Let me preface my impressions with the following: This game suffers from a very noticeable unevenness in quality and production values. This is a very real flaw that might be offputting to some. Depending on your ability to stomach this issue this game is either a yummy snack or a rusty can of dogfood. This is nothing that can be described by a score or review, this is really something that depends on your gaming personality. At times the voice actors and 2D/3D graphics are doing their jobs admirably, everything meshes together really nicely. It's impressive how this game can look at times. At other times you'll stumble over obvious errors in the spoken dialogue/subtitles, shoddy voiceacting and cringeworthy character art, mixed with very unnatural animation. Maybe the devs run out of money? I don't know. One thing's for sure though: one gets the feeling that this was localized from a foreign language on a shoestring budget, leading to some lost depth and introducing some flaws in the process. If you can see past that issue you'll be treated to a charming game that point & click adventure fans will undoubtedly enjoy. It's probably more to the beginner side of things, since there are only two possible actions besides movement, namely looking at and manipulating things. Plus, your inventory always stays manageable and gets cleared out from time to time. You can probably play through this in one sitting on a weekend if you're a battlehardened pro, but IMHO that doesn't detract from its value. Any longer and the story would have started to fall apart. The way it is, it's a nice. bite-sized adventure, perfectly fine for a relaxing bout of point&click goodness. After all is said and done I'm pretty happy with both presentatioon and gameplay though. The puzzles are sufficiently obscure, yet somewhat logical, the story is pretty involving, the graphics are OK at worst, and the length of the whole game is just right. It sets out to tell a little roadmovie-like story, and it succeeds well at that. Don't expect anything overly fancy, this is not a genre-redefining blockbuster with a huge budget. This is a slightly flawed, rather simplicistic game with a certain charm that'll keep you coming back if you accept it for what it is. Again, I certainly don't regret spending my money on this, but YMMV - be aware that this game is far from perfect. This really needs to be stressed. This game is rock stable and gameplay-wise quite competent (if simplicistic in comparison to the heavy hitters), but it suffers from an uneven presentation more than anything else. It's slightly above average due to that inconsistent gameplay experience IMHO.
First off, be warned that it's an oldschool point-n-click adventure. You are going to search for items, you're going to miss some, and you're going to get stuck until that fateful day when you either stumble upon one item or item combination, give up and look at a FAQ, or ask a fellow gog'er. Point-n-click adventures can be a pain and very frustrating when you're stuck, but no other genre can be as rewarding and fulfilling when you finally "get it". As far as games in the genre go, this is actually pretty easy and manageable though. Most of the puzzles make sense, in a way. Pressing F10 will cheat and show you all items or persons you can interact with on the current screen, and there is a hint system with an owl you can ask for advice, quite userfriendly. Gameplay consists of using your mouse pointer to steer your sorcerer-to-be around a wonderful world full of unique characters, engage in hilarious conversations, combine items you find lying around, use them one way or another, and hopefully achieve your goal of returning to your home unharmed. You will kiss pigs, help timid barbarians, talk to tree stumps, cunningly disguise yourself, and bring all manners of misfortune upon those who stand in your way. You even get to use the ring(TM). You can instantly travel to certain landmarks using your magic map, and even loading and saving your game is done using an in-game item, the postcard. It's a very immersive experience, despite the main character breaking the fourth wall once or twice during conversations. The amount of voice acting crammed into that tiny download is astonishing. Every conversation is fully voiced - and the writing is hilarious. Artwork and use of color make this game a timeless classic. Music's great too, of couse the tracks aren't fully orchestrated, but certainly fitting and enjoyable throughout. Many, if not most screens are animated, be it ducks swimming in a pond, squirrels running up a tree when they see you, butterflies fluttering around, flickering Fire illuminating a cave, etc. You will explore creepy caves and hideouts, a cozy village, luscious forests, and snow-covered peaks, among others. The game itself will engross you in a colorful world that makes sense in a twisted way. If you liked Monkey Island or Discworld you'll love this one. It's plenty of fun, hours long, easy to use but hard to master, and best of all, it's only six bucks. You would do yourself a disservice to not give this a playthrough.
