"Rosewater" - my Adventure Game Hotspot review!

Read my full review on Adventure Game Hotspot!

Excerpt: "The branching storylines leading to alternate solutions is really Rosewater’s ace up its sleeve. If you just want to play through the game once, there’s an abundance of content to experience and always a path that conforms to how you want to behave. But if you’re interested in multiple playthroughs, there are many different decisions you can make that are sure to open up even more to see and do. Either way, it’s a highly entertaining chance to be part of a posse in the Old West – well, an alternate version of it, at least. The rather easy puzzles and mini-games might not exactly strike gold, but the setting is gorgeous and the characters are wonderfully written and acted, making it a joy to spend time with such a diverse, dynamic group. As thoroughly entertained as I was in getting there, I was actually sad when my posse reached its final destination and inevitably rode off into the sunset, so to speak, but it’s great to know that more adventuring awaits when I’m ready to revisit Western Vespuccia once again."

"The Brilliant Coup" - my Adventure Game Hotspot review!

 

Read my full review on Adventure Game Hotspot!

Excerpt: "While THE BRiLLiANT COUP doesn’t allow you to actively plan the heist of the Arctic Star, playing assistant to Uncle Briggs is certainly a satisfying foray into a life of crime. The game is decidedly old-school in its approach, and still has a few rough edges left to smooth, but it’s sure to steal your heart with its funky music and loads of subtle animations that bring the late-80s British streets to life. And it definitely achieves what it sets out to do: tricking people to get your hands on blueprints, convincing accomplices to join you, and then coordinating them to do their part of the job will keep you busy for a decent eight hours of traditional-style adventure gaming. While there’s never any true sense of danger or getting caught, there is a point of no return that determines how successful you are in the heist. While I didn’t manage to get the most loot, I did make off with a fair amount and was able to escape abroad for some well-deserved time off – hopefully with more irresistible future targets still to come."

I finished "An English Haunting" and yes... I screamed...

I love hiking!

Wow, what a journey! I finished An English Haunting in six hours. I was very much surprised when, after last time, I travelled to a totally different location, and even got to control another character. Immediately it made the game a bit more exotic.

Where's Keyser Söze?

After a kind of Stranger Things event at the end of my first session, I also witnessed a sort of Paranormal Activity event in this last one. What I love is, even though there's this tense feeling that something will happen, the game still surprised me with its sudden violence. And it isn't over the top; it's short and fast, it's contained, it's over before you know it and you get this "did that just really happen?" vibe from it you also get from good horror movies. Ones that don't rely on sensory-overload jump scares with sudden flashes and loud music or sound effects.

Ominous...

But then the ACTUAL jump scares came, lol! And yes, I screamed. There are a couple right after each other. But it was all done so elegantly. It's masterful storytelling, and I totally get why this game won two Agoty Awards. Could have easily been more in my book!

I'd be as frozen as that statue...

I wish I could talk more about this game, but that would spoil so much. There were truly some WTF moments at the end. It's a game you really have to experience for yourself. It's not THAT long, I went through it quite easily though one or two puzzles might have you scratch your head. This defnitely is one of the best games of 2024, and I wish I had played it sooner because it would certainly have made my top ten!

You can find An English Haunting here!

I'm 4 hours into "An English Haunting" and things got creepy...

Let there be light!

Last time, I ended my playing session as I was about to enter the basement of the haunted house my partner was interested in. When I got there, though, the place was so dark I couldn't see a thing. I had to leave again and figure out how to shine a light on this puzzle. Turned out I had to solve a different puzzle at another location first I didn't even realize was a puzzle! I was actually unaware I could do something there...

How revelatory...

After the events in the basement, I finally succeeded in getting in touch with a friend of my partner, who could help me in this investigation. She told me about his workshop I knew nothing about, where we found plans to build a machine. It just needed three more pieces.

These gents appear right peaky...

It took some travelling back and forth, but thankfully once I was done in a particular location, it disappeared off the travel map. I was able to free a man from the local Irish mafia so he could give me one of the pieces. And I was able to collect the second item by reuniting a man and woman, though that didn't exactly end as I had expected...

That ain't Nur-ab-Sal...

With one more item to go, I hope I can now return to a place I already visited but where the man I needed was temporarily unavailable. The game's difficulty level has risen slightly, but it's all still very doable without needing much effort. Everything makes sense, and the story keeps being engaging. I'm especially amazed by all the little details; the extra sound effects when you're out on the streets, all little animations like fog passing by windows when you're inside. All locations are also splendidly decorated. It's actually a bit of a shame I'm moving on at such a fast pace, and I do try to enjoy the setting as well.

You can find An English Haunting here!

New game: "An English Haunting"

New game!

I've started playing An English Haunting by Postmodern Adventures and I'm one hour into it!

I'm professor Patrick Moore, of the London University's Metapsychic Investigations Department. Next to lecturing, I research the possible existence of the Great Beyond; ghosts, in other words. One day, I'm interrupted during a class and given the news my partner, Nelson Ward, ran off with a pretty extensive research grant. Not convinced of his guilt, I take it upon myself to search for the truth. The University's Board, however, is planning to shut down the Metapsychic Investigations Department and has given me a deadline: 72 hours to proof the existence of ghosts.

Some "Last Crusade" vibes here...

During the first hour I played, things kind of rolled off on their own. I picked up a couple of items as the story unfolded, and was already able to use some of them. I gained access to several locations on the travel map, and I've visited them one by one. The one-click user interface is very handy. There isn't any voice acting but I don't really miss that. There's a pop-up inventory at the top of the screen.

Some "Lost Files of Sherlock Holmes" vibes here...

I'm quite enjoying the pace of this pixel art game. So far it's not really difficult, but that doesn't mean it isn't interesting. I found a book explaining several supernatural terms, with real photos and everything. To be honest, personally I haven't discovered anything new in there, having a longtime affinity with all things supernatural for decades myself. Patrick Moore's story is certainly engaging, the dialogues are well-written, that deadline gives it some Around the World in 80 Days urgency.

Some other vibes here...

While the trail to find professor Ward has run cold somewhat, I decided to visit the haunted house I discovered he has a special interest in. A shoeshine boy is about to help me get inside. I'm very curious what secrets I'll uncover...

You can find An English Haunting here!

"Tourist Trap" - my Adventure Game Hotspot review!

Read my full review on Adventure Game Hotspot!

Excerpt: "Tucked between an abundance of fetch quests and peculiar conversations with unusual characters, in essence Tourist Trap is a game about gaming, about escaping everyday life and playing as someone else, pretending to be a character in a story, basically becoming – for a short time – a tourist in a different world. While I do wish there had been more influence from player choice in the game’s finale, maybe even offering alternate endings that way, I was nevertheless left with a satisfied feeling when the credits rolled. It’s a fun game with a good sense of humor and an interesting story, and though it’s short and fairly basic, it does well what it set out to do. Including making me wary of where to go for our next summer vacation…"

I finished "Conquests of the Longbow" in 6 hours!

But what if you're lefthanded?

I finished Conquests of the Longbow in six hours! Well, at least I think I did. I reloaded so often, the timestamps of the save slots weren't really good to keep track of my progress anymore. It could be closer to seven hours in total. Because I restored a lot...

I also feel like a dolt. Last time I was stuck on the riddle part of the game. My wife even offered her assistance with the riddles, but she didn't understand it either. We were convinced some of our answers HAD to be correct, but they still weren't accepted. Finally she looked one of them up, and indeed, it WAS the right answer! So, was this a bug? No, finally we figured it out... After spelling out the correct answer on the hand palm, I clicked in the wrong place on the screen to submit it, making the game think I submitted blank. So after we realized that, we quickly answered three riddles, clicking the sweet spot and submitting them correctly, and finally the game continued! Sigh...

Sensory overload in this place...

Anyways, on with the mission! A lot happened, and it happened fast, so I had to reload a couple of times, both when being overpowered by the sheriff's men, and when I noticed some decisions made my score drop again. But I won the archery tournament, with the famous arrow-splitting scene of course! The fair overwhelmed me a bit, I have to be honest. I think I missed loads of hidden things there, and I got captured twice for talking to the wrong scholar. But it worked out in the end.

Thank you very much, easy arcade settings!

I also rescued Lady Marian after she was accused of being a witch, and bamboozled the sheriff with some fake jewelry, literally stripping him of all his possessions. Then it was finally time for the big robbery. Just as with Lady Marian's rescue mission, I had to choose between all the plans my merry men proposed. With Marian it was obvious what to do, but for the robbery I just guessed at what would be most succesful.

Such gruesome slaughter...

So I collected the ransom money for King Richard, then almost got tricked by a fake knight of the Queen. I had to go back to the monastery to free the real knight, and I finally found a use for one of the rings I acquired. I wish there had been a use for the second ring as well, but perhaps I missed that bit somewhere.

This tower kept me busy for a while...

After all, I finished the game with only  6815 points out of a total 7325, but I did get the good ending - freeing King Richard, him absolving me and my men, and he gave me his blessing to marry Lady Marian. So everything I missed should only be some little extras here and there. What I like about this game is that, whenever you do something wrong, you hear a bad jingle and your points are lowered. So a quick restore and a change of tactics remedies that. I was also surprised the number of outlaws always remained constant, but I think that's just due to being very lucky and choosing the right strategies in the battle sequences. It's a very narrative game and not as punishing as other Sierra titles. I was always surprised how quickly a day ended. Usually there were very clear goals, and most puzzles made sense. Whenever I was stuck, it turned out I had to check the manual for something. I'm glad I've played this game now, but I'm also a bit sad I didn't get around to it earlier. It's a great balance of tension and humor, lots of dangerous places and game-over screens but very manageable and with funny writing.

The Kingdom is saved! Huzzah!

You can find Conquests of the Longbow here!