By Quintin Smith on November 29th, 2010 at 12:22 pm.
A demo for Jane Jensen’s new sci-fi mystery point’n'click, Gray Matter, is now available for download, weighing in at a hefty 1.7 Gigabizzles. That’s a lot of points and clicks.
Last time we posted about this game it was to say that it had emerged from development hell, had been released in Germany and that daredevil importers could order the game from Germany and still play it in English. Well, now you can test these waters before taking the plunge. You can also watch the first couple of minutes of the game after the jump.
Ooh, a theme song with lyrics that plays during the main menu? A manner of cutscene animation reminiscent of Thief? A dark house on a dismal hill on a moist night? You spoil us, Lady Jensen.
29/11/2010 at 12:33 Deano2099 says:
It’s actually pretty damn good. Finished it last week. It’s an odd one. It’s by no means an exceptional game, but it’s a competent point and clicker that doesn’t screw up anything major. Which is so rare these days it makes it something of an event.
Well written, voice acting is competent (and it one case, fantastic), puzzles are logical (though never particularly difficult, which is also a down side), looks fairly pretty (though the animation is awful)… I had a lot of fun with it. Didn’t blow me away but it’s much like how playing HL2 made you realise how many things most other shooters just did wrong. Because point and click is a ‘dying’ genre the community has called various mediocre games with huge flaws ‘pretty good’ for years now. This game is actually ‘pretty good’.
29/11/2010 at 12:33 Sinomatic says:
What happened to the blonde? I couldn’t make it out.
29/11/2010 at 12:50 kurige says:
Kidnapped by midget ninja. Obviously.
29/11/2010 at 12:34 Flappybat says:
That’s not an English sign post, this is an outrage.
29/11/2010 at 13:36 Man Raised By Puffins says:
Oh my, yes. That’s some ridiculously twee signage, though it’s good to see that despite its ‘rustic’ wooden appearance it’s mounted on some fabulously well oiled bearings.
29/11/2010 at 12:49 adonf says:
So, are you getting a review copy or is the publisher ignoring RPS again ? (“Again” because I don’t think you got a copy of Wizarbox/Dtp’s previous point’n'clicky, which is a shame)
29/11/2010 at 13:05 Mistabashi says:
Apparently the road from Oxford to London is very poorly signposted. And rather quiet too…
29/11/2010 at 13:42 Benny says:
At least they got the weather right :(
30/11/2010 at 07:35 Bindibadgi says:
The M40 is not what it used to be..
29/11/2010 at 13:16 Jonathon Wisnoski says:
Cannot wait to play this game.
29/11/2010 at 13:56 fallingmagpie says:
I could have sworn you guys had a tag for articles with trailers which have menu and/or loading screens.
29/11/2010 at 14:20 Max says:
6 clicks to actually get to the download from the WorthDownloading page.
29/11/2010 at 14:30 Berzee says:
It’s a point and click adventure! :D
29/11/2010 at 14:55 Jp1138 says:
It´s out in Spain too since last week. I´ll try the demo before deciding.
29/11/2010 at 15:00 Wendelius says:
I bought it from the German website and completed it last week. Gray Matter is the best (and, unfortunately, one of the very few. Sign of the times) adventure game I have played in years.
You can tell Jane Jensen is behind it. The story and characters bear her mark and really draw you in. As for the pacing, it was well judged. If the end feels rushed, it’s because you don’t want the game to end by that point.
Sure it’s a very classic adventure game. And it could have used a higher budget. t was “classic” in most respects, although it also has its own personality and types of puzzles. But this in no way detracted from how taken I was with what was happening. I wanted to keep playing and to know more.
I’m glad I did.
Wendelius
29/11/2010 at 15:00 Navagon says:
The sense of direction in the demo has been ruined by the removal of a lot of content and skipping right to the third chapter. But there’s enough to suggest it’s a good game.
29/11/2010 at 15:14 JigPigglies says:
Not particularly a fan of how they rendered Sam in the actual game (well, at least her face); the majority of concept art of her had sharper features.
Oh and it’s not at all helped by the strange lighting they used for the little talking head pop -ups in the corner during dialogue.
Good voice actress though.
29/11/2010 at 15:46 Krimson says:
For those who have played the game, what’s the ending like? I don’t want any spoilers, I’d just like to know if the story is wrapped up satisfactorily, or whether we have to wait another umpteen years for a continuation.
29/11/2010 at 16:07 Berto says:
Dont worry, its wrapped up nicely. There’s a hint for a possible sequel after the credits, but nothing too obvious and cliffhanger-ish.
29/11/2010 at 16:19 remi online says:
i am playing it for the last few days and i got to say it’s good, verry good, i wish i could have more time to play on it :(
29/11/2010 at 17:08 ShineDog says:
Thats a god damn terrible costume she wears though.
29/11/2010 at 17:20 Wooly says:
No measurement in peggles!? D:
29/11/2010 at 22:13 Handsome Dead says:
Is Jane Jensen tha Origammy Killuh?
30/11/2010 at 01:42 Hunam says:
I wasn’t enjoying the demo too much. The 3D on 2D approach doesn’t work in this day and age at all. During conversations all you get is those poorly animated faces in the bottom right corner and the lighting fights pretty terrible when you have both 3D lighting and 2D baked in lighting on the backgrounds. With modern resolutions they feels worlds apart too, especially as the backgrounds are fairly brush looking with the characters looking like standard 3D models, thus standing out like a sore thumb. Doesn’t help that some look more stretched than other in 1680×1050. The audio wasn’t that great either, the music and songs seemed good, but the voice acting felt flat and flows poorly. I also hadn’t got much of a clue what to do in that second bit with the guy with the hilarious mask. I wondered around, saw a bike then found the housekeeper to moan about the bike.
30/11/2010 at 13:12 Deano2099 says:
Fair point on the graphics, but I never found them that distracting. The demo jumps ahead in that second section, skipping a chapter, so it’s no surprise it’s confusing. Why they did that I don’t know.
30/11/2010 at 05:57 kibayasu says:
For whatever reason I couldn’t get the sound to work. And boy, if you thought adventure games were kinda boring before, try it with no audio at all.