I played this straight after the first Gabriel Knight game, and perhaps that's why I didn't like it nearly as much as the first game, since 'Sins of the Fathers' set the bar pretty high and I was in the mood for 'more of the same'. The drastic visual change from the colorful cartoon style to a bland FMV is really grating, all the charm is lost. Most cutscenes are too long and boring, and I was itching not to skip them; if I did, I would miss half the story. No more global topics, now just click on the next line until you exhausted your options.
It's a shame though, because the story itself is quite interesting, it's actually two seemingly separate stories that eventually converge in the final chapter and they are told alternately from Gabriel's and Grace's point of view.
I have to say I really hated Gabriel's chapters--I wanted to punch him every time he opened his mouth--plus there were many inconsistencies making it harder to solve some puzzles and follow what's happening. For example, Gabriel complains all the time that he can't even read the German newspapers or talk to random people, but for some mysterious reasons some conversations or correspondence between two Germans are conveniently in English, just because Gabriel has no-one around to translate it for him; other times he has to get someone to translate. So after a while I gave up trying to use my brain and just clicked on everything until something happened. I really miss Gabriel from the first game.
Still, I give it 3 stars because it's saving grace is actually... Grace. If it weren't for Grace, I probably would drop the game like a hot potato. Grace's chapters were like an entirely different game, and a very enjoyable one at that. It actually included some wonderful character development for her and overall was much more coherent, logical and easy to follow. She's easily one of the best female characters in games, so it's worth playing once just for that alone.
