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Wikipedia

Amerzone

Amerzone (also known as Amerzone: The Explorer's Legacy) is a first-person fantasy graphic adventure game published by Microïds and designed by Benoît Sokal, who based it on his 1986 Inspector Canardo comic strip L'Amerzone. Amerzone was originally released for Microsoft Windows, the classic Mac OS and PlayStation in 1999, and re-released for iOS and Android in 2014 by Anuman Interactive, whom had bought out Microïds in 2009.

Amerzone
European Windows cover art
Developer(s)Microïds
Anuman Interactive (iOS, OS X)
Publisher(s)Casterman
Ubisoft
Director(s)Benoît Sokal
Producer(s)Olivier Fontenay
Jean-François Coremans
Designer(s)Benoît Sokal
Emmanuel Dexet
Eric Brouillat
Programmer(s)Emmanuel Dexet
Sébastien Guillaume
Artist(s)Benoît Sokal
Writer(s)Benoît Sokal
Composer(s)Knockin' Boots Productions
SeriesSyberia
EnginePhoenix VR[3]
Platform(s)Microsoft Windows, Classic Mac OS, PlayStation, iOS,[1] OS X[2]
ReleaseMicrosoft Windows
  • EU: March 18, 1999
  • NA: October 18, 1999
Classic Mac OS
PlayStation
  • EU: December 13, 1999
iOS
OS X
Genre(s)Adventure
Mode(s)Single-player

Like the comic, the game tells the story of a French explorer, Alexandre Valembois, who goes on an expedition to the mysterious South American country of Amerzone. There, he discovers many fantastical animals including a species of magical White Birds, who require human intervention for their survival. These become threatened when a friend of Valembois turns Amerzone into a brutal dictatorship, and Valembois endeavors to rescue the endangered species. The game adds a journalist as the player character, who continues Valembois's quest as the man nears death.

Amerzone received generally positive reception. It was praised for its atmosphere and visuals, with critics claiming that it lent it a poetic and dreamlike quality;[4][5] while criticism targeted the sound, controls, and difficulty. It was a great commercial success, with over 1 million copies sold in its original release.[6] The game's setting became the foundation of Sokal's Syberia series, and is the namesake for the video game development company he co-founded White Birds Productions.

Synopsis edit

Setting edit

 
An in-game illustration of the ventousier. Animals in Amerzone add fantastical traits onto real-life creatures.

The world of Amerzone interweaves fact and fiction. "Amerzone" itself is the name of a fictional region in South America and the great river that runs through it. The name, and the lush tropical rainforest in the Amerzone, suggest that it is inspired by the real-life Amazon rainforest. Valembois lives in a lighthouse on the fictitious Langrevin peninsula in Brittany.[note 1]

The game veers further into the realm of fantasy once the player enters Amerzone. The country is home to many strange plants and animals, depicted through watercolor sketches in Valembois's exploration journal. The flora comprises mostly herbaceous plants such as the orchid-like Orcochi. Animals in the Amerzone tend to resemble real-life animals, but with bizarre flourishes: the ventousier resembles a shrew, but its snout branches off into sucker-bearing arms; the rhinopotamus is cross between a rhinoceros and hippopotamus; the web-footed giraffe navigates the marshlands with its webbed feet.

 
The White Birds give the game its poetic and dreamlike quality.

The White Birds are the key plot point of the game. The Birds are born legless and as such spend their entire lives gliding over the thermals issuing from a great volcano, sustaining themselves on a diet of flying insects.[note 2] Their wings keep growing after the rest of their bodies has stopped, such that they end up disproportionately long. The Birds' limited range threatens their survival, as does their method of reproduction: every three years, a single, enormous egg is laid, containing many embryos. However, the volcano's fumes will naturally make the eggs "ill", such that they will hatch as Black Birds. Only a nearby indigenous tribe, the Ovo-volahos, knows how to "cure" the eggs to make them hatch as White Birds. Most Amerzonians believe the White Birds to merely be a fanciful myth.

Characters edit

  • The journalist: The player character; a faceless, nameless, silent protagonist. Has virtually no identity: all that is known is they were assigned by their employer, Mondial Magazine,[7] to interview Valembois about the Amerzone.
  • Alexandre Valembois (voiced by Michel Barbey): Born in 1904,[note 3] studied natural history in Paris. Fascinated by the biology of Amerzone, he goes on a scientific expedition there from 1932 to 1934. There, he encounters and becomes enamored with the White Birds, and finds love in a native girl called Yékoumani. When he brings back one of the White Birds' eggs, the scientific establishment laughs it off. After World War II, he gets a career as a lycée professor.[note 2] When the player character meets him in 1998, he is exhausted and tormented by his past mistakes, and can only think of returning the egg to Amerzone.
  • Antonio Alvarez (voiced by Marc Moro): An Amerzone native who befriends Valembois in 1929 while studying law. A lover of his native land, he accompanies Valembois on his expedition, and stays behind after his friend returns to Europe. Wishing to modernize the country, Alvarez spearheads a coup d'état. The patriot turns into a cynical dictator, corrupted by power and leading his once-beloved country into ruin.
  • David Mackowski (voiced by Luc Gentil): A Jesuit who also accompanies Valembois to Amerzone, being equally fascinated by the place. Unwisely attempts to convert the Amerzone natives to Catholicism. Like Valembois, by 1998 he is filled with regret and sadness over his mistakes and what has become of Amerzone under Alvarez's rule.[note 4]

Plot edit

The game proper begins in 1998 with the journalist's interview of Valembois, but much of the plot is backstory about Valembois's 1932 expedition.

1932–1934: the Valembois expedition edit

 
Concept art of the indigenous girl Yékoumani, Valembois' love interest

Alexandre Valembois, a zoology buff fascinated by Amerzone, lobbies the National Museum of Natural History in Paris to fund an expedition to discover the exotic flora and fauna mentioned by Antonio Alvarez. The Museum grants his wish in 1932, and he devises a watercraft called a Hydraflot to get to and around the country. Valembois, Alvarez, and the Jesuit David Mackowski set out on October 22 of that year,[note 5] finding their way by following the migrating Amerzone geese. On the way, the Hydraflot is damaged by a sperm whale, so they make the rest of the trip on a Peruvian whaling vessel.

They set foot in Amerzone on Christmas Day, and make their way to the former trading post of Puebla. Valembois begins sketching and studying the wildlife. On New Year's Day, he learns of the White Birds from one Luis Angel, and decides to pursue the lead despite widespread disbelief in the creatures. He hires Angel as a guide and rows up the Amerzone River, going it alone after Angel abandons him on February 18. On the 22nd of the month, he discovers a native tribe—the Ovo-vohalos—but hesitates to make contact. That night, he contracts a debilitating illness, and is nursed back to health by the comely native girl Yékoumani. They grow very close,[note 2] and upon his recovery a month later, begins designing labor-saving machines for the tribe.

On June 1, a young tribesman returns from the nearby mountains with a large White Bird egg, thus convincing Valembois of their existence. He takes part in the ceremony to cure the egg so it will hatch as healthy White Birds. Promising to Yékoumani that he will return, he heads for the mountains the next day. Making his way through a swamp and an ancient temple, he reaches the Birds' volcanic home on the 18th. In his zeal for scientific recognition, he steals an egg and returns to Puebla, thus betraying Yékoumani and the tribe.

In France, however, the scientific community dismiss the find as a hoax, perhaps an oversized ostrich egg. The Museum fires him for bringing ridicule upon them, and after a stint as a lycée professor, he holes up in a lighthouse in Brittany, all the while longing for Yékoumani and wallowing in guilt over his betrayal. Meanwhile, Alvarez has seized power in Amerzone and turned the country into a despotic dictatorship. His ties to the Museum now severed, Valembois independently builds a new Hydraflot with which to return to Amerzone with the egg, but comes to realize that he is too old and weak for the journey.

1998: the journalist edit

 
 
The Hydraflot is the player's only means of transportation. The player must always be on the lookout for extra fuel and floppy disks which allow it to switch between different configurations.

In 1998, the player character—a journalist—is assigned to interview Valembois. The old man confesses that he is dying, and beseeches the journalist to travel to Amerzone with the egg and safeguard the White Birds. He entrusts him with a letter and his old expedition journal, and the newsman sets out in the new and upgraded Hydraflot. The vehicle now uses programs on floppy disk to switch between different configurations.[note 6] It is also equipped with a grappling hook. He leaves to the journalist his old expedition journal, containing all his observations on Amerzone wildlife, and a candid letter detailing his experiences.

The journalist sets sail, and stops to refuel at the same island where Valembois ran into the sperm whale. An ultrasonic repellent keeps the craft safe, but a disoriented whale ends up tangled in a fishing net. The journalist manages to free it, and finds a disk that turns the Hydraflot into a helicopter. After fueling up, he heads for Puebla. In the once-lively, now heavily militarized village, he encounters an aged Mackowski who tells him that a despondent Yékoumani committed suicide in 1935. Mackowski wishes to aid the journalist in his quest, but Alvarez has him assassinated and the journalist captured to cover up the existence of the Birds. The journalist manages to escape, fuels up and locates a disk which lets him go up the Amerzone river.

On his way upstream, he discovers the plants and animals mentioned in Valembois's journal. A collision with a three-horned buffalo damages the Hydraflot so badly that only the grappling hook is left functioning, and the journalist must pull himself from rock to rock until he reaches the Ovo-volaho village. He narrowly escapes death when the hook catches on an ill-tempered rhinopotamus. At the village, he has the egg cured, acquires a new disk and rides one of Valembois's contraptions to get above some waterfalls that are in the way.

He thus reaches the swamp, but not before the Hydraflot is knocked over and finally put out of commission. The egg thus becomes lost in the mazelike swamp. The journalist finds a whistle in a pile dwelling, which lets him call and ride a web-footed giraffe deeper into the swamp. After finding the egg, he climbs a great tree and crosses a rope bridge into the temple Valembois had written of. There, he encounters Alvarez, who threatens to kill him but doesn't have the strength left for it. Further on, he rides a primitive hang glider which takes him to the volcano's rim. He sets the egg down and it hatches the White Birds, thus accomplishing Valembois's dying wish.

Gameplay edit

 
The player pans around the prerendered view in a typical screen of Amerzone.

Amerzone plays like a typical first-person point-and-click adventure game. The player flips between panoramic "screens", which can be panned around to view the game world. Certain elements can be interacted with by clicking on them. To progress in the game, the player must solve puzzles, which may involve talking to people or using items collected throughout the game. Some items are not required for puzzle-solving, but instead serve to flesh out the game's plot: this is the purpose of the explorer's journal and Valembois's letter. The game has a resource management component in the Hydroflot: the player must constantly be on the lookout for fuel and floppy disks required to keep the vehicle running.

The game's mobile port modified some gameplay elements. An optional hint system was added to get struggling players back on track, and certain puzzles were redesigned in an attempt to limit tedious back-and-forth travel between locations. Since iOS devices use touchscreens for input, the controls were redesigned: objects are highlighted with clickable icons, and the camera can be controlled by tilting the device.[8]

Development edit

 
Amerzone is based on a 1986 comic by Benoît Sokal, pictured here autographing a comic at a convention in 2010.

Pre-production edit

Before entering the gaming industry, Benoît Sokal drew comic books like Canardo, which he colorized on a personal computer.[A 1] With the advent of CD-ROMs, which could store hundreds of times more data than then-ubiquitous floppy disks, Sokal was inspired in 1995 to create a multimedia CD-ROM containing 2D and 3D art which would add up to a cohesive universe.[A 2] His comic publisher, Casterman, approved of the idea, and after a successful demonstration Sokal began work on the project with software developer Gregory Duquesne.[A 3][6] Casterman's initial vision was of a cheap, small-scale product with a very limited production run; they eventually realized that such a niche product would not sell, and decided to do something more ambitious.[6]

Sokal and Duquesne began planning a full-fledged video game, which Sokal decided to base on his comic book L'Amerzone.[6] It would be made up of prerendered screens, linked together using the Phoenix VR engine.[3] Sokal held complete creative control over the product, doing all the design work himself. He believed that working alone would foster creativity, whereas collaboration would result in a banal and standard commercial product.[A 4] He did hire fellow comic book artist Benoît Peeters to assist with writing, but he soon left the project.[6]

 
The game and particularly the Hydroflot and setting was inspired by the Werner Herzog film Fitzcarraldo (1982), about an ambitious rubber prospector and opera entrepreneur who portagess a steamboat between two tributaries of the Amazon river; a prop boat left over from the film is pictured.

Sokal wanted to keep the game accessible to inexperienced players. This meant avoiding sudden difficulty spikes, which could leave a player stuck; point-of-no-return scenarios, in which a player is stuck because they missed an item; and failure states in which the player character is killed.[A 5] He admitted to thinking the game may have been too simple as a result, and promised that "if [they] were to make a sequel, I think it would be more complex, especially toward the end".[A 6]

Sokal wrote the game much as he typically wrote comics: first writing a linear story, then rendering it frame-by-frame as a storyboard.[A 7] His guiding principle was to make "the kind of adventure that you no longer get these days, an adventure out of the early 20th century".[A 8] The challenge for Sokal was making this adventure interactive; in that regard, he found Duquesne's input very valuable.[6] He credits Myst as his inspiration to make the game, and also cites Werner Herzog films like Fitzcarraldo and the writings of Gabriel García Márquez as influences.[A 8] He is quoted especially as saying "Myst is really the game that made me want to make Amerzone".[A 9]

Production edit

The team began producing artwork in 1996, using LightWave 3D for character and object models, and Bryce 3D for environments.[6] Modeling characters at Sokal's desired quality level was time-consuming, so the cast of characters was kept small.[A 10][9] Being unfamiliar with 3D graphics, Sokal had to learn on the fly by studying the software documentation and getting help from the more technically proficient Duquesne.[A 9] The latter's skills were applied to the game's more complex visual effects, such as dust particles being buffeted about.

Sokal eventually realized the project was too ambitious for the two-man team, and hired Supinfocom graduates to help with the graphics from 1996 onwards.[6] In 1998, Duquesne left to pursue a career at LightWave in the United States,[A 8] and Sokal called on the Belgian company Grid Animation to produce cutscenes and do further graphics work.[A 9] The experience made Sokal overcome his misgivings about working collaboratively. In an interview with JATV, he was quoted as saying: "I recall that [for] the first chapters of Amerzone, I modeled everything because I wanted to be on top, but it was impossible of course. So little by little, people made their way into the team and started modeling, and I told myself it made me sick but... in a way it was a revolution in my mind!"[10] He ended up highly satisfied with the output of his collaborators.

Sokal recalls that the game's development was troubled at many points.[9] In 1997, Casterman had fallen on hard times and called upon the publisher Microfolie's to help with financing.[6] Microfolie themselves went bankrupt and the project was "saved" when Microïds bought them out and agreed to fund the game. The total budget was 5 million francs (€760,000), much higher than Sokal's initial sub-million-franc estimate. He would go on to describe the game's completion as a "miracle".[9]

Amerzone underwent several changes in direction as some design ideas proved impractical or unappealing. Sokal originally wanted a strictly 2D art style, but was disappointed in the results.[A 9] The team considered using live actors keyed into computer backgrounds instead of time-consuming 3D character modeling, but found the compositing of real and fake elements jarring. Concurrently, Duquesne and the publishers pushed for a highly interactive product, whereas Sokal had initially conceived of the game as a more passive experience.[A 6] A day-to-night progression was scrapped, as was a requirement to feed and hydrate the journalist, since this would have created frustrating failure states.

Later development edit

Anuman interactive started work on iOS ports of the game in November 2010. A release date in April 2011 was announced on February 25 of that year,[11] and the game was ultimately released on June 7, 2011.[12]

Tetraedge Games—a developer of adventure games for mobile devices[8]—was chosen to make the port, since they shared office space with Anuman and so could intercommunicate efficiently. Tetraedge cofounder Emmanuel Zaza said that the greatest hurdle lay in parsing all the old development data, which had not been organized properly. The port features greatly improved in-game visuals and cutscene video quality, and a new playable area: the top of the lighthouse. Benoît Sokal was eager to see the game rereleased for new players to enjoy, and collaborated with the Tetraedge team.[8]

Release edit

Amerzone was released in France on 4 CD-ROMs[13] for Windows on March 18, 1999. Mac OS and PlayStation ports followed in September and December[14] of that year. December also saw the DVD-ROM rerelease of the game, in which the cutscenes were in MPEG2 format instead of Smacker video. The DVD-ROM version saw further rereleases, some of them by Mindscape, some of them as bargain-priced pack-ins with other adventure titles.

The official strategy guide, Amerzone: Strategies & Secrets was released in June 1999. In addition to a walkthrough of the game, it contains a guide to the Amerzone universe, an interview with Sokal and some behind-the-scenes information. Another book, Amerzone: Memoirs of an Expedition, was put out by Casterman in November 1999. It compiles the art from the game and also some concept art that didn't make it into the final product. It is annotated with text explanations of the images, most of which are from the in-game expedition journal.

On January 29, 2014, the Android port of the game was released.[15] It is identical to the iOS release.

Reception edit

Sales edit

Amerzone was a surprise commercial success;[16] GameSpot UK noted in June 1999 that it had become a "big hit in France".[17] Following its release in France in March 1999, it sold 10,000 units by early May, a number that French paper Libération considered a promising sign.[18] The game proceeded to have a long shelf life.[19] Its global sales surpassed 500,000 copies by March 2002.[20] At the time, Mathieu Van Overstraeten of La Libre Belgique noted that these sales were unusual for Benoît Sokal's work, as each volume of Inspector Canardo averaged 30,000 units sold.[16] In 2007, Michel Bams of Sokal's White Birds Productions reported that Amerzone had risen above 1 million sales.[21] Ultimately, the game sold 1.5 million copies by 2013.[22]

Critical reviews edit

The game was generally positively received at the time. The presentation was ubiquitously praised: the visuals were called "magnificent"[26] and "amazing",[27] and frequently compared to those of Myst,[27][28] although some complained of excessive pixelation. The cutscenes were praised for high video quality.[25][29] The storyline and atmosphere were called "very good", "interesting and well-developed" and "sublime",[29] with some critics drawing comparisons to Jules Verne novels.[citation needed] The linearity of the narrative drew criticism, however.[citation needed]

More divisive was the difficulty: some welcomed it for keeping players from getting stuck,[24][28] while others complained that it made the game too simple and end too soon.[26][27][29] There were also occasional complaints that the point-and-click interface was cumbersome or awkward.[25][27] The sound design was the most criticized aspect of the game: the limited music was deemed repetitive and poor. A few reviewers were positive about the ambient sound effects.[24][28][29]

The game also received some attention from mainstream publications such as Télérama and Libération, both giving extremely positive reviews.[6]

Awards edit

Amerzone won the Pixel-INA prize for games at the 1999 Imagina festival in Monaco.[30] Sokal attributes the game's commercial success to this accolade.[6]

Legacy edit

The game has been cited as one of the finest examples of French computer adventure games.[31] In 2003, Benoît Sokal would borrow the logo and name of his new company, White Bird Productions, from the game. Amerzone is occasionally referenced in his later games, most notably the Syberia series. Amerzone is collected with the first two Syberia installments as the Syberia Collection, which was released in October 2009.[32]

Notes edit

  1. ^ As stated in a letter to Valembois from the Museum, found in the lighthouse
  2. ^ a b c As stated in the letter Valembois gives to the journalist
  3. ^ As stated in Valembois's journal
  4. ^ As stated in a letter from Mackowski to Valembois, found in the lighthouse
  5. ^ The dates given are inconsistent: the journal claims Valembois left in October 1932, but Valembois's letter gives a departure date of June. A photograph of the expedition dated July 1932 can also be found on the island. According to Amerzone: Strategies & Secrets (page 40) the October date is canonical and the others are mistakes.
  6. ^ According to Amerzone: Strategies & Secrets, the disks the player runs into were mailed to Amerzone by Valembois.

References edit

  1. ^ a b Amerzone at the iTunes Store 2016-03-15 at the Wayback Machine
  2. ^ a b Amerzone at the Mac App Store 2016-03-21 at the Wayback Machine
  3. ^ a b . 4xtechnologies.com. Archived from the original on 2000-12-10. Retrieved 2009-05-16.
  4. ^ Makidoo (2009). "Test de L'Amerzone : Le Testament de l'explorateur" [Review of Amerzone: The Explorer's Legacy] (in French). Planète Aventure. from the original on 28 September 2015. Retrieved 27 September 2015.
  5. ^ [Players' opinion of Amerzone] (in French). Tom's Games. Archived from the original on 2013-06-22. Retrieved 2015-09-27.
  6. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m LFP (2011-02-09). "En conversation avec Benoît Sokal" [A conversation with Benoît Sokal] (in French). Planète Aventure. from the original on 2015-05-18.
  7. ^ Amerzone manual
  8. ^ a b c LFP (18 August 2011). "Interview Amerzone" [Amerzone Interview] (in French). Planète Aventure. from the original on 28 September 2015.
  9. ^ a b c France 5 (2007). "Benoît Sokal : Un miracle nommé Amerzone" [Benoît Sokal: A Miracle Named Amerzone] (in French). France 2.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  10. ^ JATV (2007). "Interview de Benoît Sokal" [Benoît Sokal interview] (in French). Dailymotion. from the original on 2015-06-26. (at 8 min 34 s)
  11. ^ "Anuman Interactive annonce la venue de 'L'Amerzone' sur iPhone et iPad" [Anuman Interactive announces reslease of Amerzone for iPhone and iPad]. AFJV. 25 February 2011. from the original on 18 September 2011.
  12. ^ "Fiche de L'Amerzone sur iPhone" [Amerzone for iPhone fact sheet] (in French). Planète Aventure. from the original on 2015-09-28.
  13. ^ [Amerzone fact sheet for PC]. JeuxVideo.fr. Archived from the original on 2012-04-26. Retrieved 2015-09-27.
  14. ^ "Fiche de L'Amerzone sur PS1" [Amerzone fact sheet for PS1]. JeuxVideo.com. from the original on 2016-03-03.
  15. ^ "Explorer L'Amerzone sur Androïd". Planète Aventure. 29 January 2014. from the original on 28 September 2015.
  16. ^ a b Van Overstraeten, Mathieu (August 9, 2002). "Cyber Sibérie". La Libre Belgique. from the original on August 2, 2018.
  17. ^ . Archived from the original on 2000-12-14.
  18. ^ Rivoire, Annick (May 7, 1999). . Libération. Archived from the original on August 2, 2018.
  19. ^ . www.aventuraycia.com. Archived from the original on 10 February 2003. Retrieved 12 January 2022.
  20. ^ Leclercq, Hubert (March 8, 2002). "Un canard en Amérique". La Dernière Heure. from the original on August 2, 2018.
  21. ^ Walter, Johann (July 23, 2007). . Adventure Gamers. Archived from the original on 2007-10-11. Retrieved 2018-10-16.
  22. ^ "Remastered Full version and new Freemium of Amerzone: The Explorer's Legacy is available on iOS" (Press release). Montreuil, Seine-Saint-Denis: Gamasutra. August 26, 2013. from the original on March 23, 2018.
  23. ^ "Amerzone: The Explorer's Legacy". GameRankings. from the original on 2015-09-28.
  24. ^ a b c Fournier, Heidi (22 May 2002). "Review: Amerzone". Adventure Gamers. from the original on 14 May 2007.
  25. ^ a b c "IGN review". 1 December 1999. from the original on 30 September 2015.
  26. ^ a b Del Monte, Claudio (31 May 2004). "Recensione: Amerzone" (in Italian). Adventure's Planet. from the original on 28 September 2015.
  27. ^ a b c d Nadia. [Amerzone review] (in French). Tom's Games. Archived from the original on 2007-12-15. Retrieved 2007-11-06.
  28. ^ a b c Lightman (22 February 1999). "Test de l'Amerzone sur PC" [Review of Amerzone for the PC]. JeuxVideo.com. from the original on 20 October 2007.
  29. ^ a b c d Er_killer (19 November 2005). "Análisis : Amerzone: El legado del explorador" [Review: Amerzone: The Explorer's Legacy] (in Spanish). La Aventura.
  30. ^ [Profile of Benoit Sokal] (in French). Tom's Games. Archived from the original on 2013-06-26. Retrieved 2015-09-27.
  31. ^ Cédric Melon (2006). "Interview de Benoît Sokal" [Interview with Benoît Sokal] (in French). PixelCreation.fr. from the original on 2015-09-28.
  32. ^ "Syberia Collection". GamesIndustry.biz. 20 October 2009.
References in Amerzone: Strategies & Secrets
  1. ^ Page 142
  2. ^ Page 137
  3. ^ Pages 136–137
  4. ^ Page 138
  5. ^ Page 148
  6. ^ a b Page 147
  7. ^ Pages 138–139
  8. ^ a b c Page 139
  9. ^ a b c d Page 140
  10. ^ Page 146

External links edit

amerzone, also, known, explorer, legacy, first, person, fantasy, graphic, adventure, game, published, microïds, designed, benoît, sokal, based, 1986, inspector, canardo, comic, strip, originally, released, microsoft, windows, classic, playstation, 1999, releas. Amerzone also known as Amerzone The Explorer s Legacy is a first person fantasy graphic adventure game published by Microids and designed by Benoit Sokal who based it on his 1986 Inspector Canardo comic strip L Amerzone Amerzone was originally released for Microsoft Windows the classic Mac OS and PlayStation in 1999 and re released for iOS and Android in 2014 by Anuman Interactive whom had bought out Microids in 2009 AmerzoneEuropean Windows cover artDeveloper s MicroidsAnuman Interactive iOS OS X Publisher s CastermanUbisoftDirector s Benoit SokalProducer s Olivier FontenayJean Francois CoremansDesigner s Benoit SokalEmmanuel DexetEric BrouillatProgrammer s Emmanuel DexetSebastien GuillaumeArtist s Benoit SokalWriter s Benoit SokalComposer s Knockin Boots ProductionsSeriesSyberiaEnginePhoenix VR 3 Platform s Microsoft Windows Classic Mac OS PlayStation iOS 1 OS X 2 ReleaseMicrosoft WindowsEU March 18 1999NA October 18 1999Classic Mac OSEU 1999PlayStationEU December 13 1999iOSEU June 6 7 2011 1 OS XEU October 4 2011 2 Genre s AdventureMode s Single playerLike the comic the game tells the story of a French explorer Alexandre Valembois who goes on an expedition to the mysterious South American country of Amerzone There he discovers many fantastical animals including a species of magical White Birds who require human intervention for their survival These become threatened when a friend of Valembois turns Amerzone into a brutal dictatorship and Valembois endeavors to rescue the endangered species The game adds a journalist as the player character who continues Valembois s quest as the man nears death Amerzone received generally positive reception It was praised for its atmosphere and visuals with critics claiming that it lent it a poetic and dreamlike quality 4 5 while criticism targeted the sound controls and difficulty It was a great commercial success with over 1 million copies sold in its original release 6 The game s setting became the foundation of Sokal s Syberia series and is the namesake for the video game development company he co founded White Birds Productions Contents 1 Synopsis 1 1 Setting 1 2 Characters 1 3 Plot 1 3 1 1932 1934 the Valembois expedition 1 3 2 1998 the journalist 2 Gameplay 3 Development 3 1 Pre production 3 2 Production 3 3 Later development 3 4 Release 4 Reception 4 1 Sales 4 2 Critical reviews 4 3 Awards 4 4 Legacy 5 Notes 6 References 7 External linksSynopsis editSetting edit nbsp An in game illustration of the ventousier Animals in Amerzone add fantastical traits onto real life creatures The world of Amerzone interweaves fact and fiction Amerzone itself is the name of a fictional region in South America and the great river that runs through it The name and the lush tropical rainforest in the Amerzone suggest that it is inspired by the real life Amazon rainforest Valembois lives in a lighthouse on the fictitious Langrevin peninsula in Brittany note 1 The game veers further into the realm of fantasy once the player enters Amerzone The country is home to many strange plants and animals depicted through watercolor sketches in Valembois s exploration journal The flora comprises mostly herbaceous plants such as the orchid like Orcochi Animals in the Amerzone tend to resemble real life animals but with bizarre flourishes the ventousier resembles a shrew but its snout branches off into sucker bearing arms the rhinopotamus is cross between a rhinoceros and hippopotamus the web footed giraffe navigates the marshlands with its webbed feet nbsp The White Birds give the game its poetic and dreamlike quality The White Birds are the key plot point of the game The Birds are born legless and as such spend their entire lives gliding over the thermals issuing from a great volcano sustaining themselves on a diet of flying insects note 2 Their wings keep growing after the rest of their bodies has stopped such that they end up disproportionately long The Birds limited range threatens their survival as does their method of reproduction every three years a single enormous egg is laid containing many embryos However the volcano s fumes will naturally make the eggs ill such that they will hatch as Black Birds Only a nearby indigenous tribe the Ovo volahos knows how to cure the eggs to make them hatch as White Birds Most Amerzonians believe the White Birds to merely be a fanciful myth Characters edit The journalist The player character a faceless nameless silent protagonist Has virtually no identity all that is known is they were assigned by their employer Mondial Magazine 7 to interview Valembois about the Amerzone Alexandre Valembois voiced by Michel Barbey Born in 1904 note 3 studied natural history in Paris Fascinated by the biology of Amerzone he goes on a scientific expedition there from 1932 to 1934 There he encounters and becomes enamored with the White Birds and finds love in a native girl called Yekoumani When he brings back one of the White Birds eggs the scientific establishment laughs it off After World War II he gets a career as a lycee professor note 2 When the player character meets him in 1998 he is exhausted and tormented by his past mistakes and can only think of returning the egg to Amerzone Antonio Alvarez voiced by Marc Moro An Amerzone native who befriends Valembois in 1929 while studying law A lover of his native land he accompanies Valembois on his expedition and stays behind after his friend returns to Europe Wishing to modernize the country Alvarez spearheads a coup d etat The patriot turns into a cynical dictator corrupted by power and leading his once beloved country into ruin David Mackowski voiced by Luc Gentil A Jesuit who also accompanies Valembois to Amerzone being equally fascinated by the place Unwisely attempts to convert the Amerzone natives to Catholicism Like Valembois by 1998 he is filled with regret and sadness over his mistakes and what has become of Amerzone under Alvarez s rule note 4 Plot edit The game proper begins in 1998 with the journalist s interview of Valembois but much of the plot is backstory about Valembois s 1932 expedition 1932 1934 the Valembois expedition edit nbsp Concept art of the indigenous girl Yekoumani Valembois love interestAlexandre Valembois a zoology buff fascinated by Amerzone lobbies the National Museum of Natural History in Paris to fund an expedition to discover the exotic flora and fauna mentioned by Antonio Alvarez The Museum grants his wish in 1932 and he devises a watercraft called a Hydraflot to get to and around the country Valembois Alvarez and the Jesuit David Mackowski set out on October 22 of that year note 5 finding their way by following the migrating Amerzone geese On the way the Hydraflot is damaged by a sperm whale so they make the rest of the trip on a Peruvian whaling vessel They set foot in Amerzone on Christmas Day and make their way to the former trading post of Puebla Valembois begins sketching and studying the wildlife On New Year s Day he learns of the White Birds from one Luis Angel and decides to pursue the lead despite widespread disbelief in the creatures He hires Angel as a guide and rows up the Amerzone River going it alone after Angel abandons him on February 18 On the 22nd of the month he discovers a native tribe the Ovo vohalos but hesitates to make contact That night he contracts a debilitating illness and is nursed back to health by the comely native girl Yekoumani They grow very close note 2 and upon his recovery a month later begins designing labor saving machines for the tribe On June 1 a young tribesman returns from the nearby mountains with a large White Bird egg thus convincing Valembois of their existence He takes part in the ceremony to cure the egg so it will hatch as healthy White Birds Promising to Yekoumani that he will return he heads for the mountains the next day Making his way through a swamp and an ancient temple he reaches the Birds volcanic home on the 18th In his zeal for scientific recognition he steals an egg and returns to Puebla thus betraying Yekoumani and the tribe In France however the scientific community dismiss the find as a hoax perhaps an oversized ostrich egg The Museum fires him for bringing ridicule upon them and after a stint as a lycee professor he holes up in a lighthouse in Brittany all the while longing for Yekoumani and wallowing in guilt over his betrayal Meanwhile Alvarez has seized power in Amerzone and turned the country into a despotic dictatorship His ties to the Museum now severed Valembois independently builds a new Hydraflot with which to return to Amerzone with the egg but comes to realize that he is too old and weak for the journey 1998 the journalist edit nbsp nbsp The Hydraflot is the player s only means of transportation The player must always be on the lookout for extra fuel and floppy disks which allow it to switch between different configurations In 1998 the player character a journalist is assigned to interview Valembois The old man confesses that he is dying and beseeches the journalist to travel to Amerzone with the egg and safeguard the White Birds He entrusts him with a letter and his old expedition journal and the newsman sets out in the new and upgraded Hydraflot The vehicle now uses programs on floppy disk to switch between different configurations note 6 It is also equipped with a grappling hook He leaves to the journalist his old expedition journal containing all his observations on Amerzone wildlife and a candid letter detailing his experiences The journalist sets sail and stops to refuel at the same island where Valembois ran into the sperm whale An ultrasonic repellent keeps the craft safe but a disoriented whale ends up tangled in a fishing net The journalist manages to free it and finds a disk that turns the Hydraflot into a helicopter After fueling up he heads for Puebla In the once lively now heavily militarized village he encounters an aged Mackowski who tells him that a despondent Yekoumani committed suicide in 1935 Mackowski wishes to aid the journalist in his quest but Alvarez has him assassinated and the journalist captured to cover up the existence of the Birds The journalist manages to escape fuels up and locates a disk which lets him go up the Amerzone river On his way upstream he discovers the plants and animals mentioned in Valembois s journal A collision with a three horned buffalo damages the Hydraflot so badly that only the grappling hook is left functioning and the journalist must pull himself from rock to rock until he reaches the Ovo volaho village He narrowly escapes death when the hook catches on an ill tempered rhinopotamus At the village he has the egg cured acquires a new disk and rides one of Valembois s contraptions to get above some waterfalls that are in the way He thus reaches the swamp but not before the Hydraflot is knocked over and finally put out of commission The egg thus becomes lost in the mazelike swamp The journalist finds a whistle in a pile dwelling which lets him call and ride a web footed giraffe deeper into the swamp After finding the egg he climbs a great tree and crosses a rope bridge into the temple Valembois had written of There he encounters Alvarez who threatens to kill him but doesn t have the strength left for it Further on he rides a primitive hang glider which takes him to the volcano s rim He sets the egg down and it hatches the White Birds thus accomplishing Valembois s dying wish Gameplay edit nbsp The player pans around the prerendered view in a typical screen of Amerzone Amerzone plays like a typical first person point and click adventure game The player flips between panoramic screens which can be panned around to view the game world Certain elements can be interacted with by clicking on them To progress in the game the player must solve puzzles which may involve talking to people or using items collected throughout the game Some items are not required for puzzle solving but instead serve to flesh out the game s plot this is the purpose of the explorer s journal and Valembois s letter The game has a resource management component in the Hydroflot the player must constantly be on the lookout for fuel and floppy disks required to keep the vehicle running The game s mobile port modified some gameplay elements An optional hint system was added to get struggling players back on track and certain puzzles were redesigned in an attempt to limit tedious back and forth travel between locations Since iOS devices use touchscreens for input the controls were redesigned objects are highlighted with clickable icons and the camera can be controlled by tilting the device 8 Development edit nbsp Amerzone is based on a 1986 comic by Benoit Sokal pictured here autographing a comic at a convention in 2010 Pre production edit Before entering the gaming industry Benoit Sokal drew comic books like Canardo which he colorized on a personal computer A 1 With the advent of CD ROMs which could store hundreds of times more data than then ubiquitous floppy disks Sokal was inspired in 1995 to create a multimedia CD ROM containing 2D and 3D art which would add up to a cohesive universe A 2 His comic publisher Casterman approved of the idea and after a successful demonstration Sokal began work on the project with software developer Gregory Duquesne A 3 6 Casterman s initial vision was of a cheap small scale product with a very limited production run they eventually realized that such a niche product would not sell and decided to do something more ambitious 6 Sokal and Duquesne began planning a full fledged video game which Sokal decided to base on his comic book L Amerzone 6 It would be made up of prerendered screens linked together using the Phoenix VR engine 3 Sokal held complete creative control over the product doing all the design work himself He believed that working alone would foster creativity whereas collaboration would result in a banal and standard commercial product A 4 He did hire fellow comic book artist Benoit Peeters to assist with writing but he soon left the project 6 nbsp The game and particularly the Hydroflot and setting was inspired by the Werner Herzog film Fitzcarraldo 1982 about an ambitious rubber prospector and opera entrepreneur who portagess a steamboat between two tributaries of the Amazon river a prop boat left over from the film is pictured Sokal wanted to keep the game accessible to inexperienced players This meant avoiding sudden difficulty spikes which could leave a player stuck point of no return scenarios in which a player is stuck because they missed an item and failure states in which the player character is killed A 5 He admitted to thinking the game may have been too simple as a result and promised that if they were to make a sequel I think it would be more complex especially toward the end A 6 Sokal wrote the game much as he typically wrote comics first writing a linear story then rendering it frame by frame as a storyboard A 7 His guiding principle was to make the kind of adventure that you no longer get these days an adventure out of the early 20th century A 8 The challenge for Sokal was making this adventure interactive in that regard he found Duquesne s input very valuable 6 He credits Myst as his inspiration to make the game and also cites Werner Herzog films like Fitzcarraldo and the writings of Gabriel Garcia Marquez as influences A 8 He is quoted especially as saying Myst is really the game that made me want to make Amerzone A 9 Production edit The team began producing artwork in 1996 using LightWave 3D for character and object models and Bryce 3D for environments 6 Modeling characters at Sokal s desired quality level was time consuming so the cast of characters was kept small A 10 9 Being unfamiliar with 3D graphics Sokal had to learn on the fly by studying the software documentation and getting help from the more technically proficient Duquesne A 9 The latter s skills were applied to the game s more complex visual effects such as dust particles being buffeted about Sokal eventually realized the project was too ambitious for the two man team and hired Supinfocom graduates to help with the graphics from 1996 onwards 6 In 1998 Duquesne left to pursue a career at LightWave in the United States A 8 and Sokal called on the Belgian company Grid Animation to produce cutscenes and do further graphics work A 9 The experience made Sokal overcome his misgivings about working collaboratively In an interview with JATV he was quoted as saying I recall that for the first chapters of Amerzone I modeled everything because I wanted to be on top but it was impossible of course So little by little people made their way into the team and started modeling and I told myself it made me sick but in a way it was a revolution in my mind 10 He ended up highly satisfied with the output of his collaborators Sokal recalls that the game s development was troubled at many points 9 In 1997 Casterman had fallen on hard times and called upon the publisher Microfolie s to help with financing 6 Microfolie themselves went bankrupt and the project was saved when Microids bought them out and agreed to fund the game The total budget was 5 million francs 760 000 much higher than Sokal s initial sub million franc estimate He would go on to describe the game s completion as a miracle 9 Amerzone underwent several changes in direction as some design ideas proved impractical or unappealing Sokal originally wanted a strictly 2D art style but was disappointed in the results A 9 The team considered using live actors keyed into computer backgrounds instead of time consuming 3D character modeling but found the compositing of real and fake elements jarring Concurrently Duquesne and the publishers pushed for a highly interactive product whereas Sokal had initially conceived of the game as a more passive experience A 6 A day to night progression was scrapped as was a requirement to feed and hydrate the journalist since this would have created frustrating failure states Later development edit Anuman interactive started work on iOS ports of the game in November 2010 A release date in April 2011 was announced on February 25 of that year 11 and the game was ultimately released on June 7 2011 12 Tetraedge Games a developer of adventure games for mobile devices 8 was chosen to make the port since they shared office space with Anuman and so could intercommunicate efficiently Tetraedge cofounder Emmanuel Zaza said that the greatest hurdle lay in parsing all the old development data which had not been organized properly The port features greatly improved in game visuals and cutscene video quality and a new playable area the top of the lighthouse Benoit Sokal was eager to see the game rereleased for new players to enjoy and collaborated with the Tetraedge team 8 Release edit Amerzone was released in France on 4 CD ROMs 13 for Windows on March 18 1999 Mac OS and PlayStation ports followed in September and December 14 of that year December also saw the DVD ROM rerelease of the game in which the cutscenes were in MPEG2 format instead of Smacker video The DVD ROM version saw further rereleases some of them by Mindscape some of them as bargain priced pack ins with other adventure titles The official strategy guide Amerzone Strategies amp Secrets was released in June 1999 In addition to a walkthrough of the game it contains a guide to the Amerzone universe an interview with Sokal and some behind the scenes information Another book Amerzone Memoirs of an Expedition was put out by Casterman in November 1999 It compiles the art from the game and also some concept art that didn t make it into the final product It is annotated with text explanations of the images most of which are from the in game expedition journal On January 29 2014 the Android port of the game was released 15 It is identical to the iOS release Reception editSales edit Amerzone was a surprise commercial success 16 GameSpot UK noted in June 1999 that it had become a big hit in France 17 Following its release in France in March 1999 it sold 10 000 units by early May a number that French paper Liberation considered a promising sign 18 The game proceeded to have a long shelf life 19 Its global sales surpassed 500 000 copies by March 2002 20 At the time Mathieu Van Overstraeten of La Libre Belgique noted that these sales were unusual for Benoit Sokal s work as each volume of Inspector Canardo averaged 30 000 units sold 16 In 2007 Michel Bams of Sokal s White Birds Productions reported that Amerzone had risen above 1 million sales 21 Ultimately the game sold 1 5 million copies by 2013 22 Critical reviews edit ReceptionAggregate scoreAggregatorScoreGameRankings73 PC 23 Review scoresPublicationScoreIGN5 5 10 25 Adventure Gamers nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp 24 JeuxVideo com18 20 citation needed LiberationPositive 6 Telerama nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp 6 The game was generally positively received at the time The presentation was ubiquitously praised the visuals were called magnificent 26 and amazing 27 and frequently compared to those of Myst 27 28 although some complained of excessive pixelation The cutscenes were praised for high video quality 25 29 The storyline and atmosphere were called very good interesting and well developed and sublime 29 with some critics drawing comparisons to Jules Verne novels citation needed The linearity of the narrative drew criticism however citation needed More divisive was the difficulty some welcomed it for keeping players from getting stuck 24 28 while others complained that it made the game too simple and end too soon 26 27 29 There were also occasional complaints that the point and click interface was cumbersome or awkward 25 27 The sound design was the most criticized aspect of the game the limited music was deemed repetitive and poor A few reviewers were positive about the ambient sound effects 24 28 29 The game also received some attention from mainstream publications such as Telerama and Liberation both giving extremely positive reviews 6 Awards edit Amerzone won the Pixel INA prize for games at the 1999 Imagina festival in Monaco 30 Sokal attributes the game s commercial success to this accolade 6 Legacy edit The game has been cited as one of the finest examples of French computer adventure games 31 In 2003 Benoit Sokal would borrow the logo and name of his new company White Bird Productions from the game Amerzone is occasionally referenced in his later games most notably the Syberia series Amerzone is collected with the first two Syberia installments as the Syberia Collection which was released in October 2009 32 Notes edit As stated in a letter to Valembois from the Museum found in the lighthouse a b c As stated in the letter Valembois gives to the journalist As stated in Valembois s journal As stated in a letter from Mackowski to Valembois found in the lighthouse The dates given are inconsistent the journal claims Valembois left in October 1932 but Valembois s letter gives a departure date of June A photograph of the expedition dated July 1932 can also be found on the island According to Amerzone Strategies amp Secrets page 40 the October date is canonical and the others are mistakes According to Amerzone Strategies amp Secrets the disks the player runs into were mailed to Amerzone by Valembois References edit a b Amerzone at the iTunes Store Archived 2016 03 15 at the Wayback Machine a b Amerzone at the Mac App Store Archived 2016 03 21 at the Wayback Machine a b Titles using Phoenix 3D our 3D engine 4xtechnologies com Archived from the original on 2000 12 10 Retrieved 2009 05 16 Makidoo 2009 Test de L Amerzone Le Testament de l explorateur Review of Amerzone The Explorer s Legacy in French Planete Aventure Archived from the original on 28 September 2015 Retrieved 27 September 2015 L avis des joueurs sur L Amerzone Players opinion of Amerzone in French Tom s Games Archived from the original on 2013 06 22 Retrieved 2015 09 27 a b c d e f g h i j k l m LFP 2011 02 09 En conversation avec Benoit Sokal A conversation with Benoit Sokal in French Planete Aventure Archived from the original on 2015 05 18 Amerzone manual a b c LFP 18 August 2011 Interview Amerzone Amerzone Interview in French Planete Aventure Archived from the original on 28 September 2015 a b c France 5 2007 Benoit Sokal Un miracle nomme Amerzone Benoit Sokal A Miracle Named Amerzone in French France 2 a href Template Cite web html title Template Cite web cite web a CS1 maint numeric names authors list link JATV 2007 Interview de Benoit Sokal Benoit Sokal interview in French Dailymotion Archived from the original on 2015 06 26 at 8 min 34 s Anuman Interactive annonce la venue de L Amerzone sur iPhone et iPad Anuman Interactive announces reslease of Amerzone for iPhone and iPad AFJV 25 February 2011 Archived from the original on 18 September 2011 Fiche de L Amerzone sur iPhone Amerzone for iPhone fact sheet in French Planete Aventure Archived from the original on 2015 09 28 Fiche de L Amerzone sur PC Amerzone fact sheet for PC JeuxVideo fr Archived from the original on 2012 04 26 Retrieved 2015 09 27 Fiche de L Amerzone sur PS1 Amerzone fact sheet for PS1 JeuxVideo com Archived from the original on 2016 03 03 Explorer L Amerzone sur Android Planete Aventure 29 January 2014 Archived from the original on 28 September 2015 a b Van Overstraeten Mathieu August 9 2002 Cyber Siberie La Libre Belgique Archived from the original on August 2 2018 Video Games Reviews amp News Archived from the original on 2000 12 14 Rivoire Annick May 7 1999 Le dessinateur de BD a concu et porte l Amerzone Sokal en trois dimensions Liberation Archived from the original on August 2 2018 Aventura y Cia Entrevista a Stephane Brochu www aventuraycia com Archived from the original on 10 February 2003 Retrieved 12 January 2022 Leclercq Hubert March 8 2002 Un canard en Amerique La Derniere Heure Archived from the original on August 2 2018 Walter Johann July 23 2007 Taking flgiht with White Birds Part One Adventure Gamers Archived from the original on 2007 10 11 Retrieved 2018 10 16 Remastered Full version and new Freemium of Amerzone The Explorer s Legacy is available on iOS Press release Montreuil Seine Saint Denis Gamasutra August 26 2013 Archived from the original on March 23 2018 Amerzone The Explorer s Legacy GameRankings Archived from the original on 2015 09 28 a b c Fournier Heidi 22 May 2002 Review Amerzone Adventure Gamers Archived from the original on 14 May 2007 a b c IGN review 1 December 1999 Archived from the original on 30 September 2015 a b Del Monte Claudio 31 May 2004 Recensione Amerzone in Italian Adventure s Planet Archived from the original on 28 September 2015 a b c d Nadia Test L Amerzone Amerzone review in French Tom s Games Archived from the original on 2007 12 15 Retrieved 2007 11 06 a b c Lightman 22 February 1999 Test de l Amerzone sur PC Review of Amerzone for the PC JeuxVideo com Archived from the original on 20 October 2007 a b c d Er killer 19 November 2005 Analisis Amerzone El legado del explorador Review Amerzone The Explorer s Legacy in Spanish La Aventura Portrait de Benoit Sokal Profile of Benoit Sokal in French Tom s Games Archived from the original on 2013 06 26 Retrieved 2015 09 27 Cedric Melon 2006 Interview de Benoit Sokal Interview with Benoit Sokal in French PixelCreation fr Archived from the original on 2015 09 28 Syberia Collection GamesIndustry biz 20 October 2009 References in Amerzone Strategies amp Secrets Page 142 Page 137 Pages 136 137 Page 138 Page 148 a b Page 147 Pages 138 139 a b c Page 139 a b c d Page 140 Page 146External links edit nbsp Wikimedia Commons has media related to Amerzone Amerzone at Microids Amerzone at MobyGames Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Amerzone amp oldid 1178081107, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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