D (1995)

***D*** is a horror-themed interactive movie and adventure game developed by Warp and directed by Kenji Eno. It was first published by Panasonic for the 3DO Interactive Multiplayer in 1995, later being ported to the Sega Saturn, PlayStation, and MS-DOS. The story follows Laura Harris as she goes to investigate a hospital after learning her father went on a mass murdering spree and barricaded himself inside. The hospital morphs into a castle upon her arrival, which she must explore to find her father. The player controls Laura through computer generated full-motion video (FMV) sequences, and must complete the game within two hours without a save or pause function.

Development lasted about one year and was primarily done with Amiga 4000 computers to create the FMVs. It would be the first major release for the still-unknown Eno and Warp, and so Eno felt that if it were not successful he would retire from game development. He added scenes of violence and cannibalism to make the game more striking, however he believed the content would be too extreme for censors or publishers and feared the game would not be permitted for publishing. To ensure these scenes would not be censored, Eno submitted a "clean" version for late publisher approval, knowing they would require him to deliver the game to the manufacturer. On his way to the manufacturer, he switched the clean version with his master version containing the more disturbing content.

The game was a commercial and critical success in Japan, selling a million copies and receiving a special edition re-release. Critics in the West praised *D's* horror elements, story, graphics, and presentation. Reviewers of the 3DO version found it to be one of the best games on the platform. For the PlayStation release, Sony did not print enough copies to match pre-orders. Eno was very upset with this, and would later take revenge on Sony by releasing his later games exclusively on Sega platforms. Warp dubbed the CG model for Laura Harris a "digital actress" and had "her" play different characters in two later games, *Enemy Zero* (1996) and *D2* (1999), the stories for which are unrelated to *D*. Modern retrospectives find *D* less appealing, but still commend it for its place in history as a unique blend of cinema and gaming and an early example of mature horror game design.

## Gameplay

*D* is an interactive movie which features adventure game elements, a horror genre storyline, and heavy use of full motion video. The player takes on the role of Laura Harris, played by a "digital actress" named Laura that appears in games by Warp, although the stories are unrelated. The player directs Laura's movements as she explores the game's environment, solves puzzles, and unravels the story. The movements occur through FMV sequences as she walks to the desired location, from where the player is greeted with a static screen which may contain items they can interact with or other paths to direct Laura. There is no save or pause function, and after two real-time hours, the other world will be closed off and Laura will be pulled back to the real world, ending the game. Depending on the player's actions, there are different endings.

## Plot

Taking place in 1997, the story begins when Laura Harris is contacted by Los Angeles police, receiving a disturbing message: her father, Dr. Richter Harris, director of the Los Angeles National Hospital, has gone on a mass murdering spree and barricaded himself in the hospital. Laura rushes to the scene of the crime, desperate to find an explanation for the well-respected doctor's actions. Upon entering the hospital, she is so horrified at the murdered bodies lying about the halls that she covers her eyes. When she uncovers them again, she finds herself in an unknown medieval castle. Unwilling to give up her search, Laura continues through the dark corridors of the castle. While attempting to find her father, she experiences a series of flashbacks of her mother being stabbed to death. Laura's father (taking the form of apparitions) warns her to leave, saying that staying too long means being stuck in the alternate reality forever. He warns that he will soon become an emotionless monster and will eventually try to kill her. Still shaken, Laura proceeds to find her father.

Ultimately, Laura finds her father residing at the peak tower of the castle. He reveals the sordid past of his family: Laura and her father are part of a bloodline of cannibalistic vampires, dating back to the infamous Dracula. Driven by her vampiric urges, Laura killed and ate her mother years ago, but it was erased from her memory by her father. As Dr. Harris demands Laura to leave one last time, he begins to transform into a vampire. If the player approaches Dr. Harris at this point, he will consume Laura's flesh and fully transform. However, if the player shoots Dr. Harris with a revolver that can be found earlier in the game, the bullet will kill him and stop his transformation. As Laura tearfully cradles her dying father in her arms, he confesses that he allowed the transformation to occur out of scientific curiosity and thanks her for stopping him. With his death, the realm created by his mind fades and is replaced by the normal surroundings of the hospital.