The Da Vinci Code

Posted by Matt Barton.
First posted on 15 February 2009. Last updated on 14 August 2009.
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The Da Vinci Code
The spectacular scenery from the cut scenes is beautiful and highly immersive.
The Da Vinci Code
Robert and Sophie must work together to unravel a grand religious conspiracy behind a ritualized murder.
The Da Vinci Code
The logic puzzles are interesting and cleverly disguised.
The Da Vinci Code
The game is loaded with real historical information, which must be read closely to find clues.
The Da Vinci Code
The gameplay is ruined by awful fight scenes that, thankfully, can be bypassed as an option.

First off, let me admit that I have never read Dan Brown's novel The Da Vinci Code nor seen the movie by the same name, so I can say that I arrive at 2K Games' adaptation of the popular fictional work with a blank slate. I am not sure whether a fan of the novel or movie may find the game more or less enjoyable than I do, but as a longtime adventure game fan, I have definitely found this game rewarding. Furthermore, after learning more about the subject matter, I see how it is uniquely fitted to serve as the basis for a great adventure game. Unfortunately, a few questionable design decisions, particularly the fight scenes, mar the otherwise enjoyable gameplay, though the worst of these can be bypassed as an in-game option. Notwithstanding these minor qualifications, I recommend this game very higly to all fellow adventure game lovers.

I have long been a fan of the Gabriel Knight series, and much in The Da Vinci Code reminds me of the games from this classic series, particularly Gabriel Knight 3: Blood of the Sacred, Blood of the Damned. Both games are loaded with religious themes and laced with blasphemy and sacrilege, a fact that any devout Christian will want to take into consideration before playing either title. The bulk of both stories concerns a well-kept secret regarding the person of Jesus. In The Da Vinci Code, the mystery begins with what appears to be the ritualized murder of a man in a museum. However, you soon discover that this murder is just part of a large and deadly conspiracy, and almost everyone—even the monks and the police—seem to be involved. Without spoiling any secret in the story, I will simply state that many of these secrets concern ancient Masonic and other mysterious sects. Moreover, many famous artists and intellectuals of the past are revealed to have belonged to these societies and left clues in their various works that point to a massive cover-up. Of course, among these important historic figures who are involved is Leonardo Da Vinci, the celebrated artist and inventor. Many scholars who have looked closely at Da Vinci's paintings have been struck by odd coincidences; are they just unintentional markings, or are they some sort of code? Not everyone will see a conspiracy, but I have always found this sort of theory fascinating. The game does a great job of steeping you in a world of exotic "what if" scenarios.

In this game, you play as Robert Langdon, a quick-thinking American professor of Symbology, and Sophie Neveu, a stunningly beautiful French police agent with a tragic childhood, who have been brought in by the police to investigate the murder case. The pair must work together to unravel the code, all the while fighting the many who try to stop them. As Robert and Sophie learn more about the conspiracy and the code, they discover that much of what may once have been just coincidence (such as their meeting) has been, in actuality, carefully planned for a very long time. It is really enjoyable to find these connections and see everything coming together a very satisfying ending. The supporting characters are also intriguing, such as the deadly albino Silas and Sir Leigh Teabing, a master of the Grail lore.

The production values of The Da Vinci Code are excellent. Most impressive is the high quality voice acting and well-crafted dialog—factors that are vital in a game that relies so heavily on character development and interaction. The graphics are splendid, and most of the settings (such as the Louvre, mansion, and various churches) are beautifully rendered and readily show off the talents of the artists involved in the production. I frequently have found myself just taking a moment within the game to admire the scenery. The music is also highly appropriate and conducive to building a great atmosphere. The control scheme is quite easy to master, at least for anyone who has played a first-person shooter. Some of the controls make less sense, however, and I wonder frequently why the mouse control is not better implemented. The designers focus very heavily on the keyboard, even though an option to use a gamepad, which is sorely missing, makes a great deal of sense (especially given the fact the game has also been released on the consoles that support gamepads). Gamers who prefer the point-and-click style interface will probably be disappointed by this configuration.

The biggest problem by far in this game is the abysmal "fight scenes", which are poorly executed, repetitive, and simply not fun to play. They consist of pushing the right buttons or making the right mouse movements at exactly the right moment; it is more or less reminiscent of the popular music rhythm games that demand precision timing. The problem is that the game does not seem to recognize dual mouse presses (when you must push both mouse buttons at once). I am not sure if this is a problem with the game, my reflex, or both, but I have lost many fights because of it. Since the game only allows you to save your progress at given points, this problem reaches crisis proportions quickly. Who wants to play through the same 10-15 minutes of gameplay only to lose in a difficult fight and have to start over? There are many, many fights in the game, and it quickly gets unbearably frustrating. Thankfully, the developer has built in cheat codes which can be activated within the game (accessible through the Options menu) to allow you to win the fights almost instantly. Bypassing these action scenes greatly improves the gameplay, and using the code will not affect any other aspect of an otherwise excellent game.

The puzzles are often quite clever and enjoyable. Most of them are based on solving cryptograms and searching for clues hidden in paintings. There are also some rather good riddles to answer. I cannot really imagine anyone finding fault with the puzzles in this game; they are some of the best I have played in a long time, and just difficult enough to offer a challenge while still being solvable with a reasonable amount of patience. Stumped players can get hints from the characters, as well, and the game does a good job of pointing players at where they need to go next. The only puzzle that has really stumped me involves lighting torches in a certain order to open a gate. What makes this puzzle especially fiendish is that it takes some time for the character to run to the different torches, so trial and error can get quite tedious (and the number of possible combinations is staggering). I am not sure why the game does not offer more built-in hints for this puzzle; it seems to be an oversight.

While The Da Vinci Code may not be as deep as Gabriel Knight 3: Blood of the Sacred, Blood of the Damned Blood, I still recommend this title strongly to anyone who loves this style of adventure games. However, I also recommend to most players to take advantage of the built-in cheat codes to bypass the fight scenes; otherwise, the game is almost unbearably dull and maddeningly difficult. All in all, The Da Vinci Code is a fine game and well worth your attention—even if you have no plans to read the book or see the movie.

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