Review - Drawn: Dark Flight!

After playing Drawn: The Painted Tower at the end of last year, I was very impressed (Read my review!). The unfinished story left me wanting more - more of the same immersive gameplay and the same magical world. Finally, Drawn: Dark Flight was released later in 2010. But did it live up to the greatness of the first game? That's what I'll tell you in today's review!

What I liked Same whimsical setting Fitting music Engaging puzzles Smooth gameplay Fascinating atmosphere What I didn't like I can't think of anything

Quick Plot

Picking up where the first game left off, you need to use art, magic, and puzzle-solving skills to help Iris overcome the dark evil that holds power over the city!

Mechanics

Adventure: This game falls solidly into the adventure category. You are traveling around, solving puzzles and picking up inventory items.

What pleased me so much is the fact that the game doesn't leave you clueless or floundering at any point, which is a guarantee in most standard adventure games. In this game, you typically have a pretty good idea about what to do, even if you get hung up for a short time.

Non-HOG: I highlight this because I was so glad this game wasn't a HOG. Most games on the casual scene these days are HOG-Adventures. In Drawn: Dark Flight, you're free from cluttered rooms and item lists. Ahhhhh.

Highlights

Puzzles: This game contained some of the most enjoyable puzzles I've ever encountered in an adventure game - and I've encountered a lot in my years as a gamer. Several puzzles are original in concept, which is exceedingly rare these days. So, puzzle fans, get ready for some fun.

Graphics/Atmosphere: The graphics and mood are the same as they were in the first Drawn game. The fanciful locations will take you to another time and place, where magic is real and anything is possible. The hand-painted art style is masterfully crafted, and the cold, sad atmosphere is easily felt.

Music: As in the first game, the swelling, dreamy music does it's job to accompany you on your mysterious journey. The themes and instrumentation adequately convey the mood and emotion of the game and it's various scenes.

Issues

Puzzle bug: The only issue I ran into was a little bug. During a puzzle in which you have to shift and align a number of rotating pieces, some of the pieces became strangely oriented (perhaps between exiting the game and starting it again?), and I could never find a way to reorient them. I don't know what caused this, but solving the puzzle became impossible, forcing me to skip the puzzle.

When my wife played this puzzle on her game, the pieces all stayed oriented just as they should, and she was able to solve the puzzle. I just happened to get a glitched save game, I guess.

Suitable for the family?

The game had great draw for both my wife and me.

The kids were a little nervous about one or two characters and scenes - it's a pretty solemn and shadowy game, after all. Still, they enjoyed watching, and appreciated various elements of the story and scenery.

The fantastical elements will be attractive to children: things like gnomes, woodland creatures, and flying books.

The family man's final ruling

Excellent. Big Fish Studios has put excellent work into one more brilliant game. I was thrilled to be free from hidden object scenes in what turned out to be a pure adventure game - following clues, using inventory, and solving puzzles while experiencing an interesting story.

The graphics are finely painted. The lighting, music, and ambience manage to pull you into Iris' magical world. Certain scenes made me pause and say, "Whoa." I also like the way that they worked music into the game as a story theme.

Perhaps best of all were the puzzles. The puzzles were original, engaging, and very fun to solve. Ever since the golden age of adventure games (with titles like 7th Guest, Obsidian, Black Dahlia, and Tex Murphy), great puzzles have been hard to come by. Most puzzles now are repeats of the same thing you've done in all of the other games. But in this Drawn sequel, you'll experience fresh, challenging new puzzles that will have your mental gears turning happily.

I liked this game even more than the first Drawn game. It was that good.

Here you have one of the best games of 2010, if not THE best. Get it, and prepare to be immersed in an artistic world of good and evil.

You'll like the game if... You liked Drawn: The Painted Tower You like adventure games You're tired of HOGs You like solving good puzzles You like magical stories You like a dark, somber atmosphere You won't like the game if... You don't like adventure games

My rating:

Review - Penny Dreadfuls: Sweeney Todd

According to Wikipedia, a penny dreadful "was a type of British fiction publication in the 19th century that usually featured lurid serial stories appearing in parts over a number of weeks, each part costing a penny." It appears that developer Playpond is bringing some of these old serials to the casual game format. The first of these is the story of Sweeney Todd. This story has previously been made into a Broadway musical, and you'll get a good dose of this in the game's cut-scenes. Today, I'll tell you what I thought of this penny dreadful!

What I liked Uncommonly high production quality Sung interludes Combination of HOG and adventure Grading system What I didn't like Twisted story Not enough puzzles

Quick Plot

Investigate some recent strange goings-on involving a priest, a young lady, a young man, a boy, a cook, and a barber.

Mechanics

HOG: You'll spend most of the game hunting for items in hidden objects scenes. They sparkle, so it's easy to locate them. The game plays out very much like Return to Ravenhearst or Dire Grove, mechanically.

Rooms like this will offer puzzles and hidden object scenes.

Inventory: As with other adventure games of this type, you will pick up a sizable collection of random items, which can be used in various places to help you advance. Puzzles: You'll get to solve a brain-teasing puzzle from time to time, but not frequently enough for puzzle enthusiasts like me.

Highlights

High production values: The Playpond team did what every developer should do: They polished and polished until everything was shiny. To be more specific, you can expect to get a return on your investment in the following areas:

• Slick visuals
• Orchestral music
• Well-planned hidden object scenes
• A plot to drive things
• Correct English
• Convincing voice-overs
• Good game length (approximately 4+ hours)

I'll expand some of this below. Visuals: Boy, they sure made things look good. That was what initially drew me in. Fonts, scenes, and interface - all very professional looking. The designers gave adequate attention to these little nuances, making their game look better than most others on the casual market. Audio: Being a composer myself, I'm attentive to the goings on in the music section of the market. Right now, with the economy being what it is, developers are skimping on music. As you might guess, I think this is a bad idea. Many of my fondest gaming memories relate to the music and the mental images it can stir up. One way for a developer to cut music costs is to hire a less-experienced or less-talented composer. You can almost always tell when they do this. Another way to cut costs is to provide fewer minutes of music. In this game, you'll hear the same few tracks repeated frequently (that's how they cut costs), but I'm glad to say that they at least hired someone who knew what they were doing. The orchestral score is quite nice, and fits the mood of the game very well. It was pleasant accompaniment for the gaming experience. And to make things even better, they hired voice actors, and good ones at that. Not only will you hear speaking, but you also get singing in this game. That's right. It's a video game musical! Between plot segments, you watch montages of still images depicting the characters and the topics about which they sing. I thought this feature was unique, fresh, and I was glad to have it. One voice worth mentioning is the unseen British detective who accompanies you through the whole game, offering regular doses of commentary. I really liked this voice. It added to the immersion and gave a human element to the gameplay. Hidden objects scenes: I've been weary of HOGs for a while, as regular readers will know, but despite this fact, I found this game worth my time. Primarily, this is because of the production values I've been speaking of. But, I will say that if I have to play hidden objects scenes, I like them to be done they way they were done in this game. You have a very manageable list of objects to locate, and they look really cool when you find them. And, of course, it helps to have the British guy talking to you as you search. There are three more things worth noting.

1. The HOG scenes will have you searching for a number of things that Americans won't be familiar with. Some of the terminology seems specific to English culture or history. So you might need to look a few things up.
2. I found that the developers were very good about making sure that the thing you are looking for is obviously that thing. So you shouldn't have to do a bunch of "guess" clicking. A snake, for instance, will very obviously be a snake, once you look in the right place.
3. The hints use a slow-refill system. Once you use a hint, you need to wait a while before using another.

One of many musical interludes.

Grading system: This game features a grading system. After each segment of the story, you are graded on

• how long you took to finish that story arc
• how accurate your searching was (it measures wrong clicks)
• how many puzzles you solved (as opposed to skipping them), and
• how many hints you used. (I think I'm right about this last one. Recall faculties...failing...)

This grading threw that bit of challenge in there for the serious gamer. If you want to "show your stuff," you can work at achieving a high grade. I got an A ("Nighthawk" ranking). I made it through without using any hints and I solved all of the puzzles. But, at one point, I forgot that it was measuring accuracy, so I was impatiently clicking on things for the heck of it - you know - "just in case" it's the thing I'm looking for.

Issues

Twisted story: I suppose I'm in the minority, but I'm just not into these twisted stories. The whole plot, which I won't spoil here, is just wrong on so many levels. It's just not the sort of thing I want in my mind. I'll talk more about this in the Family section further down. More puzzles please!: Looking back, I think I would have liked the game more if they had replaced some of the hidden object scenes with puzzles. The puzzles that were in the game were enjoyable, for sure. I just wish there were more of them!

Standard put-the-picture-back-together puzzle.

Suitable for the family?

Some of the imagery could definitely spook a little kid. The whole game takes place at night, and everything has a dark and ominous atmosphere, so this isn't a game I'll recommend as a family event. My wife stepped over to do some hidden object scenes with me, and enjoyed them, but I don't know if she'll ever play through on her own. She liked what she observed, which was very little. But, in case you're concerned with messed-up stories, I've spoiled some of the disturbing plot features below. Click and drag over the white text in the box to read it.

Sweeney Todd is a barber who ends up killing people with his razor, to take their valuables. The baker woman is using the dead bodies to make meat pies, and business is doing well. The aged priest character is corrupt, and he is determined to force young Johanna to marry him against her will.

The family man's final ruling

This game was fun. The whole production was well-done and kept me interested. The rainy atmosphere and dreary music have a way of pulling you into the story. There are hints for those who want them, and a high grade to work for, if you like a challenge. I would gladly exchange the story for one that isn't so disturbing, but they kept things pretty mild, for which I'm thankful. I recommend playing this game. The only thing that could have made it even better would be more puzzles instead of so many hidden object scenes. And, if you like bonus features, there is a Collector`s Edition, which costs more, but includes, according to Big Fish,

• Exclusive hidden object scenes
• Original puzzles to challenge and confound you
• An interactive strategy guide
• A new “theatre mode” to replay cut scenes and movies
• Spectacular full orchestral soundtrack

Beautiful (and chilling) scenery at every turn.

You'll like the game if... You like hidden object games You like adventure games You like inventory-based tasks You like dark stories You won't like the game if... You don't like finding hidden objects You want a bright and cheery game

My rating:

Review - Mystery Case Files: Dire Grove

At the end of 2006, Big Fish Studios released MCF: Ravenhearst, a super-creepy game that followed in the tradition of the other Mystery Case Files games. Then, in late 2008, Big Fish blew everyone's socks off with the even more twisted MCF: Return to Ravenhearst. This was the first game in its class, combining hidden objects with an adventure game, and doing it with a high quality that has hardly been matched ever since. (Read my review!) Then, just a year later, Big Fish released the next MCF game, MCF: Dire Grove, which turned out to be another game with the production style of Return to Ravenhearst, but with even more new features. This time around, as if it were the mid-90s golden age of adventure games, they included a series of live action cutscenes. So, did Dire Grove live up to the greatness of Return to Ravenhearst? Today I'm glad to (finally) give you my opinions! Read on!

What I liked All-around high-quality production Wonderful video sequences Not as twisted as Return to Ravenhearst Good balance of puzzles, inventory use, and hidden objects A good ending What I didn't like Can't replay the ending...

Quick Plot

Figure out what happened to a group of students who came to Dire Grove to do research.

Mechanics

HOG: You'll play through an ample supply of hidden object scenes, as with the other MCF games. You'll even recognize familiar sound effects as you locate items. The hidden object scenes have just the right level of difficulty, as opposed to something overly difficult, like Luxor Adventures. You never have to find too many items, and they're never too hard to find. This is very welcome for those of us who prefer not to waste a whole lot of time poking around for hidden objects. Another plus in the HOG department is the fact that the scenes actually make some sense. Most of the random junk seems at home in its scene. And you always get to keep one of the items when you finish a hidden object scene, adding it to your inventory. As in many HOGs, you have a refillable hint meter.

Snow falls as you search the trunk. How'd the driver fit all that junk in there?

Inventory: As with many good adventure games, a high percentage of your obstacles will be inventory-related. You'll be regularly collecting various items and finding appropriate uses for them as you investigate your surroundings. Some of these items are acquired by clicking on an them in the normal environment, while others are gained by completing hidden object scenes. None of the uses are too obscure. You'll usually be able to guess at which object will work for a particular task, without too much trouble. Puzzles: You'll have to solve several puzzles, none of which are too difficult. I wouldn't have minded even more puzzles, and more complicated ones. But the ones you get are certainly fun.

Don't expect a warm stay at this snow-covered lodge.

Highlights

Live action cutscenes: I was an adventure game junky in the late 90s, when full motion video sequences were commonly showing up in games (the Tex Murphy series, Black Dahlia, Zork: Nemesis, and Gabriel Knight 2: The Beast Within, to name a few). So, when I found out that this game had professionally produced video clips with live actors, I was eager to get my in-game-cinematics fix. The game did not disappoint. These video sequences are excellent. The acting is very good, the locations are real, and the style is fitting for the game. These video clips are acquired by walking around and discovering camcorder tapes on the ground from time to time. Each tape unlocks a new video, and gives you a glimpse into the events leading up to your investigation. I offer a word of slight caution: some of the video clips are a tad unnerving. You won't be exposed to anything grisly or frightening, thankfully. But more than one clip is certainly spooky and somewhat panicky. I think the majority of people will get a kick out of these, but I wouldn't recommend watching the video clips with little kids around. Less disturbing: Whereas Return to Ravenhearst was like something out of a nightmare, Dire Grove is more like something out of the X-Files. The story in RtR left me wishing could repress it, while the story in Dire Grove is merely spooky and mysterious, in a way that allowed me to feel like my mind was safe. I'm sure you'll have at least one unsettling "WHAT THE HECK?!" moment in the game, but it's still comparatively mild, and rather fun. These surprise moments are likely to show up when you least expect them, so again, I advise you to avoid playing with small children nearby. Some of the content could easily disturb little minds. Satisfying ending: This is one thing you will rarely hear me say. But, in Dire Grove, they actually gave me an ending I could be satisfied with. Instead of the typical, "THE END. Thanks for playing.", the game ends with a nice video sequence to cap things off. My belief is that a game, or book, or movie should reward you for investing your time. Well, this game gives you the payoff. If only more developers would put some effort into good endings.

Issues

No replays: When I play a standard video game, I will frequently reload my last save, after completing the game. Then I'll play through the final sequence again just so I can watch the ending one more time. As you know, most casual games don't have saves. The downside to this is that, if you want to go back later to a particular part of the game, you can't. Dire Grove is such a game. After completing the game, I tried to load my game again, and it just stuck me back at the very beginning. This means you'd better catch EVERYTHING the first time through, because, honey, if you want to see the ending again, you're going to have to work for it! What can I say? I'm a sucker for good endings. But, this is my only grumble about the game.

Some weather vane, huh?

Suitable for the family?

I'm going to have to say no on this one. Most of the game is pretty harmless, and my kids did watch me play a good chunk of the game, but I just wouldn't want a child to be watching at one of those freakout moments. As I mentioned earlier, some of the stuff in this game would be disturbing to little kids. While this game isn't nearly as unsettling as Return to Ravenhearst, and the story is much classier, my wife indicated that she might not want to play this one, having seen and heard some of the scenes. For those of you who really want to know exactly what you'll encounter in this game, I have a spoiler window below. Highlight the white text within the window to read it.

One skeletal corpse, somewhat fake looking. Ice-frozen, seemingly-possessed people who chant repeated phrases. White, ghostly figures that appear and disappear in various rooms. Panicked characters in the live action sequences, with jolty camera motions.

The family man's final ruling

This is one of the best casual games I've ever played. Big Fish Studios put a great deal of time and effort into making this a uniquely solid game. Attention to quality shows up everywhere from video production, to story, to graphics, to music, to puzzles. Every time I play a a rare gem like this, I sigh and wonder why so many mediocre games are released on the casual market. This game kept me interested the whole way through, and I loved the nicely-produced video sequences. All of the actors were good. And for those of you who like extras, there is a Collector's Edition, which costs more, but includes, according to Big Fish,

• bonus 'Easter egg' levels and puzzles that reveal secrets related to both past and future Mystery Case Files episodes
• integrated Deluxe Strategy Guide, and
• extra video outtakes, concept art, screenshots, and desktop wallpapers.

If you like HOGs at all, get this game, especially if you like the integration of adventure and HOG. You won't regret it.

You'll like the game if... You like hidden object games You like adventure games You like a good story You like live-action cinematic cutscenes You like stories involving ancient lore You won't like the game if... You don't like hidden object games You don't want to be spooked from time to time

My rating:

Mirrors, mirrors on the walls - a review of Princes Isabella: A Witch's Curse

In recent months, beginning with Mystery Case Files: Return to Ravenhearst, we have seen a handful of casual adventure games hit the market. Princess Isabella: A Witch's Curse is one of the pioneers in this new genre of games. So how does it do? Read on to find out!

What I liked Lovely graphics Very nice music Nice combo of adventure, hidden objects, and puzzles Fairy companion Easy to figure out what to do What I didn't like Too easy?

Quick Plot

Restore the cursed kingdom to its former glory, save all your friends and family by reconstructing their mirrors, and deal with whatever villain is behind the curse!

Mechanics

Adventure: The interface and mechanics of the game are predominantly characteristic of point-and-click adventure games. You walk from room to room and do things in each room of the castle. Puzzles: You'll face a wide variety of puzzles. Hidden Objects: Hidden object scenes are a common task you'll encounter. These give you the inventory items you'll use during your adventure.

Highlights

Graphics: The visuals in this game are beautiful. I would have liked more animations in the scenery, such as moving water, but overall, the environments are pleasing to the eye. The character art is pretty good too. Music: One of my favorite parts of the game was the music. I didn't see who composed it, but whoever it was did a great job. From orchestra to medieval instruments, the score contributed a nice backdrop for the journey. I especially liked the jingles that played each time I solved a puzzle or removed a curse from a room. Expect to keep the music on for this game. Fairy: A small fairy floats in the upper corner of the screen talking to you every so often, and offering abilities that help you with your tasks. For instance, she can use her rock ability to smash vases, or her water ability to water flowers. She also has hints for those times when you find yourself stumped.

Variety: I liked that this game had so many different types of puzzles. There's always something new to solve. I'm burnt out on hidden object games, but I can stomach a little bit of it when it's thrown into an adventure game like this. There is also marble popping, tile flipping, tile swapping, puzzle piecing, and many other types of brain-teasing tasks.

Issues

Too easy: The game felt a little short, but I don't think it's because the developers skimped on story or player objectives. Rather, I think it's because the puzzles are just not very challenging. Most of them can be solved in seconds. For the seasoned adventure gamer, this will be frustrating, but for people who see casual games as nothing more than a pleasant diversion, these puzzles might hit the spot. Nevertheless, I will mention that this simplicity was welcome when it came to the hidden object scenes. The objects were relatively easy to find, so I felt like they didn't stall my progress. I much prefer this to the sort of terribly challenging hidden object scenes found in Luxor Adventures. *shudder* So, you'll find that the game sails along at a steady clip, which is nice in principle, but you might find the puzzles less than satisfying. Don't expect a brain-burner.

Suitable for the family?

Wife: My wife loves these puzzle adventure games, so she's been having great fun with this one. Kids: The kids came over to watch from time to time, but there isn't a whole lot here to interest them. There are some ghosts in the game, which might spook some kids out. The ghosts are just wispy, glowing forms floating around, and you do get rid of them. My kids watched the ghosts and didn't seem to be bothered. Other than that, I can't remember anything scary, disturbing, or thematically inappropriate.

The family man's final ruling

If you thought Return to Ravenhearst or Dire Grove were too difficult, this game is probably just right for you. On the other hand, if you like challenging puzzles in your adventure games, this game probably won't be very stimulating for your mental processor. In my opinion, this game is a fun romp with enough variety to keep it interesting from start to finish. I wouldn't mind playing it again some day, just for kicks. There is nothing tedious or frustrating (except the fact that you can't ever look at the castle map for more than a few seconds at a time). This game was well-designed in every respect, and I think you'll find it to be worth your money.

You'll like the game if... You like hidden object scenes You like adventure games with inventory items and puzzles You like high production quality in your casual games You like games involving castles and fairies You won't like the game if... You only like adventure games with complex and challenging puzzles You want a long, involved story

My rating:

Will I ever get home? - a review of Wandering Willows

What do you get when a casual game developer combines roleplaying with adventure and simulation? You get Wandering Willows!

What I liked Cute, colorful graphics Good game length Odd and witty cast of characters Great music Task-driven gameplay What I didn't like Too many unused items Scarcity of some important items Repetitive and potentially tedious gameplay Short, unsatisfying ending

Quick Plot

Gather items, make things, and train animals to fulfill all of your friends' requests, so that you can escape the mysterious island.

Mechanics

Items: You spend most of the game wandering around the land gathering items, with the help of a pet. You also collect recipes and patterns. Once you know a recipe or pattern, you can use the items you've collected to make something, such as an item of clothing, foods and drinks, or flower bouquets. These items are the driving mechanic in the game. Everything you do involves gathering, making, and delivering items to the other inhabitants of the area. Animals: Animals roam all over the landscape, and you always have one animal tagging along with you. Each animal has 3 stats:

• Toughness: the ability to dig up holes
• Climb: the ability to climb trees
• Charm: the ability to get other animals to give you stuff

Additionally, each animal has some particular skill that helps you. For example, a Zeepzop is more likely to dig up metals for you. There is an animal storage building where you keep the animals you've collected. Here you can incubate eggs to acquire new animals, and you can change which animal will walk around with you. Every time your pet climbs, digs, or charms, his relevant stat will go up. This continues until his skill levels reach a maximum limit. You can also make collars to equip on your animals. These collars give skill boosts to the animal. Animals are an important part of the game because they do all the work for you. Once they've retrieved some item for you, all you have to do is pick it up off the ground. As they work, their energy bar runs low and you need to give them food to restore their energy. Tasks: This is a task-driven game. You will complete more than 120 tasks before the end of the game. These tasks are assigned by the other people living on the island. Whenever one of these people has a question mark above his or her head, it means they want to talk to you. Once you talk to them, they'll give you a task. Once the task is completed, you'll receive something from them, and your friendship level with the requesting characters will increase. The friendship level doesn't seem to be anything more than a statistic. It doesn't affect gameplay, from what I can tell, other than earning medals. Goals and Medals: As you reach certain benchmarks in the game, you will receive medals. These are rewarded for things like training an animal until his stats are maxed, and gaining a friendship status of "Best Friend" with another character. Additionally, you have a set of long-term goals laid out for you at the beginning of the game, which must be fulfilled to complete your main goal of escaping the island. These goals are completed simply by playing through the game and finishing certain tasks.

Highlights

Controls: Walking around the island is simple. Click your mouse (or hold the mouse button down), and your character will go to that location. Another feature I loved is that, when picking up items, there is no limit to how many you can click in a row. So you can click on 8 pieces of wool on the ground in quick succession, and the little hand icon will remain on all of them until your character picks them up. While you do earn the ability to warp to specific locations later in the game, I wish the developers had included some kind of Fast Forward feature, allowing you to travel more quickly from place to place. Sometimes, I just didn't want to wait for my guy to walk. I also wished they would have built in keyboard controls for scrolling the camera or moving the character. But basically, if you want to do anything in the game, just click on it - whether it's a tree, a person, a digging pile, or a shop. So, the game is easy to control. Interface: The developers were kind enough to offer a small overhead map in the corner. Clicking any spot on this map will make your character walk to that location. Stars on the map indicate the locations of the other characters. Mousing over a star will tell you which character it is. A gold flashing star means that character wants to talk to you. These little indicators are very helpful. Your animal has a spot for himself in the upper left corner, where you can see his picture and his stats. Mousing over his picture will show you his abilities and description. Mousing over a character or animals will show you what they like and don't like. This is helpful when giving gifts to people or food to animals. Another helpful feature is the bar at the top of the screen. It constantly cycles through your currently assigned tasks, reminding you what needs to be done. There are arrows on the bar that allow you to manually scroll through your tasks if you prefer. And if you want a detailed view of all your tasks, there's a button in the lower left corner that brings up all your task information. Music: Because there are a host of fair composers out there, and only a handful of really good ones, I always have to highlight any score by Sean Beeson. This friendly fellow has composed another great soundtrack this time. While I wish there was more music in the game, the few tracks that repeat are very nice and fit the mood of the game perfectly.

Game length: You're going to get plenty of play out of this game. If you wanted to, you could choose to postpone your tasks and just go around collecting items, leveling up your animals, and working for those hard-to-earn medals. Humor: The characters in this game are just.....weird (or quirky, if you prefer). I did laugh out loud a few times at the comments made by the characters. Each character seems to be a witty caricature of a very specific type of person you might meet in our world - strange old man, health freak, or geek for example. But, the humor might not appeal to everyone. It seems to be written primarily for folks in their 30s or late 20s.

Issues

Repetition: If you don't like wandering around collecting things, this game might get tedious for you. And your frustration might be amplified by the fact that

• the items you get from digging or charming are somewhat random (an animal might drop 3 or 4 different items, but you never know which one it will be), and
• some items that you really need are scarce, while items you don't need show up in abundance.

Is this enough of an issue to ruin the game? No. It wasn't for me. It irks a bit, but that's all. Too many useless recipes: You will frequently collect new recipes and patterns for making things. This opens up all kinds of options for the kinds of objects you can make as gifts, or cook up for your animals to eat. Unfortunately, I rarely found use for any of these recipes or patterns. For the fun of it, I did make a pirate hat, pirate coat, and ruffed shirt to give my guy a pirate outfit (at my son's request). I also made a kung fu outfit for my guy. And hey, you can even choose what colors the clothes are. But still, all those things you collect just waste space if you don't do anything with them. That was a letdown. Your character is likely to end up a pack rat like mine did. But, you don't have to look at your recipes if you don't want to. It's the concept that bothers me. It just feels like wasted space, time, and energy. That said, you will actually need a handful of recipes and patterns for you assigned tasks.

You get to customize how your character looks!

Suitable for the family?

My wife wasn't interested in playing the game, just from watching me play. Then she sat down and tried it herself, and now she's well into her own game. She's enjoying the task-driven play. The kids loved watching this one because the characters are cute, and even more importantly, there are furry little fantastic creatures walking around everywhere. They were always eagerly requesting that I switch to a different pet to take around with me. While nothing in the game is visually offensive, I made sure not to read all the character dialogue out loud for my kids to hear. Some of the conversations would be inappropriate for kids, both in terms of language, and some insinuated themes (homosexuality and cross-dressing included). But these themes are subtle and pass by very quickly. And in case it is likely to offend you, there is also one character who frequently says (out loud), "God! Don't sneak up on me like that!".

The family man's final ruling

This game stands out in my mind as unique. There is nothing else like it on the market as of now. It has a way of keeping you playing. There's a sense of development that is often found in roleplaying games. There is always another new item to find, a new person to befriend, a new animal to train, a new area of the map to unlock, and a new task to work on. Add in cute, colorful graphics, top-notch music, and humorous characters - and you've got yourself a very good game. Sure, I had my complaints, but that didn't seem to damper my eagerness to play. The only other thing that would have made the experience more rewarding is a longer, more robust ending. But I always say that. I recommend this game, even if the humor goes over the head of some people younger than 20 and older than 40. You might get more hours of play out of this game than any other casual game in your collection.

You'll like the game if... You like task-oriented gameplay You like gathering and collecting stuff You like cute, colorful graphics You like witty, subtle humor You like roleplaying/simulation elements You won't like the game if... You get burned out by constantly exploring for random items You're hoping for some fast-paced action or time management

My rating:

The magic of art! - a review of Drawn: The Painted Tower

Every so often, we get to play a one-of-a-kind casual game that raises the bar and leaves us wanting more. Big Fish Studios' Drawn: The Painted Tower is this kind of game. Interested? Read on!

What I liked Whimsical art style Adventure game mechanics Fitting music Good game length Built-in hint system Fun puzzles What I didn't like Technical issues Vagueness in the story

Quick Plot

Save a magical artistic girl from a looming threat!

Mechanics

Inventory: This is an inventory-based adventure game, like Monkey Island or Grim Fandango. You'll encounter puzzles along the way, and there's a story driving it all, but you spend most of your time traveling around the environment collecting inventory items and using them. Exploration: Some games, like the Nancy Drew series, are more heavily driven by conversations with characters, and often include lots of text to read. This isn't the case with Drawn - for which I was thankful. This game is more in the style of Myst, where you're wandering around trying to figure things out as you explore various areas. Hints: Unlike most adventure games, Drawn has a built-in hint system that slowly refills after each use. So, you don't have to leave the game and look up a walkthrough when you're stuck. Fortunately, the game wasn't difficult enough to require frequent use of these hints. But for those of you who like them, the hints are there. Similarly, after a certain amount of time on a puzzle, you are offered a "Skip Puzzle" option.

Highlights

Art-style: The development team for this game put in lots of work to create beautiful environments. The dreamy and cold look permeates everything. The style is whimsical, with odd curves and unbalanced lines throughout. Rarely will you play a casual game with this much beauty. A sense of direction: If you've played many adventure games, you know the sinking feeling that comes when you reach a point in the game where you have absolutely no idea what to do next. Drawn pleasantly avoids this flaw. Everything you need for a task is usually nearby, or somewhere else obvious. The times when I felt like I didn't know what to do next, it was because I hadn't tried something relatively simple in my current surroundings. You shouldn't ever be stumped for long in this game.

Music: The music in this game does what any good adventure game music does - it matches the theme of the game, and enhances the mood of each scene, making the experience engaging and memorable. This music team did well. Game length: Very often, I find games to be too short, and therefore a waste of money. I think you'll find that Drawn has a very reasonable length. You accomplish a good number of things before the final resolution of things arrives. Puzzles: I love puzzles. An adventure game without good puzzles is like a movie without any memorable scenes. Solving interesting puzzles is what makes adventure games so fun for me. This game has a good variety, requiring different types of mental processing and analysis. Sometimes, you simply need to use you mouse to trace lines or paint a picture. Sometimes, you need to make sense of a more complicated arrangement of things. I would compare the variety and difficulty level of these puzzles to the puzzles found in Nancy Drew adventure games.

Issues

Technical problems: The main problem I had with the game was surprisingly a technical one. Usually, the games I download from Big Fish play just fine, but this time I had a big problem where the game quit every time I reached a particular scene, and it happened for my wife too. We just couldn't advance. The good news is, once I contacted Big Fish's tech support, they were incredibly kind and helpful, and gave me troubleshooting steps to try. The steps worked and I was up and running soon after! If you ever have trouble with a Big Fish game, contact customer support right away. Theirs some of the best I've seen, right up there with Dell computers. Still, I don't understand why the game seems to require so many system resources. There are more intense mainstream games that have quicker load times than this game. Wait, what's going on?: It might just be me, but I wasn't ever entirely sure I understood the story in the game. With my wife's explanations, I was finally able to better understand what was going on. Personally, I dislike vague storytelling, or unexplained elements in tales. I want everything clearly communicated and every detail explained. Drawn doesn't do this. I was left with some questions about How, Why, Who, and such. Most people, I think, are fine with this kind of story, so don't take my word for it. I'm just picky.

Suitable for the family?

The kids seemed to like this one. While I can see the general lack of light in the scenery as being potentially spooky to little ones, it didn't seem to bother my kids too much. I asked my kids what they liked about the game. Kid1: The animals. Kid 2: The little girl. Kid 3: (Too young to have much of an opinion.) My wife also liked the game. She and I both wish more casual games were being produced with the strengths and features of Drawn.

The family man's final ruling

This is one of the best casual games I've played. It did almost everything right. And I was so glad they kept hidden objects scenes out of this game. These days, the industry seems to be trying to drown us with HOGs. But I say, bring on more adventure games!

You'll like the game if... You like adventure games, especially inventory-based ones You like nicely painted environments You won't like the game if... You don't like exploration and puzzles You prefer fast-paced repetitive type games

My rating:

Aimless Island - a review of Nancy Drew: Ransom of the Seven Ships!

My wife and I have played almost every Nancy Drew adventure game to date. We just finished Nancy Drew: Ransom of the Seven Ships. Want to know what I thought of it? Read on!

What I liked Some good puzzles Setting was nice What I didn't like Hard to figure out what to do next Very few characters Minimal music Weak conclusion Teeeeeedious

Quick Plot

Nancy's friend is missing! Go to the island and find her!

Highlights

Features

• Standard point-and-click travel and environmental interaction
• New sailing feature
• New scuba diving feature (gotta keep that tank filled!)
• Rock-climbing (this might be new)
• Driving, as seen in other games
• Playing games with monkeys
• Metal detecting and digging
• Puzzles

Music For some reason, the music didn't do much for me this time around. There is very little variety in the music for most of the game. It provides some accompaniment, but it's nothing special. The composer for the Dossier series is pumping out better music for that line of games. Story The story was one of the best parts of the game. It involves some old Spanish ships and some treasure. Playing the Game This is where the game falls short of previous Nancy Drew adventures. I can imagine the developer meeting where they planned the game:

Developer 1: "You know, we just need to get this game done. Any ideas for speeding up the process?" Developer 2: "Well, what gamers want is a good chunk of time spent in a video game. Time equals value for the gamer." Developer 3: "That's right. How about this: What if we just make a lot of the mechanics tedious and repetitive so that it feels like the player is doing something even though he really isn't!" Developer 1: "Brilliant!"

And so they got to work. And it shows. You spend a huge portion of the game not solving puzzles, gaining new insight, or discovering new fascinating locations. Rather, a hefty majority of the game is spent driving a golf cart around the island. And wouldn't you know it - the map of the island isn't with you for easy access - no - it's all the way back at the resort where you're staying - so you have to memorize it! When you're not driving, you're climbing (and getting pelted by rocks), sailing around an expanse of water, playing boring games over and over to win prizes from monkeys, scuba diving, and traveling all the way back to the resort to fill up your scuba tank! Doesn't that sound like fun? No? That's because it isn't really. Good adventure games keep you playing by leading you to

• participate in interesting conversations with interesting characters,
• discover clues in interesting locations, or best of all,
• solve (challenging or interesting) puzzles.

This brings me to the best part of Seven Ships. There were, thankfully, some fun, amusing, and challenging puzzles in this game. That was the part where I told my wife, "Okay, let me take the mouse now!" Oh, and to top it off, they give you one of the all-time adventure game no-nos: a maze. Sure, you're scuba diving, and there are symbols which are supposed to guide you, but it's still a maze. To avoid spoilers, I won't go into much detail, but I'll say that I was dissatisfied with both the resolution to the mystery, and with the ending.

Suitable for the family?

The kids sat with us for much of this game. There's a talking parrot in the game, which is great for the weefolk. And, of course, the monkeys.

The family man's final ruling

This game often leaves you with little direction. Usually, I like to solve these games without looking online for hints. This time, we had no choice. We had to visit UHS multiple times. You're supposed to get your direction from an old journal you find. This just didn't work well. Honestly, I was disappointed. I have been having a lot more fun with the newer Nancy Drew Dossier series than with the long-lived adventure series. My wife is the primary Nancy Drew fan in our house, and she was disappointed with this game too. I would recommend trying some of the older entries if you're new to the series.

You'll like the game if... You're a die-hard or completist Nancy Drew adventure fan You love a tropical island setting for an adventure You won't like the game if... You want lots of good puzzles and gameplay that provides constant forward momentum

My rating:

Here's mud on your face! - a review of Nancy Drew Dossier: Resorting to Danger

Before Nancy Drew Dossier: Resorting to Danger, my favorite casual game was Nancy Drew Dossier: Lights, Camera, Curses. Well, this new sequel is now my other favorite casual game. Read on to find out why!

What I liked Top-notch music Fun and original mechanics Great story Multiple endings Mini games / puzzles Excellent voice acting (for the most part) What I didn't like A few of the voices The reward for achieving Master Detective rank Short allotted time for bomb puzzles Too short of game length! Give me more!

Genre

Adventure / Mystery / Object-combining

Quick Plot

Someone at the luxurious Redondo Resort and Spa is planting bombs. Your job as the illustrious girl detective is to track down the perpetrator. Which of the six mysterious suspects is responsible?

Highlights

Mechanics I love the original object-matching mechanic used in the Nancy Drew Dossier games. Most of the game puts you in one of many rooms where there are various objects to locate with your magnifying glass (mouse cursor). You hover the mouse around the room until it sparkles on some object or area, at which point you can click to reveal a usable feature of the room. You are told how many of these objects exist in each scene. As you find these objects, you can match them by clicking two of them in a row. If the match is successful, you earn points. If not, you get nothing and your points counter resets. With each successive correct match, the number of points you earn increases. For this reason, I always make sure to find every object in a room before attempting matches. It is too easy to make a mistake if you don't know what all of your options are. Once you've found all of the matches in a room, the game progresses. Puzzles and mini games Throughout the game you'll face various puzzles and mini games including (but not limited to):

• Bomb-diffusing (connect one end to the other end, like the pipe game)
• Mud masking spa clients (logical sequence puzzle)
• Getting correct answers in conversations (requires you to be observant as you go)
• Animal-catching
• Riddle-solving
• Unlocking various objects

Music You know I'm picky about music in games. Fortunately, Her Interactive has hired Matt Sayre to compose the music for the Dossier series. I respect Mr. Sayre. He's one of the few good composers out there working on casual games. The music is fitting and fun in both Dossier games. This helps push the game to the "great" category. Production The best thing about the Dossier games is the attention to quality. So many casual games feel as if they were thrown together, with a terrible lack of quality writing, editing, and English in general. In this game, the music, graphics, writing, voice work (except for maybe 2 exceptions) are all as good as it gets. It's so fun to play a game with a well-written story! Her Interactive has my confidence that they will always deliver the goods, whether it be with their adventure game series or their Dossier series.

Suitable for the family?

Yes. The kids really enjoy this game. The geniuses at Her Interactive put a recurring dog character in the game, which is perfect for drawing the attention of the little ones. Additionally, the game is always moving and changing, which keeps the halflings from growing bored.

The family man's final ruling

It doesn't get better than this, friends. Go download Lights, Camera, Curses first, and then play Resorting to Danger. My main gripe is that, knowing how tricky it was to achieve Master Detective rank in the first Dossier game, I was very careful to avoid mistakes this time around so I could earn enough points to unlock whatever tasty morsels they had for me at the end. I was very disappointed. All that work turned out to be for nothing, really. Grrrrrrr. In my mind, Master Detective rank should unlock some great 10-minute movie to wrap-up the plot or show you what happened afterward or something. As it is, it was a huge letdown. The payoff for Master Detective rank was much better in the first Dossier game. In my mind, the reward should be spectacular. Couldn't Her Interactive have polished this element of the game just a bit more? On the other hand, they offered multiple endings this time around, which provides replay value. You may find yourself wanting to go back and play it again immediately, just to find out what happens in the other endings. So, this is as much fun and quality as you'll find on the casual game market.

You'll like the game if... You like Nancy Drew games You like solving mysteries You like a variety of puzzles and mini games You like a good story You won't like the game if... You don't like matching or combining things You don't like Nancy Drew mysteries

My rating: