Techtite's PC Game Reviews!

The Longest Journey

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A Techtite Review

I remember Roger Ebert once mentioning how Gene Siskel approached him in the dark, near the end of the screening of the film Fargo, and whispered, "This is why I go to the movies." The Longest Journey, in comparison, is why I have and always will love the adventure game genre...in some ways, even more than movies. This isn't a complement to be taken lightly. The story, characters, music, and plot elements used in this game, are not only better than any adventure game currently on the shelf; they are even better than most of the so-called "entertainment" offered in movies and TV shows lately. If that isn't enough to get you to run to buy this game right now, read on.

The Longest Journey is an adventure in the spirit of some of the best. It uses the same style of game engine --2D backgrounds and 3D main characters-- made popular in titles like Alone in the Dark, Resident Evil, and the recent Escape from Monkey Island, yet the game's size still spans no less than 4 CDs! Many other multiple CD games through the years have merely given false hopes of lasting more than a short time on your hard drive; by contrast, The Longest Journey truly lives up to its title. You'll travel to any number of different locations, through a story that is divided into 15 Chapters, including a prologue and epilogue. To give you some idea of how popular the story has become: this game originated in Norway in 1999, and since then has already been translated to Swedish, French, Dutch, German, and English, with Spanish, Polish, and Italian versions in the works as I write this.

The lead character is April Ryan, a 24th-century college freshman, and a 3-dimensional character in every sense of the word. You learn early on of her unfavorable family relationships (the last time she saw her abusive dad, the resulting fight left him with a broken arm), her friends (including the typical, rambunctious best friend, who seems to have a new boyfriend every week), and her ambitions (she is a very talented painter, and has just entered a school to hone her skills). As in all good fantasy-adventures, she also has other special powers, and you enter the story just as she's about to realize what they are, and what role they'll play in her destiny.

As it so turns out, she has the gift of "shifting": to immediately travel to a parallel magical world named Arcadia, and back again. Unfortunately, she doesn't yet know how to control this power, and often finds herself going to Arcadia while trying to fall asleep, wearing nothing more than what she wears to go to bed. At first, she shrugs these visits to a parallel world as just strange dreams...until friends start to see similar visions, too. For some reason, the magical creatures of Arcadia are slowly finding their way into the real world! It's up to April to undertake "the longest journey" of her life, explore both worlds, and try to put right whatever is going wrong.

The places you explore in each chapter are often totally different from one another, and reduce any feeling of redundancy. Even when re-visiting an area, it is often a totally different experience, with new puzzles and story arcs. You'll start out in a 24th century metropolis, then slowly explore the magical world of Arcadia, then return to each world to explore even more. From castles floating in mid-air to underwater cities and a number of different landscapes and creatures to meet, there's a new sight at every turn, right up until the big climax. Creatures are also intriguing, and you'll be meeting new characters right on up to the second-last chapter. Such characters range from other humans --all with excellent voice acting-- and creatures that look like something right out of your favorite fantasy novel. Even dragons --which are often shown elsewhere in dull, monotone colors-- are animated with style, and often seem to have a magical glow.

The production values of this game are excellent. This was made by a lover of adventures, for other lovers of adventures. Its voice actors are all well chosen, particularly Sarah Hamilton, as the voice of April. Its blend of CGI video and 3D acceleration effects are perfect; while on a ship at sea (shown here), you can see an almost Myst-like storm approaching in the background, while well animated, 3D-accelerated characters perform in the foreground. Its story elements are enhanced via a diary that April carries with her at all times, which can be read either for further story insight, or perhaps a tip or two of where to go next. As for the dialog, while the language can be frank at times, it is used for realism, not shock value, and enhances the realistic look and feel of the overall game.

April Ryan may not have the fictional figure of Lara Croft, yet she still proves to be much more appealing. Her freckled complexion and college-student wardrobe choices enhance the feeling that she really is just an average college freshman, thrust into not-so-average circumstances. Her reaction to the events happening around her are extremely true to life, and far better handled than most of the stoic reactions Lara Croft gave, in the most recent "Tomb Raider" sequel. In one scene, April walks past a news report on a nearby street. What does April do? Why, walk behind the reporter, check to make sure her hair's okay, and then wave and jump so the camera can see her. This is an awful lot of animation added for a mere in-game cut-scene, and it is just a small portion of how well-animated April is throughout the game. As for her dialog, it is full of quick wit and lifelike conversation bits, that make every conversational cut-scene a pleasure to view and hear.

While the adventure does use the icon interface that made older adventures so much simpler, it does lead to some intriguing puzzles. Adventure gamers who have been around since the '80s, will love some of the better puzzles, since many of them are a salute to the best days of classic adventuring. At least one puzzle would probably have been used by the Infocom text adventure Enchanter, or perhaps Kyrandia 2: The Hand of Fate. In this instance, you must decipher magic spells based only on symbols, then smell and touch the contents of nearby, unlabeled bottles, to see if they are the proper ingredients related to those symbols. Early in the game, you must make a contraption to retrieve an item, using parts that include, of all things, a rubber ducky with a hole in it. This is similar to the type of mad-cap contraption puzzles seen in the best adventure games of old, and it's a welcome addition.

An added bonus...? In a game this thorough, you bet. If you're wondering what the "Book of Shadows" (see red arrow in picture) is doing in the game's main menu --and why it does nothing when clicked on-- be sure to click on it again, when you first complete the whole game. It's worth it!

I can't express enough how much I loved this game. It's both at once a great salute to the gaming days of old, as well as a breath of new life to the adventure game genre. I liked several games released in 2000; I loved The Longest Journey. In truth, my only gripe to be felt was when the game's epilogue was played, and the journey was over. At the extreme least, I hope that the excellent writer and producer of this game, Ragnar Tornquist, does not make this his last story. I loved this journey, and only want more. There's no better sign of a great adventure than that.

	Final Rating : Deep Impact. Any adventure game fan will adore this game. It is, simply put, the best adventure game to come by since the classic days of the genre.
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