Fans of horror/mystery adventures may be in for a real treat next year. Czech developer Unknown Identity is working on an adventure game that is potentially the next big horror outing since Gabriel Knight.

The Black Mirror is a traditional third-person adventure in all respects. If you've played Syberia or The Longest Journey, you should be familiar with the type of graphics engine used in The Black Mirror. Like the aforementioned games, The Black Mirror places real-time 3D characters onto pre-rendered backgrounds. The game's weather effects are truly awe-inspiring. Quite frankly, they are the most impressive such effects I have ever seen in a 2D adventure. It's truly amazing to see how much atmosphere emanates from the rain, thunder and fog. (Have a look at the video on Unknown Identity's website for an impression.) The animation is also commendable, as the outdoor locations are often a bit more dynamic than usual. Every scene features a couple of eye-pleasing details, such as tree branches waving gently in the wind or birds flying in the distance.

The protagonist of the game is one Samuel Gordon, a nobleman who returns to his childhood residence in England to investigate the sudden death of one of his ancestors. As can be expected, it is soon revealed that the Black Mirror manor is not the quaint place it seems to be. The game contains a total of six chapters, but details on the story are currently under tight wraps. The developers insist on not spoiling any of the experience. "We realize that the scenario and story are the central components of each good game, [particularly] in the adventure genre," writes Unknown Identity on their website. "This holds especially true with a horror story and that is why we have paid special attention to the scenario from the very beginning of our work. Owing to a complex plot of the entire game we are not going to reveal more of the story..."

At the time of writing, the game is about 85% completed. According to one of the developers we spoke with, the Czech version of The Black Mirror (Posel Smrti) will be released in time for Christmas. Adventure gamers in other countries will have to wait a bit longer though. Unknown Identity is currently looking for publishers and hopes to introduce the English version around March 2003. Hopefully this date is not too optimistic for the North American territory, as US publishers are still notoriously cautious about publishing adventure games. Of course if the developers give any confirmation on a publisher, we'll be the first to break the news.

Check out our Black Mirror gallery for more screenshots than you can throw a stick at! Many of them appear exclusively on Adventure Gamers.