Thursday, January 8, 2015

Point and Click Adventure Review: The Book of Unwritten Tales 2 Chapter Three

The third chapter of The Book of Unwritten Tales 2 picks up steam, delivering a solid story with a great cliffhanger, that works perfectly as the middle frame of this epic saga.

The story picks up where the last chapter ended, with Wilbur contemplating his life.  He doesn't have long to do so, however, as he is soon joined by one of his previous companions, the elf princess Ivo.  The group is finally getting back together, although they are separated by a border that they must figure out how to overcome.  While they are doing this, they still have to try to piece together the story behind the events that brought them back together in the first place.

The puzzles here are among the most well done of the game so far, especially a puzzle that occurs in the middle of the chapter that involves ancient gods.  The gods themselves are quite humorous, and excellently voiced, and the puzzles related to them are quite fun to finish.  The rest of the characters are well voiced as well, as usual.  The voice of Wilbur, especially, does a great job here expressing many different emotions as he is in an inner turmoil over exactly where he fits in things.  The locations are all once again well done, with a bleak look to fit the tone of the chapter, but with a lot of detail that makes them fun to explore.  The music is once again also a high point, delivering the excellent film quality score that lends to the epic nature of the story.

The story itself is the most engrossing of the game yet, as things are starting to look pretty bleak for our heroes.  King Art Games stated that this could be the darkest chapter of the game, and it certainly is that.  However, all is not gloom and doom, as the trademark humor of the series is in full swing here.  The aforementioned gods do a lot to bring much needed light to the proceedings, as do Wilbur and Ivo themselves, especially in their interactions with each other.  The excellent balance of humor and seriousness is a major factor in making this chapter the best yet.  The cliffhanger at the end also manages to outdo the already excellent cliffhangers of previous chapters, with an ending that tugs at your heartstrings and then leaves you anxious for more.

The third chapter of The Book of Unwritten Tales 2 is the best yet, with excellent puzzles, interesting new locations, great new characters, and a story that deftly balances humor with seriousness.  The voice work and film style orchestrated soundtrack continue to be in high form here, and the cliffhanger is the best of the game so far.  The game is now at the middle of it's story, and it has really hit its stride here.  If the rest of the game continues the high standard set here, we're in for quite a ride.

Final Verdict:

5 out of 5
Chapter Two ReviewChapter Four Review

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