May 8, 2014

The Way of the Rabbi

The Shivah, an original and mature adventure game with a New York Rabbi investigating the killing of an ex-member of his synagogue, now with highly enhanced pixel-art graphics, is available on GOG.com for $2.49 (50% off the full price) until 9:59 AM GMT May 8th.

For any Jew, it’s a great mitzvah to visit the house of a departed acquaintance during the week of mourning–the Shivah, and pay respect to the avels. But when you are a Rabbi, it’s more than that: it’s a duty. Especially, if the deceased unexpectedly left you a large sum of money, even though you didn’t part ways in friendship. If the police suspects you had something to do with a murder, it would be meshugge not to try and clear your name. But when you are a Rabbi, it’s more than that: it’s a duty. Your synagogue looks up to you, after all. They may like you, or not. They may respect you, or not. They may listen to you, or not, but there must be no doubt in their minds that you are a good Jew. It’s natural for any man to ponder upon the nature of morality and reassess the important things in life, when faced with a dark mystery and a gruesome death. But when you’re a Rabbi, it’s more than that. It’s a duty. You have to face your doubts and fears before you help others to do so. Yes, life isn’t easy at all. But when you are a Rabbi, it comes with some extra challenges.

The Shivah is a point-and-click title designed by Dave Gilbert of Wadjet Eye Games, one of the modern adventure game power-houses. Initially executed in Adventure Game Studio it received a lot of praise from both gamers and gaming media, despite the simplistic visuals of the original 2006 version. It was welcomed as a mature and thought-provoking experience, as well as an unique insight into the contemporary Jewish culture. Pair that with a gripping, non-linear crime story and you’ve got a title unlike any other. Now, seven years after its initial release, this intriguing title is making a comeback, in the so called “Kosher Edition”, sporting higher resolution pixel-art graphics made from scratch to make the game look as good as we came to expect from Wadjet Eye titles. MP3 soundtrack included!

As Rabbi Russell Stone attend The Shivah of Jack Lauder, and solve the mystery of his untimely death, while facing some of your own demons, for $2.49 (50% off the full price) until 9:59 AM GMT May 8th.