SugarKane21
I've read an opinion somewhere, stating that this game was slightly superior to the first Monkey Island because this one didn't have any tedious moment (i'm guessing that moment might have been the 3rd chapter of the first game, at least the first half of it), and was overall more regular.
I strongly disagree on that: The third chapter of Monkey Island 2 pretty much replicates the mood of the third chapter of the first game. And the worst thing is that the ending was, to say the least, polemic.
Other important flaw in this game was the music, which is just way under the level of Monkey Island 1, widely recognized as one of the most iconic scores ever.
But hey, Monkey Island 2 is still brilliant, an absolute classic, a stapple for the genre, and one of the best graphic adventures i ever played. I was just citing the reasons why i didn't give this game 5 stars, just like i did with The Secret of Monkey Island.
This game is probably funnier than it's predecesor. And the puzzles for the first two parts are just great, even if they can be everyhthing people hate about moon logic. I also loved the art style: the design of Scabb island looks heavily inspired by artists like Van Gogh and maybe some other post-impressionist.
I strongly disagree on that: The third chapter of Monkey Island 2 pretty much replicates the mood of the third chapter of the first game. And the worst thing is that the ending was, to say the least, polemic.
Other important flaw in this game was the music, which is just way under the level of Monkey Island 1, widely recognized as one of the most iconic scores ever.
But hey, Monkey Island 2 is still brilliant, an absolute classic, a stapple for the genre, and one of the best graphic adventures i ever played. I was just citing the reasons why i didn't give this game 5 stars, just like i did with The Secret of Monkey Island.
This game is probably funnier than it's predecesor. And the puzzles for the first two parts are just great, even if they can be everyhthing people hate about moon logic. I also loved the art style: the design of Scabb island looks heavily inspired by artists like Van Gogh and maybe some other post-impressionist.
I played the VGA version from 1991. Really fun game. It wasn't as dirty or sexist as i thought it would be, since most of the jokes are made at expenses of the main character.
And when it comes to the gameplay, even if it's still rooted on that trial-and-error logic that was so typical of Sierra, the game is still pretty easy, and in a good way.
And when it comes to the gameplay, even if it's still rooted on that trial-and-error logic that was so typical of Sierra, the game is still pretty easy, and in a good way.
2002
This review contains spoilers
I have mixed feelings about this game. Overall i think it was a very nice experience, but many aspects of it could have been handled so much better.
First of all: The artistic aspect of this game is simply perfect. It has a strong pretention of achieving beauty, and it certainly reaches it. I'm talking specifically of the location design, the musical score, the character design, and the cutscenes (That intro cutscene is simply outstanding). So if you're the kind of gamer who really appreciates the audiovisual quality of a game, Syberia will definitely be your jam. I have no idea who decided to put that awful comic sans script typeface but i guess that's just a minor flaw.
Then, the writing. I think the overall story is pretty nice, and engaging right from the beginning. But there are many aspects of the writing that were definitely handed poorly. Much of the dialogue just feel like cheesy soap opera. And probably 1/3 of the game was really boring, and i'm talking of the university episode. It doesn't add anything truly important that really matters for the rest of the story, and you don't even get to gain any significant information. The whole part could be just cut off the game (imagine, just going straight from Valadilene right to Komkolzgrad), and the main story wouldn't be affected at all. I don't really buy that thing about helping some drunk man to fly to space: The story doesn't work it's fantastic/surreal aspects enough to make that whole arc believable. In a more fantastic set that would have worked better, i a guess, but it just doesn't truly work on this game.
And there's the puzzles, which are definitely the worst part of this game. Puzzles must be justified by, and coherent with the plot, otherwise their presence just doesn't make sense at all, and they'll end up damaging the overall verisimilitude of the game. This happens a few times in Syberia and it's definitely on par with it's writing problems. (For example: How can you have a whole device whose function would be to wake up a drunk man at a certain time? Leave that for a comedy, maybe). But even if you leave out the part of the puzzles being coherent with the plot and the storytelling, you stil are being left with puzzles that are most of the times just way to easy, and other puzzles that are simply awfully designed. Most of the university arc, for example, which is just about getting clues through dialogues and includes an awful lot of backtracking for a space that is almost two hours at least.
But if you start playing and feel like abandoning the game during the university arc or the komzkolgrad part, please be patient, because the game gets way better at the end.
Overall, a game with many flaws. But other than that, it's still pretty good, and i wouldn't hesitate in recommending it to hardcore fans of point n click adventures. I think it would also be a good entry for gamers that are foreign to the genre, or those who are looking for a decent introduction to it. Just keep in mind that a game like Syberia, both in it's pace and it's story, is a more akin to the style of cinema or literature that in it is to video games.
First of all: The artistic aspect of this game is simply perfect. It has a strong pretention of achieving beauty, and it certainly reaches it. I'm talking specifically of the location design, the musical score, the character design, and the cutscenes (That intro cutscene is simply outstanding). So if you're the kind of gamer who really appreciates the audiovisual quality of a game, Syberia will definitely be your jam. I have no idea who decided to put that awful comic sans script typeface but i guess that's just a minor flaw.
Then, the writing. I think the overall story is pretty nice, and engaging right from the beginning. But there are many aspects of the writing that were definitely handed poorly. Much of the dialogue just feel like cheesy soap opera. And probably 1/3 of the game was really boring, and i'm talking of the university episode. It doesn't add anything truly important that really matters for the rest of the story, and you don't even get to gain any significant information. The whole part could be just cut off the game (imagine, just going straight from Valadilene right to Komkolzgrad), and the main story wouldn't be affected at all. I don't really buy that thing about helping some drunk man to fly to space: The story doesn't work it's fantastic/surreal aspects enough to make that whole arc believable. In a more fantastic set that would have worked better, i a guess, but it just doesn't truly work on this game.
And there's the puzzles, which are definitely the worst part of this game. Puzzles must be justified by, and coherent with the plot, otherwise their presence just doesn't make sense at all, and they'll end up damaging the overall verisimilitude of the game. This happens a few times in Syberia and it's definitely on par with it's writing problems. (For example: How can you have a whole device whose function would be to wake up a drunk man at a certain time? Leave that for a comedy, maybe). But even if you leave out the part of the puzzles being coherent with the plot and the storytelling, you stil are being left with puzzles that are most of the times just way to easy, and other puzzles that are simply awfully designed. Most of the university arc, for example, which is just about getting clues through dialogues and includes an awful lot of backtracking for a space that is almost two hours at least.
But if you start playing and feel like abandoning the game during the university arc or the komzkolgrad part, please be patient, because the game gets way better at the end.
Overall, a game with many flaws. But other than that, it's still pretty good, and i wouldn't hesitate in recommending it to hardcore fans of point n click adventures. I think it would also be a good entry for gamers that are foreign to the genre, or those who are looking for a decent introduction to it. Just keep in mind that a game like Syberia, both in it's pace and it's story, is a more akin to the style of cinema or literature that in it is to video games.
1996
My god i had so much fun playing this. I don't feel prepared enough to give a proper analysis on a FPS, since they are not my speciality.
I'm emotionally attached to the first episode, since i played it when i was just a kid back in the late 90's, in it's shareware version. The fourth episode was overall my favourite, despite the unfamous Spawn.
I'm emotionally attached to the first episode, since i played it when i was just a kid back in the late 90's, in it's shareware version. The fourth episode was overall my favourite, despite the unfamous Spawn.
2004
Well they definitely improved many flawed aspects of the first game, specially regarding the writing and the puzzle design. As some might have noted, this time the storyline focuses mostly on the actual adventure rather than Kate's character study. And overall, since the narrative is less ambitious, it can achieve it's goal more effectively than it's predecesor. Some of that beautiful melancholy from the first game might be missing, but in my opinion that whole character study-type story about Kate wasn't carried on very well. It is also way more effective in portraying the whole setting as some kind of fantasy/fairy tale world. The puzzles are in general way better than those from the first game, especially the Myst-like ones. They also managed to improve some programming mistakes (the first game has many glitches and bugs). And for sure, music, visuals, and the location design are still the best aspect of the game, just like in Syberia 1. A great conclusion for the game.
This review contains spoilers
A big improvement over Book One.
Kyrandia 1 was heavily inspired by Sierra games, specially the King's Quest saga. With it's many screens of pure green field and it's infamous mazes, the game aims to give that feeling of exploration that was so typical of Sierra's most iconic franchise. You could also die, too. And there were many ways in which the game could lead to a dead-end, making the whole thing unfinishable. On the other side, Kyrandia 2 feels more inspired by Lucasfilm, specially Monkey Island, both by it's tropes, it's narrative divided into chapters, and it's sense of humour. Screens are also considerably shorter, which makes backtracking a lot less tedious than the first game.
When it comes to the writing, Kyrandia 1 has pretty much a serious story with occasional glimpses of humor. Kyrandia 2, instead, is just plain comedy. The charaters in K2 are way more interesting in it's comedical purposes, and Zanthia is definitely a lovely protagonist, way more interesting than Brandon in my opinion.
When it comes to the puzzles, Kyrandia 2 offers a wide spectrum between easy puzzles with a lot of hints, and some harder puzzles of both types: Those hard to figure out, and those that are not really hard but mostly long and tedious. Anyway, the awful puzzles are still bearable.
Visually, both games are identical. And musically, well, that's probably the only field where K1 wins.
Overall, a very nice game with many pleasant moments.
Kyrandia 1 was heavily inspired by Sierra games, specially the King's Quest saga. With it's many screens of pure green field and it's infamous mazes, the game aims to give that feeling of exploration that was so typical of Sierra's most iconic franchise. You could also die, too. And there were many ways in which the game could lead to a dead-end, making the whole thing unfinishable. On the other side, Kyrandia 2 feels more inspired by Lucasfilm, specially Monkey Island, both by it's tropes, it's narrative divided into chapters, and it's sense of humour. Screens are also considerably shorter, which makes backtracking a lot less tedious than the first game.
When it comes to the writing, Kyrandia 1 has pretty much a serious story with occasional glimpses of humor. Kyrandia 2, instead, is just plain comedy. The charaters in K2 are way more interesting in it's comedical purposes, and Zanthia is definitely a lovely protagonist, way more interesting than Brandon in my opinion.
When it comes to the puzzles, Kyrandia 2 offers a wide spectrum between easy puzzles with a lot of hints, and some harder puzzles of both types: Those hard to figure out, and those that are not really hard but mostly long and tedious. Anyway, the awful puzzles are still bearable.
Visually, both games are identical. And musically, well, that's probably the only field where K1 wins.
Overall, a very nice game with many pleasant moments.
A nice game heavily ruined by the infamous Shadowrealm labyrinth and an awful lot of tedious backtracking. I would only recomend it to harcore fans of Point N Click adventures.
In case you're interested, my review of Kyrandia 2 is a bit more detailed. I tried to compare there a few aspects of both games.
P.S: The will-o-wisp song is so so lovely.
In case you're interested, my review of Kyrandia 2 is a bit more detailed. I tried to compare there a few aspects of both games.
P.S: The will-o-wisp song is so so lovely.
As many modern players, i played this one mosty for historical curiosity. I was surprised to see how much effort it was put into giving that open-world feeling. This was really advanced for it's time. Very surprised to see how the text parser wasn't as hard to use as i had imagined: It's very intuitive, mostly for those who are familiar with the typical verbs of point and click adventures.
1998
I finally got the chance to finish this game i played as a little kid. So, since this game has been an important part of my early gamer memories, my whole consideration of it is pretty biased.
It's really hard to say anything new about such a groundbreaking game. I'm just gonna say that i love the pace, the storytelling, the design, the combat, and pretty much every positive thing that this game has been noted for.
Personally, i don't get why On a Rail and the Xen levels get so much hate. On a Rail embodies what i like the most of Half-Life: that it wasn't everything about shooting but also about solving puzzles. Shooting has to be more tactical, and puzzles weren't really that hard, so the mix was just perfect. And On a Rail is pretty much that, except for it's own atmosphere and pacing which is just unique. And the Xen levels are just fresh air, after so many levels that begin to be just more of the same. Actually my only critique is that probably everything between On a Rail and Xen was just too long and repetitive.
And that's pretty much it.
It's really hard to say anything new about such a groundbreaking game. I'm just gonna say that i love the pace, the storytelling, the design, the combat, and pretty much every positive thing that this game has been noted for.
Personally, i don't get why On a Rail and the Xen levels get so much hate. On a Rail embodies what i like the most of Half-Life: that it wasn't everything about shooting but also about solving puzzles. Shooting has to be more tactical, and puzzles weren't really that hard, so the mix was just perfect. And On a Rail is pretty much that, except for it's own atmosphere and pacing which is just unique. And the Xen levels are just fresh air, after so many levels that begin to be just more of the same. Actually my only critique is that probably everything between On a Rail and Xen was just too long and repetitive.
And that's pretty much it.
One of the best point and click adventures ever made. If you're eventually checking some list of the best adventure games of all time, there's a high chance that GK is among the top 10.
Everything about it seems to be done very carefully and with a lot of passion: beautiful pixel-art graphics, a very intriguing and enchanting story; a very careful script; a solid voice acting (one of the best of it's time); and a fairly accurate research on the main subject of the game, which is the voodo culture in New Orleans.
Usually i try to break down some aspects of the gaming (in this case it would be the puzzles) or story everytime i write a review here, even spoiling some stuff here and there, but this time i feel like i'd rather simply encourage anyone who happens to read this, to just play the game and see for themselves.
If you're a fan of the genre, i'm pretty sure you already love this game. If you're new to the genre, this is one of the best options you'll have to be introduced to it. And if you're not really interested in point and click, but happen to have some historical curiosity when it comes to the video game industry, then you should definitely play this, because it's one of the finest achievements of the genre.
Everything about it seems to be done very carefully and with a lot of passion: beautiful pixel-art graphics, a very intriguing and enchanting story; a very careful script; a solid voice acting (one of the best of it's time); and a fairly accurate research on the main subject of the game, which is the voodo culture in New Orleans.
Usually i try to break down some aspects of the gaming (in this case it would be the puzzles) or story everytime i write a review here, even spoiling some stuff here and there, but this time i feel like i'd rather simply encourage anyone who happens to read this, to just play the game and see for themselves.
If you're a fan of the genre, i'm pretty sure you already love this game. If you're new to the genre, this is one of the best options you'll have to be introduced to it. And if you're not really interested in point and click, but happen to have some historical curiosity when it comes to the video game industry, then you should definitely play this, because it's one of the finest achievements of the genre.
2003
I discovered this game in the early 00's when i was just a kid. I liked it so much that it even encouraged me to download Adventure Game Studio, the game engine in which this game was developed. The engine was slowly making it's way into the adventure gamers community, and that's way before Wadjet Eyes took the engine to a whole new level, being a part in what many calls the resurrection of Adventure Games. Of course i never got to make any game with the engine at that time, i was just a little kid.
Leaving my story aside, this is a really nice and pleasant videogame. The story can be linked to
Luis Buñuel's "The Exterminating Angel", a movie where a group of people is trapped inside a house, with no way of escaping, and no real logical explanation about why they're trapped there, making the whole thing pretty absurdist on purpose. Pretty much an experiment in storytelling. This game takes that premise and add a few horror film tropes to the mix.
The game is pretty short. You can finish it in probably a couple hours. Dialogue can be a little naive, but it's no big deal. Graphics are simple but still nice. Music is excelent. Puzzles are pretty easy and rewarding.
Leaving my story aside, this is a really nice and pleasant videogame. The story can be linked to
Luis Buñuel's "The Exterminating Angel", a movie where a group of people is trapped inside a house, with no way of escaping, and no real logical explanation about why they're trapped there, making the whole thing pretty absurdist on purpose. Pretty much an experiment in storytelling. This game takes that premise and add a few horror film tropes to the mix.
The game is pretty short. You can finish it in probably a couple hours. Dialogue can be a little naive, but it's no big deal. Graphics are simple but still nice. Music is excelent. Puzzles are pretty easy and rewarding.
2011
Great adventure. It starts as some kind of noir but in a dystopian future, and slowly evolves into something else. The storytelling is one of the most solid i've seen in the genre. The overall aesthetic is just perfect too. And the puzzles are pretty logical: If you're familiar with the genre, it's highly possible that you'll never feel the need of checking a walkthrough since chances of getting stuck are very low.
1997
I had so much fun with this game. I even think this is probably one of the most fun 90's shooters ever. It's pretty much a party with bullets. And i even think that most of it's failures are actually what helps the game to be so fun.
Quake 1 has this dense atmosphere, that NIN soundtrack that makes everything more horror-themed, and those enemies that were actually kinda creepy, and
truly dangerous. Quake 2, instead, shows a really poor AI in enemies that aren't scary at all, while you go shooting around with the most-badass heavy metal soundtrack, so it's all about feeling good with no real challenge. And to me, that's fine. So if Quake 1 felt like a horror movie, Quake 2 is mostly a sci-fi rambo-like action film.
Weapons are overall better than Quake 1, and the level design is pretty much ok. Some units are actually very well done. i don't really mind about backtracking honestly, but that might be a bad thing for many.
In conclusion, you'll probably have much more fun with this game if you don't take FPS as if they were a competitive sport.
Quake 1 has this dense atmosphere, that NIN soundtrack that makes everything more horror-themed, and those enemies that were actually kinda creepy, and
truly dangerous. Quake 2, instead, shows a really poor AI in enemies that aren't scary at all, while you go shooting around with the most-badass heavy metal soundtrack, so it's all about feeling good with no real challenge. And to me, that's fine. So if Quake 1 felt like a horror movie, Quake 2 is mostly a sci-fi rambo-like action film.
Weapons are overall better than Quake 1, and the level design is pretty much ok. Some units are actually very well done. i don't really mind about backtracking honestly, but that might be a bad thing for many.
In conclusion, you'll probably have much more fun with this game if you don't take FPS as if they were a competitive sport.
2016
Some of the cringiest writing i've seen in a while. Characters are overly stereotyped (And i say that acknowledging that some stories may be benefitted by stereotypes) in a childish way, and the dialogue just makes me want to die. The premise of the story is simple, nothing groundbreaking, but in a different context it could be a good starting point for other things to come. Sadly i couldn't really get past day 3. Maybe i'm missing some big genre twist in the David Lynch style but i guess it wasn't anything that remarkable anyway. Puzzles weren't rewarding either.
On the good side, pixel art graphics are just beautiful here, probably they are the reason why i decided to play this. And the music is pretty much ok.
But overall, nothing i would recommend to anyone.
On the good side, pixel art graphics are just beautiful here, probably they are the reason why i decided to play this. And the music is pretty much ok.
But overall, nothing i would recommend to anyone.
Small hint that will save you some headache: don't forget to close the door once you're inside.
Riven has been a marvelous gaming experience. Althought there are some differences, i think it just parallels Myst's overall quality. Can't really decide which one i like the most.
These kind of games showcase a unique way of relating map design with puzzle design. Myst had more variety in it's location design and the whole thing was filled with puzzles of all kind. On the other hand Riven feels like whole single space, and actually you're not really solving random puzzles (because that's how they feel in Myst at times) but, instead, you're kinda solving just one or two big puzzles which involve a lot of exploration and some careful observation. So i guess in that sense, Riven feels a lot more cohesive and homogenic than Myst. But i'm not saying that as a pun for Myst: They are just two different beasts, two different models.
When it comes to the story, i definitely prefer Myst minimalism, but Riven is also fantastic.
Don't ever think of playing Riven without playing Myst first.
Riven has been a marvelous gaming experience. Althought there are some differences, i think it just parallels Myst's overall quality. Can't really decide which one i like the most.
These kind of games showcase a unique way of relating map design with puzzle design. Myst had more variety in it's location design and the whole thing was filled with puzzles of all kind. On the other hand Riven feels like whole single space, and actually you're not really solving random puzzles (because that's how they feel in Myst at times) but, instead, you're kinda solving just one or two big puzzles which involve a lot of exploration and some careful observation. So i guess in that sense, Riven feels a lot more cohesive and homogenic than Myst. But i'm not saying that as a pun for Myst: They are just two different beasts, two different models.
When it comes to the story, i definitely prefer Myst minimalism, but Riven is also fantastic.
Don't ever think of playing Riven without playing Myst first.