RETRO REBOOT Halloween Special - The 7th Guest (PC)

I've talked in the past about how horror games had their origins on PC, with a handful of offerings for home console, and it really was ushering a turning point for interactive media in the early 90's. As the technology for home computers were starting to improve with CD-ROM technology expanding data and storage, developers and game directors began experimenting, and one of those titles that really paved the way for the point-and-click puzzle genre was The 7th Guest, the granddaddy of haunted mansion games. 

Developed by Trilobyte and published by Virgin Interactive in 1993, The 7th Guest was an incredibly influential game for its time, even to the point that Bill Gates stated it's "the new standard in interactive entertainment". It also holds the distinction of being the very first home computer games to be released only on CD-ROM. I decided to try out both the 25th Anniversary release of it on Steam, as well as looking for a way to play the original 1993 release. Honestly, whereas the modern version is an ideal way to enjoy it (along with a plethora of extras, deleted scenes and a "making of"), I think I like the original release more, mostly because the original graphics and music feels a little more unsettling. There are options in the 25th anniversary version Like the Wing Commander games, the video is borderline DVD quality. 

In 7th Guest, you play the role of an amnesiac who attends a gathering at the mansion of Henry Stauf, a man who starts out as a drifter who murders and robs a woman on a path in 1935. Throughout this flashback, you learn Stauf had a vision of a doll and becomes a successful toymaker, amassing enough of a fortune to build his abode at the edge of town. Several children who owns some of Stauf's toys mysteriously become ill and die. The eccentric Stauf disappears in his mansion and is never seen again. 

Your player-character, the narrator, witnesses visions of six other invited guests. Former singer Martine Burden, Julia Heine, a bank teller, Hamilton Temple, a magician, Elinor and Edward Know, a disgruntled couple, and a shop owner. The group splinters off in attempts to solve the puzzles scattered throughout the mansion, attempting to bring the uninvited guest, a young boy named Tad, to Stauf. Weighing their agendas about what to do with the child, the guests gradually turning on each other as time passes until they all meet gruesome deaths as you piece the series of events together.

The game has 21 puzzles total, each one increasing in difficulty as you proceed. Clues are present in FMV cut scenes or taunts Stauf throws at you when you fail. They're very good brain teasers, too, I remained stuck on a chess board puzzle longer than I was comfortable with. By the time I solved it, I was pretty exasperated. Some, I felt I could put together, like the grates. Then I'm navigating an underground passage and overcome with misdirection. The variety of puzzles are very good, admittedly I have been out of practice with this genre, so I got stumped more than I thought. 

The full-motion video is genius, there's a healthy blend of a stage play performance and a ghost story from The Twilight Zone that's done with enough gravitas that comes off almost Hitchcockian (if I were to coin a term). The scenes get more and more twisted as the game progresses, the voices of the guests grow more distorted and bizarre as the supernatural elements surface. Generally, FMV tends to be very cheesy, and I love that. But 7th Guest plays a lot of it very straight. Accompanying the FMV, the mansion is fully rendered in 3D animation. Every room in Stauf's mansion looks very imposing and ghastly, it remains visually impressive.

The soundtrack is composed by George "The Fat Man" Sanger, whose list of game credits include the NES version of Maniac Mansion, the aforementioned Wing Commander, and Zombies Ate My Neighbors. He even provided composition for the fan-made game, 13th Doll. So horror is definitely in his wheelhouse when it comes to music supervision. The music adds fantastic ambiance, almost designed to send some chills down your spine, and is complimented by stellar voice acting, preferably Henry Stauf, played fantastically by Robert Hirshboeck. There's never a point where the character doesn't come off as unhinged. 

I won't go into anything spoiler-riffic, if you want to experience this yourself for the first time. Its play time is roughly over two hours total, the puzzles may occupy a greater deal of that time. The performances of the actors can be greatly appreciated, everyone does a fantastic job in their roles. Point-and-click puzzlers age pretty well compared to most genres, and 7th Guest stands the test of time pretty well.     

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