Ben Jordan: Horror at Number 50 Review

The Ben Jordan cases continue to evolve as Horror at Number 50 sees Ben Jordan come into his own  when hired to work with other paranormal investigators for the first time.  While this case is Ben's most important yet, it still retains all of the positive qualities that made his previous adventures so entertaining.

Ben is beginning to get into his element, and he is invited to England to help on a case involving a century old ghost.  When he gets there, he finds that he's not the only paranormal investigator who was welcomed by the building's owner.  Now, for the first time, he has to work together with people whose methods differ from his own, yet are still among the best of their field.  This puts Ben decidedly out of his element for the first time in his short career, and the game is made all the better for it.

The new characters are really interesting, and it's really great to be able to interact with people from different paranormal backgrounds, from psychics to those with technological paranormal detectors.  No person here is two dimensional, as each are given interesting backstories and differing personalities to go with them.  The story really benefits from the interaction between Ben and the other characters, and it gives the game a different, yet welcome, feel when compared to the previous cases.  The puzzles are also well done, and they too benefit from the addition of other paranormal investigators, as Ben will often find himself having to work together in order to progress in their mutual investigation.

Note, however, that like the case before it, Horror at Number 50 did not receive a deluxe edition.  So, if you're playing these from the beginning while playing the deluxe editions of the first two games, the change in art direction and lack of voice over work will be a bit jarring.  However, the rest of the game's elements more than make up for it. The new characters are interesting, the puzzles are fun, and the music fits the game well.  Best of all, the storyline is entertaining, and the final battle is satisfying.  It's great to see Ben teaming up with other experts in the paranormal, and learning to hold his own with the best of his field.  If you like the classic 1990's adventure games from Sierra and LucasArts, you owe it to yourself to try this game out.  Ben Jordan's fourth case is definitely his best so far.

Final Verdict:

4½ out of 5

Loom sequel, Forge: Chapter One Is Out Now

Fans of Loom have been waiting for the sequel to Loom for decades. Luckily, some creative Loom fans have decided to stop waiting for an official sequel and have created one of their own.

The game is called Forge, and uses bits of information that have been revealed by Loom's creator, Brian Moriarty, over the years. The game follows the blacksmith Rusty Nailbender, and uses a new magical item to conduct spells, the Blacksmith Guantlets, rather than the weaver's distaff. It uses a graphical style similar to the 256 colour art of the Loom PC CD and FM-Towns versions, and is created using the Adventure Game Studio engine.

If that sounds like something that's of interest to you, then you can pick it up for free over at the Forge homepage.

Ben Jordan: The Sorceress of Smailholm Review

Ben Jordan's cases keep getting bigger and more challenging. The same holds true for the experience had by the player as well. The third case, The Sorceress of Smailholm, is certainly both those things, and a lot more.

The game follows Ben's first case outside of the United States.  He receives a call from a man from a small town in Scotland.  His two daughters have been murdered, and it's believed that witches were involved.  Ben once again meets an eclectic group of characters, including, for the first time, someone who is actively working against Ben because he doesn't believe in the paranormal.

As this game was created after the deluxe versions of the first two cases, and since this game doesn't have a deluxe version, there are some noticeable differences here.  The biggest difference is the lack of speech.  The game is presented entirely in the fashion of the first two games with the speech pack disabled.  The text depicting the speech of the characters is presented next to close up portraits of the characters in question.  The description text is presented in a black box in the middle of the screen.  The second most noticeable difference is in the character's portraits.  Instead of being designed somewhere in between cartoonish and realistic, the character portraits are heavily cartoonish.  Somewhat surprisingly, they still do fit in with the realistic style of the background art, but they are a bit jarring if you're used to the deluxe versions of the first two cases.  The other differences are more minor, from the different art of the icons, to the sound effect that is used when you gain points.  The latter is specific to the monsters of the case Ben's working on, rather than the growl sound effect used in the deluxe version of the first two cases.

The presentation has improved upon even the deluxe versions of the first two games in other ways.  The start of the game is presented with a cutscene, complete with credits, instead of just starting with Ben at the telephone receiving a case.  The latter is still there, but it acts as an after-credits sequence rather than the intro.  It's a more theatrical approach, and fits well, considering that the over-arching storyline of the series seems to be picking up steam here.  The music is also given a similar uplifting treatment.  It is also presented in a more theatrical style, with an almost orchestral feel.  The theatrical feel also extends to the closing credits, and ends with a note on how Ben feels about the case.  There are two different endings, depending on a condition near the middle of the game.  They could be considered "bad" and "good" endings, as one ending leaves questions unanswered and doesn't give the optimum amount of points available.  However, neither ending dramatically changes the final outcome of the game.

The game's puzzles have been improved upon as well. The puzzles are more challenging this time, and harken back to the Sierra games of the 1990's even more so than previous installments. Despite the challenge factor, they are still quite fun. There is one puzzle in particular that can be solved using the game's manual (found in the installation directory). This kind of puzzle solving has been fazed out over time, but it's still fun if done right. Thankfully, Sorceress of Smailholm does just that, as the use of the manual is completely optional.

Ben Jordan's cases keep getting better as they go on.  That once again rings true with The Sorceress of Smailholm.  As the game never received a deluxe version, there is no voice acting this time around, and there are noticeable differences in the art style.  This is offset by the improvements in the presentation of the rest of the game's aspects.  The storyline is bigger than before, and it is much more interesting as well.  The characters are much less one dimensional now, and the villains are more cunning than before.  The music and cutscenes are presented in a much more theatrical feel, adding to the bigger feeling of the scope of the game compared to earlier cases.  Despite the lack of voice acting, Ben Jordan Case 3 is truly the best yet, which is impressive in a series where each game has a place among the best free adventure games I've played.

Final Verdict:

4½ out of 5

Han Solo Adventures Demo is Available

Update January 14, 2014: The game's website is now dead, but the game is not. Stacy Davidson clarified that he killed the website because he'd rather have the game fly under the radar by developing it quietly and then releasing it when it's done, in order to avoid the legal department of Disney. The new link to the demo can be found at this link on his game development company's website.

D'oh! I posted this on Mixnmojo, but forgot to post about this here. With all of the hullabaloo about LucasArts recently, now is as good a time to post about this as any (although it's unclear what the fate of this game will be now that LucasArts is owned by Disney, which likes to keep its intellectual property on a tight leash).

This summer, Han Solo Adventures, the Star Wars fan game that is being created to emulate the style of LucasArts adventure games (in particular Indiana Jones and the Fate of Atlantis), received its first playable demo.  It's a short three room demo made with Adventure Game Studio that contains many references to the Star Wars films and LucasArts adventure games.

Ben Jordan: Lost Galleon of the Salton Sea Review

In The Lost Galleon of the Salton Sea, the paranormal investigator's second case, Grundislav Games takes every thing that worked well in the first case and expands on it, making a much bigger adventure for Ben Jordan to experience than before.

The case takes place less than a week after the last one.  Ben Jordan receives a call from a woman in California. She informs Ben that her husband went missing when looking for the Lost Galleon, a Spanish treasure ship that was fabled to be at the bottom of the Salton Sea.  The game takes place in and around a small desert town.  There are shops for Ben to visit, items that he can purchase, and employees and customers to whom he can talk.  There are also surrounding areas he can visit. Some are nearly ghost towns, and others have their own set of colorful characters.

As with the previous case, the people that Ben will meet are quite an interesting sort.  They are once again voiced well for a free adventure game, with no real standouts as being overly irritating.  The voice of the old prospector is close, but his voice grew on me with time.  There is no voice for the narrator this time.  Descriptions of objects are now presented in plain text in a black box in the center of the screen.  The music is also well done, with a nice set of songs that fit each of the game's locations.

Once again, there is no way to get voices and subtitles on the screen at the same time.  The only way to get subtitles on the screen is to turn off the voice pack in the setup program.  There are no overly quiet characters this time, so it shouldn't be an issue for most, but for those who have a hard time hearing or those where English isn't their first language, it will likely be necessary.  Like the last game, however, the story is interesting enough to hold your interest even without voice over work.

The game uses the same visual style as the last, with realistic backgrounds that look nice despite their early 1990's era resolution, and pixelated character sprites that are evened out by detailed character portraits that are a mix of cartoon style and realistic.  The game uses the same Sierra style interface as the last, with the actions selected by the top menu bar or by cycling through icons with your right mouse button.  The top menu inventory and helpful notebook icon where you can check Ben's current task return as well.  The game does make an improvement on the map over the last.  Instead of having to select the map from your inventory, you simply leave the area.  This is more in line with most adventure games with map-based travel, and is a much easier way to navigate.

The puzzles inventory based puzzles are just as interesting as the last game.  There are some new styles of puzzles here, and once again the puzzles that go outside the box were my favorite.  There is one puzzle that goes beyond real world logic, but as this is a series featuring the paranormal, it works well when you put your mindset in the game's world.  There is a puzzle that I quite enjoyed that is reminiscent of a puzzle in Telltale's second Bone game, which would be released a few years after this case.

The second case of Ben Jordan: Paranormal Investigator is an improvement over the already impressive first case. The deluxe version is definitely the version to get, as it adds several things to the overall experience.  There is more area to explore, the voices are performed slightly better this time, the inventory-based map is replaced with a much easier to use system, and there is more music since there are more locations.  The puzzles are fun once again, with the puzzles that think outside the box being the standouts.  The game's only real flaw is the same as the first, in that there is no way to have subtitles and voices on screen at the same time.  However, the game's intriguing story is enough to keep interest even without voice work.  Like the first case, Ben Jordan: Lost Galleon of the Salton Sea is one of the best free adventure games that I have played.

Final Verdict:

4 out of 5

Ben Jordan's Final Case Is Out Now

Ben Jordan: Paranormal Investigator finally concludes after nine years of investigating the paranormal, as Ben Jordan: Case 8: Relics of The Past is out now.  The game reconciles the events of the previous case, as Ben searches for the truth in the past and present in an effort to confront the mad man that threatens his future.

All eight cases are available for free.  However, the author accepts Paypal donations if you enjoyed the game and wish to show your support.

Ben Jordan: In Search of the Skunk-Ape Review

Ben Jordan: Paranormal Detective is a series of eight free adventure games starring Ben Jordan, a young man fresh out of college who decides to become a paranormal investigator.  In his first case, he heads to the Florida everglades to investigate a series of murders that have been linked to the Skunk-Ape, Florida's version of the Sasquach, a Bigfoot like creature that gets its unique name because it smells terrible.

There are two versions of the game, the original version, and the deluxe version which has improved art, an expanded storyline, and full voice acting.  Unfortunately, there are only subtitles when the voice acting is turned off.  It's a shame, because other than irritating voice of the protester, the voice work is pretty good, especially for a free fan game.  Ben Jordan's voice did take a bit getting used to, especially since his is the voice you'll hear the most in the game, but as the story started heating up, I had definitely warmed up to it.  There is also a man who is voiced well, but he speaks softly.  I had to turn my speakers up to hear what he was saying.  People who are hearing impaired or those of whom English isn't their first language will definitely need to opt for subtitles over voice work.  You can do so in the setup program by unchecking the voice pack option.

Luckily, the story line is entertaining enough to sustain interest in the game even without the voice work.  The search for the Skunk-Ape is interesting, and there are quite a few twists in the story line along the way.  The characters that Ben Jordan gets to meet and interrogate along the way are each given quirky, but believable personalities.  They are all a bit extravagent in their own way, but their appearance in and around a state park is completely reasonable.  The storyline is mostly serious, but there is a lot of humor sprinkled in.  Both the serious and the comical lines are written well, and the game straddles the fine line between the two very well.

The game is set up like Sierra adventure games from the 1990's.  You can choose icons to walk, talk, and look either by hovering your mouse at the top of the screen or cycling through them with your right mouse button.  The inventory, as well as the save and load screens, are also accessable at the top of the screen.   The Sierra influence goes beyond the interface.  When you use an icon with an item, there is a narrator who will make comments.  This will yield useful information, but it is also the source for much of the game's humor.  You'll find some references to classic adventure games tucked away in these comments.

The art work is very well done.  It's all low resolution, in the style of the early 1990's adventure games, but it's done very well.  Like those classics, they get a lot out of the small pixel space they have available.  The background art is lovely, done in a realistic style, with a nice amount of detail in each scene.  The characters are also done well.  The sprites are understandably limited, but the close up art of the characters are done well.  The aren't photo-realistic, and border between cartoon style and realistic, but they fit well with the style of the background art.

The puzzles are very much an homage to classic games, as there is no in-game hint system.  However, each puzzle is designed very well, so for most adventure gamers help shouldn't be needed.  Some of the puzzles require thought beyond what you are used to with the rest of the puzzles, which makes these puzzles some of the most creative in the game.  Another thing I liked with the puzzles is the notepad system.  Like all good investigators, Ben has a notepad and a pen.  He will often automatically write down important information in regards to a puzzle, and his notes are available to the player by clicking on the paper icon in the menu at the top of the screen.  This is handy, as there are times when you get stumped trying to determine how to obtain an item, only to forget the other items that are needed to complete a puzzle.

Case 1: In Search of the Skunk-Ape is a great start to the Ben Jordan: Paranormal Investigator series.  The deluxe version is definitely the version to get, since it offers many improvements over the original.  The art style, puzzles, and story are all fantastic.  The game manages to combine humor and serious tones quite well.  The voice work is mostly good, with a few exceptions.  However, the characters who aren't voiced as well aren't on the screen for long, and don't hamper the experience.  The one major drawback is the inability to have voice and subtitles on the screen at the same time.   The more quiet characters fall into the category of annoyances as a result, which is a shame since they aren't necessarily voiced poorly.   It's also  a short game, but this can be forgiven since it's available for free. Even with the game's flaws I still highly recommend this game.  It's one of the best free adventure games I've played.

Final Verdict:

4 out of 5

Metal Dead Review

Metal Dead is a horror comedy adventure game that proves to be an impressive first game by Walk Thru Walls Studios.

The game stars two heavy metal music fans who find themselves in the middle of a zombie apocalypse.   The zombies seem to be heading towards a genetic research building, and the two soon find themselves in the middle of the infestation.  Luckily, the zombies seem to be distracted by their car, for reasons unknown, so the two set forth into the building to see if they can find some answers.

The graphic style is simple, but it works very well.  The characters have a charming look to them.  They are drawn in a cute chibi art sort of fashion, and it makes for an interesting contrast for the apocalyptic action happening around them. The backgrounds have a surprising amount of detail for the simple art style.  The whole game takes place in the research building, but there is a surprising amount of variance in the different rooms that you encounter.

The characters are interesting, and each one adds to the game's humor in their own way.  There isn't any voice acting in this game, but the writing is sharp and clever, so it makes up for it in a big way.  The humor is done right, and the writing is right up there with the best of the comedy adventure games by Sierra and LucasArts.  They also make humorous note of their influence, so you'll find some subtle references to the games from those companies in Metal Dead's dialog.

Despite the name and the premise, the game's music has very little heavy metal.  It's synthesized music, but as the classic adventure games from the early 1990's have shown, this can be very effective if it's done well.  Thankfully, it has been done well here.  There is a varied amount of music styles here, and each song fits the scenes perfectly.  It would have been nice to have a few more tracks, as you will hear some of the songs used multiple times, but they all are used well, so it's not a nuisance.

The puzzles are what make an adventure game, and they are done well here.  Like many puzzles in the comedy adventure genre, you have to make a few leaps of logic, as some of the puzzles don't match real world physics.  But once you realize that it's a cartoon world, and use that knowledge to solve the problems, all of the puzzles work well.  There are some clever puzzles here, and while none of them reach the head scratchers of the early adventure game classics, they do rank right up there with the best puzzles from companies like Telltale Games.

The Metal Dead is a satisfying comedy adventure game.  While there is no voice acting, the music, art, and especially the fantastically funny writing make up for it in spades.  The game is a bit on the short side, but it is not only a fantastic first effort by Walk Thru Walls, it is one of the best pure adventure games to have come out so far in this decade.

Final Verdict:
4 out of 5

Blackwell Deception and To The Moon In Fall Bundle

The Indie Royale Fall Bundle includes the adventure games Blackwell Deception (part of the Blackwell series by Wadjet Eye Games) and To the Moon by Freebird Games, along with the games Oil Rush, AVSEQ, and Reprisal in a pay-what-you-want bundle, currently going for a minimum of $5.23 USD.

Sequel to the SpaceVenture Fan Game Pledge Quest

The team of fans from the Space Quest fansite The Virtual Broomcloset that brought you PledgeQuest are back.

Like the original Pledge Quest was created to promote the SpaceVenture kickstarter, the sequel, Pledge Quest II: Noodle Shop of Horrors (or Vohaul the Cat's Revenge), was created to promote the SpaceVenture stretch goals through Paypal.

Pledge Quest II is three times as long as the original Pledge Quest, as it includes three rooms rather than the single room seen in Pledge Quest I, as well as animated cut-scenes. Like the original, it is chuck full of humor relating to Space Quest and Sierra's games in general. You may even spot some references to adventure games from other companies and pop culture references as well.

Thanks to the game's co-creator, Decaffeinated Jedi, for letting me know about the game. Give it a try, and try the original as well if you haven't already. They're both great throwbacks to classic adventure games, and well worth your time.

Pledge Quest - SpaceVenture Kickstarter Fan Game

PledgeQuest is an adventure game for Windows and Linux created by a group of fans at the Space Quest fansite The Virtual Broomcloset to stir up interest in the SpaceVenture kickstarter. The game is a single room adventure game created with Adventure Game Studio starring a woman named Bea (named after Roger Wilco's love interest Beatrice). The goal is to get Bea to visit the SpaceVenture kickstarter page to pledge support to the Two Guys From Andromeda's SpaceVenture kickstarter campaign.

The the SpaceVenture kickstarter is currently at 72% of it's goal of $500,000US, and there is only 5 days left to go. If you liked the Space Quest games, pick a pledge tier. The game may not contain the Space Quest name, but it contains all of the Space Quest humor and charm.

Pay What You Want for the AGS Bake Sale Bundle

The AGS Bake Sale Bundle is a new game bundle in the same vein as the Humble Indie Bundle and other similar bundles, where you pay what you want for the bundled games and the proceeds go to charity (In this case Child's Play, the charity that gives video games to sick children to enjoy).

There are 14 games in the bundle, and all the games are brand new games made specifically for the bundle using the Adventure Game Studio game creation utility. Not all of the games are adventures, but since they were all created using Adventure Game Studio, a number of them are.