Enigmatis 2: Mists of Ravenwood Review

Uncovering clues and working out the culprit of some wrongdoing is difficult enough. But when the world constantly shifts, moves and changes around you, things can get somewhat complicated. Enigmatis 2: Mists of Ravenwood follows on from the first in its series, and the sequel brings an even more supernatural mystery to be uncovered and solved.

Enigmatis 2 takes place a year after the events of the first game, with the protagonist - a determined female detective - chasing down the Maple Creek preacher she fought originally. Unfortunately, what she finds sends her on yet another bewildering, supernatural adventure in a point-and-click, find-the-object style thriller.

After finding a campervan which appears to have been brutally attacked by some enormous and otherworldly creature, with a terrified girl inside who claims her parents have been stolen, you are plunged into a strange and sinister nature park full of tricks of the eye and hidden secrets. Nothing is at it seems - the environment shifts and changes, sometimes very subtly, following your actions. The disappearance of the family to whom the camper belonged is clearly linked to the enormous, supernatural raven terrorising the people of this town, and it is up to you to piece together the mystery.

As a hidden object puzzle game, Enigmatis 2 feels inevitably linear. You must discover certain objects to overcome obstacles before you may continue, and the explorable areas can feel limited until you are able to move on. The game eases you into the idea of finding objects to achieve a goal by asking you to repair a teddy bear found in the woods, using various clickable objects. Clicking on animals and leaves can sometimes reveal objects otherwise unseen, and items can be stored in an inventory for later use.

Interactive wildlife prevents the game from appearing too lifeless, and interacting with certain objects can reveal secrets or peculiarities that merely exist to provide intrigue to the environment. For example, a tree which appears to have eyes may blink upon being interacted with, or a squirrel may dash into the canopy. The handpainted artwork is vivid and intricate, using hues of purple to cast a mystical haze over the world around you.

As well as collecting items, you gather various pieces of evidence which can be added to a pinboard for review. A mysterious stranger locked in a dungeon also promises information and background story for each piece of the lock upon his door that you uncover. You may also find that, at times, you enter a building and uncover its secrets only to exit and find the world completely changed - buildings fallen into disrepair, trees have changed shape, signs have been altered. Finding all of the parts of the environment which have been altered in this way becomes a mini-challenge. Ethereal butterflies are also hidden sparsely and obscurely within the game, and can be collected for an achievement. All of these many objects and signs to watch out for mean that you find yourself carefully scanning each corner and nook of every area before moving on. Artifex Mundi successfully ensure that the player is fully engrossed in the environment by keeping you perpetually alert for any of the many objects you must find.

Hidden object games are scattered throughout the game, and can be exceedingly difficult at times. Objects must be moved around, paired together or repaired as you attempt to find all the pieces listed at the bottom of the screen. These challenges are, however, optional. You can instead choose to progress by playing a card pair game, and bypass the fiddly hidden object finding entirely. This is a refreshing addition - although I am a fan of hidden object games, Enigmatis 2 is keen not to appear inaccessible to newcomers to the genre and the series. Engaging in the story without being too bogged down by intricate puzzles is a much more viable option this way.

In regards to story, the storyline is not all that rich. It is extremely predictable. There wasn’t a single plot twist or curveball that I did not already see coming. However, this again makes the game increasingly accessible to players who are not yet familiar with the Enigmatis story. It is a simple enough premise that you can jump straight into the second game, without feeling like you are missing vital information from the first. However, it is engaging in that there are so many uncoverable elements. As you add to your evidence board, or retrieve more information from the locked-up stranger about the town, the mystery becomes ever more rich and convoluted. The story is not fed to you on a plate, but offered in pieces until it becomes a whole. It also instils a definite feeling of achievement as a detective to watch as you visually map out the events that have occurred within Ravenwood Park.

There is also a sense of urgency which quickens the pace of the game significantly - with a world that can change around you at any moment, and the need to find various items to be able to continue or overcome an obstacle (one of my favourite examples of which was piecing together a makeshift tranquiliser gun to stun a bear blocking the path), there is a pressing feeling that you may not actually be suitably equipped to come to the rescue. With an empty inventory and a problem in your way, you find yourself retracing your steps and ransacking every possible area to gather potentially useful tools for the future.