VERSION Collector's Edition full game DEVELOPER Gogii/Silverback GENRE Adventure STORYLINE You play as Luna, and you travel to Lycan Isle to help your friend Tara uncover a mystery. When you arrive, you discover she's gone missing. The local "strange old woman" Brina offers her help, but it appears she has ulterior motives. The police are no help at all, and it seems that the entire island has shut down for the night. If that isn't bad enough, you keep catching glimpses of a strange creature. (If you know the derivation of the name "Lycan," you've already deduced the nature of the "Beast.") GAMEPLAY This is strictly an adventure game, and all the items you're asked to find are items you need to progress. No junk piles here. Instead, you're treated to a landscape that bridges the gap between the realistic and the surreal. Some scenes are merely a treat for the eyes; there's nothing to find there. I found this made the game that much more real, being a bit sick and tired of the incessant junk piles. There's an extra achievement: locating the ten items that belong to Tara. The Beast of Lycan Isle is very reminiscent of the Empress of the Deep series, not surprising since it's by the same developer. INTERFACE The lower left corner contains a number of items to aid you. First is your journal, which notes important clues as well as keeping a running commentary of your adventure. There, you'll also find the map, which you find as you need it. A nice touch. It's not a jump map, and there is a bit of backtracking, but not enough to be annoying. The map is hand-drawn and shows "Polaroid photos" of each locale when you mouse over them. You also have a "Polaroid photo" of Tara to help you complete the achievement of locating her ten clues, the items that belong to her. There's an amulet here as well, but I won't say what its powers are as that would spoil things. Lastly, there's a sort of ste

I just finished the game and it took me 4-5 hrs so do not believe people who try and estimate and say it may be a short game. I enjoyed the great voice overs, some of the puzzles were unique. The best part was no long boring list of hidden objects. I also enjoyed the storyline and the voices fit the characters. I like the way the hidden object screen was done finding a certain number of objects or a single object like a key. The graphics could have been done better but I feel the pros outweigh the cons. I am going to go and play the bonus game now.

I am writing this on the demo but i am very impressed!!!I will say on just the demo alone i think have a feeling this will be my favorite game of the year!!!! the graphics were crystal clear. I liked how the HOS weren't just a list of random objects, you had to actually move from place to place to find them!!! EXCELLENT, EXCELLENT !!!!!!

Oh, but the artwork in this game is gorgeous! It is a bit art deco in places, a bit steampunk, and a lot of dream world - or sometimes nightmare! Dark, but still colorful, beautifully drawn, and totally immersive environment. I'm puzzled as to why some are saying the graphic quality is bad - it isn't! It has a softer quality to the art, and not the very "hard edged" look that I think people refer to as "crisp", but which I am not crazy about. But it is NOT muddy, and objects are easy enough to see. This is one of my favorite devs (Empress of the Deep, Theater of the Absurd, Secrets of the Dragon Wheel), and this is a winner in my book. I saw a beta for it some months back, and have been eagerly awaiting the release. They know how to make it creepy without being ugly. This is an adventure game, not a HO game. There are scenes where you find inventory items and parts to make something work, but mostly it is exploring, adventuring, and solving puzzles. Yay! I haven't used the strategy guide, so can't comment on that. I'm playing on expert mode. You will get objectives to carry out, but no sparkles. This is not an overly difficult game, but it is still challenging enough to be fun without being hairpullingly frustrating. Hints are given as to what you must do, so pay attention. The cursor doesn't change, so you must pay attention and try different things. If it looks like you can pick it up, try it! The map is helpful for finding out where you are, but it is not a jumping map - yay! I like to wander and look for things. The game is fairly linear, but you can wander off on side paths and see stuff you will need to go to later. Voiceovers are good, occur throughout the game, and some are quite quirky. The ambient sounds and music are fitting and unobtrusive. There is a bonus unlevel to unlock, and it appears that it will be a good length. I think the game will be as well, because there is a lot on the map, and I don't even have all the pieces of it yet!

graphics good challenge of game good sound good story line good I recommend this game

Not exactly a Hidden Object Game(wish more people would spell out their HOS) but a little different. Big Fish has stepped up and come out with some fantastic games in the last few days and I have bought every one! This game involves finding different objects and using them in different scenes..so sorta like a hidden object game. Voice Over is pleasant and appealing. Story line is followable and instructions are easy to follow. Most games are decent and easy to finish. 5 Stars!

Based on Completed Game in 1st (casual) of 2 modes. This game was a terrific surprise. I had started several well polished but formulaic fantasy games not finding anything to catch my interest until I ran across this beauty. I enjoyed every moment including bonus play. This game is original in storyline, graphics, and fun factor. It was extremely well thought out and executed to the very last. So, where to start.... Storyline: Werewolves- How can that be original? Also, Luna (the main character) goes to Lycan Isle to locate a missing friend. Nope, not new either. Luna starts out searching the hotel where her friend stayed- Yeah, I know, Yawn. Then Luna expands her search beyond the hotel. -NOW things get interesting & a unique storyline emerges. The atmosphere leans toward the sinister - the theme is werewolves after all. Even so, the game is not heavy or dark. There is a sense of irony & humor, and the artwork is stunningly beautiful, intricate, & part of game play, scene after scene. The ending & bonus play are seamless & integral to the tale leaving no loose ends. It's such a let down when games appear to just "phone it in" towards the end by tossing a parade of mini-puzzles or HOS, then abruptly rolling the credits. Not the case here. The quality of this game play remains top notch throughout. Other Likes- Inventory Bar: Unique-to me anyway. It could be shrunken to take up a minimum of real-estate, rather than bobbing up & down each time the cursor drew near making me sea-sick. Inventory Items: These were often found by silhouette such as 5 shapes of weapons appearing in inventory of item to be found & used later for a mini-puzzle. Mini-Puzzles: Some original, most easy, but all well done even in bonus play. Cursor & Sparkles: All very subtle in either mode. VOs: Well done on all counts. Nice to Haves: Map: Yes. It was found a piece at a time during game play and shows Luna's location

Not a hidden object game! Lots of walking around to find items to complete fairly easy but new puzzles, and graphically very well done! Map is easy to follow, but not navigatable as far as I can tell. The hidden object scenes are not a list, but a visual clue to find large items on the screen for use in a puzzle. There is a growly face click penalty, but just appears momentarily on the screen. My guess is, this is the beginning of a new visual style for games. Navigation was amazing, a ghost hand helps you pick up items, the voiceovers and ambient music were excellent. Strategy guide is 26 pages and keeps up with the game, 2 levels of difficulty - casual and expert (I played on casual for the review). Options for music, voice, effects and fullscreen. Adventure gamers will love the storyline, but hidden object gurus, you have to be curious enough to move around the map and screen to find your next objective. The surely worked hard on this one.

This game is very different from what I'm use to playing. In general I liked the new changes. This review is only on the 60 minute demo. I loved the fact there were voice overs for all the lines, instead of us just having to read them. I always thought this would be a good idea. This is first time I've seen a game with this feature. Some might think this is a lot of hand-holding but I think it adds to the atmosphere of the game. The hint system is very good and tells you exactly what you need to do. The hint system is so good you might not need the CE with the strategy guide. So far there are no HOG's but FROG's instead which I really like. There is a lot of running around and it's too bad the map doesn't transport from scene to scene. The graphics were just okay with me, I thought they were a little flat. Like I said I haven't played the whole game yet. . . hopefully the rest of the game is as good as the beginning.

Only tried it, and it seems to me original: storyline, graphics mainly. The level of challenge is not very high, with a lot of help available (map and hints), but the ambiance is fun and makes you shivers