14 DAY TRIAL // Whenever we think about a hidden object game we associate it with lively colors and a cheerful environment that awaits our exploration. Most of the background stories for these games involve fairies, pixies, magical fantasy worlds and other lore elements that have been used for the sole purpose of stimulating your imagination.
The new Drawn: The Painted Tower release from Big Fish Games takes a new approach to the fantasy world by exploring the ghostly and shadowy part of magic. As soon as you enter the game you will be greeted by an old man’s voice telling you the sad story of Iris. A special girl has been trapped inside a magical tower, surrounded by black magic in a world full of ghostly shadows and evil that lurks around each corner.
Although your arrival or connection to this world is not clear, you will embark in this new adventure and, as you stand in front of the magical doors that keep the tower sealed, you not only face your destiny, but also great magic. Once inside the Painted Tower you will be greeted by the old man whose voice has called you to this place and he will offer you assistance in the quest of rescuing Iris.
You will soon come to realize that the paintings on the walls are more than they seem. Each of them represents a doorway into another world where you will have to solve various puzzles and help strange characters. If a scarecrow has lost its ability to scare away the crows, patching it up together with the right outfit is a mini-quest that will allow you to unlock new secrets into how to open the doors that protect each level of the tower.
You have to remember that this is still a hidden object game and the secret behind each level is given by your ability to solve puzzles, find items and even arrange them in the right order. If a window shatters, you first have to find all the pieces and then put them back together. Only by using your imagination can you solve some of the puzzles that the game has to offer and you must always thoroughly check every scenery.
Probably the most fascinating aspect of the game is the way the environment and soundtrack work together into creating a creepy and yet not hostile gaming environment. You get the impression of actually being faced with dark forces but you don’t feel threatened by them, in which case your exploration of the tower gets more interesting as you progress.
Although the game has a 60-minute limitation when you download the free version, it’s my personal recommendation that you try out the full version. Seeing how the ending turns out is well worth the 19.99 dollar fee for unlocking the entire extent of the game.
Here are some snapshots of the application in action:
