Broken Sword – Shadow of the Templars: Reforged Review (Switch)

In the mid 90's Revolution released Broken Sword with little hype or press attention. By the time the game came to be converted onto the Playstation, it was being acknowledged as one of the most astounding adventures ever made and to this day it remains at the peak of the point and click genre. The last we saw of the game on consoles was the Directors Cut which added a few extra sections for Nicole, some Wiimote waggle and, criminally, removed the iconic opening. This reforged version removes the added extras and gives you the original game with the option of both the original and new look graphics.

The plot follows unsuspecting tourist George as he finds himself caught up in a murder at a small Paris cafe. After a bomb blast George raises himself from beneath a crushed umbrella, brushes himself off and unwisely decides to investigate. The story takes you all around the world as countries such as Ireland, France and Syria give up their parts of the mystery.

What makes the game so great is the care and attention to the script. Every conversation contains humour and charm, and you never feel bored while the characters speak their piece. It helps that everyone you meet is brilliantly over the top (the mad kebab seller using the toilet brush for basting springs to mind). The skill of the writers to make sure the characters are funny as well as informative is to be commended. Although, characters can fall into the cliched category perhaps once too often.

Apart from the great characters, the puzzles are among the finest to be found in the genre. Broken Sword gently eases you into the way you need to think. Most puzzles are logical but do require you to really understand the objects you have. For instance, a blood pressure gauge found in the hospital can be used to stop the flow of water in a hose. The player really must think as inventively as the programmers to get through. This new version has added a hint system in for those looking to make quicker progress though.

The Switch controls aren’t up there with a mouse of course but they are more than a match for the few time-based puzzles found within the game. There are touch controls available on the pad as well, but we didn’t find them particularly useful or needed. The new look of the game is in keeping with the original and style and we couldn’t ever quite decide which look we preferred the most. Luckily the graphics can be switched with a simple button press at any time. One thing that hasn’t been updated though is the audio, which serves as one of the few disappointments as the recording quality is really showing its age now.

Despite its age, Broken Sword is an exceptional game and remains a high point of the genre. Apart from the slight problem with the controls it's faultless. This is one of the best adventure stories you will ever encounter and is perfectly scripted and perfectly executed in just about every way. It’s the best point and click game on the Switch and still one of the best games ever made.

9/10

Broken Sword 5: The Serpent's Curse Review (Switch)

 

Ah, Paris in the fall. The memories come flooding back as we think about our first experience with the Broken Sword series. Shadow of the Templars was arguably the best ever point and click adventure game so it wasn’t a massive surprise that the games that followed it couldn’t quite live up to it. Both Broken Sword 2 and 3 were both funny and taxing as the series moved from 2D to 3D but then came Broken Sword 4.

We’ve tried to play Broken Sword 4 on three separate occasions to bring our reviews up to date but it is awkward, dull and downright broken in places. But now The Serpent’s Curse is here and the series has returned to its 2D roots and it is so much better for it.

Broken Sword 5 has an air of wiping the slate clean and starting again in terms of design. We now start our game back in Paris, this time in the spring at an art gallery where George is soon reunited with on and off girlfriend Nico. Here a murder takes place and a strange painting is stolen. With George now working as an exhibit insurer he picks up the case to find out what has happened to the painting, who the murderer was and why the gallery owner was killed.

The return to Paris has also seen the series return to the 2D style that worked so well with the first two games. It’s not such a hand drawn look but the graphics are really very nice and keep it traditional while also working exceptionally well in HD and making the game look fit for the PS4. The control system has also reverted back to the ‘dragging a cursor around’ variety and clicking on things with the Switch Joy Cons doing an excellent job of mimicking a mouse.

The game also maintains the series excellent standard of voice acting and scripting with dialogue throughout feeling natural while also maintaining just the right amount of sarcasm and humour. The story itself is strong with a genuinely intriguing mystery to explore with the hints of magical MacGuffin we have come to expect.

One thing we could have done without returning are those tiny objects that require careful scanning of the screen to find. Right from the start there is something fairly well hidden. We weren’t entirely sure if it was colour-blindness that played a part or not but the option to highlight interactable objects would have been a useful addition. It’s a relatively minor point though and at least you know what to expect from games like this.

The actual puzzles are a bit of a mixed bag – though they are designed to stop you backtracking and wandering around multiple locations. Normally when you arrive in a location you can’t leave until the puzzle in the area has been completed. This is good in the fact that it allows you to focus on things with what you have to hand in the confidence there isn’t some tiny object somewhere else that you need. However, it did make us feel a bit penned in at times compared to some of the other games.

Though solid, there aren’t that many puzzles here that will remain memorable. There’s a nice one fairly early on in an art restorers loft but we found little that gave the same high as getting into the docks in Broken Sword 2 or getting the key to access the archaeological dig in the first game. Some of them are a little obscure as well – and not in the ‘use weird object to do thing’ way that these types of games are famous for. There’s also a slight over reliance on things like connecting wire puzzles and shape moving.

Overall, Broken Sword 5 is a solid return to form for the franchise. The mystery is genuinely compelling and the excellent art style and voice acting keep you interested throughout. It’s certainly not up there with the first game but it’s better than both the 3D games and gives Broken Sword 2 a fair run for its money as well. Above all else it’s a proper classic style point and click adventure and we’re glad to see it back.

Overall 7/10

Beyond a Steel Sky Review (Switch)

When we first reviewed Beneath a Steel Sky way back in the nineties it never really occurred to us that a sequel would arrive more than twenty years later. There have of course been rumours and previews of a sequel for years, but they always seemed to come to nothing. Finally, we now have the second instalment of the comedy cyber punk adventure.

The game starts ten years after the events of the original with the same protagonist (Robert Foster), living with a tribe in the vast wastelands (known as the gap), outside of Union City. After a child is kidnapped by a strange spider-like machine you find yourself drawn back once again into the corporate run mega city looking for answers.

The general look of the game works well to keep the spirit of the original alive and well. The cartoon style graphics are reminiscent of some of the telltale games and follows many of the traditional point and click adventurer tropes. Instead of moving a cursor around a screen, players now take direct control of Foster. As he moves around the 3D environment points of interest will pop up that can be interacted with once you move close enough. It’s pretty much the system we have come to expect from the many 2D point and click games that have made the jump into 3D worlds, and it works competently enough.

As well as the general wandering and picking up items the main gimmick of BASS is a hacking element. Most of the things that block your progress need tampering with in order to get them to do what you want. This takes the form of moving shapes around on a virtual circuit board. For instance, some machines will have instruction such as ‘Refill’ or ‘Empty’ written inside a shape such as a circle or diamond. Swapping the same shape around can then change the behaviour of the machine. Much of the game is then spent trying to get the machines with the right instructions that you want to swap within range of each other.

The general puzzle design is good but perhaps lacks some of the magic of the original. The dialogue and characters though are excellent throughout and feel right at home. The humour works and the game moves between darker satire and comedy smoothly, meaning nothing is ever too serious or too dark for the story being told. It also performs very well with nothing strikingly problematic in either docked or handheld mode. We were a bit worried about how the game would run on the Switch but it seems we had nothing to fear.

Overall, Beyond a Steel Sky is a welcome return for one of the most iconic point and click franchises of all time. It is clear Revolution have taken this sequel seriously and worked hard to make sure it fits in with the style and world of the original. It isn’t likely to become as iconic as it’s forebear but there is more than enough here for adventure fans to enjoy. Maybe even more importantly though it takes nothing away from the original game and stands on its own as a well-rounded experience that fans both new and old will enjoy immensely.

Overall, 7/10

Broken Sword 5: The Serpent's Curse Review (PS4)

Ah, Paris in the fall. The memories come flooding back as we think about our first experience with the Broken Sword series. Shadow of the Templars was arguably the best ever point and click adventure game so it wasn’t a massive surprise that the games that followed it couldn’t quite live up to it. Both Broken Sword 2 and 3 were both funny and taxing as the series moved from 2D to 3D but then came Broken Sword 4.

We’ve tried to play Broken Sword 4 on three separate occasions to bring our reviews up to date but it is awkward, dull and downright broken in places. But now The Serpent’s Curse is here and the series has returned to its 2D roots and it is so much better for it.

Broken Sword 5 has an air of wiping the slate clean and starting again in terms of design. We now start our game back in Paris, this time in the spring at an art gallery where George is soon reunited with on and off girlfriend Nico. Here a murder takes place and a strange painting is stolen. With George now working as an exhibit insurer he picks up the case to find out what has happened to the painting, who the murderer was and why the gallery owner was killed.

The return to Paris has also seen the series return to the 2D style that worked so well with the first two games. It’s not such a hand drawn look but the graphics are really very nice and keep it traditional while also working exceptionally well in HD and making the game look fit for the PS4. The control system has also reverted back to the ‘dragging a cursor around’ variety and clicking on things with the PS4 controller doing an excellent job of mimicking a mouse.

The game also maintains the series excellent standard of voice acting and scripting with dialogue throughout feeling natural while also maintaining just the right amount of sarcasm and humour. The story itself is strong with a genuinely intriguing mystery to explore with the hints of magical MacGuffin we have come to expect.

One thing we could have done without returning are those tiny objects that require careful scanning of the screen to find. Right from the start there is something fairly well hidden. We weren’t entirely sure if it was colour-blindness that played a part or not but the option to highlight interactable objects would have been a useful addition. It’s a relatively minor point though and at least you know what to expect from games like this.

The actual puzzles are a bit of a mixed bag – though they are designed to stop you backtracking and wandering around multiple locations. Normally when you arrive in a location you can’t leave until the puzzle in the area has been completed. This is good in the fact that it allows you to focus on things with what you have to hand in the confidence there isn’t some tiny object somewhere else that you need. However, it did make us feel a bit penned in at times compared to some of the other games.

Though solid, there aren’t that many puzzles here that will remain memorable. There’s a nice one fairly early on in an art restorers loft but we found little that gave the same high as getting into the docks in Broken Sword 2 or getting the key to access the archaeological dig in the first game. Some of them are a little obscure as well – and not in the ‘use weird object to do thing’ way that these types of games are famous for. There’s also a slight over reliance on things like connecting wire puzzles and shape moving.

Overall, Broken Sword 5 is a solid return to form for the franchise. The mystery is genuinely compelling and the excellent art style and voice acting keep you interested throughout. It’s certainly not up there with the first game but it’s better than both the 3D games and gives Broken Sword 2 a fair run for its money as well. Above all else it’s a proper classic style point and click adventure and we’re glad to see it back.

Overall 7/10

Point and Click adventures - One Temptress, Some Broken Swords and a Home Made Robot

 The genre known as the 'point and click adventure' has all but died out in recent years - sadly, companies no longer consider them to be valid or profitable. But once upon a time many a computer owner knew the names of Lucasarts and Sierra who, along with many other companies, brought some of the most unique game worlds to life... worlds where players would wander around in order to collect sacred and ridiculous objects and swear at their monitors as characters blocked their quests (with the phrases like "that wouldnt work" and "I dont think that's a good idea"). Let us now take you back in time to the land of pockets the size of valleys, surreal humour and fiendish plots.

Lure of the Temptress

We start our journey into the world of pointing and clicking by stopping off at UK based Revolution Studios to see what they have added to an overflowing genre. Needless to say the developer's reputation is outstanding. It all started many years ago with Lure of the Temptress. Started in 1989 and released in 1992 on PC, Amiga and Atari ST, Lure of the Temptress is Revolution's first point and click adventure.

The plot revolves around the character of Diermot who somehow finds himself trying to save the town of Turnvale from an evil sorceress and her minions. The dialogue is very laboured and the it lacks the humour of later Revolution titles, however it is not without its charm and the surroundings are truly sublime for an ageing computer title.

Puzzles are a mixture of the extremely simple (get knife, cut bag) and the bizarrely obscure. It does have a number of nice features, such as being able to construct sentences to give orders out to NPCs, which helps to add a more unique feel to the proceedings. Overall, the title has not aged that well and newcomers may not see the appeal- although for its time this was a rather excellent adventure game and is fondly remembered by many people.

Beneath a Steel Sky

 A defining moment for both Revolution as a studio and the genre as a whole. Beneath a Steel Sky (BASS), follows the story of Robert Foster who is abducted and finds himself inside a huge city of tower blocks overseen by a super computer. Alone, apart from 'Joey' (a personality on a circuit board who can be placed into any available robot shell), you must find out why you where kidnapped and try to escape the polluted city and return home to the 'Gap' the wasteland outside the city where you where brought up by a wild tribe.

Beneath a Steel Sky is remembered for many things and most people find a conversation early on in the game provides the high point; three simple sentences delivered so well that it is even rumoured the production team lost weeks of work because of them (as they were too busy rolling on the floor with laughter). Those lines are simply:

Technician: "Where did you get that robot?"

Foster: "I built him, you like it?"

Technician: "It's crap son!"(Maybe you had to be there?)

Needless to say BASS is full of style and the unique humour of Revolution. The cityscape is a mixture of industrial smoke, rust and general grime subtly realised through the use of various tones of brown, green and grey. Backgrounds are mainly static but do the job well. The colour palette and static backdrops do mean the title looks drab a little too often, but then that is the point.The main injections of life come from the many brilliantly voiced characters you come across in your travels.

As has become one of the studio's strengths, the use of local dialects from around the British Isles is used to full effect to turn people into comic caricatures which makes every conversation a joy. Whether it be brummy police officers or the hard-faced, beaver skin coat-wearing factory boss, things are always made that little bit more over-the-top and hilarious by their accents complimenting a nigh on perfect script. It means, even if you do get stuck trying to work out the puzzle elements, the humour value of what would otherwise be a mundane conversation keeps frustration levels low and the will to progress strong.

This is advantageous as, although BASS is a classic title, it does contain a number of illogical puzzles, and finding small objects on the screen can prove near impossible (the putty on the floor, anyone?). Still, though there are faults, BASS is one of the best examples of point and click adventuring around, and any fan of the genre should have made their way through this gem of a title a long time ago.

The Broken Sword Series

 The humour and vocal style set down in Beneath a Steel Sky was then refined, polished and placed into one of the genre's defining moments - Broken Sword: The Shadow of the Templars. Taking the role of George Stobart (a sarcastic American tourist in Paris, who gets caught up in a hit-and-run bombing undertaken by an assassin dressed as a clown), players are flown all over the world to solve puzzles and get drawn ever deeper into a very dangerous web.

Bright, easy to negotiate screens and sharp graphics meant that even the smallest items were always easy to see, and the few animations in each screen gave the whole game much more vibrancy than any of the Revolution games that had come before it. The graphical style is much more like a comic and the excellent humour and high quality of the script meant players were left in awe of the game's subtle stylistic brilliance time after time. Another sign of growth and development in the Revolution camp is the structuring of the puzzles in the title. While previous titles had a number of either too simple or too obscure puzzle elements, Broken Sword's puzzles were complicated but could always be solved logically - a tone that remained throughout the entire series.

Truly Broken Sword: Shadow of the Templars is a pinnacle in puzzle creation, as never have more devious, yet logically-constructed, problems been set down in a video game (causing more than one player to utter the words "of course! It was so obvious, why didnt I see it!" on numerous occasions) - except, of course, for the goat.

Perfect scripting, humour and puzzles aside, the thing that really keeps you hooked on the title is the plot, which is genuinely interesting. Even today, it is rare to have such an epic and splendid tale in a video game. It has everything and rightly ranks among the all time greats in the video game hall of fame. Broken Sword: Shadow of the Templars proved so successful it spawned two sequels before a long wait until installment 4 arrived.

Broken Sword 2: The Smoking Mirror was set in the same style as the first game and while it contained the same excellent level of dialogue, the puzzles where not quite up to the exceptional standard of the first, and the plot was considerably less engaging. The introduction of George's partner Nico soured the experience for many players as her section lacked the sparky dialogue of George. While enjoyable, the game did nothing to move the genre forward.

Third time around, Revolution set out to - excuse the pun - revolutionise the genre by implementing new play mechanics into the core of the classic franchise. The point and click element had almost completely disappeared, replaced with a highly effective system to cope with 3D environments. Objects were easily seen and interacted with. However, like the previous title, the touch of genius surrounding the original game's puzzles was missing and controlling Nico's sections again proved to be something of a chore. This, coupled with an over-use of box moving puzzles, meant that, while the title remained good fun, humourous and a good continuation of the story, the revolution hoped for by the gaming public was sadly lacking.

Installments 4 and 5 followed some time after but neither did much to reignite the spark found in the early games. Enjoyable for fans, they just don't quite have the same level of quality as the rest of the series.

Beneath a Steel Sky (PC Review)

A defining moment for both Revolution as a studio and the point and click genre, Beneath a Steel Sky (BASS) follows the story of Robert Foster who is abducted and finds himself inside a huge city of tower blocks overseen by a super computer. Alone apart from Joey- a personality on a circuit board who can be placed into any available robot shell. You must find out why you where kidnapped and try to escape the polluted metropolis and return home to the wasteland outside the city, known as 'The Gap', where you were brought up by a wild tribe.

Beneath a Steel Sky is remembered for many things, most people find a conversation early on in the game provides the high point, three simple sentences delivered so well that it is rumoured the production team lost weeks of work because of them (as they were too busy rolling on the floor with laughter). Those lines are simply-

Technician- Where did you get that robot?
Foster- I built him, you like it?
Technician- Its crap son!
(It sounds better in the game)

Needless to say, BASS is full of style and the unique humour of Revolution. The cityscape is a mixture of industrial smoke, rust and general grime realised through the use of various tones of brown, green and grey. Backgrounds are mainly static but do the job well. However, the colour palette and static backdrops can mean the title looks drab a little too often. Then again, you are in a soulless and heavily polluted industrial environment.

The main injection of life comes from the many brilliantly voiced characters you come across on your travels. As has become one of the studios strengths, the use of local dialects from around the British isles is used to full effect to turn people into comic caricatures. This clever use of dialect quickly turns every conversation into something special. It makes no difference if it's a brummy police officers or the hard faced, beaver skin coat wearing, factory boss, things are always made that little bit more over the top and hilarious by accents complimenting a nigh on perfect script.

This means that when you get stuck on puzzles the humour value of what would otherwise be a mundane conversation keeps frustration levels low and the will to progress strong. This is important, as BASS contains a number of illogical puzzles and finding small objects on the screen can prove near impossible (the putty on the floor anyone?)

Even though Beneath Steel Sky has a number of faults, and the control system is not as easy as later adventure titles it really doesn't matter. The excellent story, script and character design still allow the game to live up to the lofty status to which it is so often held.

Without question this is one of the best examples of point and click adventuring around. Any fan of the genre should have made their way through this Cyberpunk styled gem a long time ago. For those that haven’t tracking the title down has been made much easier now as it is available for free on Revolutions website.

8/10

Broken Sword Review (Gameboy Advance)

Starting in a small café in Paris our unsuspecting hero George Stobbart becomes unwittingly involved in a plot that would lead him into unimaginable danger. The story starts when an assassin, dressed as clown, blows up the café with George sitting outside, a trifle annoyed George attempts to follow the attacker and ends up travelling half way around the world and back again as he becomes ever more entangled in the story of the Knights Templar and their Neo-Templar followers.

Starting out life as a point and click adventure it was clear changes would need to be made in order for the title to work on the Gameboy Advance. With such a small screen finding the sometimes-tiny objects would prove near impossible, with this in mind a new control interface was developed. Instead of moving a mouse cursor around the screen George now walks around and with any important objects becoming clearly highlighted as he walks. Furthermore, if this still is not enough by pressing the right shoulder button all things of interest can be highlighted and cycled through meaning you never miss anything.

Unbelievable, while the speech and dialogue have been removed from the game just about everything else remains. In fact apart from a couple of sections of dialogue, present in the original for comic effect, being removed everything else is here in all its glory. It truly is a remarkable achievement that this version of Broken Sword looks almost identical to the PSOne version, all the locations, characters and little touches of humour are all there, truly this is one of the most amazing achievements of the Gameboy Advance.

While the speech has been removed there are only a few sections that do not come across properly. Most noticeably in Ireland where the tone and accents of the inhabitants meant you always realised you where in a light hearted environment. Instead with just the text to keep you glued to the screen things do not always come across so well and a lot of the humour of the section is sadly lost. However, the rest of the game remains as magical as ever with the sheer quality of the script shining through at every turn. The clever writing means that French, American, Spanish and even Newcastle United fans all have their own distinguishable character and charm.

The game itself remains as brilliant as ever, with clever puzzles and an excellent plot drawing you in to the game with every step. Some puzzles are made easier due to the new interface but this is not necessarily a bad thing as a couple of the original puzzles suffered due to small areas of the screen being hard to find. The game manages to remain a classic piece of gaming history while simultaneously developing a new way to present itself.

Overall, Broken Sword is a gaming masterpiece, the very fact that it exists in this format is an unbelievable testament to the development team behind it. Absolutely essential for all adventure fans, the new interface makes the game seem fresher than ever and with the expert scripting and humorous characters it's hard to believe that the game is over half a decade old. More proof if needed that class ages very well.

9/10

Broken Sword 3: The Sleeping Dragon Review (Xbox)

Broken Sword 3 follows on from the story of Shadow of the Templars, and apart from the occasional aside forgets about the second title. This time the plot revolves around mystical ‘ley lines’ and an evil man named Susaro. Throw in a few Neo-Templars, some characters from the previous title, and a strange monk that keeps appearing and electrocuting people, and the stage is set for George and Nico to once again save the world.

In a way, the original Broken Sword both escalated and killed off the point-and-click adventure. After 1996 the genre has struggled to recapture the magic of earlier titles. Clearly, if anything was going to survive, an evolution was needed. Escape from Monkey Island and Grim Fandango both tried new approaches, but the mainstream public were largely uninterested. Broken Sword 3 arrived with promises of revolutionary gameplay that would send the genre to a new level.

Everything is now presented in three dimensions, with four action-specific buttons at the bottom-right of the screen used to interact with your surroundings. Anything that can be interacted with causes them to light up. Pressing the relevant button will then see either George or Nico carry out the relevant action.

Along with the new interactive element, there are a couple of other tricks on show. For instance, on rare occasions quick time events will occur which require the player to press whichever button is displayed on the screen. The other, far more overused idea is the box shifting puzzle. While these are relatively simple, it becomes farcical when you turn corners in ancient locations only to see several boxes laid out neatly.

It is clear from the start that Broken Sword 3 is not going to appeal to everyone. The game can move at a slow pace, with some sections almost completely conversation based. Luckily, the scripting is absolutely first-class, at least whenever George is the character. Unfortunately, much like Broken Sword 2, Nico's sections can drag.

When all is said and done, Broken Sword 3: The Sleeping Dragon is basically an interactive novel. There are sections which consist of constantly walking back and forth talking to people, the puzzles may not be as great in parts as before, and yes, there are too many block puzzles. But we seriously can’t imagine anyone not having a good time with the game. The story is strong, scripting is well-done and characters are likable. If you enjoy a good adventure game or are a fan of the series, this should be enough to keep you happy. Don't expect to play it on Xbox 360 though, as the game hasn't been patched.

7/10

Broken Sword 2: The Smoking Mirror Review (Playstation)

 

Broken Sword 2 follows the story of a Mayan god trapped inside a mystical Smoking Mirror. George Stobbart and his journalist girlfriend Nico once again find themselves tied up in a plot of murder, intrigue and mystery that could bring about the end of the world.

Graphically, the game remains much the same as the previous installment, no bad thing as the cartoon graphics compliment its style well. The interface hasn't changed much since the Shadow of the Templars either. Now however, there is the added bonus of being able to use the Playstation mouse.
Unlike in the previous title you now take control of both George and Nico. This may sound like a good thing, but in actuality tends to drag the game down. The problem comes because playing Nico is just so dull and players will be desperate to get back to George's much funnier dialogue.

While the story cannot hope to live up to the partially fact based account of its prequel, it nevertheless does create an interesting tale full of twists and turns. Unfortunately, the puzzles can range in quality. Certain sections more than live up to the design perfection of Shadow of the Templars, but others feel tired and lack invention.

Furthermore, certain chapters seem to have no direct purpose in moving the plot forward. These sections, while they don't appear often, drag an enjoyable story into the realms of the dull. There is also too much reliance on characters from the previous game showing up. While this allows for some light relief, it also highlights what is lacking in other parts of the title.

To sum up, what you get is basically more of the same in terms of puzzles and gameplay. If you loved the first Broken Sword, there is a lot of charm to be found in this second installment. It’s just a shame that genuinely excellent sections of the game act to show up other poorer areas. Nico's sections are particularly uninspired. Despite its faults, Broken Sword 2 remains a charming and intelligent game that will keep you interested until you uncover the mystery. With a bit more inspiration though, it could have become another all time classic.

7/10

Broken Sword: The Shadow of the Templars Review (Playstation)

In the mid 90's Revolution released Broken Sword with little hype or press attention. By the time the game came to be converted onto the Playstation it was being acknowledged as one of the most astounding adventures ever made. To this day it remains at the peek of the point and click genre.

The plot follows unsuspecting tourist George finds himself caught up in a murder at a small Paris cafe. After a bomb blast George raises himself from beneath a crushed umbrella, brushes himself off and unwisely decides to investigate. The story takes you all around the world as countries such as Ireland, France and Syria give up their parts of the mystery.

What makes the game so great is the care and attention to the script. Every conversation contains humour and charm and you never feel bored while the characters speak their piece. It helps that everyone you meet is brilliantly over the top (the mad kebab seller using the toilet brush for basting springs to mind). The skill of the writers to make sure the characters are funny as well as informative is to be commended. If a single character were removed the game would almost fall apart.

Apart from the great characters, the puzzles are among the finest to be found in the genre. Broken Sword gently eases you in to the way you need to think. Most puzzles are logical but do require you to really understand the objects you have. For instance, a blood pressure gauge found in the hospital can be used to stop the flow of water in a hose. The player really must think as inventively as the programmers to get through.

Turning the second nature PC controls into something workable on the Playstation was always going to be a challenge. But fear not as the game has about as good an interface as you can get on a console. You use the controller like a mouse to move the cursor around the screen. This can be slow, but there are a few tricks that make the process friendlier. The shoulder buttons will move the cursor to the top of the screen instantly, which allows quick access to items when you really need it. Secondly, holding down another button allows the cursor to move around a lot faster. The controls remain a bit clunky but are about as good as they could be given the platform.

Broken Sword is an exceptional game and remains a high point of the genre. Apart from the slight problem with the controls it's faultless. This is one of the best adventure stories you will ever encounter and is perfectly scripted and perfectly executed in just about every way.

9/10