A nice diversion from the ‘main-stream’ of gaming, and that's about it.
Graphics: 3
Sounds: 5
Value: 5
Tilt: 6
The wonders of any adventure games are that just about anyone can create one if given the right set of tools. With the myriad of means easily accessible on the internet, if you have a decent story and a gift for visuals then you might able to make a small buck or two. The husband and wife team of Mikeal and Eleen Nyqvist from Norrkoping did exactly just that by using the Adventure Maker program, created the fictional British investigator Carol Reed’s sequel of Remedy, Hope Springs Eternal and to be frank, it’s not a bad attempt at all.
As mentioned above, Hope Springs Eternal continues off where Remedy ends with the lead detective Carol Reed having nothing better to do until she receives a call from Conrad’s sister, Katrina (Conrad was Carol’s friend in the first episode who she uncovered his disappearance) to investigate another missing person case, Anna. Anna also happens to be a good friend and teacher of Katrina. So it seems that people are just vanishing off the face of the Earth when Carol is around. Very, very suspicious…
Considering this game was created by the Adventure Maker game engine, the entire game play is presented by the classic point-and-click style. If you happen to engage in any of the Nancy Drew’s adventures you'll be right at home with this method. Entirely mouse driven, you simply move the cursor and depending upon where it’s located dictates your move. You can move around the four cardinal points, access Carol’s inventory (by placing the cursor on the top of the screen) and even combine other inventory items by that simple drag-and-drop technique. Therefore there is no real need for the keyboard other than when saving the game where you need to type the filename.
If you happen to be a fan for watercolours (like me) you will be pleasantly aroused by the entire game’s displays. All of the screenplays are captured with splashes of brightly coloured images however one can only take so much. There were times that this effect didn’t really captured the essence and beauty for certain vistas (the sunset was definitely one of them) however it didn’t mask any of the ‘pixel’ hunting exercises so any particular location is still easily recognised. Yet I was a little disappointed that the players I thought will be displayed in FMV however all are static and superimposed in the background. Not my cup-of-tea but after all it is a budgeted game otherwise the game will take vast hard drive space and an increase in price. Also take note that the screen resolution is locked at 1024 x 768.
The game itself can be installed entirely in your PC hence there is no real need to run the CD therefore avoiding that ‘whirling’ reverberation and as a result, you can appreciate the full splendor of this game musical pieces. Just like the disposition and pace of the game, the scores are soothing and compliments to this vibrant escapade. At times it reminded me of listening to Angelo Badalamenti (the person who composed Twin Peaks and Mulholland Drive). The downside to this is the bland voice-acting of the main stars. I think that considering English is not their native tongue and trying to be careful with their words, it sounds like the actors are reading straight from the script, word for word with little emotion.
As for the target audience is for casual laid back gamers, Hope Spring Eternal is not a difficult game to beat. There is a reward system that you can achieve the five-star rating (which compliments the five ‘hard’ puzzles) however using their unique ‘by-pass’ option will make you forfeit one star. The only puzzle that really stumped me is the ‘connecting the wires’ puzzle as it was pure luck that I have solved it. That said, the game itself shouldn’t take longer than the tenth hour mark with no replay value. Also don’t expect any multiplayer options or any death match bouts either.
Hope Springs Eternal does not pretend to be a complicated nor intense adventure game. As advertised, the targeted audience is for first timers in the field of adventure gaming or the causal PC gamer with a little time to spare. Even though I did enjoy playing this game I really couldn’t continue playing a similar style over again in the short term however it was a nice diversion from the ‘main-stream’. As the developer’s stated, it’s really for a causal gamer so let’s stick to that.