Giving A Classic Game A Facelift (Broken Sword: The Shadow of the Templars (DS))

Member Name: Andy.mack

Product:	Broken Sword: The Shadow of the Templars (DS)
Date:	22/10/09 (32 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: A very clever and well made additon to the orignal game

Disadvantages: -

While I was growing up one of my favourite games on the original Playstation was the first Broken Sword game. So when I spotted that they were rereleasing it on the Nintendo DS earlier this year I knew it was a game I had to buy. Rather than just release the same game again they took the original Broken Sword game and created some new levels and twists to make the game a little longer and not an exact copy of the original Playstation version. Of course the old story from the original is still intact but they've added extra scenes for one of the other characters to give the game a bit of extra shelf live.

This new version follows the fortunes of two characters, Nico a Parisian journalist and George Stobbart an American Tourist. The game starts with the murder of one of Paris's most influential men and the player witnesses this tragedy through the eyes of Nico. From that moment on you are drawn into an age old mystery chasing after a long forgotten legend and trying to find the reason people keep getting killed. There are some new puzzles along the way and some very clever new levels that remain true to the Broken Sword tradition.

Of course the real danger for developers Ubisoft and Revolution was making the extra parts of the game seem like they belong and not a marketing ploy. Thankfully they manage to achieve this very well and the new parts of the story introduced at various stages of the original game feel like they should have been there all along. The original game had focussed more on George and his take off events as they tried to discover what was going on but the transition to seeing things from Nico's view works very well. The addition of the extra scene's, whilst only adding 5 or 6 scenes to the game means there is something for fans of the original games as well.

The original version had opened up with the random bombing of a Paris Cafe which dragged George into the story. With this updated Directors Cut we now understand a little more about what's going on due to the additional scenes at the start and this works very well for the game, the game play and for your understanding of the story. It adds a bit of extra depth and intrigue into an already well thought-out storyline and achieves the principle idea of not making the game an exact repeat of the first one.

One of the aspects that really made this game stand out on its original release was the graphics and if anything it looks even better on the DS. The graphics have been touched up a little to really use the full effects of the Ds graphic card and it looks very impressive. The new scenes have also been designed to tie in with the original look of the game and whilst there has been some 15 years between the games the games graphics fit together flawlessly. Having recruited the designer of the original game the developers have ensured that the continuity of the characters continues throughout the game.

At a time when puzzle games seem to be a huge success on the DS this is one that certainly delivers a hit. There is a mixture of difficulties on the puzzles and this keeps the game fresh. If you do get stuck on a puzzle there is a tiered hint system that can help you to solve a puzzle if you do get too stuck with it. This doesn't lose you any points or have any impact in the game but they are added up and advised at the end of the game so you can tell how many you needed. The puzzle interface works just as well as the rest of the game and some of the puzzles can be left if you get too stuck on them and returned to without hindering the rest of the game.

The in game controls are particularly easy on the DS as it is a simple point and click game with no complicated button combinations. Throughout the game you use your stylus to search the screen for clues and to examine items or talk to people. It works very well and it keeps the game nice and simple to use as you try to follow what is a rather involving plot.

It's really the plot that makes this such an interesting and time consuming game. It's incredibly well written and involving. As you play you can feel yourself wanting to do just the next bit and then the next bit and not really wanting to put it down. The characters are very well written and you find yourself being really drawn into it as you want to help George and Nicole understand exactly what's going on. This for me is the sign of an excellent puzzle/mystery game as it's not overcomplicated but it is engrossing and holds your interest. There is no moment during game play where you wish the game would end any quicker and in fact once you've completed the game you want another one to follow on from it.

Another well throughout aspect is the games sounds. Whilst you are playing the thoughts and narrative don't just appear on the screen but are actually spoken and again this makes you feel involved in the storyline. The final aspect to mention has to be the soundtrack with some very clever uses of background music to set scenes and add to the overall atmosphere of the game.

There is always a danger when you try and rehash an old classic that it won't live up to the original but I think the updated Broken Sword is actually better than the original. The game play is just as addictive and smooth, the storyline with its additional elements slots in nicely to the original story and the developers have done a fantastic job. Hopefully there will be more adventures with George Stobbart to come on the DS but for now I'd strongly recommend if you like a mystery/puzzle game to give The Shadows Of The Templars a try as it's probably the best mystery game I've played on the DS.

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Summary: Additional scenes and a new perspective on a classic game