Revisiting old friends
Hope Springs Eternal, the second
offering from independent adventure game developers Mikael and Eleen
Nyqvist and their company
MDNA Games, came as a most delightful diversion for me. Normally
the games I review and explore are in the mystery, horror and darker
spectrum of the adventure genre. Now while this game is indeed
categorized as a “Mystery Adventure,” it is clearly on the lighter
side of the graph. The adventure is similar to the Nancy Drew
series, but with more of an adult and refined tone. It seems that,
following the success of Remedy (the Nyqvist’s first adventure),
the developers have made the decision to connect these first two
stories together as a recurring series: The Carol Reed Mysteries.
And for my part I couldn’t be happier about it. This little piece
was just like revisiting old friends. And indeed you do revisit
them, as a number of the characters from Remedy (where we were
first introduced to Carol and her penchant for sleuthing) return
once again -- in particular Katrina and the gravedigger.
The moment I loaded Hope Springs
Eternal and began to explore the familiar apartment and beautiful
surroundings, it was as though I was returning to a favored vacation
hideaway. Surely this was the place where curious and intriguing
adventures awaited. My reaction is probably the result of the
stylized look of both games. The graphical technique is the same as
in Remedy; it’s as though one has stepped through an
Impressionist Art Gallery and into one of the paintings. This gives
the player a sort of dream-like reality and offers an alternative
form of “the willing suspension of disbelief,” which is necessary in
all stories if the reader/player is to enter into the
author/designer’s world. The impressionistic graphics work well
here for the various locations and storyline. I found the effect to
be quite relaxing; it created a desire to wander in a leisurely
manner through the scenery, as I pondered the various conundrums and
queries of the plot.
Who is Carol Reed?
Just who is this Carol Reed anyway? As
we learned previously in Remedy, Carol Reed is a young
Englishwoman from Nottingham who is apartment-sitting for her
friend, Lovisa in Norrköping, Sweden. After uncovering the mystery
of the disappearance of her friend, Conrad Vogel, she has decided to
stay for a bit longer in Norrköping and is trying to make a go as a
private investigator, having taken over her dear friend’s business.
We begin this episode when Carol receives a call from Conrad’s
sister, Katrina. It seems that a fellow colleague and friend, Anna,
has gone missing. Could Carol come right away to Katrina’s place?
…And the next mystery begins to quietly take shape.
Gameplay
For the most part, Hope Springs Eternal
installed and loaded for me with few problems. I did experience an
initial glitch, but this was dealt with by MDNA technical support
swiftly and completely. Wonderful customer service here, folks…an
important point to be sure. After that the game played
flawlessly and I experienced no crashes during the seven hours it
took for me to play it.
Hope Springs Eternal is a classic
slideshow, point-and-click adventure game that utilizes the
Adventure Maker game engine. The pointer icon or “cursor” is a solid
medium blue arrow, which will vary in direction depending upon the
various bearings offered. A medium-sized blue dot will appear in
areas where no further progress can be attained. The cursor will
also change into a magnifying glass, signifying that a closer look
is needed. It will also change into a set of pink and blue gears
when there is something for Carol to interact with. The save feature
is the same as in most adventure games that use The Adventure Maker
engine; the player simply has to right-click or press ESC on the
keyboard, and up at the very top of the screen will appear various
functions which allow the player to create an infinite number of
saves, to load from any particular save, to enable or disable
transitions, or to quit the game. Hope Springs Eternal is also a
program for which, after the install, you can put away the CD and
play the game from your hard drive…nice. This makes for a quieter
gaming experience, allowing the sounds of the mystery to surround
the player -- not the constant whir of the CD ROM drive.
As in any good tale, there are a number
of “red herrings” that try to fool the player as the mystery
unfolds. This story does have a solid base, great ideas, a few
twists and maybe a turn or two; yet I was left with the wish for
more plot exposition with regard to the relationships between the
psychological character portraits of Anna Bergion, Axel Von Fersen
and Axel Weber. Still, the story in Hope Springs Eternal is a clear
improvement. I feel that Mr. and Mrs. Nydqvist will most assuredly grow as
writers and storytellers as they gain more experience. While the game
is inherently story-driven, there is also quite a fair share of
inventory, sliders and “push-button” puzzles to keep us occupied. A
nice element added here is that you may bypass these conundrums if
you so desire, without fear of compromising the mystery. This makes
this series ideal for new adventure gamers who just want to relax
and enjoy the story.
The player may access the game’s universe through a
very clear graphic of the town’s map; the clue here is to visit
every location, and don’t be afraid to double back a number of times
and check everything …sometimes more than once. The game also seemed
to be somewhat nonlinear, which is wonderful for those gamers who
love to explore on their own.
Style
The music has evolved since Remedy, and while
the opening theme is still the same familiar tinkling of the
ivories, I was pleased to hear the musical underscore change its
timbre and melody from location to location. But not just a change
in tonality, a change rather in its character, exactly capturing the
diverse “visual phrases” and moments within the “personality” of the
mystery. Lovely…an immense improvement, Mikael -- you should be
proud. The various Foley or sound effects were logical and
appropriate, although I did expect more footfalls in places where
there were none. The voice work was quietly succinct, with Sara
Louise Eriksson reprising her role as the inquisitive Carol Reed.
One very interesting point here is
the chance, finally, to hear and see Mikael and yes, even the
indomitable Sarah Louise, who lent both their voices and likenesses
to this episode. We also get the hear the elusive Eleen Nyqvist as
well...I was sure that I saw in the credits as one of the characters
too, but I was wrong...maybe just wishful thinking on my part. So,
where do they
appear, and just whom do they visually portray???
“Forget it --- I’m not spilling the beans here,
you’ll just have to play Hope Springs Eternal and figure it out for
yourselves!!!
Hint: Watching the credits here is a must!”
The look of Hope Springs Eternal has
not really changed since Remedy. And you know what? I like
that. The Nydqvists have created, in this series, an incredibly
delicate and peaceful atmosphere (unusual for a game of mystery,)
much like a strand of shimmering freshwater pearls -- each different
in its warmth and hue, yet similar in form and content. The
conscious choice to incorporate this particular impressionistic
graphical style subliminally binds the two games together, much like
a beautiful piece of jewelry that encircles a graceful wrist. It
leaves me eager for future episodes of The Carol Reed Mysteries to
complete this elegant bracelet.
Conclusion
There is plenty to do and see here,
including a myriad of Easter Eggs and cameos (a few are physical
and many are written, so keep a weathered eye out for them). So,
the question now becomes, would I recommend this game to the
Adventure Community? Absolutely. For the price point and ease of
play, I found it truly a delightful diversion. New gamers will
appreciate its ease and accessible gameplay; they’ll gain a positive
experience from Hope Springs Eternal. Expert gamers will most likely
view it as a welcomed respite …a day’s outing, ready to permeate and
embellish the mind of the inquisitive.
…Inferno
Grade B+
Minimum
requirements:
Pentium 800 or higher,
64 MB RAM, 8 MB video card,
500 MB free hard drive space,
Win 98, but 2000 or XP is recommended.
The game runs in 1024 x 768 resolution.
Played on:
Microsoft Windows XP Home Edition
2002 w/SP 1
Pentium 4 CPU 2.00GHz
512MB DDR Memory
Directx9c
Video: 64MBNVIDIA GeForce 2 MX/MX 400 AGPDriver version:
6.14.0010.7801
Sound: Creative SB Live
10-2005
