This one is what I call a great hidden object/puzzle game, with everything in its right place and soothing graphics that on one hand don't require much to any kind of PC but on the other hand they are always awesomely drawn and positioned (details and zooming included) and let the game run super fast without blocks of any sort! Plus, this adventure is set into a '40s Thailand with lots of Oriental elements that aren't so easy to find in this genre, since it often focuses on fantasy themes or generally speaking, "Western" settings. And this means of course that there are lots of hints and themes drawn from the Buddhist tradition and the South-Eastern Asian culture! The game also supports different difficulty settings and offers lots of hours of gameplay, has a great hint and recharge system, lots of different locations (more than 30) and lots of puzzles, among of course the usual hidden object adventure, so that you'll have to collect items, store them or combine into your inventory in order to proceed and so on, as a point 'n' cick game. Maybe the plot and the NPCs aren't that awesome, but still everything's enjoyable and smooth and you won't give much attention to the small "errors", if I can call them like this, but long games like this one of course can't be perfect for every hint, every puzzle, every small object and such. It's overall really great, possibly one of the most interesting and entertaining adventure hidden object puzzle games here on Steam. Plus, I found the puzzles (which are abundant but never "annoying" in my opinion, they're almost all put in the right places and situations) quite challenging and funny, and some of them are also definitely hard! And the game's also continuously saved, so that you can exit whenever you want without checkpoints and your progress will always be saved :) If you're wondering what the difficulty settings are about, I'll try to give you a general view: the easy option gives you an easier time in the hidden object sequences with no penalties for wrong clicks, plus you'll have shiny zones displayed in order to reach the areas and fast reload times and so on. The medium option is the standard one, while the expert difficulty settings will bring you no help text at all, no skip buttons for riddles, penalties and very hard puzzles overall. The main menu screen has moreover a great extra section in which you'll be able to view cinematics, replay puzzles only or hidden object sections, view artworks, collectibles and hear the soundtrack! Oh, I've got also another tip to say: unfortunately, the game runs automatically in your native Steam client's language - Italian in my case - but the language chance isn't implemented into Steam. Luckily, the developers have posted an announcement years ago in which they tell you the procedure you need to do if you wanna play it in English (completely recommended, since unfortunately as always the local translations are often crappy and filled with big errors). The procedure is very simple and requires you to create a txt file in the game's folder and write into it the language you prefer, so simply "English" for instance. I can't say that this is a downside, since all the localized games unfortunately are almost always crappy when it comes to the actual translation.. so if a non native English speaker kid wants to play this in his native tongue (the game "supports" 14 languages overall) well, he will be in front of a poor translation. But this is the case of.. every game. From the most expensive Final Fantasy titles to the small simple indie ones. So, this small workaround is needed in order to change the language and well, it's better to keep it in English trust me :) Ok, I finished with my lesson of today ahah, back to the game quickly! As I was saying, everything runs smoothly and the navigation's fast, I've encountered no bugs in moving the objects, running around the screens and so on. Yay, 9€ is too much, but you can find it on sales and it's worth 1 or 2€ or even more, it really has much replaying value due to the length of the game, the number of puzzles, the difficulty settings and also the fact that you can replay and see again cinematics (there's voice acting too!), tracks and such in the main menu! So, this may not be a masterpiece but in this field it's one of the best titles I've played on Steam in my opinion. I get many of the points that other players pointed out (keep though in mind that this game came out years ago, and the developers fixed many bugs - between 2017 and 2018, I've encountered no bugs at all for what concerns what I read in 2014 or 2015 reviews), but as of today if found on some kind of sale it's great to play, entertaining, challenging and also suitable for kids, since the story isn't that scary or deep, but still it's enjoyable and of course we're here for the puzzles, the adventure and the hidden objects and not for dialogues or novel elements, otherwise I'd return to the university but no thanks, I've already given out too much in history and literature. Ok I know this isn't relevant for the review.. XD But in my opinion the story overall is enjoyable, not the best plot I've ever seen but it fits well and maybe only the NPC elements could have received more attention, but this isn't a big deal for me given the good quality of the game. I've also got to add that everyone told me that this is a big homage to the Indiana Jones franchise, but unfortunately I've never watched it so yeah, may be xD If you like hidden object adventures, and if you like riddles and puzzles with the option to change the whole game to a hard ("expert") rate, you'll find yourself playing lots of hours here. And since the developers fixed all the bugs in and outside the game (for what concerns the achievements), there's nothing really to complain about. Just play it in English with that little workaround, since languages such as Italian and French are quite bad (and overall, the voices and such will always be in English). Plus, the Collector Edition adds another chapter to the game (you'll have to choose directly from the main menu, play normally or play the C.E.), which you will play with another protagonist (you'll see by playing as Melissa! Don't play the C.E. before xD) and you'll have also a strategy guide at your disposal. It's a way shorter chapter, but still a great plus to the game. I think that with all the fixes and all the attention it had, this game is a really solid addition in your hidden object/puzzle adventure library and can also be enjoyed by kids or players not that accustomed to the genre (due to the easy setting and the hint system, plus there's also a diary in which everything will be written as you go on!), so put it into your wishlist and have fun :)
Read more