The Abbey
 

As far as I've seen, nobody has started a topic about this upcoming adventure yet. Sure, there's not a lot known about this title so far, but still I would be interested in your first impressions, because I think this game does have some interesting potential.

Known facts:
- The story takes place in a monastery during the inquisition.
- The game has comic graphics, but it nevertheless aims for a dark mood.
- One of the inspirations for the settings has been the book and film "The Name of the Rose". (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Name_of_the_Rose)
- The soundtrack for the game has been recorded by a symphonic orchestra and two choirs.
- The game is developed by the Spanish studio Alcachofa Soft (Fred and Jeff games).
- It will be published worldwide by the German publisher Crimson Cow (who are also publishing A Vampyre Story).
- The trailer can be downloaded via Adventuregamers (http://www.adventuregamers.com/newsitem.php?id=1516). Those who don't like large downloads can consult the video directly in a flash player here: http://www.adventure-treff.de/specials/video.php?id=288

Your thoughts?

I thought the video trailer was excellent. I love cartoony type games like that.
I'm also looking forward to A Vampyre Story.
Thanks for the links.
Cathy

It looks pretty promising.

The graphics look stunning.

Hadn't heard of Alcachofa in a while. Glad to see they're still up and running.

This looks really promising, this one, I think. So little time (and money ;) ) - so many great adventure games being released this fall (2007) and in 2008. And as said, The Abbey looks to one of the best :) - at least by it's cartoony looks :)

This is indeed one i have my eye on, along with Once Upon a Time in Japan from Abborado, So Blonde (Go Steve!), the Mozart game coming up, Theisis from Greece, and several others, we have a mini reinassance going on quietly with adventure games which really lifts my heart :) thanks for the topic.

Yeah, there's a bunch of adventure games I want to play till new year... problem is, I don't have enough time. :frown:

The English website is now online:
www.theabbey-game.com

I love cartoon games! I'm going to try that one that's for sure. Looking forward to...:)

I'm completely not a fan of the cartoon-style, but being a fan of Umberto Eco's "The name of the Rose" I guess I'll give "The Abbey" a shot.

A consideration: while the backgrounds are really outstanding, it's only me that find the character way too odd and "spiky"?

I've played through the German version of The Abbey now, and here is my opinion: I really loved this game in (almost) all aspects.

The only thing that I could perhaps criticize would be, on some occasions, the puzzle design. While most puzzles were generally well done and not too hard, the game left me wandering around sometimes, without giving me a clue where to go next or what to do next.

After reading some critics about The Moment of Silence in this very forum, I can also imagine that some people might not appreciate the fact that there are really lots of very long dialogues in this game. But I already loved that in The Moment of Silence, and I love it here as well. These long dialogues help to make you dive into the game world. You don't just learn what is absolutely necessary for the main plot, but you learn so much more about the people surrounding you, their past, their ambitions. Also, the fact that there are many changes of the camera angle during conversations, with a lot of close-ups and much use of body language, the dialogues also stay visually attractive.

The aspects that I really loved in this game:

- The excellent graphics. High quality painted backgrounds (that even changed during day or night time... those evening skies: wow!), tons of camera changes and close ups, nice lightning effects (e.g. torches in the dark).
- The epic music, recorded by a symphonic orchestra and a choir. This has been done in other genres, but as far as I'm aware of, this is a first for adventure games.
- The top notch voice acting (German version). The characters have been casted very thoroughly, and the intonation is always fitting.
- The good mix between a generally serious game and some little humorous moments here and there (but without turning the game into comedy).
- The good characterization of the persons. Although you are interacting all the time with monks, they all have very different personalities.
- The interesting story. It became never boring, you always discovered new things.
- The detailed ending. No open end here.

Conclusion: One of the adventure highlights of the last years. It's always a good sign that I feel like wanting to play the game (or at least some scenes) again during the next days.

Now, after having really hyped the game, I also hope that there will be an English version as soon as possible. On the official site, no English publisher is announced so far (http://www.theabbey-game.com/links.page.htm).Well, gamers gate announced their intentions to make a digital distribution some time ago (http://www.gamershell.com/companies/...te/402016.html), but I'm not sure if the English version will be produced JUST for gamersgate. The entry looks still very unsettled: http://www.gamersgate.com/index.php?...=DD-TA&cat=all

But the game is simply too good not to be published internationally.

It seems that The Adventure Company is going to publish it in the US:
http://gogamer.com/Murder-in-the-Abb...VVviewprod.htm

Can't wait for this one. It's nice to know that it is going to be in english.

I guess Crimson Cow sold them The Abbey in combination with A Vampyre Story...

Hmm... So TAC seem to have changed the title. "Murder in the Abbey". What's so bad with "The Abbey"?

"1000 scenes in 60 locations promise 40 hours of gameplay"
Hmm, TAC seems to like exagerations. On the German game cover it says "over 20 locations promise 20 hours of gameplay". Which is much closer to the truth!

Oh, BTW, there was a second trailer. But it's got a log of common scenes with the Games Convention trailer from 2007 though.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mGaBUGXKQYk

Are you all even sure this is the same game? I haven't seen anything confirmed by The Adventure Company yet. I take what I see at online shops with a huge grain of salt anymore.

Yes, it is definitely the same game. The main character is called Leonardo, and if you look at the cover image, while being different from the German version, it looks very similar to some background motives in the trailer.

On the other hand, you're right that an online shop is not necessarily the best source of information.

And now I'm thinking about it, the whole story description seems to be very old. I remember similar bits of information in the first German press releases (also perhaps the information about the 40 hours of gameplay), but in the actual game, it is never told that Leonardo had been a grand inquisitor. He is a monk that has formerly worked as an advisor for the kings court, and Bruno isn't his assistant, but is scholar. Well, he does have to assist him a lot though...

So you're right, you should wait for an official confirmation from CC or TAC.

I hope there will be an English version though. I really liked the game. It would be a pity if it didn't get translated.

Jackal is checking with TAC, so hopefully we'll hear for sure early this week. :)

I remember hearing about this game a while ago. Hopefully they don't screw up the English voice acting. Good to hear it was a good game. I'll have to go get it once it's out in Canada, if it will be.

Confirmed by TAC for release probably some time in August.

Usually when retailer info is this detailed it's solid, but sometimes deals fall through unexpectedly, or dates are way off, so it's always worth checking.

Amazon says the English language version will be released on July 29, 2008! Here's hoping. I haven't had time to play an adventure game in at least a year, but this is one I think I'll make time for. It's just a notch behind Vampyre Story on my personal Hypo-O-Meter.