Broken Sword
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Broken Sword is an adventure game series created by game designer Charles Cecil of Revolution Software. The game series revolves around the adventures of George Stobbart and Nico Collard in several fictitious stories based on history and mythology. The first two games in the series are controlled by a traditional point-and-click interface. The third and fourth installments are based on a 3D graphics engine, with the third game using a direct control mechanism. The fourth game, Broken Sword: The Angel of Death, returns to the standard point-and-click interface but within the 3D environment. A film, based on the first Broken Sword game, has been planned and is ready to be written.
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[edit] Official games
[edit] Broken Sword: The Shadow of the Templars
The first game in the series was released on September 30, 1996, published by Virgin Interactive Entertainment world wide. George Stobbart is an American tourist on holiday in Paris in the autumn. The story opens with George's quiet coffee at a café rudely interrupted by the explosion of a bomb planted by a man dressed up as a clown. He sets off investigating the explosion and, gradually, he and photo-journalist Nico Collard are drawn into a globe-trotting adventure involving conspiracies, cults and murder, all revolving around the Knights Templar.
The game, which was a critical and commercial success,[citation needed] was released as Circle of Blood in the United States.
Ports of the game were released on the Sony PlayStation, Nintendo Game Boy Advance and DS, Palm OS and Windows Mobile.
[edit] Broken Sword: The Shadow of the Templars - Director's Cut
Broken Sword: The Shadow of the Templars - Director's Cut is the fifth title in the Broken Sword series, a remake of the original Broken Sword, and was released on the Nintendo DS and Wii in March 2009.[1]
The game includes extra story elements and settings dealing with Nico and her investigation of a murder and the truth about her father. It also features hand-drawn illustrations and animations by artist Dave Gibbons.
The game uses the Wii Remote and DS stylus respectively to deliver both point-and-click styles and new puzzle-solving elements specific to each platform.
[edit] Broken Sword II: The Smoking Mirror
The second game in the series, released in 1997, opens with George Stobbart witnessing the kidnapping of his now girlfriend Nico Collard. It is up to George to break Nico out, and uncover a secret drug ring that relates to the redemption of a sinister mayan god. It is also the only game in the series that does not follow the Knights Templar story line.
The game was released as Broken Sword: The Smoking Mirror in the United States and is also due to be re-released on the Nintendo DS and Wii.
It is also followed by an online game called Broken Sword 2.5 created by MindFactory under Revolution Software which is not an official part of the series.
There are rumors that a more up to date version of the game may take part in a broken sword 2 and broken sword 2.5 package for the Nintendo DS and the Wii. Revolution Software have taken an interest in the 2D work made by MindFactory in contribution to the unofficial game in the broken sword series.
[edit] Broken Sword: The Sleeping Dragon
Broken Sword: The Sleeping Dragon, released 2003, is the third game in the Broken Sword series. At the start of the game, George and Nico are no longer together, obviously separating between this game and its predecessor. However, as the game progresses, George and Nico realise that they are uncovering the same mystery, and begin working together again to stop the evil that threatens the world once again.
[edit] Broken Sword: The Angel of Death
Broken Sword: The Angel of Death, released 2006, is the fourth installment in the Broken Sword series. Since the events of the third game, George Stobbart has hit an incredible low in his life. He can no longer find decent work as a patent lawyer, and so he now works as a bail bonds clerk. When a mysterious woman, Anna Maria, enters George's life, he is thrown into another adventure. This fourth installment returns to the point 'n' click system used in the first two games.
The game was released as Secrets of the Ark: A Broken Sword Game in the United States.
As a gaming first, the game allows the soundtrack to be purchased, from a direct link in the game to iTunes.
[edit] Technical information
The first two games use an enhanced version of Revolution's in-house Virtual Theatre game engine. While these games were originally produced for DOS and Windows, it is now possible to play them on a variety of operating systems using ScummVM. Both games were also released for PlayStation, and the first one for Mac OS and later also for the Game Boy Advance, Palm OS and Windows Mobile. The Sleeping Dragon is based on the RenderWare engine. The Angel of Death runs on Sumo Digital's own graphics engine, while scripting of the game utilizes a tweaked version of its predecessor.
[edit] Film
On May 21, 2007, it was announced that Charles Cecil had begun the work of bringing the game franchise to the silver screen.[2]
[edit] References
- ^ Ubi.com, Ubisoft - Broken Sword
- ^ Comingsoon.net
[edit] External links
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Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to: Broken Sword |
- Revolution Software Ltd.
- Official Broken Sword: The Angel of Death website
- Official Broken Sword: The Sleeping Dragon website
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