I've always been a sucker for a great platform adventure game, and when you throw eye-popping 3D graphics that are supposed to resemble paper into the mix, well then you might as well have reached into my pocket and emptied out my wallet because I'm already sold. Unfortunately for Paper Titans, while the game holds true on its promise of providing plenty of paper, there is not one sheet of fun adventuring gameplay to be found.
To most children, shadows present an endless world of possibilities within the shapes cast on walls. Young Didi understands this intimately: her imaginary friend Dawn has the ability to enter shadows and travel across them freely, exiting back to the "real" world at will. Contrast puts you in the shoes of the shadow-walking Dawn as she uses her power to help Didi confront issues surrounding her family.
Get ready for a surprise reveal: Dracula is super-duper hard to kill. Even when the Lord of the Vampires is put out of commission (permanently or temporarily, depending on the mythology), his influence sticks around like a dark cloud. Ships suddenly seem to sail themselves, wolves start hanging around town, and bats seem to think they have the run of daylight hours. Dracula 4: The Shadow of the Dragon for PC, Mac, iOS, and Android revolves around one such mysterious Vlad-related phenomenon.
I don't think I've ever played a game with a greater gap between concept and execution than that of Residue. I love the idea of a story-driven platform adventure based on the real-life environmental nightmare of the Aral Sea, which makes it all the more disappointing that everything about it is such an absolute mess.
From the creators of The Book of Unwritten Tales, The Raven - Legacy of a Master Thief is a thrilling point-and-click adventure that's full of spectacular burglaries and a dual storyline with plenty of twists and turns along the way. The conniving and devious art stealer simply known as "The Raven" has managed to evade the authorities for years (plus, he's really into wearing these creepy bird masks). Will you be the one who is finally able to catch the thief and bring him to justice?
Few developers are as synonymous with the point-and-click adventure genre as LucasArts, but Daedalic Entertainment is rapidly working their way to a similar stature. With their Deponia trilogy set to reach its inevitably charming conclusion later this year alongside the release of new IP The Night of the Rabbit, one might think Daedalic has already met their "on track to be the next LucasArts" quota for 2013. That means the upcoming Memoria is merely icing on the platypus-flavored cake.
Leaving a room is often a difficult task. I frequently find myself having to look for clues as to how I'm supposed to leave the house. Fortunately, when I get bored, I can just open the door and walk on out. In the world of videogames, you're not usually given such luxuries. Killer Escape is an example of how to leave a room with a sadistic murderer on the loose. And it won't take you too long, either.
A few minutes ago when I sat down at my computer to start writing this review, I saw an enormous and terrifying spider crawl under my desk, and now I keep nervously glancing down at the floor around me every five seconds as I type this so I can scream and run away whenever he decides to come back out. In some ways, this is sort of what it is like to be scientist gentleman Wilson in the fantastic new survival adventure game Don't Starve: always keeping one eye over your shoulder, your safety always in question, and never knowing when or where the next frightening creature is going to appear. It's a good thing that playing this game is a whole lot more fun than sharing your workspace with an unwelcomed eight-legged guest.