Developer: KING Art
Publisher: THQ Nordic
Platform: PC, Wii U, Switch, PS3, PS4, Xbox 360, Xbox One
Tested on: Switch
The Book of Unwritten Tales 2 (Switch) – Review
The Book of Unwritten Tales was first released in 2012 and not long after the sequel was released, The Book of Unwritten Tales 2 was released in 2015. It was first released for the PC and later also released for Wii U, PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, Xbox 360 and Xbox One. Recently a Nintendo Switch version was also released. The Book of Unwritten Tales was developed by KING Art and published by THQ Nordic and we got a chance to review the Switch version.
Story
War had raged all through Aventasia, the alliance of humans, elves, and dwarves all fought against the evil Army of the Shadows. The war had devastated the country for years upon years and yet not one side managed to get the advantage over the other. Right in this time of despair, a sprinkle of hope appeared. An old archaeologist uncovered the location of the artefact of Divine Fate. The artefact could fulfill every wish and could make either side the victor. Led by Warlock Munkus, son of Arch Witch Mortroga, the Shadows hunted for the artefact. They would have reached it first if a group of heroes didn’t beat them to it. Wilbur the young gnome, Ivo the Elven princess, the cute creature called: the critter and Nate Bonnet.
This story is mostly a recap from the first game. You’ll once again see and play with these heroes. You will go from one hero to the other, seeing what they are up to after the first game. At first, you will mostly play alone with the heroes but later some of them will interact with each other. The story progresses nicely, it might be recommended to first play the first game to know a bit more that is going on but The Book of Unwritten Tales 2 is able to stand on its own. Heroes will sometimes remember things from the first game and reminisce about it. So you often get to know it a bit more about the previous events if you don’t remember. There are also quite a bit of references in the game which can be humorous, certainly if you know what they are talking about.
Graphics
The graphics from The Book of Unwritten Tales 2 look pretty good. They aren’t overly realistic but more rustic fantasy game style, which fits in perfectly with the game’s atmosphere. The graphics might be a bit outdated but they are nicely worked out. The backgrounds look really nice and pleasing to the eyes. There are little details that you can discover that might not be part of the story but are just nice design wise. The Switch version, even though released later, isn’t different graphically. Both the TV mode and handheld/table mode from Unwritten Tales 2 look good.
Sound
Music in The Book of Unwritten Tales 2 fits in with the fantasy story telling atmosphere. It’s well done, however, some tracks are a bit over the top certainly when they are on a loop. The menu music is a good example of a song you’d rather turn off after hearing it for the first time, since it’s so loud and overly exciting for pause menu music.
The voice acting in Unwritten Tales 2 is incredibly well done, all the voice actors did a really good job portraying the emotions of the characters. The voice actors managed to pull off a quirkiness that really fits their respective character.
Gameplay
The Book of Unwritten Tales 2 is an adventure, puzzle, point and click style game where you’ll be able to follow the story of four different heroes. Each hero is having their own “adventure” but it all happens in the same world and not even that far from each other. They will sometimes interact with each other but you mostly only play with one hero. The game’s mechanics get explained very well with a tutorial that starts after the intro story. Characters can look at objects/people and give their opinion on it. They can then interact with the object in the way that they seem fit. Some objects you will also be able to pick up. Once you pick up an object it ends up in your inventory. In your inventory, you can combine objects with one another or just select one to use.
Since the game is a sort of point and click genre it really is a missed opportunity from the developers to not use the touch screen from the Switch in handheld mode. It seems logical to just touch the thing you want the character to examine but no you actually still have to look at it and use the buttons. There also is a weird “bug” where you will select a person to talk to, or an object to interact with and the character starts weirdly walking back and forth as if positioning themselves. Even though you were for example already standing right next to the person/object. It really is an odd sight and becomes annoying after a bit when you for example quickly wanted to re-read something.
As you play, it is not quite easy to tell which objects will be important and which are not of importance, so the best strategy is often to look at everything. This way when you need an object later on you might know where to find it. The Book of Unwritten Tales doesn’t give you many hints on how to continue. You only really know your objectives but there is no way to know that you are on the right track until you actually complete the objective and hear the success sound. You also know you’re on the right track when you found something you need of course. Sometimes it’s not always logical which objects you need to interact with, with other objects. You’ll either run around selecting objects and seeing what they interact with or give up and check a guide.
Conclusion
The Book of Unwritten Tales 2 is a really fun game. You’ll certainly be able to enjoy yourself with the numerous references and jokes that are made in the game. The game is pretty long for a point and click-esque game and depending on if you give up and check a guide or do it yourself it can take even longer. There is a feeling of accomplishment of doing it without a guide. The Book of Unwritten Tales 2 is certainly recommended to anyone who likes puzzle games with a nice story attached to it. It is up to you if you also want to play the first game since you don’t necessarily need to.
The Book of Unwritten Tales 2 (Switch) - Review,
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