Case 5: Land of the Rising Dead
Since I played the first four cases only after they already had been released (BJ4 had just come out then) I don’t know when exactly the Ben Jordan series really started to become popular among the AGS community, but I believe it was some time between the release of the third and fourth case. What I do know is that the series had already gained some serious momentum and quite a few rabid fans by the time the waiting for Case 5 began. It was the longest waiting time for a new BJ yet. Also, the game was postponed a few times and I distinctly remember the AGS forums boiling over with demands to know when exactly the next game would be released. Ah, good times! When Ben Jordan Case 5 was finally released on April 3rd 2006, it was almost one year after the previous game. For me it was the first Ben Jordan game I had to wait for and I had been anticipating it a lot. While such hype is a recipe for disappointment more often than not, the wait was more than worth it as for me BJ5 turned out to be the best entry of the series yet.
Story/Characters
Right when the game started with the overlay “Smailholm, Scotland” and we see Ben at Mary Blaine’s grave, I knew we were in for a ride. Throughout the game, Ben is fighting with his feelings of loss and guilt about Mary’s death, which manifest in recurring nightmares. These nightmares also seem to have a prophetic component, as Mary gives Ben dire warnings about his future. This subplot, unrelated to the main happenings in the game, shows that the connections between the different cases are becoming increasingly stronger now. As for the main plot, BJ5 made good on the previous game’s promise that we’d see Ben, Simon and Alice work on a case together. The trio travels to exotic Osaka, Japan, to solve the so called ghost murders. To this end, the three of them need to cooperate closely, with Ben (i.e.the player) doing most of the leg work, Simon handling the research and Alice being helpful for translations. This works all very well to further the friendship of the three paranormal researchers throughout the game and it also becomes clear that Alice is a candidate for Ben’s new love interest. Also of interest is the resolution of this case, which seems to be the only one in the series that has no actual supernatural background after all. Turns out a Japanese businessman is responsible for killing his rivals using “zombies”, who are actually alive but in a trance-like state due to fugu poison. The stakes are raised when Alice also falls victim to fugu poisoning, making it her turn to be endangered after Simon was almost lost in Case 4. Luckily everthing turns out well in the end, but Alice's close call still gives the ending a somber note and Mary’s dream warning indicates that hard times are ahead.
Gameplay/Puzzles
Where the predecessor had a tighter scope, case 5 is outright sprawling in comparison. This game has the largest number of locations and characters yet and the narrative spans several days now, which adds another analogy with genre paragon Gabriel Knight. For the first time in the series, BJ5 also introduces a map screen, which is used to travel quickly to one of the various locations in and around Osaka. Since Ben works in a team this time, there are a few occations where Alice or Simon follow him around and are needed to solve some puzzles. Also new in the game is the danger of death. On several occations throughout BJ5, Ben can die and if that happens you must reload an old save game (or restart the game), so it’s wise to save every now and then. In other news, the multiple paths feature makes a return late in the game, but this time it’s far less intrusive than in Case 3. To tell the truth, I didn’t even know this feature existed until I found it by accident on my second or third playtrough several years after the game’s release. Storywise it doesn’t make a difference which path you choose and both paths give you the full score, but it’s a nice easter-egg to have a few additional puzzles and rooms. The puzzles in BJ5 are not that hard and once again the game focuses on investigation rather than crazy inventory combinations. It’s easy however to lose some optional points in a crazy Japanese game show in which you participate at one point of the game.
Graphics/Music
Graphically, Ben Jordan 5 marks another push forwards. Ben has finally got new character sprites now, which make him fit much better with the rest of the characters. Moreover Ben and Simon have new dialog portraits and they are big improvements over the old versions. Backgrounds are also better than ever, with a lot of details in most screens – the backgrounds in the small village of Asuka are especially good. Sounds and music are on the usual high level. Fitting the Far Eastern theme of the game, getting points now plays a gong sound, while most of the music sounds distinctly Japanese and fits well with the scene it plays with, from a dangerous attack in a dark back alley to an annoyingly over-the-top game show. And how could I forget the awesome song playing over the end credits? If I have one complaint it’s the absence of some familiar old themes.
Final Verdict
While Case 3 had a great plot and Case 4 shined with its character work, there’s no question that BJ5 is the most polished game yet. It simply has it all: an interesting plot, fun and likeable characters, great art, lengthy gameplay, logical puzzles and enough tie-ins to the greater story arc to keep players guessing and eagerly awaiting the next game in the series. While the whole Ben Jordan series was obviously influenced by the great Gabriel Knight games, especially GK1, BJ5 introduces further plot and gameplay elements that bring it even closer to its inspiring example: the several-day structure, the map screen, the possibility to die in the game, the research-doing friend, NPCs involved in the case getting killed off, not to mention the Ghost Murders that are somewhat reminiscent of GK1’s Voodoo Murders. That’s not a complain though, since all these elements fit perfectly in the Ben Jordan series and GK1 is one of my favourite adventure games anyway. In summary, playing BJ5 is simply a blast and I cannot think of any serious complaint without starting to nitpick. For this reason, Case 5 is the first game in the series to be awarded with the glorious rating of 5/5.
Story/Characters
Right when the game started with the overlay “Smailholm, Scotland” and we see Ben at Mary Blaine’s grave, I knew we were in for a ride. Throughout the game, Ben is fighting with his feelings of loss and guilt about Mary’s death, which manifest in recurring nightmares. These nightmares also seem to have a prophetic component, as Mary gives Ben dire warnings about his future. This subplot, unrelated to the main happenings in the game, shows that the connections between the different cases are becoming increasingly stronger now. As for the main plot, BJ5 made good on the previous game’s promise that we’d see Ben, Simon and Alice work on a case together. The trio travels to exotic Osaka, Japan, to solve the so called ghost murders. To this end, the three of them need to cooperate closely, with Ben (i.e.the player) doing most of the leg work, Simon handling the research and Alice being helpful for translations. This works all very well to further the friendship of the three paranormal researchers throughout the game and it also becomes clear that Alice is a candidate for Ben’s new love interest. Also of interest is the resolution of this case, which seems to be the only one in the series that has no actual supernatural background after all. Turns out a Japanese businessman is responsible for killing his rivals using “zombies”, who are actually alive but in a trance-like state due to fugu poison. The stakes are raised when Alice also falls victim to fugu poisoning, making it her turn to be endangered after Simon was almost lost in Case 4. Luckily everthing turns out well in the end, but Alice's close call still gives the ending a somber note and Mary’s dream warning indicates that hard times are ahead.
Gameplay/Puzzles
Where the predecessor had a tighter scope, case 5 is outright sprawling in comparison. This game has the largest number of locations and characters yet and the narrative spans several days now, which adds another analogy with genre paragon Gabriel Knight. For the first time in the series, BJ5 also introduces a map screen, which is used to travel quickly to one of the various locations in and around Osaka. Since Ben works in a team this time, there are a few occations where Alice or Simon follow him around and are needed to solve some puzzles. Also new in the game is the danger of death. On several occations throughout BJ5, Ben can die and if that happens you must reload an old save game (or restart the game), so it’s wise to save every now and then. In other news, the multiple paths feature makes a return late in the game, but this time it’s far less intrusive than in Case 3. To tell the truth, I didn’t even know this feature existed until I found it by accident on my second or third playtrough several years after the game’s release. Storywise it doesn’t make a difference which path you choose and both paths give you the full score, but it’s a nice easter-egg to have a few additional puzzles and rooms. The puzzles in BJ5 are not that hard and once again the game focuses on investigation rather than crazy inventory combinations. It’s easy however to lose some optional points in a crazy Japanese game show in which you participate at one point of the game.
Graphics/Music
Graphically, Ben Jordan 5 marks another push forwards. Ben has finally got new character sprites now, which make him fit much better with the rest of the characters. Moreover Ben and Simon have new dialog portraits and they are big improvements over the old versions. Backgrounds are also better than ever, with a lot of details in most screens – the backgrounds in the small village of Asuka are especially good. Sounds and music are on the usual high level. Fitting the Far Eastern theme of the game, getting points now plays a gong sound, while most of the music sounds distinctly Japanese and fits well with the scene it plays with, from a dangerous attack in a dark back alley to an annoyingly over-the-top game show. And how could I forget the awesome song playing over the end credits? If I have one complaint it’s the absence of some familiar old themes.
Final Verdict
While Case 3 had a great plot and Case 4 shined with its character work, there’s no question that BJ5 is the most polished game yet. It simply has it all: an interesting plot, fun and likeable characters, great art, lengthy gameplay, logical puzzles and enough tie-ins to the greater story arc to keep players guessing and eagerly awaiting the next game in the series. While the whole Ben Jordan series was obviously influenced by the great Gabriel Knight games, especially GK1, BJ5 introduces further plot and gameplay elements that bring it even closer to its inspiring example: the several-day structure, the map screen, the possibility to die in the game, the research-doing friend, NPCs involved in the case getting killed off, not to mention the Ghost Murders that are somewhat reminiscent of GK1’s Voodoo Murders. That’s not a complain though, since all these elements fit perfectly in the Ben Jordan series and GK1 is one of my favourite adventure games anyway. In summary, playing BJ5 is simply a blast and I cannot think of any serious complaint without starting to nitpick. For this reason, Case 5 is the first game in the series to be awarded with the glorious rating of 5/5.