Mystery Thriller / Adventure Game -- One of the Greatest Classics of the 90's.
This review centers around the "talkie" version. In 1993, CD-ROM games were still a great spectacle, and many games were still released on multiple 3.5" disks (freaky, eh?). Gabriel Knight: Sins of the Fathers features voice talent from such actors as Tim Curry and Mark Hamill. Even the unknowns who lend their voices to this project do fairly well, and add to the atmosphere of mystery and intrigue.
Gabriel Knight (Tim Curry) is a lazy, womanizing owner of an antique book store in the French Quarter of New Orleans. His grandfather and father both died under mysterious circumstances. Unknown to him in the beginning, he is the scion in a long line of Schattenjaegers -- shadow hunters, hailing from Germany. At the end of Gabriel Knight III, you are treated to an interesting cinematic showing exactly how far back in time the schattenjaegers are from, but that is the subject of another review entirely.
Among other things, Gabriel is also a writer, and anxious to write a mystery thriller that will top charts and rake in lots of money, and he initially relies on his detective friend, Mosley (Mark Hamill) to show him some murder mysteries of his precinct, to get a real life idea. This is how he initially learns of the voodoo murders. And it is the orchestrator of these voodoo murders that is intimately tied to Gabriel's destiny. To find out just how that is, you'll just have to play the game!
Gameplay is similar to just about every Sierra Online adventure game of its time, so whether or not you have experience in classic adventure gaming, you'll learn the system quickly. It even comes with a "tape recorder feature", so that you can use the in-game tapes to listen to old conversations you have with NPC's. A very useful feature indeed!
If you want to delve into adventure gaming, or just want a change from the typical gaming fare of the 21st century, buy Gabriel Knight: Sins of the Fathers, and take a historic trip into New Orleans: The French Quarter, over a decade before Hurricane Katrina.