Witches, werewolves, and vampires, oh my! The CW Television Network has teamed up with casual game maker Arkadium to bring Vampire Diaries to Facebook. Do the beautiful undead of Vampire Diaries: Get Sucked In make for fun quick-fix gaming, or do they merely suck?
Witches, werewolves, and vampires, oh my! The CW Television Network has teamed up with casual game maker Arkadium to bring Vampire Diaries to Facebook. Do the beautiful undead of Vampire Diaries: Get Sucked In make for fun quick-fix gaming, or do they merely suck?
Vampire Diaries: Get Sucked In plays out as a sort of point-and-click adventure, but the gameplay rests mostly upon two fairly remedial game types: spot-the-difference pictures, which the game refers to as Mystic Pix, and trivia questions. You’ll also enter areas where you’ll be required to simply click hexagons in order to reveal items. Though the presentation is respectable, Get Sucked In does little to actually suck players in.
Get Sucked In follows the all too familiar formula of doling out energy (in this case, stamina) to enable users to play for a few minutes at a time before having to leave the game alone for a short while. You’ll complete collection sets in order to gain access to locked areas, and movement around maps is straightforward and satisfying.
Unfortunately, the actual gameplay simply isn’t very engaging. Clicking hexagons to find items is boring almost to the point of insult, and the spot-the-difference pictures are often comprised of absurdly subtle clues. Mystic Trivia offers perhaps the best option for fan service, but ultimately, Get Sucked In is a somewhat loveless affair.
As you clear away hexagons, you’ll occasionally earn consumables that will replenish your stamina, and the leveling system increases your stamina bar’s max capacity. There are sequences where you’ll talk to the series’ various characters, and usually they’re used as tools to send you on mindless fetch quests.
In spite of the game’s lackluster gameplay, there’s an underlying story formula that is somewhat alluring. The constant grind through hexagons and Mystic Pix can be frustrating, but the morsels of plot are almost enough to keep fans pushing forward.
In terms of production values, the game plays it somewhat safe but manages to offer an attractive, polished package all the same. Characters are represented by photo stills, as are most backgrounds, and the menus are smartly organized and easy to navigate. The musical themes are extremely entertaining, though they get abruptly lopped off when moving from area to area. Sound effects are used sparingly, yet the entire presentation comes together to make for a pleasing, if not forgettable, TV-series tie-in.
Vampire Diaries: Get Sucked In is barebones – end of story. The meager, uninspired collection of gameplay ideas is mostly boring and in some cases borderline insulting. However, there’s a level of polish to the presentation that encourages continued play, if only for a very short time. Check the game out if you’re a diehard fan of the show; just don’t expect to get sucked in.
