Gabriel Knight series, worth getting into at this point?
 

Hi, obviously im new here, i enjoy Adventure games and also classics like the old Lucas Arts games etc, but never actually got into the GK games...

Now i was wondering, i recently completed the longest Journey, and while the graphics are pretty old, the game itself was great and it sure was one the best...

now the thing is, i keep hearing about GK and how great it is supposed to be, but im not sure if i can go back to graphics that are a LOT worse than what TLJ had to offer even, though i might be able to look past it if it plays alright...

i know the most recent one is GK 3 and i was going to start with that one, but then is it better to play them in order or doesn't it really make a difference?

also will the 1+2 games even RUN in windows XP or Vista nowadays or do i need to pull out some tricks to get them to run?

and they are SUPER HARD to track down too, i found Gabriel Knight Mysteries or something like that which are 1+2 but VERY expensive new ;(

thanks for some feedback guys ;)

The Gabriel Knight series represents, in my opinion, the crown jewel of adventure games: they have rich, profound stories often coping with deep, philosophical or metaphysical themes (freedom of choice vs. social constraints, Dionysian vs. Apollonian, immanentism vs. transcendence), soaked in occultism and esoteric lore, with multi-layered, complex and believable characters who often sport struggling, conflicting personalities. Their gameplay is always clever and thought-provoking, without becoming frustrating. They are difficult, though, especially the third one. And yes, you should play them in order to fully understand the meanders of the over-arching story.

While Blood of the Sacred, Blood of the Damned runs smoothly on XP, the first two adventures require a little more work, but Collector's Installers allow you to install and play them without any problem whatsoever.

Each game has its own self-contained story, but yes, they are better experienced in order I think. It will give you more out of the main characters, because they truly gain complexity as the series goes on. Also, Sins of the Fathers was truly meant as an introduction to Gabriel's world; he doesn't have a clue about what's going on, so you discover things alongside him, which is awesome.

And welcome to the forums! :)

I played GK3 back when it was released and i loved it. Unfortunatly i was stupid enough not to play the first two games back then because of dated graphics (first one) and becuase of FMV that i really dont like (GK2). And i said i was stupid, because thats really the right word to describe me.:D

I decided to play the first two games a few months ago and... what can i say they were absolutely fantastic, they even managed to enter my top adventure list. The first one is the best one in my opinion, the story and the pace is fantastic, and the graphics are not that bad when you immerse in the story. The second has also a great story, i really like the game, by i think its my least favourite of the three (probably because i dont like FMV games, although i did enjoy the actors)

I really think you should try them, dont be like i was, i was really ashamed that i waited so much time to play them.

Firstly, to second (fourth?) what is said above. The games are brilliant and GK1 is my favourite adventure game of all time.

The graphics may seem weird at first, if you're not used to older style games, but I assure you that you will not even notice this from about 10 - 15 minutes in!

Also I would definitely play them in order as although the games do stand alone you will gain much more of an insight into Gabriel/Grace as you go through.

In terms of getting hold of 1 & 2 ebay may be your friend!

Best adventure game series of all time? Yea, I'd say it's worth a play.

Ok thanks guys, i guess i will have no choice but to seek them out now hmm probably used as new is too damn expensive at this point.

i will try that DosBox installer thing and see if it makes it easier and then start with GK1 :)

and yes i WAS used to those kind of graphics, after all i played games like Monkey Island etc in my childhood, however after playing years and years of other games and seeing graphics evolve it sometimes becomes a little hard going back, and also some games age well while others do NOT AT ALL, so it depends i guess...

will try it out though :)

imo... gfx are so down the list of what I look for in a game. I mean you want them to be affective.. but the push for "great gfx" is why most games totally suck.. as making next-gen gfx is so expensive that all the other areas of development suffer. Try not to let the older games "looks" freak you out. As the saying goes "they do not make them like they used to" and this is very true in adventure games. All the greatest are from the old games if you ask me.

As for GK... well as many have said the 1st one is widely regarded as one of the best games of all time.. GK2 and 3 are also very good but GK1 is just a shinning star.

oh yeah, i definitely agree with you on all accounts there, but still sometimes it is hard for certain older games that did NOT hold up as well as others to create atmosphere through their settings because the said graphics did not hold up as good... doesn't happen with all games though, i will give it a try and see for myself.

But yeah, i loathe the current generation of HD gaming, since essentially most games are just prettier versions of previous games right now. Which is why i do not own any next gen console yet, but still have a ton of games to play from the era 2000-2006, mainly PC and PS2 games :D

Another one here that recommends you play them in order. When I first played GK1, the graphics put me off a little bit. But by my second playthrough, and gaining a better understanding of the story (thanks to the novel), the game grew on me and sucked me in. 1 and 2 have become favourites of mine and are in my Top 10.

For GK1 I use DOSBox. The installer, that Andrea has linked to, should be all you need. For GK2, the installer that copies all the files to the hard drive, therefore no need for disc swapping, is recommended. It's a great tool. The game runs perfectly fine under XP. I've not experienced any problems anyway.

Maybe it would be better if, like me, you buy them seperately instead of going for the expensive Mystery Pack. Just be sure to go for a 'budget range' copy of GK1 as this contains the CD-ROM. Don't make the mistake I made where I bought the original boxed version and found out it contained the floppy disks. :P

ok will do, but one question does it run STABLE under Dosbox? on this site they say that you get frequent crashes under XP, and what about Vista? :(

I never experienced any crash, both under XP and Vista.

Nope. No crashes. It runs as smooth as silk. When playing it in DOSBox though, it'll be like a cross between the Windows version and the DOS version (small cutscenes and lack of certain sound effects).

I'll be soooo happy when the game is supported by ScummVM. I'll be able to take it with me on holiday and play it on my PSP. :D

True, Sierra is known for having some downright ugly sprites in its adventures, but GK1's hand-painted backgrounds are stunning to me even to this day. I can't think of any other adventure that captures the charm of New Orleans so well.

And while the FMV is a little grainy, GK2's shots of downtown Munich and the Bavarian Alps also are gorgeous. Don't assume GK3 will have the best graphics just because it's the newest. I actually think that graphically, it's the least attractive of the three games (and the least superior in terms of gameplay).

I've only played the 2nd game, but I loved it! I had never seen FMV in games before, and how realistic the filming was just blew my mind. The story and characters grew on me the more I played the game, and it's quite a long game. Even after playing it, I still think about it, which I dont do with most games.

Not sure about the other two, but I'd say give it a go. ;)

Let me put it this way:

Any game that manages to make visiting a museum in-game and reading everything thoroughly fascinating, exciting, and enjoyable is a masterpiece in my opinion.

But seriously, the series is one of the greatest franchises in gaming history. The writing is literally the best of any game I can think of (except maybe Grim Fandango) and the way they mix history with supernatural fiction is ingenious. The puzzles are brilliant and well-integrated, the music is top-notch, and the graphics, though dated, have aged well.

oh so it WILL be supported by SCUMMV some day then? is that a fact? cos that would be nice hmmm

No, its not a fact. The developers said it could happen, but most likely not.

Its going to be a long time before they support SCI games.

+1 on the GK games being excellent. Definitely some of the best adventure games I've played in my lifetime. I'm currently working through GK3 for the first time after finishing the 1st about 2 years ago, and the 2nd this last winter.

GK3 is HARD compared to the 1st and 2nd game. There are a lot more elements in the game that you are required to interact with, and there are (IMO) a few very off-the-wall puzzles that require solving, but the majority of the game is just having to use your brain and possibly keep a notepad of useful info next to your keyboard. And don't be put off by the controls initially...they are very different from the 1st and 2nd game and take some getting used to, but they are actually very intuitive once you get the hang of them and save a lot of time wasted watching your character just walk around.

BTW I'm running Windows 7 Ultimate, and GK3 runs fine except for some of the movies which occasionally crash to the desktop. Since I can't seem to fix the unexpected fatal exception errors I get in some of the movies, I just downloaded bink player to watch them outside of the game if it crash, then just skip them in-game.

They're supporting SCI games now. Have been for a while. ;) And yes, Gabriel Knight 1 will most likely be supported, but not until much later in the future.