[Gabe]

Originally Posted by Gummiball3000

Do somebody know this game,
I like it ...

gretz

yeah it was the coolest ag of year 2k3 ..
For today I'd put it same shelf with classics somehow but frankly replayability value under zero..

[Igor]

Black Mirror was the only adventure game i was really enjoying since... TLJ, i think. Don't get me wrong, it's not of the same "classic" calibre as TLJ, but that cheesy atmosphere of old B horror movies and interesting story really did it for me.
I'm looking forward to their next game Nibiru, which looks to be in similar vein as BM.

[jjacob]

Well, after getting used to Samual's voice, I enjoyed this game. It definately had that GK-type atmosphere (although nowhere near as good ofcourse) I liked. It had so much more potential though! If only the story was just a wee bit better or atleast Samual's voice! Ofcourse these aren't the only flaws, but this was one of those games where flaws didn't seem to matter, even if it didn't have an original identity. Th graphics were beautiful, although somewhat 'stark'. This could've been avoided if the town was a bit more alive and integrated into the story, but sadly it had only like 2 real locations. With adventure games being scarce these days though, I took it all for granted and it was definately rewarding; The game is definately a must play for .. well anyone who visits this forum.

[BUTTERFLY]

i thought the game was awesome a little slow here and there but the end just plain ticked me off. It made sence but for cryin out loud going through all of that for that ending

[timcclayton]

I have to say I was a bit put off by the negative comments and reviews, but I saw it going for a tenner on Amazon and thought I'd get a copy. I have just finished it, and haven't enjoyed a game like that for years. For me, it beats both Syberia's hands down (you can interact with the game world for one, you can double-click on a room to immediately exit it etc...). While the voice acting was a little bit inconsistent, it was nowhere near as bad as everyone seemed to think, although this is the UK version and I don't know if other versions had worse voice acting. The main character's voice is a little stilted at times, but it actually reminded me of Patrick Stewart (Jean-Luc Picard from Star Trek) and the other characters had a good spread of accents, none of them bad, and some very good. And if you really hate the voices, you could just turn on the subtitles and click through the spoken dialogue. The locations are truly beautiful and there are many little animations that breathe life into them. The puzzles were mostly easy and only occasionally difficult, but always fair and there was a good spread of them a few types of which I have never before seen in an adventure game.

Considering some of the dross that is passing as adventure games these days, this is well worth £25/$25 of anyone's money, and you can probably pick it up on Amazon Marketplace or eBay for even less than this.

[VoodooFX]

Originally Posted by Gummiball3000

Do somebody know this game,
I like it ...

gretz

Welcome to the forums, Gummiball3000. Allow me to introduce you a nice little feature of this forum of ours, called 'Search'. This is where you search for something before starting a new thread.

You'll find it very handy.

Enjoy your stay

[timcclayton]

I have to say I was a bit put off by the negative comments and reviews, but I saw it going for a tenner on Amazon and thought I'd get a copy. I have just finished it, and haven't enjoyed a game like that for years. For me, it beats both Syberia's hands down (you can interact with the game world for one, you can double-click on a room to immediately exit it etc...). While the voice acting was a little bit inconsistent, it was nowhere near as bad as everyone seemed to think, although this is the UK version and I don't know if other versions had worse voice acting. The main character's voice is a little stilted at times, but it actually reminded me of Patrick Stewart (Jean-Luc Picard from Star Trek) and the other characters had a good spread of accents, none of them bad, and some very good. And if you really hate the voices, you could just turn on the subtitles and click through the spoken dialogue. The locations are truly beautiful and there are many little animations that breathe life into them. The puzzles were mostly easy and only occasionally difficult, but always fair and there was a good spread of them a few types of which I have never before seen in an adventure game.

Considering some of the dross that is passing as adventure games these days, this is well worth £25/$25 of anyone's money, and you can probably pick it up on Amazon Marketplace or eBay for even less than this.

[100ja a.k.a. mr_mitja]

I think the game is OK, not a mindblower, but OK. The only real problem I had with it is that it's a bit predictable and gets repetitive by the end. But, overall, it's worth playing.

[jjacob]

Originally Posted by timcclayton

Considering some of the dross that is passing as adventure games these days, this is well worth £25/$25 of anyone's money, and you can probably pick it up on Amazon Marketplace or eBay for even less than this.

I hear ya, you don't have to post it twice!
Although I don't agree on the voice acting - the UK version? I bought the 'Dutch' version (which luckily only features dutch subtitles, which are optional, *pfew*), which features English voices, and I have to say it's absolutely afwul. The pronounciation itself is extremely slow and tedious, and there's no emotion (or 'acting' for that matter) whatsoever. Of all adventure games to feature voice acting I'd say this is definately the worst. My guess is you got acclimatized to its low quality, and I have to admit, at some point in the game it doesn't really matter anymore, you're just sort of into the game (which does get an eery atmosphere! ) and stick with it.

[Trevail]

I have to say I enjoyed this game quite a bit. I like the dark storyline and atmosphere. Was one of the better games I have played since I came back to Adventure type games. Only thing is I wish I had read this post before I played so I knew about the double clicking to instant between areas .

[timcclayton]

Originally Posted by jjacob

My guess is you got acclimatized to its low quality, and I have to admit, at some point in the game it doesn't really matter anymore, you're just sort of into the game

You could be right with that - it certainly wasn't perfect but I was enjoying the game so much it probably paled into insignificance for me.

But I find the voice acting on many games really jarring (the Gabriel Knight games spring to mind) - does anyone else have any that they hate as well ???

[Eddy]

black mirror is cool !

[fishcube]

I just picked this up for $10 today. I look forward to playing it. Just found out or new Laptop shipped today! can't wait to get it and start playing adventure games....

now, do I start it first, or LJ or Syberia...hmmm.. decisions decisions...

[Ninth]

Originally Posted by fishcube

I just picked this up for $10 today. I look forward to playing it. Just found out or new Laptop shipped today! can't wait to get it and start playing adventure games....

now, do I start it first, or LJ or Syberia...hmmm.. decisions decisions...

I'd suggest starting with Syberia, and then the Black Mirror, and then the Longest Journey, for the sake of progressive difficulty...

[MDMaster]

The point is that there's no denying that Black Mirror is BETTER than Syberia.

I mean, let's look at it: Syberia has no story whatsoever. It's all down to 'catch that old man and make his dream come true' (that's no spoiler right?), well written in a diary at the beginning of the game, then the story ends there and the rest could have been done in 5 minutes instead of ANOTHER game just for the storyless journey. And why should we follow a madman's dream for no reason other than 'my life is boring'? Bah, whatever. I guess that's one usual Sokal trademark, the same goes with Amerzone (another old man and his dream ), the story is all at the beginning of the game and then ends there. At least Black Mirror has somekind of an interesting story that goes on through the entire game at a decent pace. And I like examining things, actually I love it. In Syberia you can interact only with things you need, that's no good for me; and also I didn't think dialogues in Syberia were that much more interesting than BM.

As for the voices in Black Mirror, it depends how you look at 'em. I am accustomed to italian dubbed games, I don't know if you read some of my earlier posts about it but those lousy italian actors ruined a lot of games (Gabriel Knight 3 above all). The voices in Black Mirror do not ruin the game at all, I was lucky enough to buy a copy in Washington at a very low price and I think the voices suit the game and the 'aristocratic' feeling of it. Maybe they are slow, and sometimes skipping is necessary but hey, I liked 'em.

I sure would say I did not like that damn pistol riddle which could get you stuck with no way out. That's no way to annoy poor gamers which did not see it coming, luckily I had heard of those kind of 'dead end' riddles and I had three save slots ready, otherwise I guess I would have thrown the box out of the window or something.

So to sum it all up, Black Mirror is a nice experience with some strange 'amateurish' touches that could be a bit annoying but do not detract that much from a pleasant enough experience. And since the game was done with the AGDS engine by 5/6 people, I guess it's almost TOO good to be true.

My verdict:
7.5

[Sanjuro2]

Originally Posted by MDMaster

The point is that there's no denying that Black Mirror is BETTER than Syberia.

I mean, let's look at it: Syberia has no story whatsoever. It's all down to 'catch that old man and make his dream come true' (that's no spoiler right?), well written in a diary at the beginning of the game, then the story ends there and the rest could have been done in 5 minutes instead of ANOTHER game just for the storyless journey.

Your avatar belittles your entire post, unfortunately. Anyone with a Bruce Campbell avatar obviously has no place judging plot or character... Heh... :-P

[100ja a.k.a. mr_mitja]

Originally Posted by MDMaster

I sure would say I did not like that damn pistol riddle which could get you stuck with no way out. That's no way to annoy poor gamers which did not see it coming, luckily I had heard of those kind of 'dead end' riddles and I had three save slots ready, otherwise I guess I would have thrown the box out of the window or something.

You got of without a scratch man, I haven't heard of that and I didn't have that. But, anyway, the game was nice. And spooky. And the voice acting and those amateurish touches made it look like some old 60's Roger Corman movies with Vincent Price, like " The Masque of the Red Death" or " The Haunted Palace". I know, they're trashy, but I like these movies. Trash movies rule! Long live Ed Wood! (hmmmm... guess it's a bit late for that)

[MDMaster]

Originally Posted by Sanjuro2

Your avatar belittles your entire post, unfortunately. Anyone with a Bruce Campbell avatar obviously has no place judging plot or character.

Gimme some sugar baby!

Originally Posted by 100ja a.k.a. mr_mitja

Trash movies rule! Long live Ed Wood! (hmmmm... guess it's a bit late for that)

The same reasons why I liked the Phantasmagoria series, the trashier adventure games ever!

[Sanjuro2]

Ha ha MD, but trashy or not, the Phantasmagoria games look like masterworks of production value next to an Ed Wood picture. LOL. :-)

[100ja a.k.a. mr_mitja]

Originally Posted by MDMaster

The same reasons why I liked the Phantasmagoria series, the trashier adventure games ever!

I expected nothing less from a guy who has Bruce Campbell for his avatar