Joyfess Ep1: Martin's Secret Recipe

[h1]"That won't work, that won't work, THAT WON'T WORK! " [/h1] Once again, I wish there was a [h3][b]Neutral option[/b][/h3], but since this is cute project done by a small team, I can't compare them to massive studios' titles, nor can I give it a thumbs up in case I discourage them to try again. PROS: - Cute, hand drawn animations. Don't expect Deponia, but the two artists gave their best. - Lovely setting, beautiful backgrounds. - Story is interesting enough to keep me playing, the jokes are alright, lots of references to other more famous video games. - Walking is fast, the world is easy to navigate in. OBVIOUS CONS: - It's super short (thank God I bought it when it was on Sale). - Unfinished plot, with little chance of getting a sequel (but you never know). CONS that really bugged me on a personal level and I hope the creator will take them as constructive criticism/suggestions for their next game/ chapter, because they are super talented and need to keep creating more games: - The game didn't feel good to play - it felt frustrating. Here are some of the reasons: > Please add more dialogue when we are using objects the wrong way. I got so sick of hearing "That wont work!" 50 times before something eventually worked. [Spoiler]Just tell me if you don't need to poor some Ketchup in the empty ink bottle so I can die the horseshoe red, ok? XD[/Spoiler] > Obvious solutions to puzzles don't work and we are not told why. When not repeating "That won't work", occasionally Joyfess will remark on how, let's say, weird our line of thought is, when in fact it makes PERFECT sense! There were rarely any hints or suggestions on what to do. > Sometimes you know exactly what to do, but the game won't let you until you go back and forth a few times and do unnecessary things in order to confirm what needs to be done (e.g. [spoiler] The carriage and Oil dispenser, I had to speak several times with the bartender to gain his permission before I could move it. Or when I found out I needed the Red Pepper thingy I wen to the Farmer only to be told I need to speak with someone else first before questioning him......Why?[/spoiler]) I mean it's alright to have other characters give you hints on where to find the FINAL hint, but they shouldn't be mandatory when the player has already figured it out. > I was stuck a few times and really confused. For example: I had no idea how to use the icons from the recipe until I checked a walkthrough. In fact, there were several times I felt completely lost because of the game's mechanics or lack of explanation or hints. For instance [spoiler] when I combined the oil with chicken sauce to get the sleeping potion, one of the bottles disappeared, which led me to believe that the one that is left contains the needed liquid. However, after 20 tries and me cursing under my breath like a proper sailor to get in character, I suddenly realised that the "combined potion" was moved at the end of the item list (which you need to scroll to see). I know it's not a major problem, but it made me so annoyed when I kept wondering where random items have gone![/spoiler] > The "Indians" and especially their "smelly" chief... forget it, I am not into politics. Just felt Joyfess was rather rude and condescending when dealing with them. The stinky joke was also very unnecessary, didn't have anything to do with the plot. Also Joyfess's parting words to the thribe were... yep, just, no. > The story draaaaaaaaaaaaaged for too long, and nothing was happening, despite it being short. Some of the objects we had to find were just so random and convoluted and didn't really make the experience fun. Instead of investing so much work and time on the random puzzles, next time the creator can tighten the plot and include more storytelling and character development that goes with the puzzles. I know that finding seemingly unnecessary objects to get to the final one is typical for Point and Click adventures, but at least try to add more humour or minimise their number. > I wish there was more dialogue option when trying to combine items and/or trying to give/use the items the wrong way...again! The game is cute and gives you a nice nostalgic feeling, especially to a Point and Click adventure fan like me. It was done by a small team which was probably not easy. It's not a finished product, but it was a good result for a first try. Point and Click adventure games are rarely popular or financially profitable, so I am grateful to every creator who is capable of adding more titles to the market. Keep them coming and good luck!

Great point and click adventure, which has a Monkey Island vibe to it. Double-click hurry-up mode, clear inventory. Finished it in three hours, sadly. Can't wait for the new episode!

Very warm and engaging!! The game has this really nice nostalgic vibe, and the art style is cute and refreshing. Its atmosphere feels well put together, and the logic puzzles are fun and challenging without being overwhelming. Good for classic adventure game enjoyers ;))

A very nice and entertaining inventory-based adventure game, in the best tradition of the genre. Nice graphics, funny story, not too difficult, nor too easy, no silly QTE''s (they dont belong in REAL adventure games). A bit on the short side, but looking forward to ep. 2, hopefully on its way ?

-Pros Nice art style Good controls, entirely playable with mouse. Decent voice acting Standard point and click puzzle design, inventory based for the most part. Interesting characters Humorous story and dialog -Cons No hot-spot reveal tool, although to be fair there is very little (if any) pixel hunting. Short Not a complete story, only episode one of a planned two patter. In fairness this should be fairly obvious from the game title. Overall recommended.

Very good but short

It’s an excellent game. A very nice point and click with loads of humour. Puzzles are not too easy or too difficult. Good voice-acting. I’m looking forward to the sequel.

[h3] Overpriced and unfinished !!! [/h3] [b] This is the first (short) chapter of an ongoing story that is no longer being developed. [/b] The humour, voice acting and graphic style are well done. This could have been a really good game if it had been concluded.

Great game. Looking forward to the next episode.

Good point-n-click fun, from a small dev