The Beast Within: A Gabriel Knight Mystery (also called Gabriel Knight 2: The Beast Within) is a point-and-click adventure game created by Jane Jensen. It was developed and published by Sierra On-Line and released for MS-DOS, Macintosh, and Microsoft Windows in 1995. This game is a sequel to Gabriel Knight: Sins of the Fathers, which came out in 1993. The story follows Gabriel Knight as he begins a new investigation, adjusting to his role as a "shadow hunter." He looks into a series of killings near Munich that are believed to be the work of a werewolf. His work is supported by Grace Nakimura, who researches a connection between the killings and the final years of a Bavarian king in the 19th century.
Unlike its predecessor, The Beast Within was designed as an interactive movie, made entirely with full-motion video—a technology that was common for games at the time but costly to use. Computer-generated scenery was used for locations in the game, and the production followed a strict filming and voice-over schedule. Because the game included live-action scenes, the main characters were played by different actors: Dean Erickson and Joanne Takahashi portrayed the lead roles. Players can control these characters at different times during the story.
The game received praise from critics for its storytelling, character development, and presentation. However, it was not a commercial success as Jane Jensen had hoped. Despite this, a sequel titled Gabriel Knight 3: Blood of the Sacred, Blood of the Damned was released in 1999.
Gameplay
The Beast Within is a point-and-click adventure game that is played from a third-person view, though it sometimes switches to a first-person view during certain parts of the game. The story is divided into six chapters that follow a set order, and each chapter is played from the perspectives of two characters: half of the chapters focus on Gabriel, and the other half focus on Grace. In each chapter, players must complete specific actions to move the story forward, but they can choose the order in which they complete these actions. Players can also perform optional actions that provide extra details about the game's story and events. Each chapter includes different locations that players can explore, and some locations have an overhead map that highlights important spots where actions are needed. Like other Sierra games from that time, the game uses a score to track both required and optional actions completed by the player (such as finding items needed to solve puzzles).
In every location, players can move a cursor to find items to interact with or to move to new areas. Unlike Gabriel Knight: Sins of the Fathers, the cursor changes based on what the player is doing, and it automatically performs an action when interacting with something, such as starting a conversation with a character. However, items collected and stored in the character's inventory must be selected and made active before they can be used on interactive objects. Other features include: a main menu that allows players to save or load their game, change settings, or quit; a movie section where players can watch movies unlocked during the game; and an option, available until the final chapter, to review past conversations as Gabriel or look back at notes made by Grace. Conversations in the game involve a series of topics, with more topics becoming available as the player progresses through the story. In some situations, players must avoid dangerous events or face a game over, which requires them to restart the game, begin again from the start, or return to a previously saved point.
Story
"The Beast Within" is set in a world where mystical and supernatural beings, such as ghosts, cult members, and demons, have existed throughout human history. To protect people from these forces, a group called the "Schattenjägers" (German for "Shadow Hunters") works to stop those who use such powers for evil. The origins of these hunters are unknown. The story is inspired by myths about werewolves and the real-life history of King Ludwig II and composer Richard Wagner between 1870 and 1886. The game includes fictional events about their relationship during this time, and most of the story takes place in Munich and southern Germany.
Players take on the roles of Gabriel Knight, played by Dean Erickson, and Grace Nakimura, played by Joanne Takahashi. Both characters investigate a series of murders in Munich and search for clues about their causes. They receive help from Gerde Hull, played by Andrea Martin, and Police Commissioner Leber, played by Nicholas Worth. Because the game uses live-action scenes, it features many actors, including Peter J. Lucas, Kay E. Kuter, and others.
Gabriel Knight, a novelist, has moved into his family's ancestral castle, Schloss Ritter, in Germany, after writing a successful book called The Voodoo Murders. He now lives in the castle and works as a Schattenjäger, a role his ancestors have held to fight supernatural threats. One night, local people ask Gabriel to investigate a mysterious death they believe was caused by a werewolf. He asks Gerde Hull, the castle's caretaker, to research the case while he examines the crime scene in Munich.
In Munich, Gabriel learns that the press and police think recent killings might be caused by escaped zoo wolves. However, Gabriel finds evidence pointing to a larger, wolf-like creature. His investigation leads him to an exclusive hunting club, where the leader, Baron Friedrich Von Glower, invites Gabriel to join after learning of his noble German heritage.
Meanwhile, Grace Nakimura, Gabriel's assistant, travels from New Orleans to Germany after learning about his new case. She becomes frustrated when she cannot find Gabriel and is upset when Gerde refuses to share his location. She mistakenly believes Gerde and Gabriel are in a romantic relationship and takes over the research. Later, she realizes her mistake and apologizes. Grace discovers information about the Black Wolf, a werewolf that terrorized the area centuries ago, and an unsent warning about it to King Ludwig II of Bavaria. She sends her findings to Gabriel through his family lawyer.
In Munich, Gabriel is upset that Grace has come to Germany, thinking the case is too dangerous. He asks her to investigate Ludwig's connection to the story instead. Gabriel learns that the hunting club believes humans have become too comfortable and should rediscover lost animal instincts through hunting and pleasure. He begins to suspect a club member named Von Zell but also forms a friendship with Von Glower.
Grace visits museums, including King Ludwig II's Neuschwanstein Castle, and finds Ludwig's diary. She learns that Ludwig II suffered from lycanthropy (a condition that causes people to turn into wolves) because of the Black Wolf. Ludwig and Richard Wagner worked together to create a sound combination that could force a werewolf to transform, as written in Wagner's opera. However, their plan to expose and kill the Black Wolf was stopped by Wagner's death. Ludwig hid the music sheets before being arrested for insanity, and the opera was lost.
Gabriel joins the hunting club on a trip and finds proof that Von Zell is a werewolf, witnessing him eating human remains in a forest. He tells Von Glower, who agrees to help kill Von Zell. Before Von Glower arrives, Gabriel is bitten by the werewolf. He hesitates to shoot Von Zell and gives him his rifle. Gabriel kills the wolf but collapses, now infected with lycanthropy. Grace arrives in Munich and finds Gabriel, who is placed in quarantine.
Grace and Gabriel learn that Von Glower is the centuries-old Black Wolf, the source of the curse. As the "alpha" (leader) of the werewolf curse, he must be killed to cure Gabriel. In a letter, Von Glower admits he infected Von Zell in a failed attempt to find a companion and used Gabriel to kill him. He pleads with Gabriel to accept lycanthropy and join him as a werewolf. Grace finds the lost music sheets from Wagner's opera, and a performance is arranged. During the opera, both Gabriel and Von Glower transform into wolves. They run to the opera house's basement, where Grace and Gabriel force Von Glower into an incinerator, burning him to death and curing Gabriel's lycanthropy. Afterward, Gabriel mourns Von Glower, respecting him despite his actions. He promises Grace he will no longer keep her away from dangerous cases.
Development
The game was released for PC and Macintosh computers. The Macintosh version used a video player created by Sierra instead of a ready-made technology like QuickTime. This version often had problems, such as crashing or running slowly on 680×0 processors. A version compatible with Windows XP was released on DVD, featuring de-interlaced movies. However, this version was only available in Italy.
The Beast Within has a more complex story than its earlier game, Sins of the Fathers. Jane Jensen explained that the FMV (full-motion video) graphics limited the level of interactivity possible. She aimed to add more intrigue to the plot to keep players interested, even though the game's interactivity was simpler.
The character of Gabriel Knight was played by a different actor than in Sins of the Fathers. Jensen believed Tim Curry, who voiced Knight in the earlier game, did not match the character's appearance. Dean Erickson took over the role and portrayed Knight differently. Erickson said he avoided imitating Curry's style, which was more exaggerated. He explained that Curry's voice work required more dramatic delivery because animation often needs stronger expressions without visual cues.
To prepare for the role, Erickson studied films and recordings of Southern dialects to create a natural accent. He later said he would have continued playing the role if the series had used live-action FMV.
Cut scenes for the game were filmed in California during mid-1995. Due to budget limits, actors were expected to deliver perfect performances on the first attempt. Director Will Binder only allowed up to two takes per scene unless needed. All of Erickson's voice-over lines were recorded in one day at a sound studio.
Jensen said The Beast Within exceeded its original budget. She described the challenges of balancing costs, schedules, and production quality as extremely difficult throughout the 18-month development process.
In the game's setting, Neuschwanstein, the actual paintings in the Singer's Hall were altered to match the story. Some scenes from the game were filmed for the British series Bad Influence!, which led to a brief appearance by the show's presenter, Violet Berlin.
Todd Vaughn of PC Gamer US noted that the first Gabriel Knight game did not achieve the success Jensen hoped for. However, he mentioned that she aimed to improve character development and puzzles in The Beast Within, using new video technology to appeal to both dedicated fans and a wider audience.
The gospel hymn "When the Saints Go Marching In" appears in every Gabriel Knight game, though in different forms. In The Beast Within, it plays when Gabriel visits Marienplatz in Munich.
In addition to composing the soundtrack for The Beast Within with Jay Usher, series composer Robert Holmes also wrote music for a scene from the fictional opera Der Fluch Des Engelhart ("The Curse of Engelhart").
Reception
In the United States, The Beast Within was the fourth-best-selling computer game in January 1996 and the 17th-best-selling game during the first six months of 1996. The game and its earlier version, Gabriel Knight: Sins of the Fathers, sold a total of 300,000 copies by December 1998. Leslie Gornstein of the Orange County Register noted that these numbers were "considered a success in the world of adventures," according to Jensen. Jensen, however, expressed disappointment with the game’s sales. She said she had hoped it would attract a large audience and later remarked, "I thought it would be top ten. And it was—for about a week." Jensen also mentioned that the game’s Christmas Eve release date likely contributed to its lower-than-expected sales.
Critics gave the game high praise. At GameRankings, it received a score of 90.50% based on six reviews. William R. Trotter of PC Gamer US said, "The Beast Within sets a new standard—within the graphic adventure genre, at any rate—for interactive entertainment." Johnny L. Wilson of Computer Gaming World also called it "a graphic adventure benchmark."
A Next Generation critic praised the character of Grace and Joanne Takahashi’s "appropriately sardonic" acting. He compared the game favorably to Sierra’s Phantasmagoria, which uses the same game engine, noting that The Beast Within offers more gameplay and better scenery. He also called it one of the best graphic adventures due to its "detailed and evolved storyline" and "easy to use yet sophisticated graphic system." Maximum magazine said, "The Beast Within is one of the few [interactive movies] which manage to grasp the attention of the player, largely due to the interesting plot that runs throughout. Graphically the game is pretty smart too, the digitized actors working well with the computer-generated [scenery] on which they're superimposed."
The Beast Within won Computer Gaming World’s 1995 "Game of the Year" award. It was also named the best computer adventure game of 1995 by Computer Games Strategy Plus and the best of 1996 by GameSpot and PC Gamer US. It received GameSpot’s "Best Story" prize. PC Gamer US editors called it "one of the best adventure games ever" and said, "If it had been just a movie, The Beast Within would easily beat 99 percent of what passes for horror on the big screen these days." Computer Gaming World staff described it as "the continuation of a brilliant tradition—the graphic adventure as art."
The Beast Within was a finalist for the Computer Game Developers Conference’s 1996 "Best Adventure Game/RPG," "Best Script, Story or Interactive Writing," and "Best Use of Video" Spotlight Awards. However, these awards went to The Elder Scrolls II: Daggerfall, You Don't Know Jack XL, and Wing Commander IV, respectively. In 1996, GamesMaster ranked the game 71st on their "Top 100 Games of All Time" list.
Legacy
In 1998, The Beast Within was turned into a novel by Jane Jensen. The first novel closely followed the events of the original game, but Jensen later said this approach was not the best way to introduce the character Gabriel Knight to readers. For the second novel, she completely changed her method and began writing from the start. Both books are no longer available for sale as of 2010. In 2012, Jensen used a Kickstarter campaign to raise money for a new game. She offered the two Gabriel Knight novels as ebooks to people who donated $50 or more.
In 1996, Computer Gaming World listed The Beast Within as the 17th best computer game ever, the highest ranking for any graphic adventure game. The editors called Jane Jensen "the interactive Anne Rice." In 1998, PC Gamer US ranked the game as the 27th best ever released, saying it was more exciting and visually impressive than the first game. In 2000, Computer Games Strategy Plus named The Beast Within one of the "10 Essential Graphic Adventures" and described it as "probably the best video-based adventure game ever released." In 2011, Adventure Gamers ranked Gabriel Knight 2 as the third-best adventure game ever.
In 2004, Adventure Gamers’ Dan Ravipinto wrote that The Beast Within was one of the few computer games that showed important character development and was among the best Full Motion Video games ever made. In 2021, Jess Morrissette of Vice Media praised the game’s writing, acting, and inclusion of queer themes, calling The Beast Within a "minor masterpiece in adventure gaming."