Drawn: The Painted Tower

 
Developer: Big Fish Games
Steam Release: Jan 2011
Hours Played: 4.8
Similar To: Drawn: Dark Flight / Drawn: Trail of Shadows
Rating: 5/5 Parsnips



GAMEPLAY
Although not strictly an indie game, DTPT is no triple A title either and can certainly be classed as casual. It also happens to be the first point and click adventure game I fully completed and I pretty much enjoyed every minute of it. The game has you exploring a mysterious tower whose environments are presented as a series of screens. Apart from a few exceptions, the screens generally don't have any animated objects within. You solve puzzles and move from one screen to the next to progress. The ultimate task is to rise to the top of the tower. To explore, you use your cursor to hover over key points of interest and to interact with objects. Much like The Tiny Bang Story, there are pictures or areas within pictures and your pointer changes to various icons to give you further clues. 


BALANCE & PACE
You may also find and pick up items which can be dropped into your inventory and used later by either being combined with further items or used directly on the screen. Puzzles are presented with virtually no text or, at the very most, a few cryptic clues to give you a vague idea of what to do. This, in my opinion works well and, although there is a very slight trial and error feel about the game, forces the player to give their brains more of a workout. It also adds to the mysterious and dark nature of the game which has a kind of dream-like, surreal edge to it that really helps the immersive feel. Along with this, it also conveys a hint of danger and tension that adds to the whole intrigue and mystery surrounding the game.



PRESENTATION & DESIGN
Drawn: The Painted Tower is a moody, atmospheric game which is put across immediately by its eerie main-menu. To sombre and mournful tones, a choir sings gentle choral notes in the background as if in a peaceful monastery. We also see the stone carving of Iris - the protagonist of the story - appear before us in a sad, pale turquoise colour. All of which sets a suitable tone to the game. The Options path gives very few tweaks while the Extras show how many of the 30 achievements have been recorded. Play throws us straight into the game. Response here is quick, solid and stable. 

PROGRESS SYSTEM
Drawn: The Painted Tower is more an adventure game than a hidden object game and like most adventure games does not tell you how far you have progressed or how far you have to go so you're in the dark on that score. Although there are objectives to fulfil and it does keep you informed of what you have to do, there aren't any records kept or tabs kept on chapters. When you fire up the game, you're simply thrown in immediately from when and where you finished the previous session. 
 

CONCLUSION
Adventure games can be obscure, baffling and downright nonsensical while others can be too text-heavy or contain overlong and repetitive dialogue trees. Personally, I've been stumped by many and have been almost put off by the genre altogether. Thankfully a few come along that just seem kinder to us noobs and just a bit gentler but which still manage to be challenging enough for us to be entertained and make us want to keep playing. Drawn: The Painted Tower is one of those games. Granted, although there is an option here to skip the puzzles (and there is a very nice hint system), I personally only felt the need to skip two which I did find too tricky. Like The Tiny Bang Story, this is a pleasant, user-friendly adventure game for those who don't really like most adventure games.