 Overview
It's an intriguing story: a young girl has been mauled by a wolf
near Gabriel Knight's ancestral home in Bavaria, and Gabriel is asked to find out why. The
police and general public seem to think it's the fault of two wolves who escaped from the
Munich Zoo, but Gabriel and his partner Grace are led down a path of clues that suggest a
more supernatural element is involved -- that's right, people, we're talking werewolves!
Along the way, Gabriel and Grace encounter more werewolf maulings
and are led through a Bavarian castle with hidden passageways, the city of Munich (where
you can ride the subway to different stops), mad King Ludwig's castle, and the Richard
Wagner Museum, among other places. The GK2 plot incorporates history, music, art,
and supernatural elements (including a tarot card reading) to create a completely
compelling story in which the clues you find are as interesting as the puzzles you solve
with them.
Gameplay
The writer for this Sierra game, Jane Jensen, created a superb storyline for GK2. Jensen intertwines
historical facts with a supernatural storyline, which lends an element of realism to the
plot. Much of what you will learn about King Ludwig in his museum and biography is
true, however strange it may sound. Ludwig did go on mysterious midnight sleigh rides, not
returning until morning. And he drowned in a lake along with his doctor (historians
presume the doctor was trying to save Ludwig from committing suicide, but in GK2,
this fact takes on more threatening implications). He was also a friend, admirer, and
benefactor of Richard Wagner, which is why the walls of the actual Neuschwanstein Castle
are covered with scenes from Wagner's opera, just as they are shown in the game. Jensen
takes these facts and uses them to draw the story to a more sinister conclusion than
probably the most conspiracy-prone historian ever imagined. With the help of some creepy
characters, eerie music, and ominous settings, the GK2 story keeps the
game player
on edge right to the dramatic conclusion.
 You, the gamer, spend time
alternating between controlling the characters of Gabriel Knight and Grace Nakamura. When
you meet another character, the game will offer conversation options for you to explore
with that person. Make sure you exhaust them all -- you never know which topic will lend
you a clue. Most of the varied people you'll interact with in the game are appealing, if
sometimes sinister characters -- wait till you meet the busybodies Emil and Merle, a
demonologist and her husband from Texas, and the intense von Glower, whom Gabriel
befriends at a Munich hunting lodge.
You know when you've found a potential clue in the game because
your pointer arrow turns into a dagger when it passes over an object. Unlike other
adventure games, you don't have to painstakingly pore over every square inch of screen,
making sure you haven't missed some small object -- most times, the clues are pretty
obvious. (Exception: Chapter 4, in which you must click on every object in Ludwig's
castle and museum in order to finish the chapter.) The game's difficulty comes from
figuring out what to do with the clues you've found. This is one of the most rewarding
aspects of GK2.
In other adventure games, the difficulty and time-consuming
process of the game can come from either not being able to find a particular clue (e.g. Buried
In Time), or from trying to solve game puzzles that are irrelevant to the game's
storyline (e.g. 7th Guest). But in GK2, you really feel like you're
playing detective; you must ask yourself questions like "How do I contact the Wagner
biographer Herr Dallmeier told me about?" and "How do I get Klingmann to let me
get close to the wolves in the zoo?" The answers to these questions are ones that
require you to use what you've learned in the game so far and problem-solving skills
-- most
of the answers aren't completely random.
Another plus for GK2 -- most of the time spent playing
this game is productive: every time you pick up a clue, it projects you a little further
along in the storyline. Fortunately for a gamer's sanity, GK2 is not completely
dependent on the gamer's finding one clue in order to move on to the next one. (I'm sure
most adventure gamers have played games where they've spent more time being stuck on a
particular puzzle than actually moving through the game.)
Graphics and Sound
The graphics are good, especially during the video clips that
play at the beginning and end of each chapter; and the artwork in the castle is
crystal-clear. The music in the game falls into two categories: either a serene classical
piece, which is neither distracting nor memorable; or, when the game turned scary, some
highly effective hair-raising music. And the wolf howls and snarls are plenty realistic.
Unfortunately, the characters' audio conversations don't always match up with the video,
despite running the game on a machine with plenty of memory, and a high-end video card and
CD-ROM drive.
 Realism
As far as acting, the actor who plays Gabriel is
tolerable, although I decided if he ran his hands through his hair one more time after
Chapter 1, I was going to have to switch allegiances and start rooting for the werewolves.
The actor who plays Grace Nakamura does a fine job, although Grace's jealousy towards
Gerta in Chapter 2 became annoying -- I was afraid those two were going to break out
into a catfight. This petty subplot detracted from the interest of the game for me, and I
could have done without any of the romantic situations they've tried to inject into GK2.
(Maybe others will be more interested in it than I was.)
Documentation
You'll probably need to read the documentation even if you've
already played adventure games with similar interfaces. There are a couple of important
skills you'll need to call on during the game, like operating the tape recorder and
splicer (which you'll need to use during Chapter 1).
Difficulty
GK2 was the perfect level of difficulty for me; however,
since it took me only 11 or 12 evenings of play to solve it (and I consider myself an
intermediate gamer), hard-core gamers might think it too easy. The game's plot, video and
graphics would appeal to an advanced gamer, but they might move through the game too
quickly to make it worth its price. However, this would be a good (albeit challenging)
game for a beginning player -- easy interface, low frustration level, and hints that,
when used, won't affect the outcome or your score in the game. (Just click the
"Hints" button when there's a map on the screen, and it will show you which
destinations still contain tasks you need to accomplish.)
System Requirements
Windows '95, Windows 3.1 or DOS 5.0+, IBM or 100% compatible
486/33 Mhz or higher, 8 MB RAM, 2X CD-ROM drive (MPC 2 Compliant, 300K /second transfer
rate)
 Bottom
Line
Pros: Gabriel Knight 2's storyline was the most
intriguing and creative one I've seen in an adventure game; the game smoothly integrates
puzzles and clues into the plot; it has a low frustration level; it would be challenging
for beginning and intermediate level adventure gamers.
Cons: Advanced adventure gamers might breeze through this one a
bit quickly.
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