Dark Asylum: Mystery Adventure

Moby ID: 114023

Windows version

A mix of hidden object and free-to-play features

The Good
This does break away from the Hidden Object mold. Instead of being purely a linear adventure game, it has RPG mechanics, and is somewhat open-ended.

The Bad
Unfortunately, those RPG mechanics are in service to some nasty free-to-play mechanics, even in the commercial Windows release. (You get a limited amount of fake cash to spend in the cash shop, but the mechanics remain.) Leveling up unlocks additional rooms, but the amount of experience gained means that you'll be replaying the same rooms over and over, and playing a room costs energy. (This regenerates over time, or you can buy items in the cash shop to increase it.) I had a quest to acquire an object, and it had a 7% drop rate from a single room. I got lucky and "only" had to replay the room five times to get it. Even after you unlock everything, there's only 6 rooms, and you'd have to replay each one dozens of times to reach the ending.

The game's treatment of the mentally ill is exactly as bad as you can guess, by the way. This should be obvious, so I won't focus on it, but it's worth pointing out.

The Bottom Line
There are some interesting mechanics in here, and I'd actually recommend anyone developing a Hidden Object game play it for an hour to pick up ideas. That doesn't make it good.

by qwertyuiop (55121) on June 27, 2024

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