I really loved Silent Storm. I think that when it came out about 10y ago it was overlooked and it's a real shame, because it's great and games like this are very rare nowadays. I discovered it not long ago myself. SS is a squad based strategy game where you fight with a turn based system; it includes RPG elements (like JA or FO:T) as in each mission your men acquire experience which enables you to customize their abilities and makes them more powerful. It has a whole lot of interesting features way ahead of their time, like destructible environment and material density (so you can shoot through walls or floors). Plus, graphics, music and sounds are great. It blinks the eye to the casual gamer who has never tried tb strategy, because it's accessible and addictive even to those who aren't too familiar with it (as I, sort of, was). You'll find yourself longing to play “that other turn, then stop” and grow a kind of attachment to the squad you assembled. Each member is wonderfully characterised and with funny audio lines, you'll feel sorry if they die or get hurt! A different story goes for Sentinels. It's a lot harder than SS, which was more “sandboxish”: you need (lots of) money to do everything, even recruiting members and buying ammo so that's why you get killed very easily. I haven't played it too much because I got frustrated after a while but I think I'll give it another shot in the future. So, I can really recommend this game: you won't regret it!
So, long story short: Driftmoon presents itself as a classic isometric RPG where you'll be fighting foes, solving quests, meeting new companions and upgrading your character on the way. In my view this game is a nicely crafted graphical adventure with RPG elements: combat plays a somewhat secondary role and instead it is very story-driven. You have to read a fair amount of dialogue and pay actual attention to it in order to succeed. Everything is written with care in a clever, full of wits and twists, never boring style. Graphics and sounds are a bit crude sometimes but do their job neatly; the game world is colourful, well designed, and generally pleasing to the eye. I really liked Driftmoom: it's a breath of fresh air, a little gem carved with care in a world of anonymous games. It has some flaws though: first of all, it's short (lasts about 10h), second, the gameplay is a bit too linear: you have to actively use your brains to solve quests and puzzles but it tends a bit to "drive" the player... That's why I talked about “graphical adventure” earlier (though I know it's improper): I think that the main goal of the game is to enjoy the story in a very light hearted way but everything is overall very enjoyable. This said, if you prefer quality over quantity and are looking for a slow paced adventure, with a cool stor I recommend Driftmoon. If you're not... give it a try: you might discover something you like.
