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===Plot===
===Plot===
Lewton, a former member of the Ankh-Morphok City Watch who works as the Discworld's first (and only) private investigator, finds himself hired by the mysterious Carlotta Von Uberwald to track down a man named Mundy. The only details he learns about him is that he was away in Tsort on the Counterweight Continent, and that he disappeared the moment he returned to Ankh-Morphok two days ago aboard the ''Milka''. Accepting the case, Lewton's search lead him to encounter the troll Malachite, who requests his help in tracking down a troll singer named Therma, and Carlotta's father, the Count, who hires him to track down the Von Uberwald's dwarven driver, Regin, after they disappeared around the time Mundy did. During his investigations, Lewton encounters his former girlfriend Ilsa Verbay, who reveals she had returned back to Ankh-Morphok with a companion from the Agatean Empire called Two-Conkers, and that she recalled Mundy was nervous on the voyage back to the city.
Lewton, a former member of the Ankh-Morphok City Watch who now works as the Discworld's first (and only) private investigator, finds himself hired by the mysterious Carlotta Von Uberwald to track down a man named Mundy. The only details he learns about him is that he was away in Tsort on the Counterweight Continent, and that he disappeared the moment he returned to Ankh-Morphok two days ago aboard the ''Milka''. Accepting the case, Lewton's search lead him to encounter the troll Malachite, who requests his help in tracking down a troll named Therma, and Carlotta's father, the Count, who hires him to track down the Von Uberwald's dwarven driver, Regin, after they disappeared around the time Mundy did. During his investigations, Lewton encounters his former girlfriend Ilsa Verbay, who reveals she had returned back to Ankh-Morphok with a companion from the Agatean Empire, called Two-Conkers, abord the ''Milka'', and that she recalled Mundy was nervous on the voyage back to the city.


Lewton eventually tracks down Mundy to a room within the Ocatrine Parrot, but is knocked out moments upon finding him. After regaining consciousness, he finds Mundy was brutally murdered, and that his former superior, Commander Vines, and his former colleague, Corporal Nobby, are waiting to question him. Vimes accuses him of the murder, while Nobby notes it appears similar to a spate of ritualistic murders that recently occurred in the last few days, dubbed the Counterweight Killings. While trying to prove his innocence, Lewton learns from the Parrot's bartender that Mundy was carrying a small, unusual coin. This causes him to be ambushed by a shady [[Dwarf (Discworld)|dwarf]] named Al-Khali, who brings him before Horst, a troll criminal. Through the meeting, Lewton learns Mundy was bringing back a relic known only as the "Golden Sword", which Carlotta was really looking for; Horst hints she might be behind his murder, while offering a substantional fee if Lewton can bring the Sword to him instead.
Lewton eventually tracks down Mundy to a bar called the Ocatrine Parrot, but is knocked out moments upon finding him. After regaining consciousness, he finds Mundy was brutally murdered. His former superior, Commander Vines, accuses him of the crime after the Watch turns up, while former colleague, Corporal Nobby, notes the killing appears similar to a spate of ritualistic murders that recently occurred in the last few days, dubbed the Counterweight Killings. While trying to prove his innocence, Lewton is ambushed by a shady [[Dwarf (Discworld)|dwarf]] named Al-Khali, who brings him before Horst, a troll criminal. Through the meeting, Lewton learns Mundy was bringing back a relic known only as the "Golden Sword", which Carlotta was really looking for; Horst hints she might be behind his murder, while offering a substantional fee if Lewton can bring the Sword to him instead. The only detail he learns is that Mundy must have hidden the sword before his return to the city.


Focusing on his other investigations, Lewton questions the Parrot's troll singer, Sapphire, regarding where Therma could be. After she gives a false lead, and he discovers she came into wealth, Sapphire confesses to blackmailing Therma under interrogation, and promises to arrange a meeting. In the meantime, Lewton discovers Regin died after recklessly driving the Uberwald's carriage into the River Ankh. With Malachite's help, the carriage is recovered and found to have a box in it that the troll notes belongs to Therma. Malachite leaves with it, while Lewton notes that Regin's body has small bite marks, making him suspect he was murdered while driving the carriage. A key found on the body leads to a safety desposit box containing an enevelope that is empty, raising further questions. Sapphire eventually contacts Lewton, prompting him to take Malachite to a meeting with Therma, but is promptly knocked out, while Malachite is murdered.
To find the Sword, Lewton discovers it went missing, and that he needs the help of Ilsa and Two-Conkers; he finds both while searching for Therma, at the Saturnia Casino, moments before an assassin tries to kill them. After tracking her down, Ilsa, revealing she married Two-Conkers while away, agrees to help if Lewton finds them somewhere safer. After listening to lies from the Parrot's troll singer Sapphire in his search for Therma, Lewton confronts them over their recent influx of money and learns they were blackmailing Therma. Sapphire agrees to arrange a meeting in exchange for Lewton's silence. Meanwhile, the search for Rubin leads to the discovery he died after driving the Uberwald's carriage into the river Ankh. Malachite helps to recover it, but removes a box from within after noting it belongs to Therma; Lewton notes Regin's body has small bite marks, making his death suspicious, and that he had a safety deposit box containing an empty envelope.


Eventually, Sapphire contacts Lewton to reveal Therma wants to meet him, and he in turn brings Malachite to the meeting location. However, someone knocks him out again, while murdering the troll. Vimes arrests Lewton for the murder, but releases him after a gargoyle near to the murder scene saw someone else commit the crime. After completing Ilsa's request, Lewton discovers the Sword was hidden in a crate on the ''Milka'' by Mundy, which was later taken to the Guild of Archeologists, forcing him to break in to recover it from the guild's vault. Upon leaving with it, Lewton realizes something is following him and tries to lose it in the city streets. However, he drops the sword in his escape, which his pursuer takes and uses to stab him after cornering him. Lewton is pronounced dead after the attack, much to Vime's displeasure, and is buried in the cemetary behind the Temple of Small Gods.
Vimes arrests Lewton for the murder, but releases him after a gargoyle saw someone else commit the crime. Focusing on the missing Sword, Lewton discover Mundy hid it in a crate on the ''Milka'' that was later taken to the Guild of Archeologists. Seeking help from Ilsa, he helps her find someone safe for Two-Conkers to hide in following an assassination attempt on his life, before finding the means to break into the Guild's vault and recover the Sword. Upon leaving with it, Lewton realizes something is following him and tries to lose it in the city streets. However, he drops the sword in his escape, which his pursuer takes and uses to stab him after cornering him. Lewton is pronounced dead after the attack, much to Vime's displeasure, and is buried in the cemetary behind the Temple of Small Gods. However, Lewton comes back to life, and discovers through a talking dog named Gaspode that he has become a werewolf.


Using his newfound abilities, Lewton decides to investigate the Counterweight Killings, believing they are connected to the deaths of Regin, Malachite and Mundy. He also attempts to learn more about the Golden Sword at the Temple of Small Gods. A priest of Errata reveals the relic is actually called the Tsortese Falchion - an ancient blade forged for Errata, which got dropped into the mortal world and lost following a major war in Tsort many years ago. He also learns the relic is not complete - it is missing a jewel that enpowers it, and which is believed to be hidden in Ankh-Morphok. Continuing his investigations, Lewton discovers through his heightened sense of smell that Carlotta is a werewolf, and confronts her over this. She admits to wanting the Falchion, but is not eager to explain her motives; however, he becomes suspicious of her recent actions, after discovering the killings all seem to involve a werewolf.
Lewton, contemplating death, soon realizes he is somehow alive, and emerges from his grave to be greeted by a talking dog named Gaspode. Through him, Lewton finds he has become a werewolf, and is taught how to use his new form to detect scents. Believing the deaths of Rubin, Malachite and Mundy are connected to the Counterweight Killings, Lewton decides to use his new abilities to investigate the other murders. He finds that each murder followed an unusual pattern, and that there is a common link between them and the Temple of Small Gods. In the temple, Lewton questions a priest of the goddess Errata, and learns the Golden Sword is an actually ancient relic called the Tsortese Falchion - an ancient blade formed by Errata, whichcame into the mortal world after its creation, but was lost following a major war in Tsort many years ago. He also discovers that the relic is missing one key part - a jewel that is believed to be hidden in Ankh-Morphok.


Lewton later confronts Carlotta, after learning she is a werewolf, but gets no clear answers on her motives. Further investigations lead to Lewton discovering the killings are part of a powerful ritual to summon Nylonathatep, a being that has long sought godhood. Realziing each murder has been done to the outline of a pentagram, Lewton stalks the site of the final murder to take place, and watches as werewolf murders Al-Khali, who had been tailing Lewton even after his 'death'. Before he can pursue the creature, Carlotta stops him revealing she is the head of a cult devoted to Anu-Anu, the god of werewolves and the one behind the murders. Lewton discovers Mundy was killed for betraying the cult in preparing to sell the Falchion to Horst; Malachite was killed because Carlotta is Therma, his step-sister, and he was getting to close to finding her; and Regin was killed merely because he suspected her actions and was threatening blackmail against her. Lewton was stabbed by Anu-Anu when he tried to run, but Carlotta made him a werewolf believing he could still be important to the cult's cause.
Lewton eventually discovers the killings form part of a ritual designed to summon Nylonathatep, a being that has long sought godhood. Stalking the site where the final ritual murder is to take place, Lewton watches as a werewolf murders Al-Khali, who had been tailing Lewton even after his 'death'. Before he can pursue the creature, Carlotta stops him, revealing she is the head of a cult devoted to Anu-Anu, the god of werewolves and the one behind the murders. Lewton discovers Mundy was killed for betraying the cult for agreeing to sell the Falchion to Horst; Malachite was killed because Carlotta is Therma, his step-sister, and he was getting to close to finding her; and Regin was killed merely because he suspected her actions and was threatening to blackmail, even though he had no evidence. Lewton was stabbed by Anu-Anu when he tried to run with the Falchion, but Carlotta made him a werewolf believing he could still be important to the cult's cause.


Forced to attend the ritual, Lewton watches as Anu-Anu summons Nylonathatep, only for the Falchion to disobey further commands and collapse the cult's temple, killing him and several cult members. With Nylonathatep on the loose in Ankh-Morphok, Lewton questions the survivors on how the ritual backfired. He soon discovering a second cult dedicated to Nylonathatep infiltrated Anu-Anu's cult with the intent of releasing him, and that the Falchion couldn't control him because the missing jewel is required. Aided by Two-Conkers, Lewton tracks down the jewel and then proceeds to find the Falchion after it disappeared. After finding Horst attempting to get it from Carlotta, preparing to kill her, Lewton kills the troll, before having Carlotta give him the Falchion and handing her over to the City Watch. With the Falchion restored, Lewton uses it to defeat Nylonathatep. With Ankh-Morphok saved, Lewton convinces Ilsa to leave with Two-Conkers, and watches her leave the city with him.
Forced to attend the ritual, Lewton watches as Anu-Anu summons Nylonathatep, only for the Falchion to disobey further commands and collapse the cult's temple, killing his mortal form and several cult members. With Nylonathatep on the loose in Ankh-Morphok, Lewton questions the survivors on how the ritual backfired. He soon discovers a second cult dedicated to Nylonathatep infiltrated Anu-Anu's cult with the intent of releasing him, and that the Falchion couldn't control him because the missing jewel is required. Aided by Two-Conkers, Lewton tracks down the jewel and then proceeds to find the Falchion after it disappeared. After finding Horst attempting to get it from Carlotta, preparing to kill her, Lewton kills the troll, before having Carlotta give him the Falchion and handing her over to the Watch. With the Falchion restored, Lewton uses it to defeat Nylonathatep. With Ankh-Morphok saved, Lewton convinces Ilsa to leave with Two-Conkers, and watches her leave the city with him.


==Development==
==Development==

Revision as of 11:04, 7 November 2023

Discworld Noir
The game's cover features original work by Discworld novel cover artist Josh Kirby.
Developer(s)
Publisher(s)GT Interactive
Producer(s)
  • Gregg Barnett
  • Luci Black
Designer(s)
  • Gregg Barnett
  • Chris Bateman
Programmer(s)Mark Judge
Artist(s)David Kenyon
Writer(s)Chris Bateman
Composer(s)Paul Weir
SeriesDiscworld
Platform(s)Windows, PlayStation
ReleaseWindows
  • EU: June 1999 (June 1999)
PlayStation
  • EU: December 1999
Genre(s)Adventure
Mode(s)Single-player

Discworld Noir is a 1999 adventure game developed by Perfect Entertainment and published by GT Interactive. The game is set in Terry Pratchett's satirical Discworld universe, and follows its first and only private investigator as he is given a case leading him into the deadly and occult underbelly of the Discworld's largest city.

The game plays on film noir genre tropes, parodying noir classics such as Casablanca and The Maltese Falcon. Originally released for Microsoft Windows, it was later released for PlayStation by Teeny Weeny Games, the resurrected form of the already insolvent Perfect Entertainment. Pratchett consulted on the story and provided some of the dialogue, being credited for causing "far too much interference."

Gameplay

Discworld Noir is an adventure game, in which players take control of the character of Lewton, visiting various locations in the city of Ankh-Morphok, finding items to help solve puzzles, and conversing with a wide variety of characters. the game's story is divided into a set of acts, in which the player must complete various tasks to advance the story.

Much of the conversations in Discworld Noir focus on a more structured manner than in previous Discworld games. Alongside a greeting function, the player can converse with characters about simple conversation topics, as well as show them items collected during the game, and question them on leads noted down in Lewton's notebook; once a lead is of no further use, its scratched out and unselectable.[1][2]

The game uses a "threaded" structure, in which there are separate "vignettes" that the player may come to at different points. For example, missing a clue early on in the game will cause a character to give it to the player later in the game.[3] In addition to traditional adventure mechanics, the player will later gain the ability for Lewton to transform between a human and a werewolf, allowing them to collect scents to help solve additional puzzles. Like the previous Discworld games, the PlayStation version of the game supports the PlayStation Mouse.[4]

Story

Screenshot of the Café Ankh. The game features low-key lighting with heavy shadows.

Characters and Setting

Discworld Noir contrasts deeply to the first two games set in the Discworld universe, adopting a more "grittier, darker and more realistic" style in its story,[2] while featuring an original story by Terry Pratchett not derived from any of his novels in the Discworld series.

Like with Pratchett's work, the story parodies a mixture of traditional hardboiled fiction and film noir,[5] as well as a combination of dark fantasy and Lovecraftian horror.[6][7] The film noir elements feature significant references to the 1942 film Casablanca, as well as a heavy use of "discordant" strings and dissonance in its background music,[1] matching to the style of jazz and blues pieces from the early 20th century; multiple references towards the horror elements are made of the works of H. P. Lovecraft.[6]

The game's lead protagonist that players control is Lewton - a former member of the Ankh-Morpork City Watch, who left to become the Discworld's first and only private investigator within the city of Ankh-Morphok. The character is based on the classic private detective figure, with an appearance and jacket reminiscent of noir detectives;[8] PC Zone compared the characters of Sam Spade and Philip Marlowe.[2] Other new characters to the Discworld universe include: Carlotta Von Uberwald - considered a femme fatale figure,[2][9] and one of the primary antagonists; the troll criminal Horst; Ilsa Verbay, a former love interest of Lewton; and Two-Conkers, an Agatean Empire citizen specialized in archeology. The game features some notable characters from the Discworld series, including Commander Vimes, Corporal Nobby and Death.

While the story is an original piece by Pratchett, the writer viewed it like his previous games as in a "parallel Discworld" to that of the novels. Despite this, the game's designer Chris Bateman devised Noir's events to fit in between the stories Feet of Clay and Jingo.[10]

Plot

Lewton, a former member of the Ankh-Morphok City Watch who now works as the Discworld's first (and only) private investigator, finds himself hired by the mysterious Carlotta Von Uberwald to track down a man named Mundy. The only details he learns about him is that he was away in Tsort on the Counterweight Continent, and that he disappeared the moment he returned to Ankh-Morphok two days ago aboard the Milka. Accepting the case, Lewton's search lead him to encounter the troll Malachite, who requests his help in tracking down a troll named Therma, and Carlotta's father, the Count, who hires him to track down the Von Uberwald's dwarven driver, Regin, after they disappeared around the time Mundy did. During his investigations, Lewton encounters his former girlfriend Ilsa Verbay, who reveals she had returned back to Ankh-Morphok with a companion from the Agatean Empire, called Two-Conkers, abord the Milka, and that she recalled Mundy was nervous on the voyage back to the city.

Lewton eventually tracks down Mundy to a bar called the Ocatrine Parrot, but is knocked out moments upon finding him. After regaining consciousness, he finds Mundy was brutally murdered. His former superior, Commander Vines, accuses him of the crime after the Watch turns up, while former colleague, Corporal Nobby, notes the killing appears similar to a spate of ritualistic murders that recently occurred in the last few days, dubbed the Counterweight Killings. While trying to prove his innocence, Lewton is ambushed by a shady dwarf named Al-Khali, who brings him before Horst, a troll criminal. Through the meeting, Lewton learns Mundy was bringing back a relic known only as the "Golden Sword", which Carlotta was really looking for; Horst hints she might be behind his murder, while offering a substantional fee if Lewton can bring the Sword to him instead. The only detail he learns is that Mundy must have hidden the sword before his return to the city.

Focusing on his other investigations, Lewton questions the Parrot's troll singer, Sapphire, regarding where Therma could be. After she gives a false lead, and he discovers she came into wealth, Sapphire confesses to blackmailing Therma under interrogation, and promises to arrange a meeting. In the meantime, Lewton discovers Regin died after recklessly driving the Uberwald's carriage into the River Ankh. With Malachite's help, the carriage is recovered and found to have a box in it that the troll notes belongs to Therma. Malachite leaves with it, while Lewton notes that Regin's body has small bite marks, making him suspect he was murdered while driving the carriage. A key found on the body leads to a safety desposit box containing an enevelope that is empty, raising further questions. Sapphire eventually contacts Lewton, prompting him to take Malachite to a meeting with Therma, but is promptly knocked out, while Malachite is murdered.

Vimes arrests Lewton for the murder, but releases him after a gargoyle saw someone else commit the crime. Focusing on the missing Sword, Lewton discover Mundy hid it in a crate on the Milka that was later taken to the Guild of Archeologists. Seeking help from Ilsa, he helps her find someone safe for Two-Conkers to hide in following an assassination attempt on his life, before finding the means to break into the Guild's vault and recover the Sword. Upon leaving with it, Lewton realizes something is following him and tries to lose it in the city streets. However, he drops the sword in his escape, which his pursuer takes and uses to stab him after cornering him. Lewton is pronounced dead after the attack, much to Vime's displeasure, and is buried in the cemetary behind the Temple of Small Gods. However, Lewton comes back to life, and discovers through a talking dog named Gaspode that he has become a werewolf.

Using his newfound abilities, Lewton decides to investigate the Counterweight Killings, believing they are connected to the deaths of Regin, Malachite and Mundy. He also attempts to learn more about the Golden Sword at the Temple of Small Gods. A priest of Errata reveals the relic is actually called the Tsortese Falchion - an ancient blade forged for Errata, which got dropped into the mortal world and lost following a major war in Tsort many years ago. He also learns the relic is not complete - it is missing a jewel that enpowers it, and which is believed to be hidden in Ankh-Morphok. Continuing his investigations, Lewton discovers through his heightened sense of smell that Carlotta is a werewolf, and confronts her over this. She admits to wanting the Falchion, but is not eager to explain her motives; however, he becomes suspicious of her recent actions, after discovering the killings all seem to involve a werewolf.

Lewton eventually discovers the killings form part of a ritual designed to summon Nylonathatep, a being that has long sought godhood. Stalking the site where the final ritual murder is to take place, Lewton watches as a werewolf murders Al-Khali, who had been tailing Lewton even after his 'death'. Before he can pursue the creature, Carlotta stops him, revealing she is the head of a cult devoted to Anu-Anu, the god of werewolves and the one behind the murders. Lewton discovers Mundy was killed for betraying the cult for agreeing to sell the Falchion to Horst; Malachite was killed because Carlotta is Therma, his step-sister, and he was getting to close to finding her; and Regin was killed merely because he suspected her actions and was threatening to blackmail, even though he had no evidence. Lewton was stabbed by Anu-Anu when he tried to run with the Falchion, but Carlotta made him a werewolf believing he could still be important to the cult's cause.

Forced to attend the ritual, Lewton watches as Anu-Anu summons Nylonathatep, only for the Falchion to disobey further commands and collapse the cult's temple, killing his mortal form and several cult members. With Nylonathatep on the loose in Ankh-Morphok, Lewton questions the survivors on how the ritual backfired. He soon discovers a second cult dedicated to Nylonathatep infiltrated Anu-Anu's cult with the intent of releasing him, and that the Falchion couldn't control him because the missing jewel is required. Aided by Two-Conkers, Lewton tracks down the jewel and then proceeds to find the Falchion after it disappeared. After finding Horst attempting to get it from Carlotta, preparing to kill her, Lewton kills the troll, before having Carlotta give him the Falchion and handing her over to the Watch. With the Falchion restored, Lewton uses it to defeat Nylonathatep. With Ankh-Morphok saved, Lewton convinces Ilsa to leave with Two-Conkers, and watches her leave the city with him.

Development

Rob Brydon, Kate Robbins, Robert Llewelyn, and Nigel Planer provide almost all of the game's voice work, with Brydon voicing the protagonist Lewton among other roles.[11]

Perfect Entertainment had enjoyed a working relationship with Terry Pratchett and the Discworld licence from as early as 1993, collaborating closely to develop their first two Discworld games, Discworld (1995) and Discworld II: Missing Presumed...!? (1996).[12][13] Discworld Noir was developed for Windows 95 and Windows 98.[4] GT Interactive were chosen as publisher due to their strong US presence, as the first two Discworld games had done relatively poorly in America.[14]

Chris Bateman, who had worked on Discworld II in a non-lead role, originally suggested using Teppic (the protagonist of Pyramids) as a lead character, though Pratchett disliked the idea.[15][16] Pratchett sent the developers a story outline and the first draft of the script, wanting a detective story set in Ankh-Morpork. The idea for a film noir theme specifically came from the developers.[17] Bateman wrote the ultimate script, which was then edited by Pratchett.[16] The script was the first one Bateman had written for a video game.[15] With each Discworld game Pratchett became less and less involved,[17] in Noir mainly being involved during the beginning and end of development.[16]

The game uses pre-rendered 3D models. Real-time 3D models were unfeasible for the period, as the developers needed the characters to have facial expressions and so likely few people would have computers powerful enough to run the game.[14] A full 3D game would have required simplification of the characters.[1] Utilising some 3D, however, allowed them to explore more with shadow and fog.[14] The backgrounds in the game remained 2D.[5]

Most of the voice acting was done by four actors: Rob Brydon, Kate Robbins, Robert Llewelyn, and Nigel Planer.[11] There was one less voice actor in Noir than in Discworld II; however, the heavy amount of dialogue in the game led to more reuse of voice actors in comparison.[16] Audio director Rob Lord also provided additional voices.[11] Robbins, voice actress for every female character in the game, finished her lines in a one-day session.[15] Brydon, who voiced the player character, took a "grueling" week to complete his lines, with the game's main delivery of important information being Lewton's hardboiled monologues.[15] Paul Weir created the soundtrack for the game.[14][16] Weir studied most of the noir films Discworld Noir drew on.[14]

After the release of Discworld Noir for the PC, Perfect Entertainment folded, leaving them unable to patch the game.[4] The company briefly resurfaced as "Teeny Weeny Games", and under this name the game was ported to the PlayStation. The PlayStation version has a lower resolution to the PC game and, in order to fit the game onto one disc (as opposed to the three discs of the PC version), compresses the game's sound and videos.[4] A port for the Dreamcast was in development, but never released.[citation needed]

As a result of the closure of GT Interactive, the game was never released outside of Europe.[4][18]

Reception

Discworld Noir received generally positive reviews upon its release. Marek Bronstring, writing for Adventure Gamer, rated Noir 4/5 stars and recommended buying the game.[25] Gordon Barrick gave the game 8/10.[9] PC Zone gave the game a positive review,[2] at the time ranking it as their sixth top adventure game.[26] Just Adventure's Tom Houston rated the game A-.[27] PC Gamer UK's Jonathan Davies gave the game a 74% quality rating.[22] Another reviewer for Just Adventure, Jenny Guenther, gave the game a C+, particularly criticising the game's bugs.[28]

The game's atmosphere was praised. Barrick praised the graphics and music for their part in creating the atmosphere, calling the backgrounds "detailed and beautifully rendered" and the saying the music underscored the game with "originality and style".[9] This praise was echoed by PC Zone, drawing notice to the shadows, lighting and fog, and calling the visuals "the perfect companions to an excellent soundtrack".[2] David Wildgoose, writing for PC PowerPlay, noted the "dark and seedy atmosphere", crediting "enticing visuals and a very cool soundtrack".[23] Guenther liked the music, giving the game's sound an A, but criticised the "broken-record-skipping" effect that seemed to get worse as the game went on.[28] The music and its effect on atmosphere was likewise praised by Houston.[27] Reviewing the French translation of the game, JeuxVideo.com's Kornifex praised the game's effective use of rain and its cinematic quality.[29] A second JeuxVideo.com review, however, criticised the scarcity of music and sound effects, though said what music there was brought "a semblance of atmosphere".[30]

The large amount of dialogue was criticised. PC Zone called the dialogue "generally interesting enough" to watch, but sometimes felt it could be too much.[2] The length of the conversations were one reason Tom Houston lowered the grade for Noir's gameplay to a C,[27] a complaint similarly raised by Guenther, who gave the gameplay a D.[28] Reaction to the humour of the game was similarly mixed. Wildgoose felt the developers "tried too hard to make every character and every situation funny", resulting in jokes that fell flat and a level of humour "only sporadically maintained".[23] Bronstring called the game generally amusing, but felt it "very tiresome" at times where it lasted too long.[20] Rose commented, "the dialogue is suitably authentic and funny in that slightly irritating I-know-it's-funny way that Pratchett writes",[21] while Davies criticised the game for not living up to Pratchett's humour.[22]

Bronstring felt the voices sounded "artificial", placing the blame on either poor editing of the various sound sources or a lack of variety in the four voice actors.[25] Barrick, however, praised the voice actors, feeling that every line came across "convincingly".[9] Guenther found the British attempts to imitate foreign accents funny, but nonetheless praised the voice acting.[28]

Retrospective

In a retrospective review in 2002, Bronstring maintained his original rating of 4/5 stars.[20] A 2011 retrospective by Eurogamer's John Walker called it "surprisingly poorly structured", and noted a lack of puzzles. Walker still admitted a "fondness" for the game, however, comparing it favourably to the company's first two Discworld adventure games, noting a lack of "grating knowing tweeness" and an ability to be genuinely funny.[5] In 2011, Adventure Gamers would go on to place it at number 27 in their "Top 100 All-time Adventure Games" list, giving credit to its innovative notepad mechanism, which would become a common element in adventure games.[31] Walker later listed it at number 20 in "The 25 Best Adventure Games Ever Made", praising the voice cast.[32] PC Gamer's Richard Cobbett placed it as 25 in a similar list, commenting "the third Discworld game finally shed its predecessors' fixation with being as much Python as Pratchett".[33] Andy Kelly, also writing for PC Gamer, called it one of the 20 best detective games. Kelly commented: "Its shadowy, rain-soaked setting, Ankh-Morpork, is brilliantly atmospheric, and it manages to both mock film noir and be a loving homage to it."[34]

Dave Gilbert called Discworld Noir one of his favourite adventure games, and called it "one of [his] biggest inspirations". Gilbert would eventually create the "Oz noir" adventure game Emerald City Confidential (2009).[35] Kate Berens and Geoff Howard's The Rough Guide to Videogaming includes Discworld Noir as one of its recommended games. Noting the heavy number of conversations, they felt the game played "more like an interactive novel at times" but praised the dialogue and called Ankh-Morpork "beautifully rendered".[36]

References

  1. ^ a b c Croft, Martin (10 March 1999). "Discworld Noir Preview". GameSpot UK. Archived from the original on 6 December 2000. Retrieved 7 June 2016.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h "Discworld Noir". PC Zone. No. 79. London, England: Dennis Publishing Ltd. August 1999. pp. 80–81. Retrieved 2 April 2016.
  3. ^ Nutt, Christian (12 September 2007). "AGDC: Bateman Reveals The 'Temperament Theory'". Gamasutra. Archived from the original on 22 September 2016. Retrieved 13 June 2016.
  4. ^ a b c d e Kalata, Kurt (10 April 2010). "Discworld". Hardcore Gaming 101. p. 2. Archived from the original on 30 March 2016. Retrieved 12 April 2016.
  5. ^ a b c Walker, John (11 September 2011). "Retrospective: Discworld Noir". Eurogamer. Archived from the original on 15 April 2016. Retrieved 3 April 2016.
  6. ^ a b Cobbett, Richard (3 June 2016). "The best adventure games on PC". PC Gamer. Archived from the original on 16 June 2016. Retrieved 13 June 2016.
  7. ^ Nettelbeck, Joachim (July 1999). "Discworld Noir". Power Play (in German). Germany. pp. 102–105.
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