Developer: Stand Off Software
Publisher: Stand Off Software
Platfiorm: PC
Tested On: PC
Poltergeist Treasure – Review
Only a few months after the release of Unicorn Dungeon, Poltergeist Treasure is now available on PC. This is the second in a series of games following the adventures of Sir Typhil of Creulor on a quest to bring a unicorn to a castle so he can become a king. After Unicorn Dungeon left us hanging a little, we’re hoping this sequel makes us laugh a bit more and wait a little less. Knock, knock, who’s ready?
Story
To those not familiar with Unicorn Dungeon, here is a quick recap. Poltergeist Treasure picks up where its precedent left. King Haldrin, ruler of Atrovya, is still sick. Whoever brings him a unicorn will be crowned as the new king of his kingdom. Sir Typhil of Creulor, the hero in our story once again, is one of the knights who goes on a quest to retrieve a unicorn. Now, since we’re in the second part of his journey already, he’s on his way to the kingdom with a unicorn. While Unicorn Dungeon took place in a dungeon, Poltergeist Treasure takes us to a haunted forest.
There isn’t really anything new added to the story compared to the previous game. It isn’t necessary for you to play Unicorn Dungeon if you want to try out Poltergeist Treasure, since it’s also a stand-alone game on its own. Still, it feels like the game is more fun if you have the complete background, and the previous experiences.
Graphics
The game looks very basic and simple but still has an all right appearance. The forest has its charms, with the mist hanging around. Both the house and the mansion have a typical look and feel. Poltergeist Treasure surely doesn’t have the best looking graphics, but it doesn’t need to either.
Sound
The music is highly enjoyable. It’s simple, varied, and not intruding the game too much. There’s different music for the different places in the game. For example, the forest has a scary feel so the music used here is scary yet fun, making it perfect for a comedy point and click journey through a dark haunted forest. The mansion and the cabin inhabited by the old man are also both accompanied by different tunes, as well as the stealth part of the game.
The voice acting is also entertaining, just as it was in Unicorn Dungeon. However, this time around the humor seems better. It’s still very dry humor but it feels like the developers stepped up their game with the lame jokes, making it more enjoyable.
Gameplay
Poltergeist treasure is mainly a point and click adventure game. While Unicorn Dungeon added a rogue-like dungeon crawler, you now can enjoy some top-down stealth gaming in-between. Every game of the series will include elements of other types of games, which helps to keep you interested in the sequels. If you enjoy playing point and click games, but the rogue-like dungeon crawler wasn’t a good fit for you, you can still continue the game series and try something new! This was a rather smart move on behalf of Stand Off Software.
You basically continue where you left off in Unicorn Dungeon. You were transported through a portal and you now find yourself lost in a deep, dark forest. In order to leave you need to retrieve the lost treasure and give it to the spirit haunting the forest. If you start with Poltergeist Treasure, you can play the tutorial first. It mostly prepares you for the being witty part of the game, but don’t expect too much out of it. You might as well skip it and you won’t miss a thing.
When you walk through the portal, you’ll find yourself at a crossroads where you can choose either of four ways; north, east, south, and west. You’ll quickly find out one of those leads to absolutely nothing and magically brings you back to the crossroads again. Obviously, this is because you’re totally lost in this bizarre forest. Luckily, the other three options you’re left with do lead somewhere. Two will bring you to interesting places in the forest. The third one however, will lead you to the stealth part of the game.
Let’s start with the biggest part of the game; point and click. In order to move, you just point to where you want to go, click, and guess what? Yes, you will walk there (duh). But more importantly, you’ll encounter different NPCs you can interact with. These NPCs may be able to help you, or they could counteract you. Besides the NPCs, you’ll also stumble upon various items. Honestly, you should just pick up everything you can. This is where the puzzling starts. The items you have stored in your inventory can then be used on NPCs, objects, or other items in your inventory. Fair warning though; you might find yourself trying items on items because you’re completely lost and don’t know what to do. This could lead to interesting discoveries, so don’t give up too quickly!
Then there is still the stealth part of the game. A stealth game just means that you walk around and avoid obstacles. In Poltergeist Treasure’s case, you avoid being seen by green zombie-like creatures and statues. You’ll also have to watch out for the pink infinity shaped gates that will cost you some life points if you run into them. Don’t worry, some can be turned off by walking into a little fireplace, creating fire. You start with 16 life points and when you die you can just start over again. When you reach the end, you find yourself in another part of the forest again. Every time you want to reach this part, or you want to get back to the crossroads, you have to go through the stealth game. If you find yourself having trouble with the difficulty of this part, rescue will come to you. After failing the stealth game a few times, you get the option to play it in an easy mode. This basically means there are less creatures and statues to look out for.
Conclusion
Poltergeist Treasure stepped up its game in comparison to Unicorn Dungeon. And we mean this in every way. Even though it’s still not the greatest game, the aesthetic, the humor, and the gameplay were all improved. Maybe it’s just the idea of a haunted forest that appeals more to us, or the stealth section being more fun than the rogue-like dungeon crawler. Whatever it may be, if you’re hesitant about this series of games and you want to test out one, we recommend this one.
Poltergeist Treasure - Review,
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