Ankh (computer game)
| Ankh | |||
|---|---|---|---|
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| Studio | Deck13 | ||
| Publisher |
 bhv Software Noviy Disk Viva Media Telltale Games  |
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| Senior Developer | Jan Klose | ||
| Erstveröffent- lichung |
October 31, 2005 | ||
| platform | Linux , Mac OS , Nintendo DS , Windows | ||
| Game engine | PINA | ||
| genre | Point-and-click adventure | ||
| Game mode | Single player | ||
| control | mouse | ||
| language | German English | ||
| Age rating |
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Ankh (pronounced Anch ) is a point-and-click adventure with 3D graphics and the work of the German development team Deck13 . The game was published in 2005 by Rebel Games, which belongs to the publisher bhv Software.
action
The action takes place in ancient Egypt in Cairo . The young Assil, son of an architect, celebrates a secret, wild party with friends in the pyramid of the pharaoh designed by his father . Assil unintentionally desecrates the tomb of the Scarab King and is punished for this by a resurrected mummy with a curse, which is said to lead to his death after a while. While touching Assil, the mummy loses an ankh that slides onto her victim's arm. Assil is now trying to get an audience with Pharaoh to ask the God-King for help against the curse. He also has to prevent the ankh from falling into the hands of Osiris , god of the underworld - without knowing the meaning of the artifact, however.
Game principle and technology
Ankh is a linear adventure game without any action. The main character Assil is moved from one point to another by simply clicking the mouse, or interacting with people or objects by clicking the mouse. In dialogues, multiple choice can be used to choose what the character is saying. The dialogues are displayed like in a movie with black bars at the top and bottom of the screen. The camera pans back and forth between the dialogue leaders. The inventory offers space for a maximum of ten items. Later in the game there is a collaboration with the female character Thara. From then on you can switch between the characters Assil and Thara.
Production notes
As early as 1997, the Frankfurt developer Artex Software developed a game called Ankh: The Tales of Mystery, but only for RISC OS . In 2001, Artex employees founded the company Triggerlab GmbH, which was renamed Deck 13 in 2002.
In order to incorporate the right dose of humor at Ankh, the developers sought advice from former LucasArts employees. The characters in Ankh are partly spoken by well-known voice actors. Oliver Rohrbeck , the German voice of the American actor Ben Stiller, embodies Assil in the German version. Several supporting roles are voiced by Thomas Danneberg , who, among other things, dubbed John Cleese and made his characters sound similar to old Monty Python films.
The publisher ixsoft announced in November 2006 that it would publish Ankh for Linux in cooperation with the German porting company RuneSoft . As a prerequisite, however, it was stated that at least 200 pre-orders are made. This number was reached after ten days. The game has been shipping for Linux since December 21st. In addition, in August 2006, one year after the release, a special edition of the game was published. In addition to the game, it contains a "Making of Ankh", the trailer, a song, various wallpapers and concept sketches. In 2008 the game was converted by Deck 13 for the Nintendo DS . In 2015, the manufacturer published a "birthday edition" with technical adjustments to modern systems and some bonus material such as the soundtrack.
In October 2006 the second part was published with the title Ankh: Heart of Osiris . Another sequel titled Ankh: Clash of the Gods was released in November 2007. A spin-off of the series, the hidden object game Ankh: The Lost Treasures , was released in December 2009.
reception
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From 27 aggregated ratings, Ankh achieved a score of 76% on GameRankings . The German game magazine 4Players praised the game's ambience, staging, dialogues and humor, but criticized the linear structure and the short playing time. The magazine found Ankh especially suitable for beginners because of its accessibility and low level of difficulty.
Awards
Ankh received several awards in 2005:
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German developer award
- 1st place: Best German game
- 1st place: Best soundtrack / in-game sound
- 2nd place: Best story / game world
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GameStar
- Best German game
- 4players
- Best German game
Web links
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b 4Players.de: Test: Ankh. Retrieved December 3, 2018 .
- ↑ Ankh in the test - test for the Egypt Adventure. In: GameStar . November 16, 2005, accessed October 5, 2019 .
- ↑ a b GameRankings.com: Ankh. Retrieved January 22, 2017 .
Ankh: The Tales of Mystery (1998) • Ankh (2005) • Ankh: Heart of Osiris (2006) • Ankh: Battle of the Gods (2007) • Ankh: The Curse of the Scarab King (2008) • Ankh: The Lost Treasures (2009 )