Can someone tell me why, in the name of all that is holy, is Secret Files: Tunguska getting ported to the DS? Bueller? I’m all for exposing gamers to those games they might not otherwise get the chance to experience. I love adventure games on the Nintendo DS – I’ve gobbled-up games designed specifically for the DS with a spoon. Games like Trace Memory, Hotel Dusk and Time Hollow; were brilliant in their use of the DS’ touch screen for “traditional” point and click adventure gaming.
Secret Files: Tunguska isn’t a bad game. It follows the current standard adventure game formula of having gorgeously rendered backgrounds, decent story, no overly ridiculous puzzles and semi-interesting characters. Okay, that last was a lie as several (most) of the characters are boring and stereo-typical, but I got over it. I played the game on PC last year and had some fun with it… up to the point of when I needed a cigarette. No, not in real life! In the game! Pay attention, people!
One of the game’s puzzles required a cigarette (better?). There were discarded butts scattered all over several scenes, but the game refused to even acknowledge those existed. I scoured the available locations to no avail. I finally resorted to a walkthough that told me where the much sought after cigarettes could be had – except they weren’t there. I checked another walkthrough with the same results. I was convinced I’d somehow broken the game. Finally, I found the answer buried in a game forum – seems I wasn’t the only one who’d not been able to locate those accursed cigarettes. The problem turned out to be the dreaded pixel hunt times 100. Seriously. The pixels for the cancer sticks was in the scene’s darkest corner and were so itty-bitty that even my meticulously slow scanning with the pointer had missed them at least half a dozen times! Apparently, I needed a Google turn-by-turn map to their “cleverly hidden” location. After the pixel hunt, I no longer cared. I did finish the game, but there was no joy in it.
And now they’re porting this exact same game to the DS’ tiny 3 inch screen? No amount of clever LCD back-lighting will save gamers from hunting those illusive pixels. Did no one learn from the Syberia port debacle?
Toger, hi,
With you on the miniscule hotspot rant, but just curious if my Tunguska walkthrough was one of the ones you consulted:
http://metzomagic.com/showArticle.php?index=789
I think it’s pretty explicit in how to go about obtaining the cigarette, and there’s really no pixel hunting involved, but rather putting 2 and 2 together?
Regards,
MetzO’Magic
Hey Metz,
No, yours wasn’t one of the ones I used. Yours is decidedly more detailed than either of the ones I checked. I should have gone to you first. 🙂
The DS port will have (the PAL version has) a function that highlights every spot you can interact with. I’m pretty sure the PC release had this feature as well, even though I only played the demo.
Hi Toger
I agree that Tunguska is pretty tame in the story department, but I found the puzzles so refreshingly logical (for the most part) and never needed to consult a walkthrough (i assume the fag puzzle was fixed on the DS).
It was like a Point and Click without all the hassle of pixel hunting, walkthroughs or even straining my brain, and that was a nice feeling.
I gotta say, I liked the experience quite a bit.
But Syberia DS is a monstrosity.
I have to say up until I hit that illusive ciggie puzzle, all the other puzzles made perfect sense – including the one with the cat; although how they convinced that cat not to shred her to bits is beyond me 🙂 – and I hadn’t needed a walkthrough (which is always a plus).
eurodude is correct in stating that the PC version allowed one to highlight all the interactive hotspots; but you needed to turn it on in options (something I don’t normally do) and honestly, should you really NEED to have all the hotspots lit up for you if objects are in plain view? I mean, if I want to hunt for stuff, I can play one of those hidden object games. Maybe my cranky-pants are too tight?
I really liked the puzzle where you dunk the inner tube into a bucket of water to see where the puncture is (via bubbles). Almost everyone has done that once in their life!
For some reason, I dig the idea of a point and click based on the monotomy of real life and puzzles you solve on a daily basis, with no world to save or neo-nazi dude to chase.