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This is a tale about an unwilling, unaware murderer trying to cover his tracks and discover what actually happened. That's you. It's also about a dynamic detective duo that sets out to find the killer. They're both you, too. If this sounds like some schizo freak tale, then maybe it's best that you don't know about the giant, imaginary bugs that follow you around from time to time.

A Real Page-Turner

Indigo Prophecy is a rebirth of both the interactive movie and adventure genres. The former is a section of gaming that everyone was happy to see die a horrible death, and the latter produced some acclaimed titles (almost exclusively on PC) but is nearly extinct due to a lack of audience. Don't compare this game with the sporadic button pressing, point-and-click gameplay, or grainy full-motion video of the past, though. Instead, you control every movement and action in real-time in this vast tale, told with motion-captured polygonal models and cinematic camera angles.

It may be more accurate to call Indigo Prophecy an interactive novel. Look at Frank Herbert's groundbreaking tale, Dune -- a masterpiece filled with action. However, much of the 500-page paper brick deals more with details of water conservation and made-up religious babble. Likewise, while Indigo Prophecy may have you dodging furniture while your apartment blows away or rushing to ditch a dead body before the cops show up, you'll also do menial tasks like search for a specific volume in a massive bookstore or retrieve wineglasses to have a drink while your neighbor tells you about the new guy he's seeing. Think of these as you would endless random battles in a role-playing game; you have to fill all those hours of gameplay with something.

What matters is that the total package of the game's tome is enthralling and enchanting. Those of us who read more than TV Guide (and diehard Shenmue fans) won't mind the ho-hum tasks, and will be captivated by Indigo Prophecy's overall tale. Putting you in the shoes of both sides of a murder mystery is a very unique concept, and worth the price of admission by itself. The branching paths make it even more intriguing.

Rhythm's Gonna Get You

You never know what awaits you in Indigo Prophecy. Tasks include playing street-hoops for cash, trying to avoid vomiting during an autopsy, and pushing around an old, blind lady in a wheelchair. What you do know is how these things all control. Object interaction is handled with the right analog stick: To sit in a chair, click down; to rise, click up. More complex matters use rhythm-game mechanics with either both analog sticks, or alternately pressing the shoulder buttons. There's a disconnect when you're trying to do martial arts or play guitar this way, but it's a win/win situation for us gamers and the developers. We know it works, and they don't have to develop a San Andreas-load worth of minigames.

Movements aren't so smooth, and suffer from the same misdirection and camera shifts as the old Resident Evil games. While a timer sometimes accompanies your tasks, you're rarely running from certain death, so it's not as annoying. It sure beats the point-and-click interface of adventure games.

Ugly Picture, Pretty Frame

Graphically, Indigo Prophecy hits both sides of the spectrum. The character models would've drawn yawns on Dreamcast, and there are plenty of weird collision issues and glitches. Why is that ambulance jammed between the building and the streetlight, anyway? The game compensates with some very slick camera angles, though. You're often shown two real-time perspectives at once -- like when the cop is on her way to question the killer, who's trying to find a means of escape. This definitely adds to the tension of the scene.

The audio also picks up some of the production slack, with excellent voiceovers reading from a clever script. While you probably won't recognize many songs in the soundtrack, they're well chosen and suit the mood where they're placed. 

A Dream Realized

Indigo Prophecy is the savior for interactive movies and adventure games. It does drag on in a few spots, and its sci-fi bent may betray the original premise, but it brings gamers a deep, compelling story told in a clever way -- both in terms of narrative and gameplay execution. Not everyone is going to like it; conversely, FPS fans or fighter players will be bored to tears. For gamers looking for a digitized novel, however, nothing will serve you better.