Gabriel Knight 3: Blood of the Sacred, Blood of the Damned

I will begin by describing how I came to know about this game: I had, recently, bought Pharaoh and in its cover there it was: "Rennes-Le-Château guards a frightening secret. Find the truth. Risk your soul." In that moment I KNEW I had to buy that game! Were I live it is extremely hard to find adventure games, but, luckily, I had fortunate and found it. Immediately after starting the game, and Gabriel waking up, I open the door leading to the hall and there was the feeling that makes Gabriel Knight nr. 1 - the perfect symbiosis between the music and the and the location – the perfect atmosphere! In that simple hall I knew the game would be one that I would enjoy very much. After 5 minutes of game, I began to understand the plot and the more I wanted to play. It is an exceptional well written theory about the Templars and its relation with the mysterious French village of Rennes-Le-Château that supposedly hold their treasure. All of the characters have a great presence and throughout the game we will learn valuable information about them and their reasons for the trip. The game also shines, because, although the plot isn't real and has many parts full of fantasy, it is presented and justified by true facts of Templar history. To end this modest review:

Music 10/10 – David Henry and Robert Holmes really did a wonderful job!

Graphics 10/10 – although they are not very detailed, they are good enough and 'fit as a glove' on the gameplay.

Gameplay 10/10 – by using that 3D graphics engine, the gameplay is very simple and ables the player to see the action from many angles and gives the sensation of presence in the scene.

Plot 10/10 – there wasn't a single scene of the plot I didn't like: well written and well presented it has the perfect atmosphere!

Overall 10/10 – all of the crew that worked in this game should be congratulated for this amazing game, which I have played over and over with always more enthusiasm than the previous time!

Gabriel Knight 3: Blood of the Sacred, Blood of the Damned is the best of all three Gabriel Knight games. The story was immersive, full of details that made the game very believable. Other than a few illogical puzzles, the game was challenging but not insanely hard. The completely 3D world is a pleasure to explore, with memorable characters everywhere. The graphics, however, are horribly clunky by today's standards. Real-time rendered graphics are used for gameplay, and rather poorly done pre-rendered graphics are used for cut scenes. If you'd rather have pretty pictures than an engaging story that will make you think, this is not the game for you.

This is the last game in the Gabriel Knight series, which is unfortunate because you will undoubtedly be left wanting more.

The third in the Gabriel Knight series by Sierra, this one follows suit in creating a great game. All three games have used different gaming technology(2-d animation, video clips, 3-d rendering), but the results have been great for all three.

Jane Jensen's plot places Gabriel and Gracie in France to unravel a kidnapping. The story which unfolds keeps your attention, as does Tim Curry's great voice acting. It is obvious he was given a degree of artistic freedom in creating the comments that appear when you click on seemingly innocent items. Hilarious stuff will come out when you least suspect it.

Also features the return of Detective Mosely from GK1. The downside of the game is that it can get awfully slow if you don't have the most up-to-date machine.

Gabriel Knight is truly the last great point-and-click adventure. It contains all the charm of a detective story, with the delightful idiotic humour of the LucasArts brand titles (such as Monkey Island and Grim Fandango) as well as innovative interface (and camera-control).

I've seen the DaVinci Code and I still prefer this game over Tom Hanks' brilliant performance.

Gabriel Knight attempts to do something that has probably never been attempted so successfully. The game's emulation of reality is quite stunning, since it is done to a degree that does not upset the drama of the series. The game is luckily not tube-like experience since the player's perceptiveness decides how much of the plot unfolds to him/her. This also encourages replay.

The game's voice-cast is absolutely fantastic. Tim Curry and Charity James are probably the most memorable of the bunch, but the rest are brilliant all the same. Even though the graphics are half a decade old by now the atmosphere is simply perfect. What's nice is that for once a company made a 3D adventure-game where the atmosphere isn't ruined by shoddy physics.

Additionally the historical setting of the plot and the sheer amount of detail is enough to make anyone fall in love with this game. A strong plot keeps you in its grips even if the climax isn't as surprising as one might expect. However, for new-comers to Jane Jensen's brilliant trilogy, it's a ride they wont soon forget.

I've played a lot of adventure games, and this is hands down the best one I've ever done. Gabriel Knight 3 has an awesome storyline with layer after layer of detail and intrigue. The mystery just keeps unfolding as you solve more puzzles and see more and more of the secrets behind the town of Rennes-le-Chateau. Its 3D rendering and graphics look pretty great, the music is striking, and the cut scenes are really well done. The "dream sequence" movie, and the finale, just left me staring in awe. That's what you want from a game like this.

I really liked the characters, too. The interaction, especially between Gabriel and Grace, is excellent, and I really hope we'll see this continued in a Gabriel Knight 4! The only thing I wasn't amazed by was the dialog, which had its moments but was a little too sarcastic, a little too much of the time. However, I think that's no fault of Tim Curry and Charity James, etc., who did a nice job with what they were given.

As for difficulty, I wouldn't say GK3 was very hard. There are complicated puzzles, but if you're in the right place at the right time, it's pretty straightforward. I think that's to the advantage of advancing the plot, which as I said is just beautifully drawn. Gabriel Knight 3 is well worth whatever you pay for it.