You traverse the castle through Myst-like still images as opposed to the walking animations of the previous games. It makes the game feel cheaper and a little unfinished by comparison but knowing Trilobyte's financial situation at the time it's understandable. While The 7th Guest was hugely popular in 1992 in the advent of CD technology, the high specs required for The 11th Hour meant that it sold poorly. Not very good considering its huge budget. I'm speculating, but those money troubles may have played a hand in trying to appeal to a younger audience. The BBFC (the legally binding British Board of Film Classification) restricted sales to The 7th Guest and The 11th Hour to those over 15 and 18 respectively, while Clandestiny had been given the advisory ELSPA rating of 11+. It eschews the gory FMV template and goes completely animated. You are Andrew MacPhiles, the 13th Earl (could that have been its working title?) of the Scottish MacPhile clan and heir to the family castle. Not that this cowardly American knew any of this but the promise of untold riches convinces Paula, his pushy girlfriend that they should go. You're then left to explore the grounds to solve puzzles for no real reason other than that they're there. The story was apparently written and produced as if it were a movie even though it was only ever intended to be part of a game. It is entirely possible to edit the cutscenes together and make a coherent animated short. With this in mind, it's perhaps unsurprising that the transition back into game-play is awkward, to say the least. At least you can easily get a grasp on what's going on in the plot, though I could argue that The 7th Guest's more esoteric approach invites speculation of the lore that is far more engrossing. While wandering the halls, you'll meet the ghosts of the previous 12 earls.
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