This preview
is presented courtesy of Ugur Sener and originally appeared on The
Adventure Lantern, the internet’s premier adventure magazine.

It all began with a simple phone call. Jonathan Danter could not
have anticipated the events that would follow. When he heard voice
of the detective on the other side, Jonathan knew something had to
be wrong. Why else would the Scotland Yard be contacting him? Everything
changed on that gloomy day in November.

The detective told Jonathan
that his uncle Frank was found dead. But that was impossible! There
had to be a mistake… Jonathan
believed that his uncle had died ten years ago. Where had he been
living all these years? Why was he murdered now? His head filled
with numerous questions, Jonathan headed to the funeral. The pieces
were just not fitting together.

After the funeral, Jonathan
returned to his apartment. He needed some time to relax; and he
needed some time to think. Yet Danter
was attacked by an unknown assailant. Fighting for his life, Jonathan
managed to send the attacker running. But one thing is clear. Jonathan
is in grave danger. And the incident at his apartment is more than
likely to be related to his uncle’s death. Jonathan has to
get to the bottom of the mystery. Unless he quickly uncovers the
truth, Danter may not live for much longer.

Developer Artematica
and publisher ANACONDA are teaming up to being us the adventure
game Belief & Betrayal. The game starts off
with Jonathan Danter’s investigation into the death of his
uncle Frank. Before long however, Danter will find himself in the
midst of a great conspiracy. As pointed out in ANACONDA’s press
release for Belief & Betrayal, the intricate plot expands far
beyond Jonathan and his uncle, reaching “back through the centuries
all the way to the day Judas received 30 pieces of silver for betraying
Jesus.”

Belief & Betrayal thrusts players into the beautiful cities
of Europe. Traveling through London, Venice, and Rome, players will
unveil the mysterious circumstances behind Jonathan’s uncle’s
death. As the plot thickens, players will find themselves caught
in the midst of biblical secrets and a great church conspiracy. The
adventure game promises an engaging plot that will call upon players
to question everything in search of the ultimate truth.

The experience will be
brought to life in realistic environments that stay true to the
architecture of the cities explored. While
players should not expect exact replicas of huge portions of London,
Venice, or Rome, Artematica has taken time to conduct research and
recreate the environments in a convincing manner. The pre-rendered
3D backgrounds are expected to make for interesting locations to
explore. The game will be pure point-and-click adventure offering
played from a third-person perspective. While exact details are not
yet available, Artematica also promises unique game play elements.
The developers have pointed out that Belief & Betrayal will feature
an innovative inventory system.

While Belief & Betrayal is a work of fiction, many of the events in the game will certainly
have their roots in history. Historical
accuracy will be sustained for certain events. However, the game
will also have a great deal of fiction mixed with historical fact.

Judging by the preliminary
information released about the game, Belief & Betrayal looks very promising. The backgrounds and character
models on the initial screenshots look very pleasant. Exploring the
European cities while trying to uncover the truth should make for
an interesting experience. Moving from a murder mystery to an intricate
church conspiracy, the plot should have what it takes to keep players
interested. Currently scheduled for an October 2006 release, Belief & Betrayal could certainly prove to be worth the wait. Artematica could easily
deliver an excellent thought-provoking thriller that will leave players
clinging to the edge of their chairs.