Keepsake

"Keep Awake: A Forgettable Adventure"

Where have all the point-and-click games gone? If you're a gamer who's trying to fill the void left by titles like Space Quest and Secret of Monkey Island, you've probably asked yourself that question. You've probably hit the abandonware scene, or given business to a little outfit called The Adventure Company, who try to feed starving adventure gamers with games that tend to look a lot better than they play. Welcome to another aesthetically-pleasing but unappetizing morsel.

Story-6/10
You play Lydia, a teenager looking forward to starting magic school and reuniting with her childhood friend Celeste. Unfortunately, when she gets there all she finds are a fat guy with a downright embarrassing Italian accent, a wolf who says he's really a dragon, and the jester doll she once gave Celeste as a pact to meet again someday. A keepsake, get it?

Graphics-9.5/10
The game is gorgeous, that has to be said. The scenery is breathtaking and realistic, and you'll very much enjoy exploring the various locations for the spectacle they provide. The character sprites aren't quite as good; Zak is especially bad when he walks up stairs normally, but tilted at an impossible angle.

Audio-4/10
Pretty darn weak. The sound effects aren't too bad, but the voices are terrible. Besides having some of the cheesiest dialogue this side of a Capcom beat 'em up game, the actors sound like they were at the bottom of a well when they recorded their lines.

Gameplay-4/10
I suppose people who played Myst as their first adventure game could add another point or two, but me, I like to feel like I'm accomplishing something rather than solving a combination lock when I complete a puzzle. Most of the puzzles involve turning things on so you can open new doors, or playing mini games to unlock new doors. They're suitably challenging, but they're not especially engaging. I was more drawn in by Atlantis Evolution, for crying out loud.

The game requires you to go back and forth a fair amount, which I found somewhat tedious with the expansive play area. It might have been nice if after you had been someplace you could just click it on your map and zap there, or even find an item that let you do that after a while. Once again, tedium should never be built into a game.

There's a button you can click to get directions for the puzzle you're trying to solve, though not actually any hints as the directions say. That's not a good sign, when you need to look at something that gives you information your character couldn't possibly have to solve puzzles. It also tells you the next thing the game wants you to do when not solving puzzles when clicked. The game doesn't make any other effort at all to help you progress. Lame.

Overall-4/10
If I want to play a pretty adventure game, I can't think of a better one to pop in my computer. If I want a fulfilling one, it seems like I have to find a way to make my old DOS games work again or find a freeware developer who also longs for the classics. Unless a long slog through a gauntlet of puzzles is your thing, keep away from Keepsake.

Reviewer's Score: 4/10, Originally Posted: 08/28/06