Reviews by Fred Wayne Cole Jr

Drawn: The Painted Tower
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Beautiful

Big Fish Games has proven themselves yet again. Everything about this game worked. The puzzles ranged in difficulty but never seemed impossible or illogical. The artwork was superb and the soundtrack was hauntingly beautiful. In fact, I normally turn the music down in games... In Drawn I actually found myself turning it up.

Not an overly long game but for $9.95 I did not feel ripped off.

An overall relaxing and fun ride.

I'm looking forward to a sequel.

4.5/5 stars.

by Fred Wayne Cole Jr, USA - Mar 4th 2010
Azada
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Fun Puzzle game that has a point and click flair...

I had a good time with this puzzle/adventure game although it was short. I beat it in about 2-3 sittings. (I can definitely understand why some people would be upset by the price tag.) The graphics and sound are all spot-on. Azada has a good musical score. The controls are good although I found myself being penalized in the "puzzle rooms" for combining objects when I was merely trying to place them in the inventory screen. So when you're battling the clock that can get pretty irritating. The logic (and other) puzzles themselves are all relatively easy with a mild increase in difficulty as the game goes on. You can go back and play the puzzles you've beaten although there isn't much incentive to do so unless you truly love replaying puzzles you know the solution to. The so-called puzzle rooms are fun though, again, I found the penalty system slightly irritating. As an avid point and click gamer going back to the days of Sierra and Lucasarts it is counter-intuitive not to experiment with different objects. Thankfully the majority of the solutions are quite logical unlike some seek and find games I've played in the past. Azada is more than just a seek and find game though... I found it to be an interesting amalgam of a point and click adventure game, seek and find game, and logic puzzle game. Sort of a reductionistic version of Myst meets Mystery Case Files meets Professor Layton. All in all, I enjoyed this game and look forward to playing the sequel. I hope that the sequel will offer a little more in the point and click department.

I have noticed that some people have said that they cannot save their games. If you have the latest version of Adobe Flash Player (v.10) you'll be fine. If you're not sure what version you have go to Adobe's website and check. Also, it's a free download. Make sure to install it before downloading Azada otherwise it's a touch more complicated to fix (but it is fixable). Check the Mac Game Forums online if you need more help. Keyword search: Azada Save Game Fix and click on the first hyperlink. : )

by Fred Wayne Cole Jr, USA - Apr 8th 2009
Emerald City Confidential
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Refreshingly Fun

I just finished Emerald City Confidential and I had a blast! It took me under 10 hours but I do not regret buying it at all. This game really takes me back to the heyday of point and click adventures. The puzzles are NOT overly difficult at all (there is a built in hint system for each puzzle that will ultimately reveals the answer if you get stuck) and while you won't find yourself combining items or combing over every screen looking for useful inventory pieces what you will find is well-written and executed dialog, interesting characters and a fun story with an interesting, twist ending. There is also an interesting magic system to this game that definitely adds some depth. I am not a huge fan of the Oz books or movie(s) but I still found myself getting wrapped up in the story and there were plenty of characters I recognized from my child. The funny thing is that I didnot even realize this was an Oz game... shows how little I know about the the Ozian Mythos.

If you are a fan of the old-school Sierra or Lucasarts point and click games, enjoy a funny story with some easy puzzles, or are a fan of Oz check out this game. Just do not go in expecting the depth of a Broken Sword, Monkey Island, Beneath a Steel Sky, Sam and Max, etc. (You'll still have fun!) I'm hoping for a sequel or something in the same vein.

by Fred Wayne Cole Jr, USA - Apr 7th 2009
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