Princess Isabella: A Witch's Curse (Nintendo DS) - Review by Andrew

Introduction

It was only a few years ago that we where introduced to the first Hidden Object game and, because these are so easy to develop, we have since seen the genre used across just about every platform coving a variety of subjects. Personally I'm not a fan but the popularity of books like Where's Wally (or Waldo if you live in the US) and the rise of the 'casual gamer' has meant that these types of games are here to stay for the foreseeable future. With that in mind, we've decided to take a look at this title just in case we happen to be missing something.

Gameplay

All the various sections here are built around a lavish plotline and while the standard of games stories has taken a bit of a dive over recent years, the back-story here is quite engaging. In short you play the part of Princess Isabella who returns to her castle only to find that an evil witch's curse has been placed on it and everyone inside. To make matters worse this not only includes her family and castle staff but also Prince Adam who she was hoping to marry.

Clearly it's your job to rid the castle of evil but you are not alone in this quest and a helpful fairy is by your side to help you along the way. We should also point out here that the fairy is quite powerful offering a range of spells to help you interact with the world around you. You'll begin in the main hall and it's here you'll familiarize yourself with the basic controls and the types of puzzles you'll encounter as you move around the castle. Most of this is done by unlocking doors but rather than simply having to seek out keys the developers have instead made every door into a puzzle and the variety of ways in which you unlock these obstacles is impressive to say the least. You'll also have to find things although refreshingly the 'hidden object' sections are by no means the bulk of the game and in order to begin healing the house you'll need to locate shards of glass as the cursed inhabitants have been entrapped in a series of mirrors.

All of this makes the whole experience feel open ended and so you might encounter some puzzles very early on in the game and then discover that these will be the last to be solved as you'll be required to collect components. One part of the game which puzzle fans will particularly enjoy is the fact that the whole castle can be navigated from a map so there's no need to travel right through each room, instead you can 'teleport' to the desired location. In fact our only real criticism is the lack of replay value although the first play through is so incredibly satisfying that you may just overlook this.

Controls

The D-pad can be used for scrolling around the screen, which is actually a lot, more pleasing than using the stylus for a change.

Graphics

Visually the game has a style all of its own but it's actually quite pleasing and the static screens mixed with the spot animation work surprisingly well. Anyone who's played a game like this before will know that the hidden objects sections usually suffer when being ported from a PC because the play area is huge forcing you to scroll around aimlessly for some time but here the screens have been scaled down although you might still go mad looking for that last coin.

Sound

Music has always been important to Hidden Object games, it has to be given that you can easily be staring at a screen for 30 minutes before you can clear it and move on. Witch's Curse doesn't disappoint in this department and the soundtrack fits the on-screen action perfectly. You'll even be treated to your friendly fairy speaking all her lines too, which is a bit of a bonus.

Dual screen

You'd expect a game of this nature to be 'touch-screen' heavy and it is, with the stylus taking place of the mouse on the PC version. Your fairy is pretty intelligent too, giving you help when required whilst also having a few spells up her sleeve. You don't have all of these at your disposal from the beginning but as the game progresses stuff like the ability to break objects open or set things on fire definitely comes in handy.

Final comments

Generally, I'm not too keen on hidden object games (did I mention that?) and even when reading the back cover, I was setting myself up for a huge disappointment. Imagine my surprise then when A Witch's Curse turned out to be not only incredibly immersive but also very rewarding. I had to actually tear myself away from the game in order to write this review. Don't get me wrong, there's still the chore of actually seeking out the 'hidden objects' but the game has a great deal more to offer and the variety of gameplay is very impressive. Too many games of this genre are now squarely aimed at the 'casual gamer' market but there's enough in this innovative adventure to please most DS owners. Give it a try, you might be surprised.

Pro: Very Addictive, Immersive Gameplay. Lots of Variety, Help Available.
Con: Some Instructions a Little Ambiguous
Final score: 8

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