Sinking Island

Not to be confused with Sea level rise.
Sinking Island
Developer(s)White Birds Productions
Publisher(s)Microïds/Encore (USA)[1]
Micro Application (Europe)
Designer(s)Benoît Sokal
Platform(s)Microsoft Windows
Release
  • FR: October 4, 2007
  • US: August 12, 2008
Genre(s)Adventure
Mode(s)Single-player

Sinking Island: A Jack Norm Investigation (French: L'Île noyée, lit. 'The Drowned Island') is a third-person perspective adventure game that uses point and click game mechanics. It was released in France on October 4, 2007, and in the United States on August 12, 2008.[2] It was developed by White Birds Productions, a company founded and led by Benoît Sokal.

Development

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The title's genesis came from Olivier Fontenay, who suggested that Benoît Sokal make police games.[3] Sokal wrote a ten-page draft in 2005.[4] He decided to have a male playable character to offer a change from his Syberia series.[5] The team created a new interface for the game, entitled PPA (Personal Police Assistant).[6] The game was supported by the Centre National de la Cinématographie.[7] A sequel was originally going to be released, offering a second Jack Norm adventure set in New York.[8]

Plot

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The plot is centered on the investigation of the death of a millionaire named Walter Jones. The main acting character in the game is Jack Norm, a police officer entrusted with the task of solving the mystery. The events take place on a fictional island owned by the late Walter Jones in an Art Deco-style tower. The plot takes place over three days and follows a classic murder mystery scheme where a detective needs to uncover the identity of the murderer.

Critical reception

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Jean-Marc Oliveres of Clubic wrote that the game would engross players into its story and history.[11] 4Players reviewer Bodo Naser thought that while the game promised a murder mystery akin to those of Agatha Christie, the title did not deliver.[12][13][14][15] Adventure-Treff's Jan Schneider negatively compared the game's world to Paradise and Syberia.[16] IGN offered a negative review, describing the game as having "weary, stranded-island sleuthing at its soggiest".[17] GameSpot thought the game would appeal to adventure fans.[18] Gamekult derided the game's difficult puzzles, sleep-inducing dialogue, and lack of plot momentum.[19]

References

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  1. ^ "Encore and Microids sign exclusive publishing agreement for North America". IGN. News Corporation. 17 April 2008. Archived from the original on 26 March 2019. Retrieved March 26, 2019.
  2. ^ "Shippin' Out August 11–15: Madden". CBS Interactive. GameSpot. CBS Corporation. 11 August 2008. Archived from the original on 26 March 2019. Retrieved March 26, 2019.
  3. ^ "L'Ile Noyée: interview Benoît Sokal". Jeuxvideo.com (in French). 19 July 2007. Archived from the original on 17 November 2016. Retrieved March 26, 2019.
  4. ^ "Visite White Birds Productions: Sinking Island". www.atlantisamerzoneetcie.com (in French). Archived from the original on March 13, 2017. Retrieved March 26, 2019.
  5. ^ "Mystery Manor Benoit Sokal French Interview" (in French). Mystery Manor. 16 September 2007. Archived from the original on 6 April 2021. Retrieved March 26, 2019.
  6. ^ Matt Barton; Philip Jong (27 June 2008). "Benoît Sokal - White Birds Productions - Interview - Adventure Classic Gaming - ACG - Adventure Games, Interactive Fiction Games - Reviews, Interviews, Features, Previews, Cheats, Galleries, Forums". Adventure Classic Gaming. Archived from the original on 13 March 2017. Retrieved March 26, 2019.
  7. ^ "Sinking Island - Adventure Game - Microids.com". 30 October 2007. Archived from the original on October 30, 2007. Retrieved March 12, 2017.
  8. ^ Jack Allin (11 October 2006). "Sinking Island coming to Nintendo DS - AdventureGamers.com". Adventure Gamers. Archived from the original on 26 March 2019. Retrieved March 26, 2019.
  9. ^ "Sinking Island". CBS Interactive. GameRankings. CBS Corporation. Archived from the original on March 26, 2019. Retrieved March 26, 2019.
  10. ^ "Sinking Island". CBS Interactive. Metacritic. CBS Corporation. Archived from the original on April 3, 2019. Retrieved March 26, 2019.
  11. ^ Jean-Marc Oliveres (25 October 2007). "Test de L'Ile Noyée: Une Enquête De Jack Norm". Clubic.com (in French). Archived from the original on 13 March 2017. Retrieved March 26, 2019.
  12. ^ Bodo Naser (23 October 2007). "Sinking Island - Test, Adventure - 4Players.de". 4Players (in German). Archived from the original on November 17, 2016. Retrieved March 12, 2017.
  13. ^ Bodo Naser (23 October 2007). "Sinking Island - Test (2), Adventure - 4Players.de". 4Players (in German). Archived from the original on December 21, 2016. Retrieved March 12, 2017.
  14. ^ Bodo Naser (23 October 2007). "Test (Wertung) zu Sinking Island (Adventure) - 4Players.de". 4Players (in German). Archived from the original on January 13, 2017. Retrieved March 12, 2017.
  15. ^ Bodo Naser (23 October 2007). "Test (Pro und Kontra) zu Sinking Island (Adventure) - 4Players.de". 4Players (in German). Archived from the original on March 13, 2017. Retrieved March 12, 2017.
  16. ^ Schneider, Jan "DasJan". "Sinking Island - Mord im Paradies". Adventure-Treff (in German). Archived from the original on March 13, 2017. Retrieved March 26, 2019.
  17. ^ Balistrieri, Emily (15 September 2008). "Sinking Island Review". IGN. News Corporation. Archived from the original on 26 March 2019. Retrieved March 26, 2019.
  18. ^ "Sinking Island Hands-On". CBS Interactive. GameSpot. CBS Corporation. July 24, 2008. Archived from the original on March 26, 2019. Retrieved March 26, 2019.
  19. ^ "Test L'île Noyée sur PC". Gamekult (in French). 22 October 2007. Archived from the original on 26 March 2019. Retrieved March 26, 2019.
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