Five Hearts, A Gabriel Knight Story by Jane Jensen

[BBP]

https://robertholmesmusic.com/five-hearts/

Rath found this, figured it deserved its own thread...

Gabriel is still alone and is going to Salzburg, City of Mozart, the Mozarteum and Mozartkugeln - I sense options for great game music here...

where Gabriel rummages around Festung Hohensalzburg to find the acts to a missing Mozart opera...

[Rath Darkblade]

Gabriel is still alone and is going to Salzburg, City of Mozart, the Mozarteum and Mozartkugeln - I sense options for great game music here...

Agreed about the music ... but don't forget the chocolate!

If anyone dies in the game, there's a great (and obvious) way to link in the Lachrymosa from the Mozart Requiem. But there are many other options. The Mozart Great Mass. His Ave Verum Corpus, the last motet he composed (and worked on during his last opera, "The Magic Flute").

Maybe if there's a silly scene involving a clown -- the Papageno/Papagena duet from Magic Flute. A dramatic scene? Queen of the Night aria, rearranged for instruments. Invocation scene for "dark priests"-type characters? "O Isis und Osiris" (again from "Flute", again rearranged for instruments).

So many possibilities!

where Gabriel rummages around Festung Hohensalzburg to find the acts to a missing Mozart opera...

For anyone who doesn't know what Festung Hohensalzburg looks like ... here you go! It's a fun-looking fortress in Salzburg. I thought it might have had something to do with the House of Hohenzollern, but I guess I was wrong. It also has its own wikipedia page.

(And yes, I know the House of Hohenzollern is German and Salzburg is in Austria. In my defense, it's 7:45 am here and I haven't had my coffee yet).

One fun thing I just found out: the word "Hohen" (from Hohensalzburg and Hohenzollern, etc.) simply means "High". So "Hohensalzburg" means "High Salzburg", and "Festung" refers to the Festung mountain that the castle is built on. Languages are fun when you learn their secrets!

[BBP]

Hahaha Mozartkugeln are chocolate. Round confectionery wich chocolate on the outside and pistacchio inside.

While one of the best adventure game musics was to me in Mozart: Conspiracy of Prague, I would prefer a new Robert Holmes soundtrack as it fits the suspense we can expect from a GK game better than most of Mozart's playful music - with a friendly nod to the Maestro here and there.

Besides Lacrimosa gets my waterworks going.

Though the Dies Ira could make for some suspense. Confutatis for the high drama.

[Rath Darkblade]

Besides Lacrimosa gets my waterworks going.

Though the Dies Ira could make for some suspense. Confutatis for the high drama.

I was going to insert a Lacrimosa video here, but I'm not that evil.

I agree that the Dies Irae would be good for suspense. I'm not so sure about the Confutatis, since it switches between the "tense, dramatic" feel for tenors and basses and a calmer, "save me" feel for the sopranos and altos (they even sing voca me cum benedictis - "Call me among the blessed"), before finally resolving. Musically it's brilliant, but I think it would confuse people playing the game.

Perhaps the Recordare (rearranged for instruments) could be used for the calmer moments (maybe "thinking music" for Gabriel? Or "introspection" when he thinks about his life so far). And for the more energetic moments, maybe try the Offertorium ("Domine, Jesu Christe") music? It marches along quite nicely.

But who am I, a mere chorister (who, nevertheless, performed several Mozart Requiems ... and several more by others - Verdi, Fauré, Brahms) to offer musical advice to the wise and mighty?

[BBP]

Aww I lost what I was typing...

Anyway it's interesting that gk3 obviously takes place in 1998 and the story has him recording the conversation on his phone while he is charging it. Between gk2 and gk3 there is already a discrepancy with how long it took betwern games but this'll be a leap.

As usual I'm also wondering if Grace's pregnancy will be used as plot point. As it's only stated in the game files you'd have to use a dedicated file explorer for in order to find it, I had thought this arc was interrupted with the Temptation story. However with Grace lending the title to the story and with the primary school teacher telling Gabe that kids are great, could there be foreshadowing?

[Rath Darkblade]

Aww I lost what I was typing...

Yay that I'm not the only one this happens to! I was starting to think I was going cray.

But boo that this happened to you. Boo, forum! Boo!

Anyway it's interesting that gk3 obviously takes place in 1998 and the story has him recording the conversation on his phone while he is charging it. Between gk2 and gk3 there is already a discrepancy with how long it took between games but this'll be a leap.

As usual I'm also wondering if Grace's pregnancy will be used as plot point. As it's only stated in the game files you'd have to use a dedicated file explorer for in order to find it, I had thought this arc was interrupted with the Temptation story. However with Grace lending the title to the story and with the primary school teacher telling Gabe that kids are great, could there be foreshadowing?

Wait ... I'm confused. Grace is pregnant?? When did this happen? Maybe this happened at the end of GK3, and I -- dunderhead that I am -- didn't understand.

Gabriel is definitely not the father, but obviously, this changes the Gabriel/Grace dynamic.

Also, how is Grace lending the title to this story? Five hearts? Is Grace pregnant with triplets???

[BBP]

Gabriel is
There's a hint ingame in that there is a condom in Gabe's wallet that doesn't disappear after the event. But the biggest giveaway is in the subtitle files that contain information on how a line is to be read: When Baza says 'Goodbye dear one, you must take very good care of yourself now', the direction is 'gentle, referring to her pregnancy.' However as there is no further comment about it, it seems like Jane has all options open and can still drop that storyline. I'm so eager to see the game! (Like every other gk fan has been for the past 27 years)

[BBP]

Oh and it's called 5 hearts because Grace signed off the letter to her parents with 5 hearts.

[Rath Darkblade]

Gabriel is
There's a hint ingame in that there is a condom in Gabe's wallet that doesn't disappear after the event. But the biggest giveaway is in the subtitle files that contain information on how a line is to be read: When Baza says 'Goodbye dear one, you must take very good care of yourself now', the direction is 'gentle, referring to her pregnancy.' However as there is no further comment about it, it seems like Jane has all options open and can still drop that storyline. I'm so eager to see the game! (Like every other gk fan has been for the past 27 years)

Hmm. I guess I must be incredibly thick, because I didn't notice that the condom in Gabe's wallet doesn't disappear on day 3. (Of course, by then, I had more things to worry about, like not getting killed by swinging blades and acid).

Yes, I noticed it was there on day 1, but I thought that was just Gabe being Gabe.

I also didn't read the subtitle files, so no wonder I had no idea about this. Thanks, BBP.

My only regret about this game (if it ever appears) is that Tim Curry won't be able to play Gabe.

[BBP]

That is indeed a bummer. Maybe he can play 80 year old Gabriel telling his grandkids about his time as a Schattenjäger.

[Rath Darkblade]

Hmm. Don't get me wrong; Tim's stroke affected his ability to talk, but hasn't made him completely mute. On the contrary, he can talk, and he's as sharp and witty as ever. But unfortunately (from what I've seen), it is tiring for him to talk for long periods of time.

What about Grace? In the original Sins of the Fathers, her voice work was done by Leah Remini (and by Cissy Jones in the remake). In GK2: The Beast Within, she was portrayed by Joanne Takahashi, and in GK3, she was played by Charity James.

Also ... hmm. In the original GK1, she wears glasses. But in GK2 and GK3, she doesn't. Did Grace have laser eye surgery (or is wearing contacts), or ...? Just wondering.

One last thing: according to the official GK1 Hintbook (page 5), Grace was 26 years old in 1993, and so born in 1967. But in GK3, her passport says she was born on 18 May 1968, which would make her 30 in 1998 (when GK3 came out).

I'm also not sure how old Gabriel would be: his exact age and birthdate throughout the series is inconsistent. According to the Sins of the Fathers novel, Gabriel was 33 in GK1, born in 1960. However, in the game where he was orphaned at 8, but the book says he was only a year old. In GK3, his passport says he was born on 28 January 1963, which would make him 35 in GK3 (or 30 in GK1).

Sorry, sorry! Little details, I know. But little details matter too.

All these details mean that by now, Grace would be 57, and Gabriel would be 62. So the "Knight Family Curse" would have passed them by. Perhaps, if this game happens when Gabriel and Grace are in their late-50s-and-early-60s-etc., we could see them raising their child and arguing about whether he would also be a Schattenjäger. Following the family line would obviously be dangerous, but not following it might mean evoking the old curse.

Or am I thinking too much?

[BBP]

Grace wears glasses in the GK3 graphic novel, funnily enough. Considering hoe glasses look on Abbé Arnaud that may be a good thing.

Ahbto get Tim for a brief stint... He has done voice work and evrn some movies (Stream and the RHPS remake) so I hope something can be done with him. He IS Gabriel.

[Spikey]

Oh Jane, such a tease. What a setup for a story!

Did we just get a coded message from Grace? It does seem likely.

"Mom,
I’d love to have you and Dad visit me in Germany, but I’ll have to let you know when it’s
a good time. Right now, I’m chasing down leads to help Gabriel on a new case. I know. I know.
This isn’t what I spent six years of college studying, but I’m learning so much. (And I love it.)
Don’t worry about me – I’m strictly behind the scenes, promise.
Love, Grace
5xheart

Gabriel mentions the tone is unlike Grace, and the hearts are really out of place. So it seems like 5 is some sort of a key if this is a cipher, but I haven't figured it out yet. Feels like we have our own private Serpent Rouge going on here.