Game Review - Dreamfall
May. 20th, 2006 07:48 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
sqlrobTitle: Dreamfall - The Longest Journey (Longest Journey II)
Genre: Adventure
Platform: X-Box
Price Paid: $39.99
Would Pay: $39.99
Complete: Yes
I've had as long a history with adventure games as I've had with RPG's. Scott Adams, Adventure, Zork and almost all of the Infocom games, a good chunk of the Space Quest, Kings Quest and Leisure Suit Larry's, all of the Monkey Islands and most of the other Lucas Arts games; I imported Discworld Noir . With the "adventure games are dying" schtick, I go and buy most of the ones when I find out about them, since they're few and far between.
That said, this is more of an "interactive mini-series" than a game. It's fine if that's what you're expecting, but can be a turn off for some. The traditional adventure game puzzles are few and far between. The computer hacking and unlocking that would be puzzles in other games were minigames here.
You play several different characters and this is used to good effect. You get to a climatic moment of the plot, and pow, you're now playing a different character, either simply to stretch out the anticipation, or possibly rescue the character that just got captured. It can get confusing. At one point, you actually play both sides of the same conversation.
This game certainly not the ideal game. Focus is more on conversations than on puzzle solving. Choices also seem to be a magician's choice, responses seem to be slightly adjusted for what you say but don't have any real impact on the story. Graphics for the environment are gorgeous, but the people models are just freaky looking. There are also very few people wandering around the environment. This leads to an annoying quest at one point. It was the classic "fed ex" quest, going back and forth trying to get an introduction to a certain person. As soon as it started, you knew where it was going to end if you did any exploring, but you still had to go through the motions.
The worst thing about this game is the @#$*&( ending. It would be bad enough in a season finale on a TV show, but it was more than five years between the first game and the second. The next game better come out a lot faster.
The Prodigals - The Morning After - Dreaming In Hells Kitchen
Genre: Adventure
Platform: X-Box
Price Paid: $39.99
Would Pay: $39.99
Complete: Yes
I've had as long a history with adventure games as I've had with RPG's. Scott Adams, Adventure, Zork and almost all of the Infocom games, a good chunk of the Space Quest, Kings Quest and Leisure Suit Larry's, all of the Monkey Islands and most of the other Lucas Arts games; I imported Discworld Noir . With the "adventure games are dying" schtick, I go and buy most of the ones when I find out about them, since they're few and far between.
That said, this is more of an "interactive mini-series" than a game. It's fine if that's what you're expecting, but can be a turn off for some. The traditional adventure game puzzles are few and far between. The computer hacking and unlocking that would be puzzles in other games were minigames here.
You play several different characters and this is used to good effect. You get to a climatic moment of the plot, and pow, you're now playing a different character, either simply to stretch out the anticipation, or possibly rescue the character that just got captured. It can get confusing. At one point, you actually play both sides of the same conversation.
This game certainly not the ideal game. Focus is more on conversations than on puzzle solving. Choices also seem to be a magician's choice, responses seem to be slightly adjusted for what you say but don't have any real impact on the story. Graphics for the environment are gorgeous, but the people models are just freaky looking. There are also very few people wandering around the environment. This leads to an annoying quest at one point. It was the classic "fed ex" quest, going back and forth trying to get an introduction to a certain person. As soon as it started, you knew where it was going to end if you did any exploring, but you still had to go through the motions.
The worst thing about this game is the @#$*&( ending. It would be bad enough in a season finale on a TV show, but it was more than five years between the first game and the second. The next game better come out a lot faster.
The Prodigals - The Morning After - Dreaming In Hells Kitchen