| Veil of Darkness | |
|---|---|
North American cover art for PC |
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| Developer(s) | Event Horizon Software, Inc |
| Publisher(s) | Strategic Simulations, Inc. |
| Platform(s) | DOS |
| Release date(s) | 1993 |
| Genre(s) | Action, Adventure, Role-playing (RPG) |
Veil of Darkness is a horror-action-adventure game for the PC, which was developed by Event Horizon Software and published by Strategic Simulations, Inc. in 1993. Veil of Darkness is a third person, 2D point-and-click adventure game with RPG elements featuring a fixed isometric perspective and a fair share of action-RPG style combat.
Contents |
Veil of Darkness features an isometric point of view, and an inventory system. The player moves around in a dark valley, solving puzzles and occasionally killing monsters like werewolves, vampires and skeletons. Although VoD lacked a skill system, it can be regarded as one of the spiritual ancestors of popular action RPGs like Diablo or Sacred.
The screen is divided into a playing area on the top portion and a control panel at the bottom. The control panel is customizable in size. The playing area is viewed from an isometric angle.
All actions were controlled by the mouse and by areas / items within the control panel. A player can use either arrow keys for guiding movement or the mouse.
The game is non-linear: (it could be considered a precursor to the open environment games prevalent in the new century) the player can wander about and explore freely within an area, but certain places or actions cannot progress until the Player has done certain actions and/or found certain items.
In conversations, the Player can click on a certain underlined word to pursue that topic, or the Player can type a word when the input cursor appears. If the typed word is appropriate, the Player will receive a response. To end a conversation, the Player would click 'Bye' or type 'Bye'.
The inventory can hold several items, and the Player can also find bags and pouches that enable the Player to carry more items.
There is an indication in the control panel for weight (the knapsack bulges when inventory is too heavy), and for health (the Player character in a coffin becomes a skeleton progressively from the feet upwards).
There is a 'mirror' that will indicate if the Player have an ailment (aged, cursed, etc.), and also certain ailments show on the Player’s face in the Player portrait in the control panel.
The puzzles are typical of a point-and-click adventure game. Some of them require very good reasoning. The puzzles consist mainly of:
Different weapons work with different enemies, so the Player needs to find the right weapon for each battle. Also, one needs to find different plants (and sometimes other items) to cure different ailments.
The Player assumes the role of a cargo pilot whose plane is shot down by a mysterious force while flying over a remote valley in Romania. A helpful village girl named Deirdre Kristoverikh rescues the Player from the crash and takes the Player to her father Kiril, who informs them that their arrival via plane crash marks them as the chosen one who is prophesized to destroy Kairn.
Kairn is the local vampire lord who long ago murdered his father and brothers so he could inherit control of the valley. Becoming a vampire, he's used his powers to cut off contact with the outside world. The valley rests in perpetual darkness or as the game’s title suggests a “veil of darkness” and the Player moves about the map, learning of new locations from the populace as you assist in various quests.
As Kairn has cut off all ways out of the valley, the only way the Player is going to leave is by fulfilling the Prophecy, an ancient curse put upon Kairn by his original source of power, a tome known as the Agrippa. The Player uses the Prophecy scroll as a guide and after bringing aid to many in the village, finally confronts Kairn at his fortress.
The Player defeats Kairn by performing a number of tasks that weaken the vampire to the point that a stake in the heart will kill him. The tasks are;
Upon the destruction of Kairn, the Player and Deidre head for America via steamer ship.
The Player
The Player assumes the role of a cargo pilot whose appearance is that of a young Caucasian male with blond hair. The Player can type in any name or alias they wish, and all in game characters will often refer to him by that name.
Kairn
Kairn is the primary antagonist of the game. An evil nobleman who’s become a vampire and subsequently plagued the valley he rules over with an iron fist. Kairn’s origins and back story are revealed in a story called The Forge of The Evil Heart which can be found preceding the Prophecy in the game manual.
A major plot point of Veil of Darkness is the Player’s need to discover the real name of Kairn. The name - contained in the pages of the Agrippa - is chosen randomly from a long list.
A partial list of those names include: Beaulu, Bhenblod, Brcko, Dauthr, Drak, Malachi, T'san, Yfelan.
Kirill Khristoverikh
The richest and most powerful man in the Valley, Kirill acts as a guide for the Player and instructs them in the Prophecy. He is also quite corrupt, despite wishing to free himself and the others from Kairn’s evil grip, he willingly hands his daughter to the vampire and keeps his son, Andrei in an upstairs bedroom as a zombie. Unwilling to kill him.
Deidre Khristoverikh
The female lead, she is the one who saves the player’s character and is later given to Kairn by her father Kirill. Deidre plays a small active role in the game itself, merely acting as a love interest and a damsel in distress for the end battle.
The Agrippa
The Agrippa is an ancient and powerful book of dark magic. Used by Kairn to achieve his power, he later saw it as a threat and had it chained in a secret room, in a cave. It threw a curse on him which is the prophecy that forever threatens Kairn.
When the player speaks with the Agrippa, they become affected by the Brimstone curse and must remedy it by using the Dismissals of Evil Vol. III, which is located in Kairn’s fortress. No one will talk to, or help them until the curse has been removed.
These are the denizens of the valley, the people the Player encounters.
THE MONK; The Monk resides in the monastery and helps the player with religious items. He can bless weapons, and water to make them holy. He's also adept in the rite of resurrection.
SYLVA; A local woman who is secretly a werewolf. The player must confront her to form a transformation and then shoot her with silver bullets to kill her.
BORIS; The husband of Sylva, he’s clueless to the fact that she is a werewolf. He becomes distraught after her death.
GHEORGHE;
NIKOLAE;
CONSTANTINE;
MONIKA;
ALEKSAI;
CRAZY FRANK; Crazy Frank lives in a small cabin in the woods. Using a voodoo doll, the Player can extract the location of the cave in which the Agrippa is held prisoner.
CATHERINE;
JOSEP;
CHRISTIANA;
PIUS; A cursed man in the monastery, he cannot stop writing. Only when player requests his Quill is he released.
MIHEALA;
BAYARD;
MIHAI;
IULIU;
ELIZABETA;
CLAUDIA;
SETH; The bartender and owner of the Severed Head tavern.
ANTON;
MISCHA THE MINSTREL; A musician who hangs out at the Severed Head tavern. He is killed by the werewolf and his violin is one of the lost items requested from Kairn’s brothers.
ERASMUS;
ANNABELLE; The local herbalist who helps the Player create various herbal remedies.
JASCHA;
KREGORH;
MARIA; The gypsy fortune teller.
NATALIA: A young girl whom the player must rescue from a sickness.
IVAN; The Man-Servant of the Khristoverikh family.
ION;
THE FERRYMAN; The cursed spirit who allows you to travel across Lake Blackwater to visit the island.
SOPHIA;
LUCIAN;
CARMEN; The Gypsy healer.
AMBROSE;
EUSTACE;
MATTHIAS; A guest at the hotel, he spends his time staring at a mirror and reveals the location for Crazy Frank.
CAROLUS;
ANDREI KRISTOVERIKH: The son of Kiril, he has become a zombie and kept in a locked room at Kiril’s house.
The Family of Kairn
The father and brothers of Kairn haunt a tomb in the mausoleum. The seven souls will offer him aid by revealing the box containing the sun (which Kairn has removed from the valley) but only after the Player retrieves a beloved item from their former life, for each of them. The seven items are; rapier, old coin, quill, hunting cap, violin, dagger, diamond and signet ring.
ALEKSANDER; One of the brothers of Kairn, he was killed in a tavern. His spirit is later summoned to help the Player defeat Kairn.
FEODOR; One of the brothers of Kairn, he was attacked in the night and had his skull crushed. His spirit is later summoned to help the Player defeat Kairn.
NATHAN; One of the brothers of Kairn, he was killed in Dark Forest while hunting. Nathan was attacked by something. The creature was never found. His spirit is later summoned to help the Player defeat Kairn.
MICHAEL; One of the brothers of Kairn, he contracted a strange disease and died. His spirit is later summoned to help the Player defeat Kairn.
KHRISTIAN; One of the brothers of Kairn, he died suddenly in his sleep. His spirit is later summoned to help the Player defeat Kairn.
PETER; One of the brothers of Kairn, he drowned while boating on lake Blackwater. His spirit is later summoned to help the Player defeat Kairn.
NIKOLAE; the father of Kairn, He died from a mysterious stranger as he slept. His spirit is later summoned to help the Player defeat Kairn.
The Prophecy is the curse placed on Kairn by the Agrippa for imprisoning it. When the Player acquires the Prophecy it is visible as a screen of a scroll-parchment with writing on it. As the Player solves various puzzles, the prophecy becomes fulfilled. The line is greyed out on the scroll and a voice speaks the line.
The prophecy is written as such;
Event Horizon Software has ceased to exist as a company long ago. The company has developed three other games: The Summoning, Dusk of the Gods and DarkSpyre.
Strategic Simulations, Inc. was bought by Ubisoft Entertainment in 2004.