PHANTASMAGORIA GAME INTRO PC
PHANTASMAGORIA GAME INTRO SERIES

And, while the full-motion video presentation is novel, some of the performances leave a lot to be desired. That's a shame, as many players could miss a lot of the story, especially the bits about Carno's descent into madness. In fact, a great deal of the game's content is optional. I missed two of them this time around, and wouldn't even know they were there if it wasn't for Google and YouTube. Most of the death scenes are optional, for one. None of this is to say that Phantasmagoria is a perfect adventure game. They amplify the grim, terrifying situation in which Adrienne finds herself and, in that respect, do their job very well. Instead, they were designed to horrify, like the ghoulish form of theatre Phantasmagoria was named after.

These scenes are not designed to titillate, unlike the explosive headshots and ' chainsawdomy' we see today. There's an important distinction to make here, though. Adolescents would gloat about how Phantasmagoria had been banned in Australia. In the 1990s, when the likes of Mortal Kombat and the super cheesy Night Trap were terrifying parents everywhere, the violence of Phantasmagoria seemed positively stratospheric. While some are campy by today's standards, many of the death scenes вЂ“ Adrienne's in particular вЂ“ remain absurdly graphic. No effort is made to hide or obfuscate the ghastliest moments, either. Remember, all of these scenes are played out by real actors. Later on, death scenes depict her head split apart by a torture device or literally ripped in half by a demon. Even Adrienne herself falls victim early in the story, as she is raped by her husband. Another's neck is twisted completely around by a horrific machine. Another is force fed animal viscera until she chokes to death. One scene features Carno ramming a dirt-filled spade into his wife's mouth. Thanks to the demonic presence in the house, Adrienne bears witness to grisly murders from the past, watching as the ghostly apparition of Carno dispatches his wives one by one.

PHANTASMAGORIA GAME INTRO SERIES

As it turns out, Carno developed something of a penchant for murdering his wives, a fact Adrienne discovers through a series of surprisingly graphic cutscenes. Along the way, she meets a few colorful characters, gathers numerous household items and formulates complicated solutions for seemingly simple puzzles.Д«ut all of that is standard adventure game fare, and you might be wondering what was so controversial. Before too long, Adrienne goes poking around where she shouldn't, uncovering a hidden chapel and releasing an ancient evil that promptly possesses her husband.ДЄdrienne spends the rest of the game coming to grips with Don's ever-worsening condition, delving deeper into the mansion and discovering Carno's past. Once belonging to an eccentric 19th century magician named Carno, the house and surrounding grounds are strange to say the least, replete with bizarre torture devices, outlandish architecture, austere portraits, lots of secret rooms and one grab-happy haunted bed. Players take on the role of Adrienne, controlling an FMV sprite of the actress who portrays her (tastefully dressed in another 90s phenomenon: high-waisted jeans). As her photographer husband begins converting a second-story bathroom into his personal darkroom, Adrienne decides to explore the house. A young married couple, Adrienne Delaney and Don Gordon, buy an old mansion located outside of what appears to be a coastal town in either New England or the Pacific Northwest. %Gallery-178177% The story of Phantasmagoria is pulled straight from traditional horror tropes. And, like Mortal Kombat and Night Trap before it, Phantasmagoria's realistic and often gruesome depiction of its characters stirred up controversy. Like CD-ROM sensation Myst, all the characters are rendered using full-motion video, while the environments are all composed of static, pre-rendered 3D backgrounds.

Released in 1995, it was smack in the middle of publisher Sierra's adventure game heyday.

In some ways, Phantasmagoria is the quintessential 90s game, borrowing elements вЂ“ intentionally or not вЂ“ from some of the decade's biggest phenomena. (Maybe I'll tell you about my family's PCJr in a future column.)

PHANTASMAGORIA GAME INTRO PC

My family didn't have much of a PC at the time, but Danny and Mikey had a 486 beast that could run Windows 95 and a glut of incredible games I couldn't get at home. I played the majority of the game on my friends Danny and Mikey's computer. Not that I could have told you who Roberta Williams was when I first played the game in the mid-1990s. The only reason this column exists is because I wanted an excuse to write about Phantasmagoria, an adventure game created by industry pioneer Roberta Williams.

Phantasmagoria game intro