Men in black... UFO's... Government conspiracies... Sounds like a case for Mulder and Scully? Not quite. Welcome a new tortured hero in the fight for "the truth" - Peter Wright. Armed with whatever comes to hand and a sexy leather jacket, The Moment of Silence chucks our intrepid hero into a world of high-tech intrigue and mystery. Sounds like perfect mystery game fodder? Well... nearly...

The biggest mystery is why The Moment of Silence has long been hyped by Digital Jesters as one of the most sophisticated adventure releases yet. Boasting technology that allows for realistic facial expressions, dynamic dialogue exchanges and real-time lip-synching based on phonetics, I have to admit on loading it up and starting I was more than a little disappointed. So much was promised with this game and to be honest on first impressions it would appear not much has changed since The Longest Journey. Admittedly, the high 1024X658 resolution is incredibly welcome, but the models and general animation of this title is firmly stuck in the late 1990's. It's not bad per se, just very average... basing my initial expectations on what I'd previously read, I was expecting so much more.

That's not to say the game isn't detailed. Although the presentation is a little slack, with Peter occasionally running into the scenery, clipping through trees and various attention-diverting bugs, a lot of the backgrounds are nicely rendered and depict reasonably realistic locations. They're just not particularly lively and sometimes don't even hook up with each other. For example, looking out of Peter's apartment window at the street below reveals empty sidewalks, and later when you get down there, it's full of (rather static) people hanging around on corners. Animation ranges from the poor to the surprisingly good, with nice weather effects and a neat space scenario later on with the earth spinning away in the background.

However, despite the various well-created background animations the game does appear devoid of life. As mentioned, there are people in the backgroud, but despite one or two moving around now and again it never feels like it's taking place anywhere real, which is a shame for a game which although fantastical in places is still grounded in needing to create a realistic impression. It's also a little upsetting when one considers that the world has evidently had a lot of thought put into it's overall conceptual design. What does help on the other hand is terrific sound design, and this game has it in droves. From some great electronica scoring worthy of a film, to brilliant and effective use of ambient effects, it's the one thing that really helped propel the game along...

If the graphics aren't that hot, that's not to say House of Tales have been slack on the story... oh, no. This is a real full-blooded game as far as narrative is concerned. Mature and meaty, with reasonably well developed characters and good, if varying (one little boy has a very confusing accent), voiceovers, it could be said they've outdone themselves. The Orwellian plot concerns itself with the kidnapping of Peter Wright's neighbour and his realisation that the world around him is not what it seems. The overall balancing is a little off, with a slow start and sudden ending, but those willing to persevere through the first half will find it eventually kicks off in grand style.

Those not wanting to listen to the many conversations can click through and read the subtitles, as they can last a very long time - however, that's entirely down to the patience of the player as some answers get straight to the point nearly right away. Fans of The Longest Journey will be impressed with the multiple branches, even if the animation and modelling that accompanies the dialogue is poor. For example one character, no matter how emotive the voice, is stuck looking out of a window with her back turned to you for almost the entire time. This is despite revisits to that location throughout the game, something which doesn't help fuel the immersion.

Fortunately, the characters are well done and don't resort to TLJ's rather immature approach to maturity. The hero, Peter Wright, is very charismatic despite his rather stereotypical appearance, and has a dark past that is only at first hinted at. Kudos must go to developer Martin Gantefoer for providing a rich backstory and motivation to his actions, even if not completely realistic - but then again, if they were, it wouldn't make for much fun! That is, if "fun" is really the right word to use. Despite it's futuristic setting, it's themes contain those of information suppression and Government-sanctioned brutality which lend the game an air of oppression despite the freedom that the characters at first appear to be living in.

Unfortunately, despite the depth of narrative, the gameplay is quite weak. The player is partially fuelled by the desire to see some of the well-directed cut-scenes as well as the progressing plot, which although aren't as beautiful as promised (recent full 3D titles actually boast better animation and design) are still something worth looking forward to. The puzzles aren't the greatest I've come across either, varying from the obscure to the stupidly easy, but that said contain a reasonable mix of inventory and logic based elements. Unfortunately some of them are all too reliant on a number of people in distant locations and a lot of guesswork. There's more running about here than in the New York marathon, which makes for some frustrating time spent trying to figure out who it is you're meant to visit and for what purpose.

This is further compounded by the fact that this game has possibly one of the worst point and click interfaces I've ever come across. Let's face it, although practical and intuitive, when p'n'c goes wrong, it goes wrong in spectacular fashion. Although exits can be marked getting Peter to run in the right direction, coupled with the aforementioned scenery bugs where he takes to the hills (or even floats), is another matter. I actually swore a couple of times, something I don't often do in games, and cursed the lack of (shock, horror) even a rudimentary direct control interface. Thankfully, there are no Sherlock style stealth or action sequences required, with urgency left to the occasional movie clips, yet despite this on occasion some parts do contain the occasional pixel-hunt...

Some interesting elements come from the multi-purpose messenger and the integration of fictional technology into the gameworld. Nothing here seems over-the-top fantastical and every gadget and piece of electronica has a well-thought out purpose. Worthy in comparison to films like I-Robot or Minority Report, it helps that any puzzles involving these creations still manage to remain, more often than not, reasonably intuitive.

Part of my frustration with this game is that it could've been so much more. If the game had lived up to Digital Jesters hype, with better models and animation, fewer bugs (although to be honest, what title nowadays is without them), glossier presentation and more thought given to its puzzle design, then it would've been an absolute stunner... As it stands, it's a reasonably solid and dark adventure that'll win people through with its good voiceovers and well-written plot. I'd highly recommend it to Longest Journey fans looking for something meaty to get there claws into and those needing a game that's mature without resorting to crass stereotyping or profanity in it's characters.

Just remember to lock the door, check for hidden cameras and search your room for bugs.

The truth is out there...

Final Grade: B
(find out more about our grading system)

System Requirements:

• Processor: Pentium II 450MHz
• Memory: 64Mb RAM
• Operating System: Win 98, ME, 2000, XP
• Graphics: 32Mb 3D Graphics Card, DirectX 9
• Other: DirectX 9 compatible Soundcard