THE LONGEST JOURNEY SERIES REVIEW

There used to be both magic and science in the world. Unfortunately, the people who subjugated both brought chaos and destruction. To protect order and balance, the world has been divided into two: Stark - a world of science similar to ours, and Arcadia - whose technological development stopped in the Middle Ages, but in which magic and magical races exist.

So far, there are three games about the world of Balance.

The Longest Journey begins in Stark in the year 2209, when 18-year-old April Ryan, studying at the Newport Fine Arts Academy in Little Venice, gets ready for the upcoming exhibition. We meet her when she begins to worry about strange dreams that are both real and fantastic. Soon, visions like from her dreams begin to leak into reality, and she, with help of a mysterious old man, Cortez, learns that she has the ability to jump between two worlds and becomes involved in events that will determine the fate of both worlds.

Dreamfall: The Longest Journey tells the story of two more characters. Zoe Castillo lives in Casablanca in 2219 with her father after dropping out of biotechnology studies. She is a lost girl, looking for what she wants to do in life and struggling with a state similar to depression. One day, strange errors start spreading everywhere, and on the TV she notices a vision of a land covered with snow and a girl asking her to save April Ryan. Soon after one request from Reza, her ex-boyfriend, she becomes involved in a WatiCorp conspiracy which has something to do with a dream console allowing lucid dreaming. She also has the ability to travel to Arcadia, albeit through sleep. Meanwhile, in Arcadia Kian Alvane, the apostle of Sadir, who is faithfully devoted to the goddess that the Azadi people profess, is sent to Markuria to kill a person called Scorpio who threatens the Church. Markuria itself, after the events of The Longest Journey, is colonized by the Azadis, who have officially become the saviors of the city, but in fact they are preparing something sinister there and taking action against the Magicians by discriminating them and putting them in a ghetto. However, not everyone agrees to such a turn of events and the resistance movement clandestinely conducts activities led by April.

Dreamfall Chapters is a direct continuation of the first Dreamfall, which finally closes the threads of WatiCorp's conspiracies and the occupation of Azadi, focusing on the further fate of Zoe and Kian.

The Longest Journey games are a series of adventure games produced by Funcom and Red Thread Games, which were released successively in 1999, 2006 and episodically in the years 2014-2017. The difference in the release year can be seen in both graphics and gameplay. While The Longest Journey was a typical point & click, Dreamfalls are characterized by backside control with directional keys and a slightly modified system of interacting with items. Nevertheless, all parts focus on exploration, learning stories, talking to characters and solving logical puzzles. In Dreamfall Chapters, another aspect of the game is added, which is making decisions that affect the fate of the heroes.

And you have to admit there is a lot to see and learn, because the world of the Longest Journey is mysterious and extremely interesting. It is complex and developed both historically and politically. The locations that we will visit are also detailed, interesting, unforgettable. They give the impression that this world is really alive. Long after the game ends, Little Venice, the higher districts of Newport, Casblanca, Propast, Markuria and the village of the Banda people will be remembered.

The characters, both the main and the supporting ones, also attract the player's attention. They are extraordinary, nice and well-written. Particular care is given to April and Zoe, whose character is clearly visible during their adventures. They are a pair of nice but strong women who have their own worldview and ideas that they stick to. Especially after their worries you can see what they really care about and how the whole adventure affects them and their view on their life so far. Their character also highlights their encounters with their other selves. Unfortunately, not all of the protagonists were so lucky, because Kian, although he is by definition an interesting character, how he was presented and how his character was developed leaves much to be desired. It is very accelerated, which makes it a bit artificial. It is also a pity that one aspect of his character has not been explored to the maximum, despite the fact that there was a chance. What is worse, it happens that Kian is put into quite awkward situations with one of the supporting characters, which are to build a seemingly romantic plot, although it is even an anti-exploration of the aforementioned character trait. What do I mean by anti-exploration, and by what right am I using a word that does not even exist? What I mean is that the story delves into situations that are at the other end of the personality spectrum and develops them, rather than developing what is actually about the character. Suppose someone is an altruist, but the plot, instead of showing why he is altruistic, shows why he is not selfish. This is the case. I know it's hard to guess what I mean, but those who know what's going on know what's going on. And how could I not mention Crow, the companion of the protagonists in all games. Unfortunately, I will not dwell on his personality here, because you have to experience this guy first-hand.

Each of the games offers the highest quality character and location designs. The difference, however, is in the quality of execution. Of course, as The Longest Journey was created at a time when 3D graphics were still in its infancy, we are dealing here with rather simple models and low-quality textures and fully static backgrounds that are simply an image superimposed on a three-dimensional environment. Despite this, the graphics are not dazzling during the game itself. On the contrary, it has its own charm. What strikes the eye, however, are the pre-rendered films, and although those from the very meaning of their existence have more accurate models and three-dimensional surroundings, they do not look too aestheticly. It can be said that April looks much better in the game than in cut-scenes, where her face resembles an alien or a corpse only theoretically resembling a human. Of course, the graphics are significantly improved in the first Dreamfall, which presents a level similar to, for example, Tomb Raider Legends. Thus, the game offers higher-quality, yet still comic-looking character models and detailed, fully modeled environments. The only drawbacks of this version are, in some places, stiff animations, limited facial expressions and the high frequency of fast loading screens. The latter is due to the fact that the game offers the freedom to explore different places, however, due to hardware limitations, it can only load single fragments of the world. Dreamfall Chapters, on the other hand, offers the highest quality of models and environments, which are now much closer to reality, although still have a slightly comic character. In terms of presentation, I can't fault anything here, because the game looks just beautiful. It also offers large open locations, although this is not a flawless solution, as most of the game takes place in two main environments, i.e. Propast in Stark and Markuria in Arcadia. However, this is not a big drawback, as individual chapters try to distribute the setting evenly in different parts of these locations. The only thing I can hang on to is that the animations are a bit stiff during the more dynamic scenes. This progress in graphics has some disadvantages, because whenever we see a character that has already appeared in the previous games, although it is always a pleasant feeling, you always have the feeling "Hey! This guy looks completely different."

The work of voice actors is also at the highest level here. Each clearly captures the personality of their character and feels that the actors really identified with them. Even Polish dubbing deserves praise, which is also quite good, although I must admit that it was not without small and sporadic glitches. And if we are already at the sound stage, special attention should be paid to the musical pieces in the first Longest Journey. They are unique, mysterious and atmospheric. They feel as if they are not just background songs, but a piece of art in itself. In the remaining two parts, only single pieces attract attention. Nevertheless, individual soundtracks from all games have become a permanent fixture in my playlist.

If you are looking for an extraordinary, mysterious and addictive adventure that will attract you with its atmosphere, which you will never get fed up with and whose characters and places you will miss long after the end of the adventure, I strongly recommend "The Longest Journey" series.