The Bizarre Adventures of Woodruff and the Schnibble

Last updated
The Bizarre Adventures of Woodruff and the Schnibble
The Bizarre Adventures of Woodruff and the Schnibble.jpg
North American cover art
Developer(s) Coktel Vision
Publisher(s) Sierra On-Line
Director(s) Muriel Tramis
Writer(s) Muriel Tramis
Composer(s) Charles Callet
Platform(s) Microsoft Windows
Release1995
Genre(s) Adventure
Mode(s) Single player

Woodruff and the Schnibble of Azimuth (marketed in North America as The Bizarre Adventures of Woodruff and the Schnibble) is a 1995 French adventure game developed by Coktel Vision. The creator of the Gobliiins series, Pierre Gilhodes, worked on the game, and Woodruff shares that series' visual style, gameplay and offbeat humor, though is not an official part of the Gobliiins series or canon.

Contents

The game was released in April 1995 on Windows 3.1 (in French, English, Spanish and German), and was later released for newer Windows versions (Polish was added). Woodruff was distributed in North America in 1995 by Sierra On-Line.

Plot

Setting

Following the near-annihilation of Earth during the last atomic war, the surviving human population retreated to the center of the planet where the last traces of life-sustaining warmth remained. Waiting out the surface radiation, centuries passed before the humans finally ventured back into the world above, discovering that their planet had sprouted a lush, overgrown jungle in their absence along with various races of mutants, including a peaceful race known as the Bouzouk (spelled "Boozook" in the US release), who differ from humans by their tails, pointed ears, and extraordinarily long noses. In the societal structure of the Bouzouk there was a King and a Council of Wisemen, seven mystics who had successfully maintained universal harmony by guarding the Chprotznog, a sacred containment unit used to channel and subsequently trap evil spirits.

Having failed to learn their lesson from last time, the humans immediately waged war on the tranquil Bouzouk tribe in what became known as "The Great Battle". In a mere day, the humans destroyed the Bouzouk civilization, massacring many innocent civilians and looting their holy artifacts, including the Chprotznog. The surviving Bouzouks were enslaved and forced to construct a new society for the humans, the great vertical city of Vlurxtrznbnaxl, an economically self-sufficient city run on wind power and surrounded by rich farmland. Its citizens live in different parts of the city according to their socio-economic status: the poor live on the lower levels while the rich and powerful live on the higher levels. The remaining Bouzouk peoples became exploited and oppressed; their once great society in shambles, they're left to work menial jobs and manual labor, living uneasily alongside the humans while their deposed King now spends his days in his dilapidated castle, drinking beer and watching TV.

The present

The game begins about a century later, where the great city has since devolved into a nightmarish dystopia under the rule of a bureaucratic and totalitarian government. Heading the government is the reclusive President, who's represented by his corrupt advisor, a hideous man known only as the BigWig. In the lower levels of the city, relations between humans and Bouzouks have grown to their most tense, giving rise to a group known as the Bouzouk Freedom Party, a terrorist organization who, being natural pacifists, have yet to commit any actual acts of terrorism.

Woodruff (right) chats with a local WoodruffCloseUp.jpg
Woodruff (right) chats with a local

Professor Azimuth, an eminent political and scientific human personality known for his work on manipulating the aging process of cells, sympathizes with the plight of the Bouzouks and becomes determined to help end their oppression. In his research, he discovers the legend of the Schnibble, a mystical entity that is believed to have the ability to cause peace and prosperity to flourish in times of need, and begins work on finding a way to unleash it. Word spreads about his goal, and Azimuth is hailed as a hero by the Bouzouk community. The word of the Schnibble also reaches the ears of the BigWig. To stave off any chance of a revolution, the BigWig and his thugs storm the home of Professor Azimuth and his young adopted half-human, half-Bouzouk son, Woodruff.

Azimuth barely has time to hide Woodruff before the BigWig breaks into their home, kidnapping the Professor and ruthlessly gunning down Woodruff's beloved teddy bear in the process, but not before befitting him with a Viblefrotzer, an invention of his own design that helps rapidly speed the aging process. Within seconds, Woodruff ages about fifteen years, finding himself now prepared (albeit without shoes or the ability to read) for an epic quest: rescue his adopted father, avenge the death of his teddy bear by exacting revenge on the BigWig, and unravel the mystery of the Schnibble to help bring harmony back to the city.

Gameplay

Woodruff's relatively simple point-and-click interface is nearly identical to the one featured in Sierra's King's Quest VII : by moving the cursor over certain objects, they'll become highlighted, indicating that it's an item or person Woodruff can interact with. Woodruff's inventory is accessed by clicking the right mouse button; clicking and dragging an inventory item onto a highlighted object will combine the two. However, if the items do not connect, Woodruff may openly mock the player.

Reception

Despite a less-than-heralded release in America, Woodruff was released to primarily positive reviews, with most praise being given to its visual style and sense of humor.[ citation needed ] Strategy Plus (now Computer Games Magazine) gave it its most notable review, claiming it was "so addictive, you may lose your job", which ended up being printed on the box's front cover and used in most of its advertisements. The review further elaborated with "…features splendid high-resolution graphics that provide further evidence that Sierra is on a roll".[ citation needed ] PC Gamer also praised the game for its "exceptional graphics and sound", comparing it to other offbeat adventure games such as Day of the Tentacle and Sam & Max Hit the Road . [4] French magazine Joystick called it "truly wonderful" and "a real cartoon".[ citation needed ] MobyGames currently gives it a ranking of 85 out of 100.[ citation needed ]

Of the negative aspects of the game, Gamer's Zone, although having given it a positive review, complained about the often ludicrously hard puzzles, the lack of original music, and the repetitive background sound effects, [5] complaints that were often echoed in other reviews.[ citation needed ]

Despite critical acclaim, however, Woodruff failed to find a mass audience and turned out to be a financial disappointment for Sierra, eventually slipping into obscurity behind most of the company's better-known titles.[ citation needed ] Although Woodruff has been more or less largely forgotten within the adventure game genre (so little information is there that the game's English voice actors have never been identified; the French version, however, features the voices of Edgar Givry as Woodruff and Claude Piéplu as the narrator), there still remains a small, yet devoted cult fanbase.[ citation needed ]

See also

Related Research Articles

<i>Star Trek: The Next Generation – A Final Unity</i> 1995 video game

Star Trek: The Next Generation – A Final Unity is an adventure game by Spectrum HoloByte, based on the Star Trek universe. It was released in 1995 for the DOS and later ported to the Macintosh. It puts the player in control of Captain Picard and his crew of the Enterprise D and features traditional point-and-click adventure gameplay as well as free-form space exploration, diplomatic encounters and tactical ship-to-ship combat.

<i>Manhunter: New York</i> 1988 video game

Manhunter: New York is a post-apocalyptic adventure game designed by Barry Murry, Dave Murry and Dee Dee Murry of Evryware and published in 1988 by Sierra On-Line. A sequel, Manhunter 2: San Francisco, was released in 1989.

<i>Discworld II: Missing Presumed...!?</i> 1996 video game

Discworld II: Missing Presumed...!? is a 1996 point-and-click adventure game based on Terry Pratchett's series of fantasy novels set on the mythical Discworld, and sequel to the 1995 video game of the same name. The story sees players assume the role of Rincewind the "wizzard" as he becomes burdened with the task of finding Death and coercing him out of an impromptu retirement and back into his regular duties. The game's plot borrows from a number of Discworld books, including key elements from Reaper Man and Moving Pictures.

<i>Discworld</i> (video game) A point-and-click adventure game

Discworld is a point-and-click adventure game, developed by Teeny Weeny Games and Perfect 10 Productions, and based upon Terry Pratchett's novels of the same name. Players assume the role of Rincewind the "wizzard", voiced by Eric Idle, as he becomes involved in exploring the Discworld for the means to prevent a dragon terrorising the city of Ankh-Morpork. The game's story borrows elements from several Discworld novels, with its central plot loosely based on the events in Guards! Guards!

<i>Gobliiins</i> Puzzle adventure video game series

Gobliiins is a puzzle adventure video game series, consisting of four entries, released by Coktel Vision for the Amiga, Atari ST, DOS, and Macintosh platforms. The first three titles were released in the early 1990s, the fourth in 2009. The visual look of the series and its characters was created by French artist Pierre Gilhodes, whose style was used in another game from Coktel Vision: Woodruff and the Schnibble of Azimuth.

<i>Future Wars</i> 1989 video game

Future Wars, subtitled in Europe as Time Travellers and in North America as Adventures in Time and known in France as Time Travelers: The Menace is an adventure game from Delphine Software International, released in 1989. The game is mainly the work of Paul Cuisset and Éric Chahi (graphics). The game was supposed to be the first of a series of adventure games revolving around time traveling but later episodes were never made.

<i>Kings Quest I</i> 1984 video game

King's Quest is an adventure game developed by Sierra On-Line and published originally for the IBM PCjr in 1984 and later for several other systems between 1984 and 1989. The game was originally titled King's Quest; the subtitle Quest for the Crown was added to the game box in the 1987 re-release, but did not appear in the game.

<i>Phantasmagoria</i> (video game) 1995 video game

Phantasmagoria is a point-and-click adventure horror video game designed by Roberta Williams for MS-DOS and Microsoft Windows and released by Sierra On-Line on August 24, 1995. It tells the story of Adrienne Delaney, a writer who moves into a remote mansion and finds herself terrorized by supernatural forces. It was made at the peak of popularity for interactive movie games and features live-action actors and footage, both during cinematic scenes and within the three-dimensionally rendered environments of the game itself. It was noted for its violence and sexual content.

<i>Mixed-Up Mother Goose</i> 1987 video game

Roberta Williams' Mixed-Up Mother Goose is a computer game first released by Sierra On-Line in 1987. It is, in essence, an edutainment title, directed specifically at young gamers, as well as an adventure game. It was the first multimedia game released on CD-ROM in 1991. A second game in the series, Mixed-Up Fairy Tales, was released in 1991.

<i>Shivers II: Harvest of Souls</i> 1997 video game

Shivers II: Harvest of Souls is a horror-themed point-and-click PC adventure game, released in 1997 by Sierra On-Line. It is the sequel to Shivers.

<i>Urban Runner</i> French computer game developed by Coktel Vision and published by Sierra On-line

Urban Runner is a French produced computer game developed by Coktel Vision and published by Sierra On-line.

<i>Quest for Glory: So You Want to Be a Hero</i> 1989 video game

Quest for Glory: So You Want to Be a Hero is a 1989 adventure game/role-playing game hybrid, designed by Lori Ann Cole and published by Sierra On-Line for MS-DOS. It is the first game in the Quest for Glory series, and has been credited for being a genre-defining game, as it tried to mix graphical adventure gaming with role-playing-like elements such as statistic building that would actually affect the ability to accomplish certain parts of the game. The game has a satirical and silly tone. Ports for the Amiga, Atari ST, and NEC PC-9801 were released in the early 1990s. A VGA remake, titled Quest for Glory I: So You Want to Be a Hero, was released in 1992 for DOS and later in 1994 for Mac OS.

Tsunami Games was an American video game developer and publisher founded in 1991 by former employees of Sierra Entertainment. The company was based in Oakhurst, California, which at the time was also the home of Sierra. Between 1992 and 1996 Tsunami published several games, most notably adventure games and interactive movies, before becoming defunct.

<i>Touché: The Adventures of the Fifth Musketeer</i> 1995 video game

Touché: The Adventures of the Fifth Musketeer is a point-and-click graphic adventure game developed by the Clipper Software.

An adventure game is a video game genre in which the player assumes the role of a protagonist in an interactive story, driven by exploration and/or puzzle-solving. The genre's focus on story allows it to draw heavily from other narrative-based media, such as literature and film, encompassing a wide variety of genres. Most adventure games are designed for a single player, since the emphasis on story and character makes multiplayer design difficult. Colossal Cave Adventure is identified as the first such adventure game, first released in 1976, while other notable adventure game series include Zork, King's Quest, Monkey Island, Syberia, and Myst.

<i>Eternam</i> 1992 video game

Eternam is a humorous graphical adventure game from Infogrames, released originally in 1992 for MS-DOS. A CD-ROM version with full speech was published in 1993. The game was developed by Hubert Chardot, who is better remembered from his Lovecraft-themed games Shadow of the Comet and Prisoner of Ice. While the game is mainly a two-dimensional adventure game, it contains a three-dimensional subgame, which pays homage to Drakkhen, a roleplaying game from Infogrames. This game was re-released digitally on GOG.com in mid 2019.

<i>Emmanuelle</i> (video game) 1989 video game

Emmanuelle is an erotic graphical adventure game from Coktel Vision, originally released in 1989 for Amiga, Atari ST, and MS-DOS. The game was developed by Muriel Tramis, and is loosely inspired by Emmanuelle Arsan's Emanuelle series of novels.

<i>The Prophecy</i> (video game) 1992 video game

The Prophecy is a point-and-click adventure game in a fantasy setting, developed by Coktel Vision and MDO, released in Europe in 1992 for MS-DOS, Amiga, and Atari ST. It was published by Sierra On-Line in North America in 1993. A German retail version was released.

<i>The Sydney Mystery</i> 2003 video game

The Sydney Mystery is a point-and-click Adventure game released by American studio Twilight Software on April 13, 2003. The game takes place in Sydney, Australia.

Muriel Tramis is a French video game designer from Martinique. She is known as the first Black woman video game designer. She has written and directed the adventure games Méwilo, Freedom: Rebels in the Darkness, Geisha, Fascination, Lost in Time, and Urban Runner at Coktel Vision. She also co-created the Gobliiins series with Pierre Gilhodes. Tramis was involved in the creation of the ADI range for schoolchildren and college students, and since 2003 has managed Avantilles, a specialist in real-time 3D applications for the web.

References

  1. ↑ Firme, Matt (August 1995). "Reviews; Woodruff and the Schnibble". PC Gamer US . 2 (8): 113.
  2. ↑ Honeywell, Steve; Chapman, Ted; Kaiafas, Tasos. "What Are These Guys Taking!?". Computer Game Review . Archived from the original on December 21, 1996.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  3. ↑ St. John, Donald (August 1995). "The Bizarre Adventures of Woddruff and the Schnibble". Electronic Entertainment . No. 20. p. 61. Archived from the original on October 18, 1996.
  4. ↑ Collection of reviews from MobyGames
  5. ↑ Something Very Strange Is Going On Here from Gamer's Zone
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.