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Ankh | List Price: $19.99
Discount Price: $4.20
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Platform: Windows XP
Brand: Viva Media
Binding: Video Game
Release Date: 2006-08-28
ESRB Age Rating: Teen
Features: - 200+ sports and racing games; more than 210 card and casino games
- Become immersed in Ankh's amazing ancient world this comic adventure
- Accidentally unleash a deadly curse; discover a precious amulet
- Over 1300 puzzle and board games; 570+ word and brain games
- More than 500 action and arcade games; over 420 Sudoku games
Easy point-and-click interface and... No StarForce on Viva Media version [Posted on 2006-10-23]
First off, the version of Ankh that is published by Viva Media, which is what Amazon.com is selling, does NOT contain the evil StarForce. In fact it started up and played for me without the CD in the drive -- a great convenience for a butterfingers like me.
Ankh follows the tradition of the Monkey Island games made by LucasArts. It has a mouse controlled point-and-click interface which is easy to learn, even if you can't be bothered to reference the pdf manual that is on the CD (no printed manual is included in the Viva Media version of Ankh). You do have to remember to right-click objects when you want to "use" them and left-click them when you want a comment. That means you always right-click when combining objects in inventory or when using an object on something that is not in inventory. (In most adventure games you left-click to do these things, so you may left-click out of habit.)
Ankh was clearly meant to be reminiscent of the Monkey Island games, even including references to them, like a Monkey-headed rattle. And similar to the Monkey Island games, you can sass other characters to your heart's content without fear of getting your character killed or making a puzzle unsolvable.
On the down side, the game is a bit short. The "puzzles" are all inventory and conversation based, which got to be a bit monotonous. I like a bit of variety in my puzzles. Considering that part of the game took place in a Sphinx, a few mechanical puzzles would not have been out of place -- or at least a few puzzles that required a little thought -- something more than "this inventory item looks like you could put it here" or "who haven't I talked to yet." Considering the game is rated T for Teen, I'd have expected a bit more difficulty. Nancy Drew games (rated E for Everyone) are more difficult than this. Also I don't think the humor is quite up to the standards set by LucasArts. Often the game seemed more "Disney" than "LucasArts." I don't remember any swearing, but some character might have said "damn" without my noticing. Oh wait. There was a joke about someone being called an "old fart." Does that rate a T?
Overall not a bad game, though I felt like I was playing a kid's game most of the time.
Classic-Style Point and Click [Posted on 2007-01-06]
Assil, the son of the designer of Pharaoh's pyramids, and a few friends have broken into a tomb for a little party. Unfortunately, their party disturbs a mummy, who proceeds to inflict a death curse on our hapless hero. In the process, the mummy loses an Ankh he's been holding. Assil acquires it without knowing what it is; all he wants is to get the death curse removed. Only Pharaoh can do that--but how to get to see Pharaoh, especially when his father has grounded him for his late-night activities??
"Ankh: Reverse the Curse" is a 3rd person point and click adventure in the classic style, harking back, as others have mentioned, to the old Lucas Arts games like Monkey Island and Grim Fandango. There are good and bad aspects to this. You can't die or even get stuck and there are none of the annoying timed puzzles that are becoming so prevalent in adventure today. On the other hand, there's A LOT of running around from location to location and some of the puzzles are the illogical sort that make some people hate adventure as a genre (yes, I really WOULD use a bed of nails to open a can instead of the more appropriate things I have in inventory...)
The puzzles are almost entirely conversation- and inventory-based--I can only think of one exception. Most are fairly easy if you have learned to think like a game developer. Otherwise you may find youself combining--or trying to combine--random inventory with random hotspots to try to get something, ANYTHING to happen. This happened to me several times. Also, there are many pixel hunts or places where a moving part sometimes shows a hotspot and sometimes doesn't. I found this unecessarily frustrating.
I also ran into a couple glitches playing the game: one where opening the treasure map caused the game to lock up so I had to reboot my computer and restart from the last save, and another where doing several pieces of a task out of order made it impossible to go on. Once again, I had to quit the game and reload the last save.
On the good side, this game is funny and, as I said, it has no timed sequences and you can't die (or not really. There is one kind of timed puzzle, but you can practice as much as you want and it's not very long). The voice acting is quite good, as is the 3-D, cartoon style animation. I quite liked the environmental F/X--in addition to background sounds, you could overhear people carrying on conversations, just as you might in a real marketplace. One section where you played two characters was pretty interesting; I wish you had been able to do that more. Your inventory remained relatively small and most items disappeared when you were through with them. The story developed well, from what seemed a simple task at first to a plot with wider implications that could well carry into the sequel (which is being made even as I write this). I considered the game neither too short nor too long, but just the right length for what it was trying to accomplish.
I also cannot quite understand the Teen rating here, unless it was due to the skimpy costume one of the female characters wore, or perhaps the scary Osiris character. Ankh, in my opinion, is a great game for the family to enjoy together as well as a great game for the single adventurer. I hope the sequel comes out soon.
Wish I could have played it [Posted on 2007-01-15]
I had to return it. It would not play on my computer. But I think from the first few minutes I could see it is a great game.
5 Stars Fun with 3 Stars Graphics [Posted on 2007-06-10]
But don't let that stop you from buying it. I have the Mac version and it's absolutely fun. It's one of those games that once you've start you cannot put down. For all ages.
Definitely fun and worthwhile [Posted on 2008-02-05]
Ankh is an enjoyable lighthearted adventure that, if you ask me, is a refreshing change of pace from the usual modern adventure games that tend to take themselves too seriously. Don't let the clichéd Egyptian setting be discouraging. This is no boring romp in the Sahara.
The humor isn't side-splitting, but it kept a smile on my face throughout and supplied an adequate amount of larfs. With endearing characters, eye-catching graphics, a well made (if not underused) musical soundtrack, and plenty of levity, I think there are enough pros to heavily outweigh the cons (such as the relative brevity or less-than-top-notch vocal editing).
It's not the best game I've ever played, but it certainly fits nicely into my top forty favorite 21st-Century-released adventure games. An easy 8 out of 10. Well worth the time, if not the MSRP. $30 is a bit high. I suggest waiting for it to go on sale (or hooking it used), then jump on it!
Incidentally, I'm not exactly sure what Amazon had on its mind when it listed this game, but some of its description is inaccurate. First, the game was released in 2006, not 2001. Also, three of the five bulleted "Product Features" are not found in here. There are no "sports and racing games," nor "card and casino games." This is not the place to find "over 1300 puzzle and board games" nor "570+ word and brain games." And you'll not find "more than 500 action and arcade games" nor "over 420 Sudoku games." The other two bullets are accurate, though. FYI. :)
Lastly, pay no attention to the Star-Force rhetoric surrounding this game. The North American version sold here by Amazon does NOT install any hidden programs nor copy-protection malware to damage either one's pc or gaming experience.
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