Themes? We don't need no steekeeng themes! I'm a rebel, baby, yeah! And this week I'm bucking tradition to bring you three games that are just plain good and good for ya. Admittedly, you might say that they're all adventure games. And they're all point-and-clicks. And heavily puzzle-centric. BUT THAT'S ALL. They share nothing except those inconsequential similarities! Yeah, that's right. Nobody controls me. Deal with it.
- Synapsis - robotJAM has always been known for really great point-and-click adventures, and with this sleek little 3D surreal mystery it's easy to see why. Fiddling with a suspicious golden cube left on your desk results in you being sucked inside, and what follows is a gorgeously designed adventure into the subconscious. The imaginative areas you'll visit combined with the sparse, "build your own" approach to the narrative makes this one of the more immediately intriguing games you'll find. There's even a sequel when you're done with this one! It's a great example of minimalist storytelling and creative sets coming together to deliver a memorable experience.
- Matt Sandorf: Journey to
Endless Entertainment - Need a little humour in your adventure? (No humor; we have only proper English enjoyment here.) Then you'll want to dish up RabbitTell's clever little advergame about a fellow desperate to see one particularly famous band who seems rather surprised that the government types whose secret facility he snuck into have taken offense and jailed him in a dingy closet. What follows is a weird, silly, and definitely funny little gem that makes up for some slightly obtuse puzzling with a charming presentation and goofball concept. You might find yourself reaching for the walkthrough, but if you like sly humour and dry one liners, this is one to check out. - Bamba Snack Quests 1 & 2 - Bamba Quest understands what motivates you. Namely, delicious snacks and malicious squirrels. In this advergame, you'll play a toddler who sets out to retrieve his favourite goodies from one of those evil backyard rodents and winds up travelling far and wide to do so. Each chapter represents a little puzzle you'll need to solve in order to progress, and they're more than a little unusual to say the least, a lot like the game itself as a whole. The combination of hand-drawn artwork and photography works remarkably well, however, and the end result is a clever, quirky little batch of games you can enjoy at any age and language.
While we welcome any comments about this weekly feature here, we do ask that if you need any help with the individual games, please post your questions on that game's review page. Well, what are you waiting for? Get out there and rediscover some awesome!
Why not put Bamba 3 too?
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