Developer: Daedalic Entertainment
Publisher: Daedalic Entertainment
platform: Mac, PC
The Night of the Rabbit – Review
You might remember our preview of Daedalic Entertainment’s latest entry, but it wasn’t until now that we actually got to experience the game to its fullest.
Time to find out if this charming nod towards Alice in Wonderland can hold its own.
Story
Star of the game is the young Jeremiah Hazelnut. Jerry is an adventurous boy, always dreaming about his next adventure. Though, with only two days left to his summer holidays, his life as a dutiful student is set to end Jerry’s fun abruptly.
Luckily for him, those few remaining are rapidly becoming the magical experience Jerry was hoping for.
Things start off with a flying -triangular- letter containing a spell that summons the Marquis de Hoto, an elegant rabbit who plans on turning Jeremiah in a full-fledged magician’s apprentice.
Before he knows it, Jerry finds himself in Mousewood, a magical world where human-sized mice and squirrels are trying to fend off an army of destructive crows.
I’m not one for spoiling stories, so you’ll need to discover all the details for yourselves. For now it’s enough to know that The Night of the Rabbit offers a charming story that draws heavily from children’s bedtime stories with a pinch of good, old Alice in Wonderland.
Thanks to a great cast of interesting -and humorous- characters, the story manages to stay fresh.
Graphics
There’s no denying it, The Night of the Rabbit is one of the most beautiful games in the point & click genre. I said the same thing in the game’s preview, but it’s difficult not to recognize the talent currently present at Daedalic Entertainment.
Mousewood is delightfully detailed, with not a single object seeming out of place.
A competent combination of skillfully designed artwork and clever use of light and shadows creates a mystical world that breathes life into the magic-filled world of The Night of the Rabbit.
Sure, every area in the game is more like a still life than an action-packed scene, but an enormous amount of workmanship makes sure even the most static sceneries feel alive.
Take it from me; stop buying your kids countless books filled with bedtime stories. Give them this game instead.
Sound
There’s not much to say about the game’s music, which I haven’t already spoken about in our preview. Suffice to say that The Night of the Rabbit’s soundtrack complements the game’s portrayal of a mystical world where every corner brings along another wondrous moment.
Especially the game’s main theme makes for an instant classic; one that’s best experienced with either a decent pair of headphones or with a bombastic set of speakers.
I’d also like to applaud the actors who lent their voices to The Night of the Rabbit, as they’ve done an awesome job.
Gameplay
I’ll start with another quote from our preview:
“Point & click says as point & click does, there’s really not much new to add to the formula. Pointing and clicking only gets you that many possibilities.”
The Night of the Rabbit isn’t a breath of fresh air in the genre, not when it comes to its gameplay.
There’s simply nothing in this game that hasn’t been done a hundred times before. Case in point: the stick you pick up at the beginning of the game is almost immediately used to grab the obligatory item placed a tad too high for Jerry’s kid-sized self.
It falls to the game’s finishing touch then to set the bar a bit higher for the genre.
For example: a handy questlog keeps track of important notes and hints Jerry took or overheard while talking to the inhabitants of Mousewood. It’s a simple and straightforward addition, but it makes sure you’re not wasting time on tedious backtracking.
Then there’s the spacebar. Yes, that key on your keyboard that has traditionally been used to display hints or clickable parts in the environment. It’s still got its work cut out for it in The Night of the Rabbit of course -representing a coin with a hole in the middle for young Jeremiah to look trough-, but at the same time using it can also reveal changes to the scenery.
Still, even considering these clever ideas, it’s still a pity to find out Jeremiah Hazelnut’s quest quickly derails into a tedious list of chores.
Most demands voiced by Mousewood’s inhabitants lead to at least three other tasks, none of them actually giving you a feeling of satisfaction.
There’s no real reward for completing them, nor is there a sense of accomplishment when you’ve finally brought fulfilled a request.
It’s a sad blemish on an otherwise excellent game.
Conclusion
Audiovisually The Night of the Rabbit takes a spot near the very top of its genre, offering a proper challenge for future rivals.
A pity then, that puzzles and riddles are often tedious chores instead of adventurous tasks that reflect the game’s protagonist’s own spirit.
The Night of the Rabbit is still worth playing of course. There’s a magical world and a great story waiting to be discovered. Just don’t expect any great advancement to the traditional point & click gameplay.
The Night of the Rabbit - Review,
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