Adam Randall - The game's protagonist. The estranged son of a village priest, Adam receives a note from his late father which leads him to the abandoned mansion in which the game takes place. Adam soon discovers that he is the Chosen One, and must fulfill his destiny of preventing the resurrection of the Power of Satan, which would trigger Armageddon.
Rebecca Trevisard - A young English psychic who Adam meets inside the house. Claiming to be an associate of Adam's late father, Rebecca quickly becomes his traveling companion and assists him in unlocking the mysteries of the house.
Aelf - A knight of God who died in battle many years ago, Aelf's ghost appears throughout the game to provide advice and assistance to Adam. He is revealed to be an incarnation of the archangel Michael, and the nemesis of the demon Belial.
Raphael - The guardian of the Tower, an interdimensional pathway that connects the different worlds of the multiverse. He is played by the same actor who portrays Aelf, and the game comments that the two characters are linked, although the plot never goes into specifics.
Hawk - An angel who, like Aelf and Raphael, provides assistance to Adam in his quest. Hawk is meant to serve as the host to the Power of God during Armageddon, during which he is to battle Gaul, the vessel for the Power of Satan.
The side of evil
Claude Florentine - The main antagonist of the game. Florentine is a French magician, several hundred years old, who is attempting to resurrect the Power of Satan and bring about the end of the world.
Belial - Another major antagonist, Belial is a demon, one so powerful that in mythology he has often been confused with the Power of Satan itself. Belial pursues Adam throughout the story, attempting to seize Adam's power for himself so he can use it to bring about the end of the world. Once the trusted familiar of Florentine, Belial is now actively working against Florentine as the two compete for the favor of their master, the devil.
Gaul - A gaunt man in a black suit, who carries a deck of playing cards around with him whenever he goes. Gaul is the "anti-Christ", who is meant to serve as the vessel for the Power of Satan during Armageddon.
The Dodger - An evil apart from the Power of Satan. The Dodger was once a summoned monster controlled by Florentine, but somehow gained a will of its own and went rogue. It now roams the Tower, and has somehow managed to merge with the Eire, the evil force that roams the Tower in search of victims to consume. The Dodger appears at the very end of the game, serving as a final obstacle to Adam's escape from the mansion.
Development
Realms of the Haunting was Gremlin's most expensive project yet. The lead programmer on the game was Antony Crowther.
GOG.com released an emulated version for Microsoft Windows, Linux and Mac OS X in 2011.
Reception
Realms of the Haunting was met with critical acclaim. It received an average score of 90.50% at GameRankings, based on an aggregate of 6 reviews. Though he noted a lack of originality in the basic plot, Air Hendrix of GamePro found the high quality cinematics, atmospheric presentation, and overall strong gameplay as both a puzzle adventure and a first-person shooter made Realms of the Haunting a captivating experience. He summarized, "While sometimes it gets frustratingly arbitrary, overall the adventure side, action side, and story line blend together quite nicely." Both Air Hendrix and a Next Generation critic remarked that the controls are clunky at first but can be adjusted to with time. Next Generation was most impressed with the game's massive size, reckoning that it takes 80 to 100 hours to complete, rarely reuses textures or architectural designs in different areas, and has a huge variety of monsters. The reviewer concluded, "For something that came from Interplay with very little fanfare, Realms of the Haunting could be one of the best adventure games of this year."
Realms of the Haunting was a finalist for the Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences' 1997 "Adventure Game of the Year" award, which ultimately went to Blade Runner.
