The Lost Crown: A Ghost Hunting Adventure
I would have loved to have seen this game on the PS3
or 360, not because of the gameplay but rather the content which
would have looked great on the big screen, in the dark. With
that said, The Lost Crown: A Ghost Hunting Adventure is developed by
Darkling Room and is one
of those rare adventure games on the PC which involves ghost
hunting.
Story wise, the game revolves around Nigel Danvers, a
treasure hunter who is about to take on more than he expected when
visits the town of Saxton, somewhere along the English coast.
While
in this town, he soon realises not everything is what it seems and
he starts to experience some supernatural activities. As fate
dictates, Danvers discovers some ghost hunting equipment (ala Ghost
Hunters America) and from there, it’s time to venture into the
unknown.
The story is a little over the top at times but it actually
suits the genre and is a little predictable at times but then again,
what game isn’t? The graphics also assist in immersing you into this
game and can be quite spooky at times, especially the certain scenes
in the game that will scare the living daylights out of you if
you're not expecting it.
The game is reminiscent of those classic PC adventure
games that most have gone the way of the Dodo but it’s good to see a
publisher take a risk with this title. Although it’s more of a point
and click game, where the title does shine is through the user of
paranormal equipment such as night vision goggles and the spooky EMF
meter which records the voices of the dead.
Needless to say, this is
where the frights start to begin. It doesn’t help that many of the
places you visit is quite dark and eerie and if you want to be
totally submerged into this game, you should play it in the dark. As
you explore, you’ll fall across a variety of puzzles that need to be
solved, however every now and then, there will be some paranormal
parts which does give you some additional motives to finish the
game.
The graphics of the game may not be on the console
level of detail and considering the budget behind this game, it still
does a very good job. The characters looks good and the environments
are well detailed, however where it does shine is through the use
(once again) of
the paranormal equipment and of course the ghosts that sometimes
jump out at you.
With a decent musical
score and some great background ambience, the game has everything
needed to drawn you into this title.
The voice acting however is a little mediocre at the best of
times which is a shame.
In
conclusion,
The Lost Crown: A Ghost-hunting Adventure is an
almost dead genre on the PC, however for fans of this genre, this is
definitely a worthy purchase and will keep you enthralled with it's
spooky story and strange settings. The gameplay is at times dated
but if you can get past, you'll have an enjoyable time.
