A dark conclusion to the zany point and click adventure
What Runaway: A Twist of Fate Got Right
- + Slick, movie-like presentation
- + Quirky, eccentric and likeable characters
- + Excellent production values
What Runaway: A Twist of Fate Got Wrong
- - Less crazy than other Runaway adventures
- - Heavily inventory based puzzles
- - Story isn't particularly deep or memorable
From one of the biggest developers in adventure gaming today, Pendulo Studios brings us the third and final installment to the comic-like Runaway series, A Twist of Fate. In this darker installment, Gina Simmons, reformed pole dancer, is no longer the damsel in distress as she plays a key part in finding out what happened to Brian.
Brian Basco, the series protagonist, has been framed for murder and thrown into the nuthouse since the conclusion to The Dream of the Turtle. The game starts with Gina, his girlfriend, receiving a mysterious call from Brian after his apparent funeral. She must find a way to save him from his own burial, by collaborating with a spirit seer and solving puzzles to release him from his grave.
As evident of the Runaway series, we meet some eccentric and literally crazy characters in some interesting locations such as the small town cemetery and the Happy Dale mad house. The alternating perspectives between Gina and Brian perfectly fill in the gaps to what happened to Brian while he was in the nuthouse. Gina's antagonising perspective is quite hilarious, in contrast with Brian's calculating, quirky perspective.
Compared to its previous installments, A Twist of Fate has received an overhaul to its mechanics and graphics with the same slick, movie-like quality as Pendulo's newest adventures, The Next Big Thing and Yesterday. The highly detailed cartoonish environments and animated sequences are pleasing to the eye, and the character styling and voice acting is superb.
Regarding the mechanics, this is definitely adventure gaming at its finest with a hotspot feature highlighting different parts of the screen you can interact with, a progress report updating you on what your current objective is, and a fun, interactive hint system which is one of the best I've experienced. The first time you use it, it starts off with you calling the phone support guy and its fun seeing what he has to say as he guides/goads you throughout the adventure.
It's evident the developers have put a lot of thought into the game. When you right click the objects to interact with them, there are some fun actions that the developers have put in just to add a bit of humour to the game. Some slapstick references to pop culture movies have also been put in there, although you'll definitely get sick of the 'I know what you did last summer' joke after the fifth mention.
The Final Verdict
Runaway: A Twist of Fate is an enjoyable, light-hearted point and click adventure that is a joy to play through. While it isn't ground-breaking in any way, it definitely showcases the best in adventure gaming. If you haven't played the other Runaway games, you can still experience A Twist of Fate as a standalone adventure. With excellent production values, great humour and a host of crazy and interesting characters, you should definitely run away and grab it.
By Jeann Wong- Bio