The Blackwell Legacy

[Dave Gilbert]

The Blackwell Legacy is the first case in a miniseries of games that stars a medium named Rosangela Blackwell and her spirit guide Joey Mallone. Their mission, it seems, is to assist tormented spirits and investigate supernatural goings on. They don't understand why they are thrown together, but they do the best they can.

The duo's first case will involve a series of suicides at a local university. Something unnatural has forced these students to kill themselves, and nobody knows why. Rosangela, who is just coming to terms with her new status as a medium, finds herself cast as the unwilling detective in this gruesome mystery.

Demo: FREE

Price: $14.99

Download demo HERE.

TRAILER ON YOUTUBE.

For more information, check out our new website at http://www.wadjeteyegames.com

Screenshots:


Explore haunted locales, in the heart of New York City


Old photographs and letters give clues to the Blackwell family's past


The first adventure game to include a begging Boston Terrier.  Revolutionary!


Just a normal day in the life of a medium


A visit to the family shrink provides little answers

The team:

Writer/coder - Dave Gilbert
Background art - Tom Scary (Dr. Scary) and Chris Femo (Joker)
Sprite art - Ian Schlaepfer (Big Brother)
Concept artist: Matt Gardner
Additional art: Eyal Jammer
Music - Peter Gresser

Enjoy!

[auriond]

It's done!!! But man, I don't know if I can afford that right now. I'll definitely buy it soon though Meanwhile, congrats on finishing it despite the problems with the backgrounds and everything!

[vict0r]

Congratulations! Looks like a great game!

Looks kinda pricy tho... Sure, it looks like a high quality game etc, but is there a particular reason people started putting a price tag on their ags game recently? What happened to making old school games for fun?

Not the time, nor place to start that discussion anyway! Good luck with your game! Looks great, but will probably not buy it.




(hope I didnt sound too mean-ish, as this was not intended )

[m0ds]

Well done for completing it and I hope it sells well for you, it looks really nice

No free demo, though? I don't want to sound mean either, but sadly I won't be buying it, at least, not in the near future - or moreso, not without a demo to tantilise me...

Vict0r is right, it's probably not best to discuss this here, but as it'll probably be a little while until people give their feedback - how come this game is $10 more than Shivah?

[Dave Gilbert]

Demo is coming.  I need a break.

As for why this game is $10 more than Shivah, there are a few reasons.

- The graphics, music, and all-round quality is at a much higher level than Shivah.
- The game is at least 3x longer than Shivah
- Shivah was originally made for free, so I couldn't justify charging much money for it

Also, Shivah was more of an experiment for me than an actual business venture.  I thought of it as practice for the real thing, although I certainly didn't foresee how much Shivah would take off! 

[Gregjazz]

Beat it. Great job on the game, Dave!

[Rui 'Trovatore' Pires]

Dave, I'm SO buying this one, as you well know. And in the meantime I'll get Shivah too, while I'm at it. Just need some time to figure out how to do these things.

[Ali]

Just over £7 for an adventure game sounds like a pretty good deal to me! I couldn't find any information about payment options on the Wadjet Eye site. Is it only Paypal, or do you accept debit card payments?

[strazer]

Oh, there will be a boxed version? Sweet. Will it cost extra? If so, how much? Any details on shipping (overseas) yet?

[voh]

14.99 is an acceptable price, as I know from the Shivah that the game is well worth it.

I'll purchase some time after christmas, but good job anyway, guys!

[Dave Gilbert]

Oh, there will be a boxed version? Sweet. Will it cost extra? If so, how much? Any details on shipping (overseas) yet?

It will definitely be extra, although there will be a few different options.

"Blackwell Basic" will just be a burnt CD with a label written in sharpie marker and shipped out.  Perfect for those who don't care about frills but can't download the game for some reason.

"Blackwell Better" will be a pressed CD with label and jewel case.

"Blackwell Bonanza" will include a box, the soundtrack, and a print of the BL poster.

I'll sort out these prices after the New Year, as my brain is too frazzled to deal with thinking about this yet.

[lspace]

How much playtime in terms of hours can I expect from the game?Ã,  I recently bought an Indie game, paid $15 for it plus shipping and all I got was one hour of gaming goodness.Ã,  Needless to say, I am now more cautious.

[thewalrus]

     Yes, Dave, I am also curious to know what the payment options are.... Maybe I will take a better look around the site..... BTW, the game looks great from the screenshots..... And here's wishing that you make lots of sales!!!

[Privateer Puddin']

Thoroughly enjoying it so far Dave.

[CosmoQueen]

That's really awesome. I wish I was able to get it *sighs*.

[Disco]

Cheers Dave Great job. The characters, especially Joey, are remarkably quotable. I finished last night and am going through the commentary now.

[nihilyst]

Looks absolutely excellent. Waiting for the demo ...

[Grundislav]

Dave has already received all the first-hand praise from me.Ã,  I'm officially a Gilbert Fanboy.Ã, 

Great game, looking forward to the rest of the series!

[Vince Twelve]

Congrats on finishing, Dave!  I've purchased both this and SJM to help me pass the time while I'm in the hospital for the next four days having and recovering from a Septoplasty!  (Mmmm septoplasty...)  I'll be writing up a review for each on my blog!  Congrats!  Looks great!

[YicklePigeon]

Well I certainly enjoyed playing it Dave, and I'll be going through the commentary shortly. 

For those that are still dithering, here's my review:-

Think back to the first Broken Sword (Circle of Blood to the redneck Americans).  The intro sequence.  Remember how it made you feel? I know how it made me feel, brilliant animation, music soaring as the wee bird flies towards the Eiffel Tower...

I knew I was in for an adventure.

That same feeling came back as far as The Blackwell Legacy is concerned, the overall feel brought everything back and I knew I was in for something special.

In the beginning...

As we should all know by now, if you all have kept up with the previews or played Bestowers of Eternity (the freeware taster of what was to come, released some years ago now), you'll know that the main characters are Rosangela Blackwell, a young New Yorker working as a freelance book reviewer and Joey Mallone, a ghost who has no idea why he can't leave the Blackwell women alone (apart from them possibly being physically attractive to him perhaps).

Without spoiling too much of the game, the basic premise is that Rosa and Joey act as a pair of ghost savers (as opposed to Ghostbusters), dealing with ghosts who have lost their way and moving on to the afterlife (whatever it might be).

It's Tetris Jim, but not as we know it...

Moving on, the inventory system and clues are handled much the same way as Dave Gilbert's previous release The Shivah.  Except this time, Rosa has a notebook to combine clues she gets and to talk about with others (which is nicely presented) plus there aren't any "use X inventory object on Y character" type puzzles - this makes the game alot easier in one way, as you're not manically using every inventory item on a person just to see if it'll work.

It also means the puzzles that are presented to the player are more conversational in nature, and it also means actual sleuthing is required.  Allow me to explain...

In your average adventure game, puzzles eventually become silly - something along the lines of "pick up worm, use worm 2 hours later in the game for fixing a warp drive".  With adventures such as The Blackwell Legacy, this never happens and everything is logical and straightforward.  As it should be.

To give a quick example: if you have a key labeled "F.B." and Rosa has already seen a fusebox that requires a key to open it, it's logical and straightforward that the key with "F.B." written on it would be the key to the fusebox.

Speech...the final frontier

How many adventure games have you played that are from a company such as Lucasarts or Revolution? Or even more scarce: Access Software? Usually, there's at least one slightly hokey voice in the game somewhere.

And this doesn't happen in The Blackwell Legacy.  All the characters - however minor - come across as right.  You're never thinking "Hmm, that wasn't quite right" - you just instantly accept it, and this is how voice acting should be.  You just accept it and you're not thinking about the voices until you're typing up a review such as this.

On screen!

The character portraits are quite nice too, the voices match the character portraits - and they animate appropriately.  The backgrounds are detailed yet not overly so.  The character sprites are nigh-on perfect.  For comparison sake, it's somewhere between The Dig and Broken Sword 1 quality and that means, for an independent game, it's very special indeed.

The final countdown...

And if you think you're only going to be getting a game that's going to last around 6-8 hours (depending on how good you are, I reason a skilled adventure gamer could do it within 4-6 hours) - think again.  There's an extensive blooper reel, full of humourous outtakes and adlibs and the Director's Commentary that extends the replayability.  For those of us who love DVD special features, these are things not to be missed.

This is one feature that really shines, you can go through the game with the Director's Commentary enabled, and Dave Gilbert's animated self will appear to discuss the part of the game that you're at throughout.

Score: 8.5/10
Price: $14.99 (£7.85 approx)
Difficulty: Moderate.

Also consider...: Sam & Max: Culture Shock - A far easier title and far shorter too, add to this the voice acting isn't that great.  Broken Sword 1 & 2 Compilation DVD - Available on the Sold-Out range for £4.99, buy this if you haven't played them already (and let's be honest, BS1 has been out for 10 years now...if you haven't played it by now - shame on you!).

With regards,

Yickle.

[gypsysnail]

And I too am a Dave fan this game really tops it!!! I have been playing it for .. probably 24 hours now (but of course with 8 hrs sleep and a tea break in between ) and I am still playing it trying to solve one more problem. It rocks and was worth my money

[thewalrus]

     Dave, I really think that you need to make some other types of payment options available. Not everyone uses/has a paypal account and I doubt that people would sign up for paypal just to purchase the game. So I believe that you are probably missing out on many sales buy having that as the only paymeny option..... I was all ready to fire it up on a credit card.....

[SSH]

Google checkout has lower fees, for one But I thought Dave said that you don't have to actually sign up for paypal, anyway...

[m0ds]

Yep that's true. You don't need to sign up to use PayPal anymore. You just click through it like any other checkout

[buddha]

I purchased your game this morning (a little extra from Santa). I aswell thought the price was a little steep at first, considering what else you can get for that price, but then again, as you state in the readme, you're not a big corporation (yet  ) and I want to support you in your endeavour.

I've been playing the game on and off today and... it's been great so far! I'm enjoying myself, I like the 'GK-vibe' it has in some places and having speech really helps bring it to life. I'm glad you did went that way. I haven't had the pleasure to check out the audio commentary yet, but I think it's a very cool idea and certainly adds something special to the game.

Thumbs up!

[magintz_unplugged]

Awesome, It's finally released. I'll definatley be getting this. You have my praise Dave. When I get back home I'll look into purchasing my very own copy. Once again congrats and good luck with the rest of the series.

- Mag

[Dave Gilbert]

Yep that's true. You don't need to sign up to use PayPal anymore. You just click through it like any other checkout

Actually, you do need paypal to purchase items at the store, but I'm looking into other means.  Look for another better-integrated shop in the near future.

[m0ds]

Hmm, have you fully explored the PayPal merchant services? I'm positive I've come across an option that allows you to set up a checkout with them that requires absolutely no sign-up. There was a big banner ad on the site once pretty much saying "Ooh, look - you can finally use us without having to sign up to us!". When I was trying to sell the old AGS annual copies I had I managed to set up a PayPal payment system that didn't require any kind of login or signup. However, not something I can check at the moment cos I'm having internet and https problems, but I'm dead sure there's a way to not have the public have to sign up to pay you.

[auriond]

You're right, you don't need a Paypal account to make purchases if the seller turned on the PayPal Account Optional feature.

From their website:

Q: Do I need a PayPal account to pay my seller?

A: No. For eBay items, you can purchase with a credit card for a limited number of times. However, if you would prefer to pay with PayPal in the future, you can sign up for an account after checkout.

For website payments, if your seller has the PayPal Account Optional feature turned on, creating a PayPal account is not required to complete a purchase.

http://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=_help-ext&eloc=353&loc=323&unique_id=1030084&source_page=_home&flow=

[Peder 🚀]

YAY its out!!

good think I preordered!

*downloading*

Looking forward to play this one Dave!

[Erwin_Br]

I'm enjoying this game very much, so far. I'm currently at day two. The graphics are nice, the voiceacting is excellent, and I really like the way the notebook works.

Unfortunately I did notice some minor bugs as well, and the save games are stored on my desktop, which is kinda sloppy.

--Erwin

[Steel Drummer]

     Dave, I really think that you need to make some other types of payment options available. Not everyone uses/has a paypal account and I doubt that people would sign up for paypal just to purchase the game. So I believe that you are probably missing out on many sales buy having that as the only paymeny option..... I was all ready to fire it up on a credit card.....

Why not just have Dave give his address and then people can send him a check or some money?

[Dave Gilbert]

Re: paypal.  This is going out the window, soon.  It's best for all concerned if I have a nice, simple shop that everyone can use with any credit card.  I wasn't able to afford a commercial shop before, but I think I can swing it now. 

Re: The savegame bug. Thanks Erwin!  That happens on some computers.  I'm not sure why it happens on some computers and not others, but it's due to an installer glitch which is fixed now.  If you don't want to redownload the game, just right-click on the game icon, select "properties", and where it says "Start" type in your game's directory.  That'll fix it. 

Re: snail-mailing me a check or money.  You can definitely do this.  If you want to send me foreign (non-US) currency, I'll have to charge you more for the hassle of exchanging it myself.   If you exchange it on your end first, it would be much easier for all concerned.  PM me for my address, if you want to go this route.

re: demo.  Yes, this is coming. I know how useful a demo can be and one will be available by the mid-late next week.

Any other questions/concerns/issues, feel free to voice em.

-Dave

[strazer]

If you don't want to redownload the game, just right-click on the game icon, select "properties", and where it says "Start" type in your game's directory.  That'll fix it.

Does that mean the version that we can download as of now is the fixed version?

[custard.]

Re: paypal.Ã,  This is going out the window, soon.Ã,  It's best for all concerned if I have a nice, simple shop that everyone can use with any credit card.Ã,  I wasn't able to afford a commercial shop before, but I think I can swing it now.Ã, 

Just credit cards, no paypal at all? Ã, The nice thing about paypal for me is that it supports my debit card where every stateside thing will not unless they use paypal (or similar). Ã, Otherwise i'll have to borrow the parents credit card everytime.

Anyway, finished it tonight and really liked it. Ã, Well done on another fantastic game.

[voh]

If you throw out paypal, I won't be able to purchase your game. That would suck.

[Dave Gilbert]

If you throw out paypal, I won't be able to purchase your game. That would suck.

No worries.  I mean that the "paypal only" store will go out the window.  The store I have in mind will accept paypal payments as well as credit cards.

And Strazer: Yes.

[Gregjazz]

Cube cart, which is what I use for our webstore, is great because you can add a lot of payment options. The admin section of it is also very convenient. You might want to look into it, in case you haven't already decided on a webstore solution.

[Dave Gilbert]

Cube cart, which is what I use for our webstore, is great because you can add a lot of payment options. The admin section of it is also very convenient. You might want to look into it, in case you haven't already decided on a webstore solution.

Yep, that's exactly what I'm going to use.  Great minds think alike, apparently.

[Snarky]

I have a couple of bug reports. I could use the Wadjet Eye forums, but I don't care to register there:

Spoiler

-The game crashes if you try to ask Joey for a repeat performance of his blowing trick in Washington Square Park at night. The two walk over to a tree in the background, then AGS quits with this message:

in dialog scripts (line 1731)
from Global script (line 414)
Error: AnimateObject: invalid object number specified

(Presumably because you're only supposed to do it in Rosa's apartment, and you actually can't talk to him most other locations.)

-The music often skips back a beat when you change rooms. I seem to remember this from other games as well, so is this an AGS problem?

-If you bring up the options panel or the save/load interfaces during the timed sequence at the end, the cursor often changes to "wait" mode and never goes back to normal. Sometimes the demon speaks when this happens, but not always (sometimes there's a wind sound). You can't click on anything or close the menu, and the only way out is to Alt-X out of the game. Some kind of rep_ex_always deadlock?

-There's no voice clip for when Rosa looks at the pebble in "Nodespace".

-When you switch off the fuse in the psychiatric hospital, the animation of the guard getting up out of his chair is shaded as if the lights were still on. As soon as he's up and starts walking he becomes darker.

[close]

[InCreator]

Ooh, I like it!

Sprite art - Ian Schlaepfer (Big Brother)

I wonder why did you even mention. It's sooo clear to any AGSer ever seen BB's superior art.

But since it's commercial, I doubt I'll ever get to play full game.
First, "Buy now" link does this:

1146 - Table 'fhr2006.configuration' doesn't exist

select configuration_key as cfgKey, configuration_value as cfgValue from configuration

[TEP STOP]

And second, I seriously doubt that it'll be shipped to Estonia or my VISA card works online. I can't even get anything from eBay/use Paypal/any other form of e-commerce due stupid country I'm living in.

Drats.

[gypsysnail]

Hey I can imagine how that'd feel! damn limits! I don't know what your country is like, but maybe you could lobby for some changes in that department. Exactly what is it they do to stop you from being able to buy the game, etc? There has to be some other way you can get this game .

[floorboards]

I'm also getting the following error when I attempt to purchase the game:

1146 - Table 'fhr2006.configuration' doesn't exist

select configuration_key as cfgKey, configuration_value as cfgValue from configuration


Also, I assume it's downloadable rather than being shipped on CD? Is this correct?

[Dave Gilbert]

Woah. Talk about horrendous timing.  I can't even get into the admin section to sort out what's wrong, although the domain itself seems to be working OK. 

Yet another point in favor of nixing osCommerce. 

I sent an email to Klaus, who does most of the web/store stuff, but it's early in the morning where he is so it might not be resolved for awhile.  In any case, I'm going to look into other stores.

[floorboards]

Well, you can count on another sale once it's sorted out - the game looks very impressive and I can't wait to play it.

[InCreator]

Exactly what is it they do to stop you from being able to buy the game, etc? There has to be some other way you can get this game .

e-payment usually requires registering somewhere, giving your details about address, credit card, etc.
Estonia is never listed in "select your country" area, and this is quite weird. Some bank/card problems. Also, majority of people here *do* use VISA/Mastercard compatible cards, but these are debit cards, not credit cards. Simply because banks here are way too greedy and credit card is not reasonable thing to have due current fees.
But for example, Finland, only 50km away, is always available, both shipping and payment handling.

I might aswell register myself a postbox/bank account in Helsinki (just a half-hour sealiner trip away) and order my stuff there. Well, that's just a weird idea, I don't know if it could really work. When I preordered Half-Life 2: Episode 1, I had to get some UK guy to buy it and ship here just because Valve(Steam) doesn't accept my local banking. There are workarounds, but those ways cost also.

Enough of offtopic, I'm getting my hands on it, one way or another!

[iSTVAN]

I'm enjoying the game so far and it's money well spent, in my opinion. I noticed a couple of instances where the audio dialogue wouldn't run or the audio didn't match the text.

Loving the character of Joey, by the way. Although, if I can be honest, I find Rosa a pretty annoying character much of the time.

EDIT: Pretty annoying, but still very believable.

[Insane]

I am glad to hear that you have finally completed this game. I look forward to playing a demo of it.

By the way, the Wadjet Eye Games' forums look quite ugly with that default theme. You might wish to consider changing it to something more suitable, in order to mesh nicely with the rest of the otherwise well-designed website.

[Vince Twelve]

Dave, I loved the game.  Completed it in one sitting while I was chained to a hospital bed.  Apparently, it wasn't too hard (or illogical)  because I was able to complete it while on some major pain killers!  The thing that impressed me the most about the game was the amount of polish it showed.  I caught a few bugs (which I'll note below) but the graphics, music, speech, writing, and puzzles were all of a quality above every other AGS game that came out this year.  The high level of quality made the game easily stand out among this community of freeware games, which definitely justifies the price tag.  Congratulations.  I'm looking forward to the next one.

(I'll have a full review on my blog sometime soon)

Here are a few bugs that I can remember:

Spoiler

-After using the phone in Kelly's room and waiting until Rosa hangs up, Kelly says something, but the wrong speech file plays.
-It is possible, after turning "Alexander" into "Alexander Davenport" in the notebook, to get another "Alexander" by examining the doodle again.
-Talking to Alli in the dog park about "Deacon and Ouija" repeatedly makes Joey walk further and further away.  Not a serious bug, but it's funny when he's walked as far as he possibly can and is yelling to Alli from the opposite corner of the screen. 

[close]

[Dave Gilbert]

Thanks Vince, and thanks everyone.  The store is back, o yessiree.

[floorboards]

I'm enjoying the game so far and it's money well spent, in my opinion. I noticed a couple of instances where the audio dialogue wouldn't run or the audio didn't match the text.

Loving the character of Joey, by the way. Although, if I can be honest, I find Rosa a pretty annoying character much of the time.

EDIT: Pretty annoying, but still very believable.

Yeah, I'm really enjoying the game. Overall, it seems very professional.

Since I paid money for it, I feel like I can air my grievances. I find the voice of Rosangela a little grating and combined with the sheer amount of dialog I find myself clicking through a lot of it rather than listening to it all. Possibly could have been edited at times (although, since I'm a writer myself, I'm far too picky over this).

Those are really (very) minor gripes though - it plays very well and it's an engrossing story. Definitely worth the money.

[iSTVAN]

I'm enjoying the game so far and it's money well spent, in my opinion. I noticed a couple of instances where the audio dialogue wouldn't run or the audio didn't match the text.

Loving the character of Joey, by the way. Although, if I can be honest, I find Rosa a pretty annoying character much of the time.

EDIT: Pretty annoying, but still very believable.

Yeah, I'm really enjoying the game. Overall, it seems very professional.

Since I paid money for it, I feel like I can air my grievances. I find the voice of Rosangela a little grating and combined with the sheer amount of dialog I find myself clicking through a lot of it rather than listening to it all. Possibly could have been edited at times (although, since I'm a writer myself, I'm far too picky over this).

Those are really (very) minor gripes though - it plays very well and it's an engrossing story. Definitely worth the money.

Those are my feelings precisely. I hope that Dave can benefit from this sort of feedback.

In other news, I finished the game. I'm not normally spiritual, but I'm willing to suspend my "belief" for a good yarn, and I believe this was. Looking forward to further adventures of the Blackwell Legacy and any other Wadget Eye production.

Almost forgot to mention that I love the graphics and music that drive the plot along. The note book feature was also a nice way of creating sensible and clever puzzles. I did notice, however, that I was unable to use Adrian's name with any other combination (until it was actually necessary).

Anyway, great game. Thank you Mr. Gilbert!

[floorboards]

Getting further through the game and I have to say this is one of the best-written AGS games I've played. Although I mentioned that there's a lot of dialog in my earlier post, it actually serves to drive the character development a lot more than most games that skimp a little in that area. As a niggly, picky writer it's great to see someone who puts more evocative and interesting situations and characters in as well

I posted something earlier in the Super Jazz Man thread about graphics and The Blackwell Legacy is another in that vein - it has the same style and feeling as some of the classic LucasFilm/Arts adventures. In particular, some of it reminds me of FoA which is all good in my book. It's a style I've tried to achieve myself but always failed - the level of detail in these backgrounds is wonderful.

It seems there's a lot of discussion/feeling around AGS games being sold for profit but if it drives excellent teams to come together and create games like this, it seems that we could see a resurgence in point-and-click adventures that easily transcend the amateur status and could become classics of the genre themselves.

EDIT: Oh, and the puzzles are totally ingenious!

[splat44]

Hi Dave,

I am interest in purcharcing this game.

I do see you accept Paypal?

Open registering, must enter credit card information on your webstore or must I have a credit card registered with Paypal?

If so, then how about those who don't clarified for credit cards?

I think it's important to make it fair for everybody to purchase it regardless of credit.

[Gregjazz]

I do see you accept Paypal?

If I'm not mistaken, yes.

Open registering, must enter credit card information on your webstore or must I have a credit card registered with Paypal?

Paypal doesn't require you to have a credit card, if you're using your own Paypal balance (requires you to have a Paypal account, of course) to purchase or using the eCheck option (no Paypal account needed with this particular option).

[splat44]

Thank Geoffkhan,

Yahoo! I just purchased my very first game online.

Hopefully I will enjoy it.

[visy (the guy who made Lassi Quest)]

Just completed this yesterday (with Haddas!)

Very nice game, the sound "atmosphere" (inc. music) is excellent, and voice acting even better than in The Shivah (better direction? )

Keep up the good work, and how about letting me beta-test for you someday...

[splat44]

Me too I just finished few seconds ago.

I am very impress with it and complete with inquire a hint.

Great game

[ida]

Thanks for a great game. Really enjoyed it.

Straightforward puzzles, believable characters and an appropriate level of meloncholy when required.

Thanks! 

[floorboards]

Finished the game - thought it was great.

Will definitely buy the sequel when it becomes available.

[Dave Gilbert]

Blackwell has been reviewed by Gameboomers!

It's the game's first review. And you always remember your first!

Anyway, I haven't been that prolific in addressing the major issues (demo, bug fixes, etc) because I needed some desperate "me time" after the game was done.  Now that I've taken two weeks to relax and depressurize, I'm fit and ready to get right back at it.

Lots of logistical stuff has now been taken care of.  The soundtrack is now available on the Wadjet Eye site, for those who are into that kind of thing.  Also, the game has been updated to v1.2.  This fixes many of the minor bugs people have uncovered.

I'm going to punch out a demo tomorrow.  Stay tuned.

-Dave

[Rui 'Trovatore' Pires]

I see you decided to make a redownload instead of a patch, because, as you say, the patch would be as big as the game. Now, this is a matter of opinion, and I'd like other people's input - me, I'd rather have an updated download *and* a 1.0 -> 1.2 patch. Even if it was bigger, I'd rather download the patch. Heh, what kind of schizo am I, right?

[Guest]

Finally got around to playing it -- and finished it. A wonderful game!

A bit rough around some edges, and comparatively short -- but otherwise, 9/10 from me.

[MooK]

Looks promising, Downloading it now.

A few questions.
How much of "Bestowers of Eternity" is in it?
Will you be remaking your other games? Two of a Kind and your RON games?

[Dave Gilbert]

Looks promising, Downloading it now.

A few questions.
How much of "Bestowers of Eternity" is in it?
Will you be remaking your other games? Two of a Kind and your RON games?

Hi Mook,

Maybe about 10% of Blackwell borrows stuff from  Bestowers.  The rest is all new.  It's not a "remake", per se.  I'd like to think of it as a whole new game.

None of my other games will get remade.  If I return to the world of ToaK, it would be for a sequel.

Hope you enjoy the game!

-Dave

[Dave Gilbert]

Demo is being tested as I type this.  In the meantime, you can check out this TRAILER ON YOUTUBE.

edit: Aaaand the demo's up!  My apologies for this taking so long to create.  It was very difficult for me to pick and choose the "right" scene(s) from the game to show off.  After throwing out about five different demos, I finally settled on one I think works.

Check the original post for the link. 

-Dave

[SSH]

You should update the Blackwell AGS games database page to download the demo, Dave... 

[guest]

I just saw The Blackwell Legacy on the front page of gamespot.com! It has an entry!

Nice, and can be seen here: gamespot.com/pc/adventure/theblackwelllegacy/ . Did you ask for it to be placed in the database, Dave, or was it placed on the website without intervention on your part (or anybody others)?

[Andail]

Looks good, Dave.
Just wanted to express my worries regarding the trailer...which I unfortunately don't like very much Don't get me wrong, the game looks good judging from everything I've seen or read so far, but the trailer simply doesn't work, it has no cinematic effect, no drama...it could be so much better.
Take a look at how Goldmund made the trailer movie for Donna, which kept an entire community on needles and pins for years and years. I totally recommend that you give it another shot, maybe with the help of someone who's more into movie editing.
Just my two cents.

[Dave Gilbert]

I just saw The Blackwell Legacy on the front page of gamespot.com! It has an entry!

Nice, and can be seen here: gamespot.com/pc/adventure/theblackwelllegacy/ . Did you ask for it to be placed in the database, Dave, or was it placed on the website without intervention on your part (or anybody others)?

Ooh!  Crazy.  No, I don't know how that got there.  It might have been sent there by the Manifesto folks, or the marketing fairy. 

[The Ivy]

This has got to be one of the most enjoyable AGS games I've ever played.Ã,  The story was well-written, and Rosangela's character was believable in all her redheaded awkwardness. The character portraits were gorgeous, and the level of detail was most impressive. The changing facial expressions were very subtle but added a great deal to the game. There were also a number of very clever puzzles, and as with the Shivah, a lot of them could be solved just by imagining what I would do in real life.

This glowing review has nothing to do with the fact that I got namedropped in the game. Dave, you owe me a sandwich.

In seriousness, this actually inspired me to get going on my game, which I've been a bit lazy with lately. Blackwell was definitely worth the cost for anyone who's been on the fence about getting it.

[Dave Gilbert]

This glowing review has nothing to do with the fact that I got namedropped in the game. Dave, you owe me a sandwich.

I just made one, Ivy.  I'll give it to you at Mittens.

[thewalrus]

     Hmm, I was never aware that there was a demo, just dowloaded it.....

[Nikolas]

Dave,

Just wanted to say that I'm enjoying the game immensly!

The voice acting is very well made (a little noise in Rosa's voice but perfect other than that), and the actors are very talented actually.

BGs, sprites, and animation are all perfect.

The mood of the game (along with the music) are near perfection (although I've not gone far yet, I just started playing).

I would say that this is an extremely well made game and I'm really looking forward to the next game from Wadget games!

It's no wonder that the studio is been nominated for best newcomer studio...

Well done Dave!

Well done!

[Gregjazz]

(a little noise in Rosa's voice but perfect other than that)

Heheh, yeah I found that really noticeable and bugged me. I guess it's a computer musician thing to listen for that stuff, right...

I still haven't had time to finish all the commentary. I'm really enjoying it, it's good to hear the "backstory" of the game development. The commentary is a big bonus!

[big brother]

Uh oh. Does he say anything about me?

Haven't listened to it. 

[Snarky]

I seem to recall he praises your ability to make ladies swoon.

[Gregjazz]

Hahahah, yes I believe you do get mentioned in it.

[thewalrus]

     I just checked out the demo, are there a lot of inventory based puzzles as well as conversational ones? How difficult is the game? I'm curious.....

[Nikolas]

It's not too difficult. There are a lot of conversational puzzles, and a few inventory ones. No item puzzles whatsoever (you don't use items, but only can ocmbine them or add the mto your notes).

It was a great game, professional in every way.

The only thing that I have to say bothered me a bit was that I found it a little bit small... :-/ I was expecting much more than that actually... (Note: I'm not commenting on the price at all! Just the lenght of the game independent of the game being commercial, cheap, expensive whatever anyways...)

It was a really nice time to spend Dave, thank you for that (and your team of course)

Now I have to check what the activation code does

[Shane 'ProgZmax' Stevens]

I think most people will agree with you that the game is light on length, Nikolas.  I think some games 'work' better when they're concise, particularly games that involve a case-like structure such as Blackwell Legacy.  I don't know if you played Sam and Max: Situation Comedy yet, but it took me about the same time to get through that, and I won't even go into how much more interesting the overall design of BL is to Telltale's new cashcow.

[Nikolas]

I agree with you Progzmax...

The thing that got me into thinking it would be longer was mainly the Day 1 and 2 thing... I was expecting something like a week or so... Otherwise I might not have noticed it.

OF course the case, and puzzles and everything in the game is very well balanced there is no doubt about that, and I do agree that a case needs to close itself in some reasonable time otherwise it tires...

[Shane 'ProgZmax' Stevens]

Don't worry, I'm needling Dave to make The Shivah 2 an epic adventure of Rabbinical pugilism!

[Gregjazz]

Why stop at two? Go for a trilogy, everyone's doing it these days.

[Wogoat]

But you have to pretend that everything in the third one was planned from the very beginning.

And then comes the prequels.

[Snarky]

Dave, one thing that bothers me about the title sequence. In the screen for the graphics credit, why is Chris Femo printed in a different type from all the other names? It... stands out.

[blueskirt]

I did fell on a some glitches and bugs, 2 even crashed the game but overall it was simply awesome. I've waited for a conclusion to Bestowers of Eternity for a long time but the wait totally worth it. However I'd appreciate if you could subtitles the DVD style commentaries the next time.

[nulluser]

-

[nikolaslogedoff]

I loved the game, although I'd rather not pay any money to play something...

So hold on. It appears that yoy played the game, without paying for it?

And anyway, how do you expect that Dave, and some other people live? By earning...nothing? You expect them to sweat and put their efforts, talent, etc, all for you? Just like that?

[MrColossal]

He just gave his opinion, Nik. He's allowed that. He played the game, I assume he bought it but would rather not pay money.

Calm down and don't be so quick to defend. VintageDemon didn't convince Dave to start making games for pay and quit his job, it's not VintageDemon's responsibility to keep Dave and Co. earning a living. It's up to Dave and Co. to create something that people will want to spend money on so they can earn a living.

[Nikolas]

Indeed.

I apologise for that.

[Gregjazz]

I loved the game, although I'd rather not pay any money to play something...

Although you would rather not pay money to play something, did you enjoy The Blackwell Legacy and feel it was worth the purchase? Just trying to make sure I'm interpreting you correctly.

[Dave Gilbert]

I did fell on a some glitches and bugs, 2 even crashed the game but overall it was simply awesome. I've waited for a conclusion to Bestowers of Eternity for a long time but the wait totally worth it. However I'd appreciate if you could subtitles the DVD style commentaries the next time.

Hi Blueskirt,

Thanks!  I'm sorry you encountered some bugs and crashes.  Could you PM me to tell me what they were? 

I'm not sure about subtitling the commentaries, since they are kind of spontaneous and unstylized.  I basically plug the commentary in while I play the game (much like DVD commentaries are done while they watch the movie).  But, I can understand the desire to hear less of my annoying voice as possible.  So I'll think about it.

[blueskirt]

But, I can understand the desire to hear less of my annoying voice as possible.  So I'll think about it.

Nah, it's just that I can at reading english but I'm not that good at listening at it.

[Ali]

I recently finished this game and I really enjoyed it.

It was quite short, but very well paced, which is what matters to me. It almost goes without saying that the graphics were very stylish, but the character portraits in particular were really inventive in their use of colour.

I've been waiting to find out how Bestowers of Eternity ended, and indeed what 'bestowers of eternity' actually meant. I wasn't disappointed, and I'm looking forward to the next episode!

[Dave Gilbert]

Just a bit o' news.  A few portals have expressed interest in distributing this game on their sites, but they have requested a few features like on-screen instructions and the ability to download the voicepack seperately (to cut down on filesize).  I'm in the midst of working on that.   

Also, in case anybody cares, the design for the sequel (which is called The Blackwell Convergence) is very near completion.  It is significantly longer than Legacy, and will go significantly deeper in the family's past.  Some questions will be answered, while others will be definitely raised.

[proximity]

Misunderstanding Congratulations for your game

[Dave Gilbert]

Hm? Misunderstanding?

[Erenan]

It looks as though proximity posted something and then realized something he didn't understand before and edited it out of his post.

[SinSin]

I am going to be really honest here and say the following

  At first i thought                                             "What    ...    PAY"
    Then i saw the trailer and thought               "My god thats fantastic "

Well done on this stunning creation there must have been some serious patience in this project but oh lordy it paid off.

Congratulations on this awesome looking and sounding game.
You guys have certainly raised the bar for games created with AGS if i may say so.

And nice work with the originality
Sin

[aNboy]

Okay, I live in India so how do I go about buying it?

[Dave Gilbert]

Hi aNboy,

The Wadjet Eye store can take orders from almost anywhere in the world.  It can definitely take orders from India.  The game ships from the U.S., so if you want the CD-ROM version there will be an international shipping charge.

edit: and thanks, sin!

[proximity]

It looks as though proximity posted something and then realized something he didn't understand before and edited it out of his post.

I agree   I supposed the game was not finished yet but i realised i was wrong

[piperhcombs]

I was trying to figure out why the beginning of this games seems so darned familiar  . Turns out, it's because I've played the beginning of this game before- in an earlier reincarnation. Yep, I've played Bestowers of Eternity :. And here I though I'd gone crazy or possibly already purchased Blackwell and mistakenly rebought it  .

Good stuff so far.

[Dave Gilbert]

Heh.  You're not the only one, Piper.  At least your reaction was much better than that one woman who accused me of cheating her. :-)

[Chicky]

This game could do with a DS port

[coldwater]

Looks like a pretty sweet game. How long does the game take to complete?

[SinSin]

This game could do with a DS port

*Sin chants wildly
DS PORT DS PORT DS PORT DS PORT

[Dave Gilbert]

I've actually talked to some people of DS/handheld ports of these games, and apparently it's a lot more difficult than it appears.    Perhaps someday, but not soon.

[vertigoaddict]

If they put it in a DS port, don't they have to redo everything from scratch because of the different programs or something like that?

*I don't have a wide range of knowledge about these things*

[m0ds]

Old thread I know, but I stumbled on something today and just wondered if you could clarify it Dave

You sell Blackwell Legacy for $14.99

How come it's available on this website at $6.99?

Is this endorsed by you? Just wanted to check, and most of all make sure you were aware of this!

[Ryan Timothy B]

How come it's available on this website at $6.99?

Dang! And it just bought this game the other week for the $14.99.  

Anyway.  Since this thread was just dug up.  I may as well say I enjoyed playing this game.  It played more like an interactive novel, without the typical amount of puzzles you see in an adventure game. Although it was still fun.  I enjoyed Rose's nerdy hermit-like personality and Joey's being the complete opposite.  They totally reminded me of Quantum Leap (which you made references to in the commentary).  I loved Joey's hands being in his pockets while he floated around.  As though he's minding his own business. lol

Good game, Dave.
Perhaps I'll get around to buying the other two soon, since I'm not busy moving anymore.

[Dave Gilbert]

Yep, that's Big Fish, one of my distributors.  All of their games are available at a discounted price, but you have to join their Game Club first.

[Leon]

How come it's available on this website at $6.99?

It's only $6.99 if you're a club member which costs you $6.99 a month. So if it's only for this game, you'd have to become a member, buy the game and end the membership right away (or within a month). It's valid for all games from their site so it's something of BigFish and has nothing to do with Dave. It's their way of attracting people hoping to stay longer than 1 month and don't spend the credits they earn (or buy more at extra cost which will be advertised as "offers").

That's how these commercial businesses try to gain.

[Dave Gilbert]

Big Fish used to have a purchase minimum of 12 games when you joined their game club, which encouraged their customers to buy more games at the discounted price.  It was a good system, because even though each individual sale only netted me a small amount, there were a LOT more sales than normal because the customers had to buy more games in order to keep their membership.

Now, Big Fish has removed that purchase minimum and it's going to change everything. It's good for the customer, sure, but it also means that their customers are going to buy less games and pay less for them which can only hurt Big Fish (and us developers!) in the long run.  I honestly don't understand the logic behind this move, but I'm rethinking my business strategies as a result.  Yay, economy.

[m0ds]

All good, thanks for explaining those things to me guys! I must've missed any announcement about Big Fish in your newsletters Dave. I'll be careful to pay more attention in the future  

[Dave Gilbert]

Hah.  No way I'd mention other distribution channels in my newsletters.    The portals are great, and they bring in lots of sales for me, but when people buy from a portal I only get a percentage of the sale.  When people buy from my own site, I get to keep it alllll.

[Ethan D]

First adventure game I have bought online but it was worth it. Great game.