Paris to Ireland, to Syria to Spain and finally to my home country of Scotland. The exploration is fantastic and something the gameplay needed for it's one dimensional baseline.
Pah, puh-lease, I'm an actor..
Voice acting is very popular in games today. Tomb Raider was the first major game to export this trend. Metal Gear Solid, Resident Evil and Broken Sword have all toned this "skill" to perfection (if you like Resident Evil's camp affair). Rolf Saxon delivers a solid performance as George Stobbart that should entertain most. But what is most impressive and outstanding in this game is the musical score, composed by an orchestra and a famous composer, Barrington Pheulong. The music creates the ambience in each location and each situation you are in as a gamer. Sound effects are not a conversion in this game solely but it is appeasable all the same.
Criticisms? Well as much as the charismatic but with foibles George Stobbart is, his stereotypical views will also lead him to be judgemental and slightly prissy at times with the character examinations he diagnoses during the game. Nico too, suffers at the hands of being the silent partner, and for a sidekick (and a romance lead), she seems passively mute. The loading time is compiled every time you leave an area to around half a minute (which also borders onto minutes considering there is a lot to do in different places).
All in all, this game is what will remind us in years to come what a marvel adventure games really are. Charles Cecil and the team behind Revolution deserve all the praise in the world for creating such a wonder. It is likely that you will play this game again because you know the puzzles and will breeze through the game, enjoying the dialogue and witty one liners e.g "He looked at me as if I farted at a funeral".
That is only one of many immortal lines in Broken Sword that can be laughed at or admired several times. And hey, for the occasional skeptic of the game, the lines are nice and effective for shutting them up. A true classic adventure game sums Broken Sword up. A standout in it's dying genre.
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