As computers began to grow more and more powerful, game designers began to stretch the limit of what they could do with this new power. A trend began of making games that were actually interactive movies where a player would be seeing live action scenes, but they could affect what course the story was taking. Many games had varying levels of success, but it was Trilobyte who created the masterpiece of the genre. This was The 7th Guest, a story about greed, murder and chance of redemption.
You wake up in a large mansion with no memory on how you got there. As you explore, you start to see visions of a past when six guests were invited to the mansion. This is not a social visit as the owner has laid out numerous puzzles and traps. The guests have hidden motives for coming and you start to see that they are willing to kill to achieve them. The biggest question is who is the mysterious 7th guest that the owner is very eager to get his hands on?
The puzzles vary from simple to very difficult. In one you might play a game of chess, in another a sentence must be constructed using the phrases available. There is a hint book in the library which will complete the puzzle if it is consulted enough times. The actors bring everything they have to roles which see them try and kill each other multiple times.
It would seem in a game like this that it could not be played multiple times. The story and acting is so good you want to experience it again and again. The nature of The 7th Guest made it the first game that could only be played on a CD-ROM. The popularity of it made floppy disks a thing of the past. The game had a few sequels, but even now, there are plans for a new game to be released in October. The Stauf mansion held quite a few secrets and a return visit should be very pleasant indeed.
