AG Community Playthrough #13: Gabriel Knight 2
 

Welcome, fellow Schattenjagers, to Adventure Gamers' Community Playthrough of A Gabriel Knight Mystery: The Beast Within!


Finally, with all the technical issues behind our backs, we can safely look forward to immerse ourselves into the splendidly Gothic atmosphere of The Beast Within, the best adventure game ever created in my humble opinion!

Since we just finished our Sins of the Fathers playthrough, I won't bother you with a recap of the story so far like I did with Blood of the Sacred, Blood of the Damned, and instead I will focus on the time span between the first adventure and The Beast Within. In fact, while the charming Pause [Note: the site is back online. Sorry for the inconvenience] focus on a single elegiac moment in the life of Gabriel Knight, almost two entire years pass from the end of Sins of the Fathers (June 1993) to the beginning of The Beast Within (Spring 1995).


What did Gabriel do in these two years? For sure, he wrote a somewhat autobiographic horror-pulp novel entitled The Voodoo Murders and clearly inspired by his real-life (mis)adventures with the New Orleans Voodoo cartel. The novel stars Blake Backlash, a tiny-veiled caricature of Gabriel himself, a long-lost uncle named Daemon, a Japanese-American assistant named Fujitsu and even a German maid named Brunhilde (as per the novelization). There is even an order of men dedicated to battle the forces of evil, the "Guardians of Truth and Light". Since the novel contains so many real-life references, perhaps is safe to assume that Gabriel spent the two year between his last case and this new one doing what Blake Backlash did:

The most exciting development of the past year involved building plaster and a lot of hammering. It was enough to drive a scion to seek out the highest ramparts and throw himself over. Still, he reasoned, things could be worse. If it wasn't for all the money he'd stolen from the voodoo hounfour before it went up into flames, he'd still be reading by candlelight and freezing his balls off in this Bavarian refrigerator.

So life hasn't exactly been exciting or remotely interesting for our heroes (yes, I'm counting Blake Backlash too), as Gabriel spent a lot of his time renovating the castle thanks to the money taken from the security vault in the underground hounfour. He might not have needed it at all, though, since, as Grace informs him in her first letter, his "US bank account his blossoming - not unlike the desert after a fluke storm." The Voodoo Murders, in fact, has make the New York Times best-seller list and Gabriel seems to finally have found his block-buster (after, as you may recall, many unsuccessful and critically-bashed novels like Fire in the Hills).

But wasn't Grace supposed to return to school after the summer in New Orleans? Yes. But she decided against it, and - "excited by some Chandleresque vision" - she has asked Gabriel to stay and help him with all the Schattenjager business. Surprisingly enough, Gabriel has accepted her request:

She'd practically taken over the grunt work of the shop that summer, and she'd done a lot of research for the case as well. Besides, he liked her. She had a funny, sarcastic kind of charm that suited him, a New York bluntness that made him laugh.

As it is, though, Gabriel comes later to regret such a decision, because there hasn't been another case for more than a year, and he's starting to feel a weary lot of responsibility toward Grace and her decision to drop off school. Although he really intented to write her and urge her to go back to Harvard, he didn't, mainly because "he did kind miss her."

I'll spare you the legal details concerning the Ritter's estate and the relationship between the Ritter family and Ubergrau, Hoffen & Schnell, and I'll point out that this kind of behaviour - dropping off the map in a secluded location on the Bavarian Alps, doing menial works of repair to the manor, working hard on his career - isn't oddly peculiar for our charming womanizer, Gabriel. We didn't expect this sudden turn of events. But, really, can you blame him?

He'd come to Germany a few months after the death of Malia and the destruction of the voodoo hounfour. Part of it had been to settle Wolfgang's estate, but mostly he'd wanted to get away from New Orleans, from the memory of the dark-skinned womand who had been the first true love of his life, the woman he'd pretty much murdered. [...] He found he needed to be in Schloss Ritter, to be surrounded by the very real evidence of the Schattenjager past in order for him to retain any belief in it at all. So he'd stayed at the castle and worked - [...] yet another form of catharsis

It's evident from this passage that Gabriel still blames himself for the death of Malia, despite atoning from Gunter's sins and actively trying to save his beloved. And it's also evident that he tried hard to atone for her death by sublimating the experience through his art, since Grace also notes, later in the novel, that The Voodoo Murders was born after a frantic three-day marathon during which Gabriel barely left his bedroom/studio.

Anyway, it's coscience-striken Gabriel the one we found desperately trying to write a new Blake Backlash novel at the beginning of The Beast Within, a man that is harshly trying to convince himself that there is a meaning to all those things that happened to him and trying hard not to think about the implications and consequences of his present actions; a man that has gone back to his rocking-chair mentality, while still unable to reconquer his ease of spirit and love for life. It will take this new case to make him the better man and finally ferry him from adolescence to maturity.

Note: all the passages above are taken from Jane Jensen, The Beast Within, ROC 1998, pp. 11-30

While it's true that The Beast Within's chapters are longer than Sins of the Fathers's days, they nonetheless lend themselves perfectly to set our own playing segments. So, without further ado, I think that we can safely - and finally! - begin:

I'm so happy we finally started it. Wohoo!http://www.easyfreesmileys.com/smile...mileys-349.gif

It's my first GK2 playthrough. Actually, I've played the first chapter before, but I got stuck at the zoo puzzle and completely forgot about the game. Now, in this playthrough, i got stuck in the same part for a while, but I figured out that i could

Spoiler:

use the radio splice function, and fake the zoo manager speech.

Day one was pretty cool. Finished it with 90 points. I miss the "ring" noise when you find something important, hehehe.

Note: I remember when I saw GK2's cover for the first time, I thought the game would the about vampires, lol.

Yay!! I'm glad I can play the game with your insight, Andrea.

I love the opening sequence. Even though a lot of people have problems with live action, I really like it. You can see a lot of emotions which would be lost on cartoons. Where did Gabriel get the scratches on his arm?

Fantasy, I'm sorry, but I don't think it's okay to ask your question about the prologue. It gives far too much away for people who haven't played the game and there's no warning that your question is about things that happen much later. I have a question about the prologue too, so let's wait until later.

From Malia's ritual dagger at the end of Sins of the Fathers. About the prologue, I fully intend to discuss it once we reach Chapter Six.

Later today I'll post my usual column about Chapter One ;)

My mistake. I wasn't sure if we were going to discuss it later on in the game. Trust in the Andrea, the Andrea is good. (My apologies, Fien. I thought saying I've played the game before and putting it in spoilers would suffice. I've removed it. And now I feel bad.)

I love how a map is used to get from place to place in this game, and I'd suppose GK1, too. lol It's an easy way to get around, and not have to animate every single little thing. ;)

Hey, what's this! No reason to feel bad, Fantasy. None.
And thanks for removing it.

I’m a sucker for FMV and this is one of the best FMV adventures ever. As much as I loved Tim Curry’s Gabe, nothing beats real people. IMO. :) There’s quite a bit of German spoken to create a genuine local atmosphere, but the clever game makes sure you don’t miss anything important. Having said that, I would have missed that the woman and child in the intro are actually leaving the place (first time I watched it I thought they were going outside to get a closer look at the burning fire, and I blame the grainy graphics for my mistake), if it hadn’t finally dawned on me that the German guy called out “the carriage is waiting!”. Intriguing intro which sets a nicely dark and creepy tone. Love the Robert Holmes music.

The opening movie is excellent too. Spooky procession, torches, Blake Backlash book, ancient typewriter, madonna, tantrum, dramatic scene of the child getting killed...gotto love it. I feel they picked the right guy to play Gabriel, although I’m not so sure everybody agrees with me. Herr Huber is very good, the other minor characters could have been much better. Gerde has changed quite a bit since her potato peeling days.

The first chapter is not real exciting. Basic inquiries, solid investigative stuff, getting a feel for the place. Nice references to GK1: the scars on Gabe’s arm, the Saints song, admiring his thick manes in the mirror. :D

I have a question for our Munich resident. About the zoo:

Spoiler:

The fences around the wolf area are awfully low. Too low to be realistic. Do you know if the real zoo is anything like the few pics we get to see in the game?

About the puzzles:

Spoiler:

What is it with the obscure GK clock puzzles? This one was ridiculous too. A prime example of doing something just because you can, not because you have any idea what good it will do.

Finished with a score of 90.

I don't know if it's just me, but something about Herr Huber's acting was a bit off. I really like him, but the way when he was telling of his relative's death, and said, "Yeah, it's bad" just felt off. I really like his character, and the rest of his acting is awesome. I also like this Gabriel, and since this was the first GK game I played, the definitive. I pictured Gerde as a rather plain maid, so this Gerde makes me rethink that image.

Thought I would try installing and see if it would play on my win 7 Pro 64.bit and it works like a charm :D

Sorry, but I actually don't like this Gabe or Grace :)
The acting feels akward from both of them - many of the germans are a lot better.
At least that's my humble opinion.

Sorry if I missed something but,

Spoiler:

what clock puzzle?

I don't think it's possible to finish with less than 90 points! (is it Andreas?)

Re the zoo, I actually hadn't been there in the 15 years I've lived in Munich, but was there for the first time only 5 months ago (It's what happens when you've got a 2-year-old child!). So I can vouch that the Zoo (like every other "real" location in the game) is authentic - I made sure I checked out the wolf enclosure while I was there ;). It's possible the fences were manipulated a bit, but fundamentally, it's the same. (Don't think any "spoiler" bits are needed here? I'll need to try & work out how to do them for other bits in a minute!)

GK2 was (I think) the first "modern" adventure I played - I had a Sinclair Spectrum (those were the days) back in the mid-80's and got into text adventures (Level 9, the Hobbit etc) back in those "quality" days ;). But till moving to Munich, I hadn't seen anything of Lucas Arts or Sierra adventures.

On moving to Munich end 94, I got to know another British guy here, who at some point in 95 (I guess, maybe '96?) showed me GK2 - he was more of a wargamer himself, but the Munich aspect made it interesting. I played through day 1 on my own (seem to remember he helped me a bit with

Spoiler:

splicing the tape to help get in to see the wolves

. From day 2 onwards, we played it through together - I do remember walking the 30mins home at around 1 o'clock in the morning...and that was after finishing day 5!

Spoiler:

Anyone who can remember what happened at that point will understand why, though I'm not normally someone who has a problem walking around alone late at night, in this case I was rather nervous :D

Hence GK2 will always have a special place in my heart, and I have no problem with either actor - someone who was used to Tim Curry from GK1 did have to get used to something different. Gracie I always found excellent in GK2 - indeed, despite there being 3 different actors for her, the changes between the 3 games worked pretty seamlessly I feel, for Gaby it's certainly a much bigger change. With it being the first "modern" adventure of quality I played, and with it being set in Munich, nothing's ever managed to knock it off the No. 1 spot for me; indeed, only GK1, GK3, and Longest Journey have come close.

I don't think so - he's meant to be a non-native (English) speaker, and so that he doesn't happen to have the range of vocabulary to describe what he wants to say is very reasonable. Most of the acting's pretty good for me, (though watching the same clip five times over makes it feel a bit wooden ;). A problem for Gaby & Gracie at times), though I wasn't very convinced by Sepp or his wife at the beginning - still, they weren't exactly major characters.

Yep, this is one of the things that's great about the game - indeed, it gives quite a different impression at times when you do understand German compared to when you don't. I'll come back to this on a later day, but two good examples from day 1 are:
(1) in the police station - understanding what the policeman's saying (in very patronising German ;)) gives it quite a different impression :D. Indeed, one beautiful bit is when Gabe asks for Kommissar Leber, he actually tell the policeman he's looking for "Liebe" i.e. love :D.
(2) When I first played GK2, we got stuck early on because

Spoiler:

we couldn't go to the Zoo. The reason turned out to be when we found the newspaper at the Huber's farm, we hadn't clicked on it. We didn't need to because we'd understood the German and so had just read it. However, it's clicking on the newspaper that gets Gaby's comment about not understanding much German but that it's about wolves escaping from the Zoo etc and so "releases" the Zoo location at Thalkirchen. An unusual way to get stuck in an adventure :P

Spoiler:

I think Fien's getting ahead of her(?)self here - the clock puzzle in question is stilla couple of days away ;)

Finished day 1 a couple of days ago...am being good and waiting here :D

Yay finally we could start. So what can I say, I love this game, even though it may have its flaws and I miss some of the things from the other GK and the other forms of gameplay, such as more interactivity, but FMV has a lot to offer. I definitely love the depth the characters and the setting have thanks to the real actors and situations. I also miss Tim Curry's Gabe, it has like more charisma and adds more humor to the otherwise serious and dark atmosphere but I think the actor did a good job, as well as Grace's, who in my opinion resembles a lot (even physically) to Grace in GK1.

Spoiler:

I have to also agree with the zoo puzzle, the first time I had to look a walk through cause I just couldn't figure out what to put in the message (similar to the Cemetery puzzle in GK 1) I find it curious that in both GK1 and GK (and even GK3) one of the hardest puzzles is just right at the beginning (clock puzzle, disguise?) instead of at the end which is when there should be more difficulty. It's a weird choice in my opinion that can pull off some players, but it's a great chapter anyways.

I also love the references to GK 1, like the music in the Police Station and the guy playing in the street. Is he playing some of the songs that were also played on Jackson Park or is it just my impression?

Thanks DaveyB, it's great to have someone giving us more insight on the language and things about the real locations, it must have been quite an experience for you! (like the newspaper bit) By the way, now that you mention the German being spoken through the game, I was wondering if you could give us like hints on what people is saying,

Spoiler:

such as the guy in the Police Station (I'm really curious about that one) or what Von Zell and the others say at the club the first day...

I know they are not really important for the game, but it would be really fun to know what is people saying that neither us nor Gabe could understand :P

We've begun! So exciting :D and just in time with me starting my Masters at uni too, lucky me!

I'm a little stuck in the first chapter still, hopefully I can get through it in time. My first impressions are good though. The thing that bugs me the most is the amount of cutting between characters during conversation - I just want it to stay on the person rather than seeing 100 different nods from Gabriel (unless it's something of particular importance).

I am starting to get used to the real life Gabriel (I do still miss Tim though :frown:), so far all I've heard of Grace is her voice (which is alarmingly similar). Then Gerde which I would agree seems different. And yes, far from the potato peeling days Fien haha!

Actually the other thing I've noticed with the dialogue bits is odd facial expressions. The worker at the zoo that you first meet makes about 20 different faces during the length of the conversation. And the guy at the zoo office tends to give Gabriel a kind of intent observation on his way out. A little too intent if you ask me :shifty:. Of course, not knowing the story it could be that he has some secret cause to make this expression, but to me he appears to have a special... fondness for him ;).

I'm very intrigued with where this story is gonna go though. The woods at the Huber farm is particularly creepy. I just want to dive into them and go exploring! But Gabriel won't! Argh! Patience...

Hehehe, me too. It's indeed the same song played on jackson park, it's called "oh when the saints".

About the zoo fences: it's true they're pretty low when looked at from the visitor's side, but you have to know that usually there's a trench a the animals' side so they can't actually reach the fenced. Also, the ground over there is usually much lower as well.

Now, it's not really clear whether that's also the case here, moreso because of

Spoiler:

Gabe's attempt to call them over. He wouldn't be able to reach them even if they did listen

. So that might just have been changed in order to introduce this particular puzzle.

Wow, so good to see so many comments about the first day already.

I must admit it was a shock to see Gabe in Beast Within - i still cannot sort of get accustomed to the fact that he is supposed to the same person as "Tim Curry" in GK 1 and 3. He wears high heels and has red hair...:crazy: Also, Gerde, a sophisticated and dignified hausfrau, is like half a meter taller than he is :devil:

But the locations look admirably natural, Schloss Ritter and all. I wish there was more items to click on, although Gabe's comments are nothing like in GK1 - he has really lost his sense of humour in Germany:D

Actually I second this, I forgot to mention it myself. I was so disapointed when I found out he just mumbles one liners in response to the one icon you can use on everything, and multiple investigations produced nothing :frown:

Sorry, I don't mean to nag at the game so early - just getting used to the water...

A few of the above comments reminded me of when I first played this game.

I loved GK1 (as some of you will have probably gathered! :D) and I was really looking forward to playing GK2. However, when I first played it I actually gave up on it a couple of times because of how different it was.

Obviously the transition to FMV was a big one, and I hadn't played an FMV game before, but the biggest problem I had was old Gabe himself. I think that what I loved most about the first game was the Character of Gabriel, his comments, the way he related to others etc. and suddenly in the second game there was this guy I didn't recognise at all. I don't just mean that he looks different of course, but his whole personality seemed to have morphed into a fairly bland American sit-com star (these were my first impressions remember...) and much of his charm had simply gone.

Now obviously they couldn't get an actor who looked exactly like Gabe from the first one (pixelated faces are always hard to come by :D), and in the absence of Tim Curry things weren't going to be exactly the same. However, this Gabriel seemed to me to be a bland and diluted version of the original without the wit and humour.

I should say though that even though I gave up on the game a couple of times in the first chapter I'm honestly glad I went back and played it as this is a really great game with some brilliantly compelling characters (although unfortunately Gabe isn't really one of them). So let me encourage anyone playing this for the first time who might feel like I did, persevere with this game, it's well worth it.

Did anyone else feel the same when they first played this game, or does anyone out there prefer the "new" Gabriel? Be very interested to hear your thoughts (first impressions only of course!).

Hi everyone! As promised yesterday, I'm back with my usual column about the game and this time around it will be particularly rich, so I hope that you'll enjoy it!


A well-hidden depth

If you have played Sins of the Fathers or Blood of the Sacred, Blood of the Damned, one of the first thing that will strike you in The Beast Within is the lack of interactive hotspots on screen. As a matter of fact, it's pretty obvious - and many of you already noticed it - that gone are the lengthy descriptions of the environments, the fascinating details about the most unassuming objects and witty remarks just about everything. However, labelling The Beast Within as shallow will be a serious mistake. While Gabriel's first and third adventures are more similar to written novels, The Beast Within, like it or not, is an interactive movie and - just like every movie out there - its depth is conveyed more through the visuals (cinematic directions, different types of shot, cinematography, use of colors) than through written thoughts. Surely, Jane could have gone with a voice-off commentary like the beloved Tex Murphy series, but - while the off-camera voice is a common trope in Noir fiction - it doesn't lend itself very well to an intimate horror mystery. The depth, though, is there, and I will try to find it with you.

Let's start with the Huber farm: the use of roses, yellows, beiges and warm wooden tones - the cupboard, the crucifix, the table, the carpet - create a very safe, cozy ambiance and, in fact, the farm's living room will be a safe haven for all the adventure. But what does it tell us about the Hubers, even without Gabriel's remarks about the setting? The books in the sideboard, which are mostly about religious matters, and the crucifix certainly tell us that the Hubers are a very catholic family, perhaps even a slightly bigoted one, while the antlers on the wall reveal that Sepp was a skilled hunter (much like everyone from Rittersberg and surroundings). The china collection and Gabriel's comment about it - if you're a die-hard fan of the series, you know that this obsession with china is a recurring joke throughout the three adventures -, on the other hand, refers to his condemnation of a typical bourgeois lifestyle (G. Gozzano's good things of really bad taste), while hinting at his longing toward the safe world of his childhood (Grandma Knight), a world that now more than ever is forever lost to him.

Chapter One's other pivotal location, Herr Doktor Klingmann's office, reveal another well planned construction: the colors here are more dull - but not cold and aseptic like in the Biology lab at the University -, but the huge photographs on the wall are placed there for a reason. To the left of the doctor, for example, the wolves in the frame display a reddish color, like they were photographed at sunset, while the photo behind Gabriel portrays a pack of wolves in a snowy setting. The clash between the two images is a metaphor of the clash between Klingmann's point of view on nature and Gabriel's own views on the subject. More deeply, they also hint at the plot's future developments.

Spoiler:

The snowy wolves refer obviously to Ludwig, while the red ones hint at Klingmann's connection with the (were)wolves responsible for the death of Tony Huber and, generally speaking, at his views on the state of nature

Philosophy: The State of Nature

Herr Doktor Klingmann's theories about wolves clearly refer to a philosophical concept known as state of nature. If we read Hobbes' work, and he's perhaps the first philosopher to create such a notion, we see that his theory of bellum omnium contra omnes, sometimes referred to as homo homini lupus, is an obvious precedent of the "survival of the fittest" and a type of mentality Klingmann seems to endorse. In this theory, anyone has a natural right to to do anything to preserve his life, as much as any state, on a political scale, as the natural right to do anything to preserve (and expand) their wealth, even at the cost of less powerful states. Life in this state of nature is described by Hobbes in the Leviathan as "solitary, poor, nasty, brutish, and short.", and - aside from the last adjective - I find that this description perfectly fits what we will find out later about the Black Wolf. This pessimistic view was later discarded both by Locke (who used Christian beliefs to formulate his theory about Reason as the fundamental law of nature), and Rousseau, who - despire never actually using the "noble savage" expression - indeed postulated a state of nature where people where neither good or bad, while writing that "you are undone if you once forget that the fruits of the earth belong to us all, and the earth itself to nobody." (Discourse on Inequality)

Occult Lore: On Werewolves

We may, however, say that a werewolf is a human being, man, woman or child (more often the first), who either voluntarily or involuntarily changes or is metamorphosed into the apparent shape of a wolf, and who is then possessed of all the characteristics, the foul appetites, ferocity, cunning, the brute strength, and swiftness of that animal. [...] The Transformation, again, such as it is, if desired, can be effected by certain rites and ceremonies, which in the case of a constitutional werewolf are often of the black goetic kind. The resumption of the original form may also then be wrought at will. Werewolfery is hereditary or acquired; a horrible pleasure born of the thirst to quaff warm human blood, or an ensorcelling punishment and revenge of the dark Ephesian art

Montague Summers, The Werewolf in Lore and Legend, Dover 2003, p. 2 (originally published in 1933 as The Werewolf)

Real-life Locations: Marienplatz

Literally meaning Mary's Place, Marienplatz is the most important - and perhaps the most famous - Munich landmark, with its beautiful Glockenspiel, which celebrates the end of the 1517 plague (and the subsequent tournament of 1568), the golden Marian Column, the Old Town Hall, originally built in 1474 and reconstructed after World War II, the Church of the Holy Spirit (interior, exterior) and, of course, the stunning New Town Hall.

I don't know if you're already familiar with Ipkiss's Real Life Locations Tour (he's even a member here, and I really hope that he can take a little time and hop in), but, in my opinion, his videos are priceless. So, in my Real Life paragraph, I'd like to link at his tours and, if you haven't already seen them, I strongly suggest you to do so right away: the first part of his original tour take us to the zoo and to Marienplatz, while these other two videos (Part 12, Part 13) focus on the platz itself and on Ubergrau's office (exterior and interior).

Chapter One in the Novel
He was a tall man, at least six-two. He was extravagantly handsome with dark hair that curled on the shoulders of his immacolate gray suit and a strong, rugged yet boyish face. As he stepped forward, the breadth of his shoulders and the long, angular lines they narrowed to struck a chord of envy in the shorter American. [...] "Gabriel. Like the angel" the main said, looking with bemused curiosity into Gabriel's eyes.

Jane Jensen, Gabriel Knight: The BEast Within, Roc 1998, pp. 48-49

PS: Sorry, I couldn't resist to put up a quote from my favorite character! :D

Yay, chapter one is done! :D I have to say, the puzzle involving

Spoiler:

the tape splicing

was simply annoying as all hell. Also with the receipt when you had to

Spoiler:

use it on the mirror

was a complete fluke. I was basically out of options and was joking around when I did it :crazy:.

I think the ending of the chapter is starting to give me a more filmic sense of where it can go which is cool. I think I'll wait for more of the game before I comment any more on particulars...

EDIT: Interesting points there on the choice of decor and whatnot Andrea! I was liking the youtube tour until it started showing shots of parts I haven't seen yet and I had to close it :(

It is possible, because I managed it the first time.

Spoiler:

Didn't see Frau Huber's note, but I could pick up the car keys anyway.

Huu! And the youtube video (which I have seen before but I plain forgot the zoo was in it too) confirms what you said, although it's hard to get a good view of the fences. Remind me to give the wolf area a wide berth, next time I’m visiting the Munich Tiergarten. :D

@Matan: Oops! Wrong chapter. I hate it when people spoil my fun, so I'm very sorry. :pan:

@Danigar: I will give you the gist of the German lines but you may be disappointed.

Spoiler:

The policeman is trying to get through to Gabe and he says what you’d expect him to say: No, I don’t speak English, can I help you? What do you want? Who wants to see Kommissar Leber? You are...? He is busy, he has no time, he cannot see you, goodbye. Americans... pfff.

Baron Von Zell: I don’t want to discuss it here with you.
Herr Doktor Klingmann: My apologies, I have honestly no idea why... [enter Von Glower]

Von Zell simply tells Von Glower he has to leave.

Andrea:
On the contrary. Herr Doktor Klingmann actually *denies* believing in the survival of the fittest, just before he explains his Language of Death theory.

I expressed myself wrong. I meant that his mentality seems to stem from Hobbes' theory about the State of Nature (which, in turn, influenced also the survival of the fittest mentality). The two theories - bellum omnium contra omnes and survival of the fittest (Darwinism, sort of) - have the same philosophical root (as per Bertrand Russell, On the Philosophy of Science, 1965), even if they are not exactly the same - semantics, of course, since one can easily see Survivalism as a direct consequence of the natural right to war expressed by Hobbes. However, Klingmann, in that sequence, is simply discarding the most popular application of the negative Hobbesian state of nature, while endorsing its more noble philosophical counterpart.

Just letting you know that I'm replaying that title too, for the first time since I was uh, 14. I ought to get a more mature view of things this time round, being almost 22. First thing that struck me - poor video quality, and this is without interlacing. Perhaps I'm just too spoiled by HD quality movies, but still. Also, most of the cast is okay-ish, including Gabe, but there is the occasional bad, non-professional actor. Take that scientist or the clerk at the lodge for instance. On the other hand, Peter Lucas pretty much steals the show. As a matter of fact, he was in Lynch's latest picture, Inland empire. Although it is a very difficult film, he shines there too. I'm off to play chapter 2, despite my disliking for Grace, who is the weakest main actor in my opinion.

INLAND EMPIRE is a masterpiece.

I'm with you there. To be honest pretty much anything David Lynch is a masterpiece, Mullholland Drive is my favourite [/offtopic]

Since David Lynch is my favorite director and INLAND EMPIRE features Peter J. Lucas this is not off-topic! :D

Just kidding, of course! Back to The Beast Within!

Anyway, my favorite Lynch movie is Mulholland Dr. as well, tied with Fire Walk With Me, tied with Blue Velvet, tied with A Straight Story... Heck, I love everything he did! And I even met him in Milan, when he opened with a piano concert his art exhibit The Air is On Fire: he's a great man!

This Gabriel was the first one I was introduced to, but after playing the first one, I see why people would miss the wise-cracking Tim Curry. I don't know if this was it, but he was probably really destraught when (spoiler for first game)

Spoiler:

Malia died,

so maybe that took some of his spunk out?

I like the attention to detail they put in the game, even down to the little task of washing out the bucket after using. :P

The Muenchen tour is just awesome! Very funny and ingenious.

Just don't get me started on Von Glower :9~

If I were a man, I would definately consider switching to a different orientation -

Spoiler:

and I am suprised Gabe didn't ;)

A word of warning: when you find a document in GK 2 make sure that you not only (personally) read every page, but that Gabe/Grace also "read" them (by simply clicking on every page until the reader's voice is heard - you can stop the reading aftewards by clicking again on the page if, for some reason, you want so). I remember that I couldn't go further from certain locations and wondered what I did wrong, only to find that it was because I did not let Gabriel or Grace read the whole letter/document (which I did, of course).
This is specially important when:

Spoiler:

- you read the letter from Gabriel's ancestor
- you browse the documents in Vagner's museum

This comes later in the game and you would probably be warned by Andrea too, but since it caused me a lot of trouble I thought it would be appropriate to share the experience with you who now enter the scary but wonderful world of The Beast Within. What a great game, I envy you all who play it for the first time :frown:.

Wow thanks Andrea, that's a very interesting and wonderful insight. I think the part about the philosophy is very interesting and I can't wait when we get more in depth in that side of the game as it progresses. I have to agree that what this game lacks in interaction or with the characters' remarks, it completely makes it up for it with its cinematic style and depth. Like Fien said, nothing beats real actors I would say, cause I understand why people would not like Gabe's or Grace's actors in contrast with the ones in the other games, but this way feels like more compelling and closer to a movie form and gives it a total new depth, like Andrea perfectly put it... I also loved the tour as well! I haven't seen it before and I enjoyed it immensely, it is indeed very funny (loved the end of part 13 :D ). I didn't see it all but I supposed Andrea would provide the respective locations that are explored in each Chapter :) ... By the way guys thanks for mentioning Lynch and those movies, I'm not really familiar with his work but now you got me all interested. I'll have to check it out ;)

That's what I felt too. I couldn't have been more disappointed with Gabriel's persona (it looked like he's going to grab Von Glower's a$$ at any moment :D). I still remember that it's thanks to him that I've learned (the true meaning of) the English word "drawl". I cursed the creators of the game for not supplying the titles all the time I was playing GK 2 :frusty:.
Boy, are you in for a (magnificent) surprise :7.

99% right I think Fien (with obviously some possible translation variations), not bad for the "gist" :D. Only thing I think you missed was

Spoiler:

after (I think) the policeman said "Goodbye", he then said "the door please".

@Danigar: As Fien says, there's nothing stunning in the German that you're missing (nor should there be) but the policeman's very nicely done and the conversation between von Zell & Klingmann makes sense later on. All well done: you're not missing anything if you don't understand German, but it's a nice little "extra" if you do - all typical of Jane Jensen.

Much as it almost feels like sacrilige to disagree with Andreas on the subject of Gabriel Knight, but I can't go along with that. I'm not spotting the books in the sideboard at all (maybe they're mentioned in the book? Or am I being blind?) and having a cross in the wall in countryside (as opposed to Munich - quite a different thing!) Bavaria doesn't actually show the inhabitants are necessarily very Catholic, and certainly not bigoted. It's a common cultural thing, the same as school classrooms still have a cross on the wall. It doesn't actually signify that the people are strict Catholics.

I never said Inland empire wasn't a masterpiece, I just said it was difficult. If you're looking for a starter, try Mulholland Drive or, if you have more free time, Twin Peaks. Also, if you have already seen all Lynch movies, do try those of Atom Egoyan, they are rather similar in mood if not in style. [/offtopic]

I'm replaying the game faster than I thought I would, I'm now as far as chapter four. Guess I'll just post all my thoughts when I finish it.

Finished day one with 90 points as well.

Prologue: I never understood what the guy calling the woman and child is saying, and I still don’t. The whole sequence is very atmospheric and really sets the mood, even though its meaning will only become clear much later. I also like how (watch out, very heavy spoiler here!)

Spoiler:

the door that guy locks turns out to be the dungeon of the Rittersberg town hall.

The only thing that bothered me about it is one shot of a white tower-like building with the flames in front of it. It looks like obvious artwork instead of a real location.

In fact, I've noticed that several inventory objects are obvious drawings as well, where they don't even bother to make them look real. Like the talisman. With other items it's hard to discern whether they're artwork as well or actual photographs of real objects.

Opening movie: the introduction of the new Gabe. When it comes to physical appearance, I think Dean Erickson fits the bill. His voice is another matter, though. I’ve tried paying attention to his comments and content-wise, it’s very reminiscent of the “Sins of the Fathers” Gabriel. Only Tim Curry could sound very sarcastic, and it seems Erickson’s voice is too “soft” to pull that off. His remarks just don’t carry the same weight or the correct intonation. I don’t know, this is hard to explain since it’s more of a feeling than actual facts, so I hope you can understand what I mean.

And the Oscar for most pouty facial expression goes to … Wesley Mann! (Sepp Huber). I thought it was funny to see this actor here, totally unexpected. I remember seeing him often as waiter or butler or something like that in several movies and TV shows.

Most famous voice … Kay Kuter! This actor has a very impressive filmography, and he has voiced characters in “Grim Fandango” and “Curse of Monkey Island”.

The actual gameplay begins. I’m reading comments of bad movie quality, not enough hotspots … I say: meh. I remember I was totally ecstatic to actually see real video on my computer back when I first played this game, the quality never really bothered me and still doesn’t. The amount of hotspots: same thing. Yeah, it’s fun to have a lot of things to examine and hear comments about. I call this game time-efficient: ideal for people who play games on a more occassional basis and often take weeks (sometimes even months) of real time to finish one. I think there are still enough extra little things to examine in the game and I never felt myself wanting more.

Cue the dramatic violins whenever Gabriel discovers something interesting.

Something that struck me when I started playing was how silent the Huber farm actually is, with only that ticking clock. I’m missing some background music. Of course, with constant music, those violins wouldn’t sound as dramatic. And I noticed that, whenever they do add some music, the voices are very hard to discern.

Another thing about Gabriel’s comments: sometimes the quality is so bad it sounds like lines he phoned in afterwards. He sounds very muffled.

I liked how

Spoiler:

collecting the wolf hair is similar to collecting the snake scales in "Sins".

The tour of Munich. A bunch of fantastic extras in this game. The police officer is brilliant. I understand a bit of German so I never had a problem with his speech, although I did miss that “Liebe” facial expression up till now.

The prize for most bug-eyed expression: Gil Neuman as Thomas the zoo keeper. Talk about over acting … Did you know he’s actually listed as assistant director as well?

Something I’ve always wondered about. When

Spoiler:

they’re with the wolves, one of them starts barking and growling at them. But the wolf is shown as being behind a fence. So I would think the animal can’t reach them, yet they still run away. I guess it was the only safe way to film an angry wolf, and they didn’t bother or couldn’t afford the technology to edit out the fence in post production.

I don’t know, I just thought it was weird.

Wolf Muser as Klingmann. I remembered him as a bad guy in an episode of MacGyver.

The person to win a year of therapy for his OCD: Harald Übergrau! Every time someone leaves his office, he turns the little globe on his desk. There must be a one inch indentation there already. I’ll also give him the prize for spending the most time at the hairdresser. Yes, even more than Gabe himself. I used to think he resembled our crown prince Filip, though that could just be me.

And finally we reach the lodge. I just love Xaver! Did you know the guy’s a yoga instructor, as well as a writer of children’s books?

Von Glower. We’ll see plenty more of him. I still remember watching “Independence Day” and there’s this one second shot of a Russian reporter on the tv news when the ufo’s reach the major cities, very bad quality, but I immediately recognized Peter Lucas. Must be the hair.

The others in the lodge:

Richard Raynesford (Von Zell) has this Gordon Ramsey thing going on. Atttitude and all. He just finished a new horror movie, “Psychosis”, but I don’t know what kind of part he has in it.

Clement von Franckenstein (Von Aigner) has appeared in many movies and tv shows. I saw him once after playing the game for the first time, but I don’t remember where. He played a German as well, I believe.

Edmund L. Shaff (Hennemann) is the dolt of the company, it seems. Impressive resumé as well, though, and he even appeared in recent shows as “Mad Men” and “Desperate Housewives”.

Clabe Hartley (Preiss) always freaked me out here. Never liked this character, and never understood why he was actually there.

Finished day 1 now. I must say that a couple of things struck me on this playthrough that hadn't before:

1. Funky 90's female clothing!

Gerde & Grace both have the dowdy unflattering look, whereas Ubergrau's secretary is a whole new level of hip! :kiss::kiss::D It makes me laugh but I love it! (...I wonder what my wife would say if ... NO NO! :D)

2. Award for the campest German ever in a game!

Michael at the university is the most fabulously camp character I think i've ever seen in a game. This is a story that deals with desires and passions of many sorts and it's nice to have, what might be called, a bit of lighter comic relief here and there. (Hybrid? ... Oooh, you mean when a Wolf and Dog...)

If you've never watched any David Lynch before i'd probably start with Blue Velvet, although Mulholland drive has the most powerful cinematic moment ever in it in my opinion.:) [/offtopic]

I must agree! :P