Plug the words wicked and studios into a search engine and you get a couple of French Canadian newspaper clippings and quite a few porn sites. None of these were much help when I went looking for details on newcomer Wicked Studios' recently-announced game, Keepsake. So just who are these guys, and what's up with this game they've been working on? Here's what we know so far.

Wicked Studios was founded in 2002 and is based in Montreal. Before signing on, some of the team members worked at Vircom Interactive, on MMORPGs The 4th Coming and Black Moon Chronicles. Others hail from various Montreal studios, including Ubisoft. Wicked's offices are overrun with little red Imps who churn out games and make coffee. (You can see them on Wicked's website, decked out in a variety of costumes.) Oh, and the company's president just happens to be the guitarist in Soulforge, a local heavy metal band. Seems like an eclectic group with a lot to offer the adventure gaming community.

If the early buzz is any indication, the Imps at Wicked Studios have some fresh ideas, solid art direction, and plenty of creativity. Keepsake's screenshots show a world unlike any we've seen in an adventure since Kyrandia, and the storyline promises to be equally unique. Plus, Keepsake's player-friendly product specifications show that the team really cares what kind of a game their customers want.

Keepsake's premise is a bit like the opening of a Harry Potter book. The main character, a young woman named Lydia, embarks for her first day of classes at Dragonvale Academy, a preeminent university where she will be studying magic. She arrives on campus to find the school deserted. Where have all the students, faculty, and dragons gone? Playing a key role in the mystery is an enigmatic "keepsake," a jester doll that Lydia gave to her best friend eight years ago, and now finds on the school's deserted grounds. As Lydia explores the school, she'll experience visions from her friend's point of view that enhance and heighten the story. Lydia is accompanied on her quest by a dragon, Zak, who has been turned into a wolf through a magical mishap. Part of Lydia's quest, along with finding out how the school came to be so empty, will be to help Zak return to his natural form.

Despite the apparent similarities to Harry Potter, the animal sidekick, and the central role of the jester doll, Wicked Studios insists that Keepsake is no kid's story. At 21 years of age, Lydia is older than she may appear in the screenshots, and the game will feature a mature story for adult players—one that will not only entertain, but also make us think.

The game's creators promise plenty of conversation (both required and optional) and meaningful interactions among a small group of key characters. Wicked stresses that due to Zak's company, Lydia is never alone during the game—yet she will spend most of her time exploring a deserted place. In a genre that's so divided between first-person games set in desolate Myst-style landscapes, and third-person games that make us navigate through endlessly branching dialogue trees, this balance of isolation and conversation is a refreshing concept. Yves Bordeleau, Wicked's president, tells us that with this mix, his team aims to give players a "new and innovative experience." Will Keepsake be the game where those who crave first-person solitude and those who yearn for third-person interaction finally meet in the middle? It's too early to tell, but it will be exciting to see how Wicked pulls this off.

Keepsake is being created with 3D character models on prerendered backgrounds. Most of the gameplay uses a third-person perspective, although we can expect some first-person puzzle-solving as well. The fantasy setting reflects a medieval theme, but Lydia has a distinctly modern-day Goth look—long red cape with black clothes underneath, pale skin, and cropped black hair with red streaks. At the very least, this game looks different than any other adventure in recent memory, as the four exclusive screenshots in this article clearly demonstrate.

Keepsake also includes a feature that many of today's releases are sorely lacking: an in-game hint system. Wicked recognizes that many of us are drawn out of games to seek help when we're stuck, and the team would rather we find hints right there in the game world. Clicking a Hint button will prompt Zak or Lydia to give a clue about what to do next. Hints will become progressively more specific, ending with Zak offering to solve the problem himself. And unlike other games that have used similar systems, such as Sierra's Torin's Passage, the player won't be penalized for asking for help.

The minimum system specs are expected to be fairly low (550 MHz CPU, 128 MB RAM, 16 MB video memory, DirectX 8, and only 150 MB of hard drive space), and even machines that are a few years old should fall into the "recommended" category (1 GHz CPU, 256 MB RAM, 64 MB video memory with 3D acceleration, DirectX 9b, and a very reasonable 650 MB of disk space). The team's efforts are currently focused on a Windows release, but they have left their options open for possible Mac and Linux ports. There's also a good chance Keepsake will be localized for several countries.



Some of Keepsake's influences include Final Fantasy, Baldur's Gate, and Quest for Glory (and let's not forget Lord of the Rings and Harry Potter). There has even been mention of a magic system in the game. Still, Bordeleau assures us that Keepsake is 100% adventure. (Just in case you were worried, he also tells us that no animals have been harmed during development, and that all Imps working on the title are fed low fat, organic food!) With such a foundation in traditional RPG elements, why did Wicked choose to make Keepsake an adventure game? Bordeleau says his team, having already worked on RPGs, was ready to try something new.

Don't worry—classic adventure titles have been cited as influences as well, including King's Quest, Syberia, and Myst. "Being adventure gamers ourselves," Bordeleau says, "we just followed our instinct on what would make a really cool adventure game." Considering how much they've already given us to look forward to, this new team just may pull it off.

Hopefully we won't be waiting for long. Providing Wicked finds a publisher, Keepsake is projected for a Q2 2005 release. In the meantime, keep your eye on Adventure Gamers for the latest news on this exciting debut.