If you want your own story to unfold as you desire, you should be writing it yourself
Throughout time stories have been, and continue to be created. While stories have the capacity to cover almost any genre or subject, be it fact or fiction, timeless tales of heroics have always a topic of humanity’s interest It is true that these stories may differ from place to place or person to person, and can even be subject to changes (be they be intentional or not) as time marches on. Regardless of any of these factors, however, one thing stays constant; people’s desires to hear stories of valiant warriors, brave adventurers, and those overcoming overwhelming odds. Stories of heroism live on to this very day due to the potential happiness that they may bring about. Sure, epic tales have been passed from person too person. Where, however, did they come from? Certainly they all have origins. Stories need to be written at some point or another. Sitting idly by hoping for an adventure to suddenly appear before you is relatively futile. No, rather you must write your own story. You can be the hero of your own story, you just need to make that story happen. Enter King Art Games’ ‘The Book of Unwritten Tales 2’.
The Book of Unwritten Tales 2 is an action-filled point-and-click game that is both one part adventure and one part comedy. Unwritten Tales 2 picks up some time later after the events of the first Book of Unwritten Tales during a more peaceful time as it begins by taking a look at what has become of the intrepid heroes. Though they should be happy, it seems as though Elven Princess Ivo, novice mage Wilbur the gnome, the self-indulgent and narcissistic human Nate, and Critter the… uh… fuzzy alien, still have their share of problems (with some worse off than others). If daily woes were not enough, each protagonist is made aware (separately) of a great danger that is quickly headed their way; a great, PINK, danger that is turning the land of Aventasia into something that looks like a playroom for a 5-year-old girl. Maybe what they say about a hero’s work never being done has some validity to it after all, huh?
As aforementioned, The Book of Unwritten Tales 2 is a point-and-click adventure game; a classic in terms of gameplay. Players are given control of a character (though the currently-controlled character differs as the game progresses) and are tasked with overcoming problems that arise within the story as it progresses. This being a point-and-click adventure however, there is no need for mechanics such as combat or platforming. Nope, players will instead have to use their brains to problem solve! Interaction with the environment is crucial; making sure to interact with every possible thing is the way to go. There are also different methods of interaction, as well as an inventory mechanic, so experimentation is key. Just because your first attempt to cut down that beehive didn’t work doesn’t mean that there is not a way! The story also helps to prevent discouragement; wanting to know what will happen next in the story helps to stop players from giving up on the mystery-at-hand.
While the puzzles present within The Book of Unwritten Tales 2 are definitely challenging at times, they are by no means unfair. Those at King Art Games are seemingly well-aware of the ever-dubious “thing that you didn’t know that you could click on” present in many point-and-click adventures and have taken subsequent steps in order to prevent such a catastrophe by allowing players to view every interaction with the press of a button. While this may seem to cheapen things at first, it soon becomes very clear that this mechanic does not hold your hand, it merely lets you focus on the important thing; the gameplay. This mechanic truly does make the already enjoyable game even more so.
Artwork is especially important in adventure games, and boy does The Book of Unwritten Tales 2 deliver on that one. Graphically speaking, the game is phenomenal. Though drawn in a more cartoon-like style, the game seamlessly blends together rich, vibrant colors in with visually appealing and well-flowing objects, environments, and characters in order to create a world that is both enticing and believable; at least as far as magical lands go.
If a character is well-drawn but voiced poorly, is the character still believable? No, it is not. Fortunately, there’s none if that here! The audio of The Book of Unwritten Tales 2, most notably the voice acting, is also incredibly well-done. Though many of the dialogue segments are long, they are quite enjoyable thanks to both the high quality if the voice acting and, of course, due to how well the dialogue itself has been written.
Simply put, this is certainly a journey worth undertaking. With its engaging characters, storyline, and scenery, in addition to an excellent overall execution, The Book of Unwritten Tales 2 is quite a shining example of the point-and-click adventure genre.
Final Verdict: 4.5 / 5
Available on: PlayStation 4 (Reviewed), PC, Xbox One ; Publisher: Nordic Games, The Adventure Company ; Developer: King Art Games ; Players: 1; Released: September 22 (on consoles), 2015 ; ESRB: T for Teen ; MSRP: $19.99
Full disclosure: This review is based on a review code provided by The Book of Unwritten Tales 2′ publisher.
