Nice graphic & beautiful jazz soundtrack. The story is rather obscure and going wild.

I like this series.

Etherborn is a puzzle platformer game set in an abstract world. As an undefined being, we need to solve intricate puzzles to move forward and ultimately reach exaltation… I suppose.

The game consists of four levels, each with a different setting and a new kind of puzzle element - although the core remains the same all the time. The goal is simple: collect orbs to open a path towards the end. But the orbs are hidden, and the path broken, so you need to play with the perspective and gravity, shifting the space to suit your needs. The camera is strangely locked, and you can't use it to look around - although when playing on a controller, it's somewhat better.
After completing the game, you open Game+ mode. It's nothing else than the same levels with some of the orbs hidden in new spots.

I liked the graphic design. I have enjoyed even the puzzles, although there is a lot of backtracking. The existential story told in between was completely lost on me.

Surprisingly very good. Nicely written. I have enjoyed it.

Standard HOG, you know the drill.

There is no connection to the previous game other than being on the trail of a serial killer. This time, we are playing as a private detective, Arthur Christie, who is hunted by police as the prime suspect in those killings. To prove our innocence, we need to stay one step ahead of the police officers and, more importantly, not get killed by the real murderer.

An okay hidden object game. The plot is a little bit far-fetched, and can't say I oriented in it much. The main character, even though a man, is rather useless and not very competent. It's a surprise that he survives the whole ordeal.

All in all, it's a short standard hidden object game. Puzzles and hidden object scenes are fine, luckily nothing to get stuck on - although I was unsure on what to do next in some moments (the worst in it was the police station). As in the first game, we get to use forensics utilities when examining the collected evidence, but only a few times. There are also two collectibles to be found - one normal item and one morphing object. Luckily for us, there is an indication that everything was collected, so just remember to check it out before leaving the screen, and you are safe to go.
After completing the main story, you open an extra chapter which serves as a prologue. Not that it made the plot anyhow better afterwards.

The second game in the Orwell universe. The premise remains the same - we need to search for relevant information on our targets through any means necessary. We will browse the internet and check out their social sites, work-related documents, medical records, etc., eavesdrop on their conversations, or take control of their private PC/phones. This time, though, we won't be doing it to stop some terrorists but to save the image of The Nation by discrediting our target, thus turning the public opinion against him.

The sequel takes place during the same three days as the first game, and if you submit your saves at the beginning, the news will reflect your previous decisions accordingly. We will also come across a few names from the first game, albeit briefly.

The interface remains the same. One half of our screen shows information to browse, the other half serves as a drop point for the found data. This time, we have a time limit within which we need to collect all of the required information for us to release a manipulating post on social media. One uploaded information costs 10 minutes, so we need to be careful which data we decide to use. If we are unable to make it within the time limit, the suspect will release his inflammatory articles against The Nation, and our advisor, Ampleford, will be disappointed in us… oh, and we will miss related achievements. Otherwise, there is no real penalty. The day will end after we submit enough data for Ampleford to come up with enough catchy lines, one way or another.
Another big change is the voice acting - our target persons are all voiced, and we can actually listen to their phone conversations. It's a nice addition on one hand, as the emotions hidden behind the lines become even clearer; on the other hand, if it wasn't there, nothing much would have changed. The phone calls drag on, voiced or not. Also, our main target, Raban Vhart, is a rather unsympathetic fellow (at least for me), and his voice just deepened the animosity.

Sadly, the thing that bothered me in the first game - the inability to skip the phone calls - remains. Going for the rest of the achievements was even more painful, as some of them are influenced by decisions made across the chapters… which means more playthroughs, especially if you make some mistake. There is also an unpleasant feature when uploading selected info - when the uploading happens, half of your screen (the one for the drop) gets locked for a few seconds, and nothing else can be added during that time. Another thing that irritated me a little is the fact that when you decide to listen to the phone conversation right away, you can't upload any information because your screen is locked. But if you select the archive option, you can freely roam around, upload info, and listen to the talk. That's what I call efficient time management. Also, there isn't any situation that requires your immediate reaction during the calls, as in the first game - well, there can't be any, as you can't upload anything during it! Gah.

Somehow, the sequel felt more restraining and linear than the first game. You spent most of the time waiting… for data to upload, for a call to end… for something to happen. I didn't care for the characters, nor for what my decisions would cause them. The new "influencer" mechanic is basically useless - you can't use it on your own, you don't create the lines, you just wait for the order that it's ready to use. The endings are… without any impact? Not sure if it's because I played both games in close succession, but the sequel left me unimpressed.

The Wanderer shows us what the Frankenstein's creature must have experienced after his involuntary birth. The journey is quite melancholic, full of disappointments. The society fears and despises the Wanderer, and there is nothing he can do to change it. The miserable end is inevitable.

There isn't much to the gameplay, as it's more of an interactive story. We will visit different locations as the story progresses. We will explore, observe the people, perform a simple puzzle, and move on. In some moments, we need to make a choice that will shape the Wanderer's fate. There are various endings corresponding to the made decisions, although I doubt they are that much different (I have yet to try it).

The visuals and music are beautiful, very artistic. The soundtrack is especially impactful, and in this case, I fear that the form killed the content. The journey/fate of the Wanderer left me sadly rather impassive. I didn't become emotionally invested or somehow connected to the creature, which is bad for a story-heavy game. I thought there would be more to it than the simple it's unfair to be ostracized from society because of your looks. The game is also very short, and if the movement wasn't so sluggish, it would be even shorter.

I read Frankenstein many years ago, so my memory of the events isn't at its best… I will re-read the book, play the game once more, and see if it influences my experience for the better or worse.

I should probably state right away that I am not familiar with the original game and I went into it without knowing anything about the story.

In Anna, we follow a college historian teacher on his journey to a long-abandoned sawmill somewhere in the Italian mountains. Dreams about this place are haunting his mind even though he has no recollection of ever visiting it. His mental health turns quickly unstable, resulting in his collapse during one of his lectures. On sick leave, he accidentally uncovers actual photographs of the sawmill in an old envelope. After this discovery he remembers his love for Anna and immediately leaves to search for her.
Upon his arrival at the sawmill, he finds it still standing, although long abandoned. His memory is still hazy, though, so he decides to enter the building. If he can find answers on all of his questions depends on his tenacity and willingness to sacrifice… just anything.

What to say and not to spoil the surprise. Anna is a pretty good adventure game with a tense horror atmosphere. It's rather short, but the length is mostly determined by what items you can find and what clues you are able to connect. The more you know, the deeper into the rabbit hole you get. The game is adapting to your "decisions" and even slightly rushing your progress with supernatural events that may harm you (lowering your sanity threshold). These events aren't exactly scary, more like unsettling, disturbing, creepy and nicely correspond with the feeling of slowly losing your mind.

The visuals are still rather pretty, even though we spent most of the time inside a dark house. The music is fitting and the sounds of the surroundings are nicely done. The voiced lines are on the other hand barely audible. There isn't any tutorial, and you have to figure most of it out on your own, some of the (environmental) puzzles can, thanks to it, look harder than they are. The lore is interesting, and I enjoyed searching for the various documents. There are a few inconsistencies, but overall, I find the story nicely written. The game has 8 possible endings, and some can be hard to figure out on your own. The big finale isn't exactly surprising, but it also isn't underwhelming. Oh, and the speedrun achievement can be frustrating to get.

All in all, I have enjoyed my time with Anna and can easily recommend it. I am now curious about the sequel - Nascence.

Etienne Quist was a successful author until he committed an unspeakable crime. He is sentenced to writer's shackles for thirty years. Unable to write something of his own, he needs to work off his punishment at one of the publishing agencies doing monotone work. To escape this ordeal, he turns to not-so-official means. The boss of the criminal underworld offers him a series of jobs with the promise of releasing him from the shackles. All he has to do is enter a book and steal a legendary item from it. What could possibly go wrong?

The Bookwalker is a point-and-click adventure game with a lot of reading to do. The majority of the game happens in an isometric view, whereas between missions, you can explore your home in a third-person view. There are six jobs - six books to visit. Each offers a different world and setting, from medieval to futuristic sci-fi. Once inside, you need to find the ordered item by interacting with the environment and speaking to the book characters. From them, you can get insights on the story you are "reading" or what has to be done to get to your goal. Even though the shackles are restraining his writing ability, Etienne can still influence the world around him with the help of an ink - not that it's without a price, of course. Roaming around the pages can get dangerous, and one has to be ready for a fight - yet again, with the help of ink. We are in a printed books after all.

Etienne isn't going to be all alone on this task, as right at the beginning, he finds a mysterious cage containing a book character. He doesn't know who he is or how he got there. Etienne gives him the name Roderick and promises to find his original book before he is done with his work. From now on, Roderick will be our sidekick, offering us help, advice, and unwanted criticism. Etienne's ethics and morality will be for sure questioned a lot by him.

The book visuals are nice, distinct and very detailed. There is no voice acting, only babbling sounds in some moments. Music is mostly ambient, playing subtly in the background. The story is rather interesting, and I liked the premise, although I think it could have been more elaborate. I would probably enjoy focused views on a lower amount of books. The interactions between Etienne and Roderick are fun, but their development is sometimes a little bit nonsensical. The fights are simplistic and consist of blocking and striking, don't expect any elaborate tactical fights. There are a few choices that influence your attitude and some of the events, but in the end, they don't mean anything. The story will end in the same way, which is a shame, as there could have been more possibilities. The ending itself was… unexpected and maybe a little bit disappointing.

All in all, as a book lover, I have enjoyed The Bookwalker. The idea of getting into the book and influencing it is very tempting. Some of the book stories would interest me on their own. Even if there are a few weaker points, I still think it's a solid game. Can recommend.

An excellent puzzle game!

The game is set in a tower with five thematic floors. Each floor has its own puzzle that needs to be solved before progressing higher. Parts required for the puzzle are hidden in boxes with various beautiful designs. To open the box you just need to carefully observe it and find hidden switches, pull small levers, connect dots, rotate cogs… there are a lot of possibilities. And sometimes a little of out-of-the-box thinking can be quite helpful. ;)

The puzzles are straightforward and rather easy, only once or twice had I been stuck and wondering what the hell am I supposed to do now?. After a little shuffling around everything clicked together.
The graphics are detailed and all the boxes are beautiful! I found their designs very clever and enjoyed uncovering their secrets. The music is subtle, so your mind can concentrate on solving the puzzles. Through cards left on the tables, we learn a little about the creator of the tower/boxes/etc. Not that it really adds much to the game. In my opinion, if it wasn't there nothing would have happened. ^_^

All in all, I have quite enjoyed the game. It was a very relaxing experience. I don't take easier difficulty as something bad, because you won't get frustrated and can still feel proud upon cracking the boxes open. I know I did. :D Can safely recommend it!

A peculiar game about dealing with anxiety and mental health issues - not that I am any wiser after playing through it though.

The game consists of six chapters, each having its own minimalistic design. We need to explore our surroundings and find the means to exit the area. And that's all. It can be easily completed in under 30 minutes. There isn't any character background or some kind of story which makes it somehow detached for me. Although I got the message I can't say I was particularly touched by it.

The game was apparently created by a young girl as a means to share her experiences… I can't say that it was a complete waste of time as I have enjoyed some of the ideas presented, but I feel like there could have been more. There are also reports of mischievous achievements that reset if you don't open them all in one playthrough - luckily got them on my first try. I wouldn't buy it on its own (I got it in a bundle) but there are worse things to buy for 2€ I suppose. ;)

Hidden object game that sometimes felt more like an old adventure game which makes one wonder why it wasn't made into it. ^^

When our former professor disappears, we follow his trail on a deserted island where a mysterious order protecting the fabled philosopher stone lived. There we learn about a legend of the Chosen One who will take the stone and bring peace to the land and its people. But some evil madman wanted to usurp the stone powers for himself and destroyed the island with all its citizens as an act of vengeance for opposing him. All that remains are ruins and lonesome ghosts full of suffering. Oh, and let's not forget about the madman… to stop him we must get to the artifact first!

This is the first time I have seen a hidden object game with FMV cutscenes and characters. Not that I would mind, as I have played some FMV adventures and enjoyed them. But this game is full of long creepy close-ups of the eyes of the characters which makes the cutscenes rather unsettling. Maybe that was the purpose but it's very offputting.

The visuals are overall alright, most of the time dark and gloomy. The music is fine, fully with the mysterious setting. The voice acting is hit or miss with some of the characters. As for the story - well, it can be interesting in a few moments. The weak writing may be the reason why it wasn't made into a full-fledged adventure game. As with any HOG there are hidden object scenes and standard puzzles throughout the game. Both are of good quality, I'd say some of the puzzles were even challenging.

The pace of the game would be good if not for the constant need for backtracking which is made even worse as you progress through the story because all the locations of the island are still accessible. It can also be confusing when you have an interactive spot at the start area where you need to use a certain item but the said item will be found in the second half of the game. First, you are stuck because you are searching for an item to use on it; then when you have the item you are stuck because you have already forgotten about the interactive spot… so you roam around the island in search of something to do next. Happened more than once throughout the gameplay.

So, it's far from perfect but it wasn't a complete waste of time. xD

The dystopian future is upon us. In it, we are tasked with examining all the various data about the target person - their communication, medical reports, posts on social sites, etc.; as all of the information can help us in protecting The Nation and its citizens.
When terror strikes in the heart of the capital, the Orwell and we with it are put on the front line. With only one suspect at the beginning, we need to search throughout their data for any possible hints that could lead us to the truth about the attacks and the culprits behind them. But more suspects mean more information to get lost in and recognizing relevant info will put our deduction skills to a challange. Also, anything inserted into Orwell can't be taken back, and even the smallest information can cause a disaster.

Be prepared to read a lot in this game - there is tons of information and every new connection will add more to the ever-growing pile. You don't have to read everything if you don't feel like it, but if you do, you will know more. Simple as that. It can be quite enjoyable to peek into what people share about them on the internet… not very ethical from me, but when else would I have the opportunity? :P
The interface is simple - we are operating in a program that allows us to browse the internet, listen to phone conversations or control a suspect's PC/phone. From all of the information we pick up interesting data and attach it to the respective person. Some data will open new information sources, some are irrelevant or completely wrong, and some are in conflict with each other - from those two, you need to select the one you deem to be right. Those are the important ones that will influence how the story progress.

My only complaint goes to the fact that the phone calls can't be skipped or hastened in any way. So other runs for the remaining achievements were a little bit painful. Also, the replayability is somehow dubious - you can take a different approach and frame someone else, but otherwise it's still the same - you need to go through the same talks, lines, everything.

Although I am not much into political stuff and this is full of political talks, I have rather enjoyed it. Through Orwell you can firsthand experience how easily information can be twisted around… not that we don't know already in this age, right?

As the devastating earthquakes leave the cities in disarray, Dr. Ambrose Ink uncovers the location of their mysterious origin - a secluded mountain town Hochwald and its castle under the oppressive rule of the General engineer Barber. Dr. Ink calls for our help but the moment we arrive in the town he gets abducted by an enormous robot! We need to find a way to the heavily guarded castle, save Dr. Ink and stop the mad Barber before he destroys the world!

Short but rather enjoyable steampunk HOG with nice visuals. The story is okay although we don't learn Barber's motivation for the earthquakes - world domination I suppose? After all, he is a German/Prussian soldier… The puzzles and hidden object scenes are varied and of good difficulty, nothing too hard to stuck on. Sometimes I wasn't sure how to progress and had to search available locations for missed items or new hidden object scenes. Voice acting is of standard quality, just beware of some of the villagers - they are simply bizarre. xD

There are collectibles to be found (steambugs) and I really enjoyed collecting them! Aside from admiring their cute looks, you can learn more about them through short funny descriptions. Achievements are portrayed as stained glass, which is also a nice touch. After completing the main game you can continue in the bonus story, which serves as a prequel, and experience Dr. Ink's arrival to the Hochwald town.

I was prepared to recommend Renoir despite the few problems it has, but after going for the speedrun achievement (yeah, stupid decision) I have to say - stay away from it. I knew that it would be a pain in the ass, but I told myself that if I will first look up each level through a playthrough it will be bearable… I should have uninstalled it right after completing the normal achievements. But when I already had 8/10 levels done in under 15 minutes and three more hours in the game in total I had to keep going… well it wasn't without tears from my total exhaustion.

Detective James Renoir has one last case to solve - his own murder. As a ghost, he needs to navigate through familiar locations in search for his faded memories to uncover the culprit and to be able to rest in peace.

Renoir is a puzzle platformer game with nice Noir visuals and horrible unresponsive controls.
So the visuals are rather nicely done - but you can't go wrong with black&white. There are four locations to walk through - cemetery, police station, city hall, and monument. Although they are different they still feel the same so you actually stop paying any attention to your surroundings and only concentrate on the puzzles. The music, if there is any, is fine, fully in Noir setting. But most of the time there is only silence and the sounds of your footsteps, switches, etc. The voice acting would be good if you could actually hear him. The sound of Renoir's voice seems to be rather sympathetic but has a horrible echo (to make him sound like he speaks from the afterlife) that makes him hard to understand - without the subtitles, you would be pretty much left in the darkness.

The story is… weird and doesn't make much sense honestly - my biggest problem is with the "love story". Our hero is portrayed as at least a 50-year-old tired man with, well, not-so-attractive appearance (but with the voice of a younger man) who gets his hands on the most beautiful and popular woman all around. Yeah, not buying that… but well, maybe Kitty has a thing for older men… who am I to judge, right? It's just very hard to connect with Renoir as a character or to feel any sympathy for him at all.

As for the gameplay - you have to navigate through each level without stepping into the light. As the light switches are usually under some other lights you need some help. Fully programmable phantoms will provide that for you. You need to select them and order them what to do - in the programming phase they can step through the light, but once you start their programming they are gonna stop before the light. So you need to cooperate with them as you will switch off the light for them and they will switch off the lights for you. Sounds fun. Well, in the beginning, I found it rather clever and was proud when I managed to solve some of the puzzles. But as the game progresses you realize that it's still the same, there are no new elements added - just a switch that needs to be held, a switch that can be activated or a valve that will start a timed sequence of light/platform/trapdoor. All you have to do is to solve an even bigger and more hideous puzzle through a few screens that require a lot of trial and error as you often need to precisely time everyone's action/position.
Add to it the most horrible unresponsive and sluggish controls you have ever seen and the whole game quickly turns into a chore without any fun. Forget about any kind of precise movement - the characters stop two steps after you stop, it takes 1 second to turn clockwise, and almost 2.5 seconds to turn anti-clockwise!, positioning yourself on the ladder can be a painful experience… everything is just wrong.

There is also a funny achievement - completing each level in under 15 minutes. Whoever thought it would be a great idea was insane. If they at least made a different time count for each level as some of them are truly big and have very complicated puzzles, but no, all have 15 minutes. During this time you need to navigate the level, program your phantoms, execute the program, and wish that all will be timed right - all it takes to restart the whole level is one little mistake in taking a bad turn. You don't have any timer on the screen nor you can see afterward how much time you spent on it. If you want to be certain you need to track time on your own.
The achievement is not worth the stress and I am angry at myself for trying for it, but I have spent so many hours going for it that when I had only two levels left I had to keep going or it would be a completely wasted time.

So even if I look aside from the stupid achievement, I can't recommend it. It's just not fun even though it had a good potential. If you want a nice puzzle game with a Noir theme go for FRAMED instead, that one is great fun!

Contrast is a short cute game about a young girl Didi on a mission of saving her parent's relationship. Didi isn't alone on this hard task though as she can always rely on her dear imaginary friend Dawn.

Gameplay-wise it's a puzzle platformer where you need to progress by switching from normal 3D to a shadow 2D world. All you need to do is manipulate the light source in the 3D world to create a path from shadows through which you can overcome obstacles or solve different puzzles. The shifting mechanic is rather clever and fun although it can be a little bit frustrating in some moments thanks to clunky movement/camera as you get forcefully expelled from the shadow realm.
The achievements are pretty straightforward and mostly tied to story progression. Any missed collectible can be picked up afterward without the need to collect everything again.

The graphics are very nice, and the mood of the 1920s and Noir theme is dripping from it. In the whole game, we can fully see only Didi and Dawn, others are portrayed by their shadows which creates a peculiar atmosphere. The voice acting is done very well, with the only exception being Dawn who doesn't speak nor show any kind of emotions - she is just an unbiased helper. The soundtrack is beautiful and the main song is simply exceptional.

The game isn't anyhow long and has a good pace. It has a surprisingly serious story that is portrayed through children's eyes. The ending feels slightly abrupt and points to a possible sequel - which would be great, but I don't think it's gonna happen, shame as it's a really enjoyable game and I can safely recommend it.

Invisible, Inc. is a brilliant tactical game heavily concentrated on stealth. You take control of a group of agents (2-4) and lead them on various missions consisting of infiltration, quick and quiet completion of your objective, and finally everyone’s safe extraction. But as your targets are large, wealthy, and most importantly very dangerous corporations, you need to stay vigilant as their grounds are protected by guards, cameras, various security robots, or even firewalls. Your team isn’t powerless and every agent can be equipped with useful items like a chip for instant hacking, a flashlight grenade, a healing pack, a cloaking device, etc. You want to be quick as the time is against you (with each turn security level rises), but proceeding without caution can cost you dearly.

The visuals are untypical but very nice and perfectly fit the game. Both the soundtrack and voice acting are very good. The story is simple yet captivating and has a rather unexpected outcome! I wouldn't mind if it was a little longer though. The campaign consists of exactly timed chapters with main missions at the end of the said times, in between you can choose wherever you wish to go - to gather money, ammo, augmentations or to free prisoners (and maybe hire a new agent). With every successful infiltration, the difficulty rises accordingly so even on easy difficulty you can get into tight spots. It is very important to pay attention to the description of your enemies and choose the right tactic against them. Every level is randomly generated which keeps the encounters fresh and challenging (furthermore, you can choose from 5 different game mods or even customize it to your liking).

The game has some issues with compatibility and it crashed on me right after the tutorial resulting in a corrupted save. I barely started so restarting wasn't a problem, but I have decided to copy my saves as a precaution. Luckily no other crush for me, but better to be safe than sorry (others weren't so lucky).

This one little hiccup can't discourage me from recommending it to every fan of X-COM and other similar games.

Long-anticipated winter vacation must wait as our hotel turns into a crime scene with bodies slowly piling up! Following the traces left behind by the serial killer we are going to uncover a lot of dirty secrets from each victim's past. Apparently, they were not so innocent, and all point to someone taking revenge against them!

Short hidden object game with a modern setting and rather bloody story. Even though the story is grim the visuals are all sparky, colorful, and pretty to look at. The music and voice acting are of standard quality. The puzzles and hidden object scenes are fairly easy - it's a good thing on one hand - you are not frustrated, on the other hand there isn't much of a challenge. Being a private investigator means that we need to analyze the crime scenes - first you need to find evidence of a crime and then put it together in the right order. Backtracking isn't much of a problem, we are usually moving forward.
There are two collectibles to find - origami (every time different) and lilies, but no on-screen indication if they are already collected, so prepare to be nervous till the end! Also, some of the origami are pretty hard to spot.

The story is… stupid. The plot doesn't make much of a sense and the overall development isn't any better. Our heroine isn't suitable to be a private investigator if she can't correctly identify the murderer and save her new suitor!

Close both eyes on the story and you will get an easy, short game with straightforward achievements - a great plan for casual weekend gaming.

Duo McQueen and Dooley never disappoint. <3

Detective James Renoir has one last case to solve… his own death!

Liked:

• Nice visual style
• Noir theme
• Puzzles – from easy to challenging

Not liked:

• Sluggish movement
• Bad controls
• Sometimes unclear objective
• Bad sound – James‘ voice has a big echo to make it sound like he is speaking from the other side but also makes it hard to understand, luckily there are subtitles, but it still destroys the atmosphere
• The main hero looks like 50 years old tired man (but his voice sounds younger which adds a disproportion to the character) and the whole love story seems rather unbelievable to me. Well, maybe Kitty has a thing for older men… who am I to judge, right?
• Puzzles – they are still the same, no new elements are introduced, and can become tedious/frustrating/boring
• Speedrun achievement – ridiculous

Actually rather meh. I have expected a different kind of outcome.
Enjoyed the developer commentary.

Absolutely perfect! Bruce is as handsome as ever. <3

Direct sequel although with slightly different visuals. Still no standard CGs. It's fun but getting all the achievements can take a while.

Cute little game about bringing an old bakery back to life.

Mindbending! Loved it.

Very nice adventure game inspired by the work of Jules Verne. The puzzles are pretty creative and there are usually more ways to solve them.

Love knows no boundaries.