The Hand of Glory
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Über das Spiel
Beim verzweifelten Versuch eines Comebacks beschließt Lazarus, heimlich das Verschwinden von Kathrin Mulzberg, der jungen Nachfahrin einer der einflussreichsten Familien der Stadt, zu untersuchen.
Von den sonnigen Stränden Miamis bis zu den üppigen Hügeln Italiens muss er alle ihm zur Verfügung stehenden Möglichkeiten nutzen, um die Wahrheit hinter der Entführung zu enthüllen.
Und irgendwann gibt es kein Zurück mehr.
Bereite dich auf eine lange und gefährliche Reise vor.
Etwas Obskures brodelt hinter der schillernden Fassade von Miami. Eine Kraft, die über das übliche menschliche Verständnis von Wissenschaft und Religion hinausgeht. Es gibt einen stillen, latenten Krieg. Einen Krieg, der in der Lage ist, die Grundlagen der Zivilisation zu erschüttern, der altes Wissen und mystische Künste nutzt, die seit Jahrhunderten verloren gegangen sind.
Systemanforderungen
- CPU: 2 GHz Dual Core CPU
- GFX: ATI Radeon HD 3400 Series, Geforce 9400 Series with at least 512 MB VRAM
- RAM: 2 GB RAM
- Software: Windows 7
- HD: 3 GB verfügbarer Speicherplatz
- SFX: DirectX 9.0c compatible sound card with latest drivers
- DX: Version 9.0c
- LANG: Englisch
- CPU: 2.6 GHz Dual Core CPU
- GFX: ATI Radeon HD 4500 Series, Geforce 9400 GT or higher
- RAM: 3 GB RAM
- Software: Windows 7/8/10
- HD: 3 GB verfügbarer Speicherplatz
- SFX: DirectX 9.0c compatible sound card with latest drivers
- DX: Version 9.0c
- LANG: Englisch
Steam Nutzer-Reviews
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1219 Std. insgesamt
Verfasst: 01.09.21 21:27
Mit Liebe aus Italien – Oder wie man mit einem glorreichen Händchen ein prima Adventure entwickelt
Geschichte und Charaktere:
In “The Hand of Glory” spielt man den suspendierten Polizisten Lazarus Bundy. Seine Karriere ist am Ende, als ihm ein Serienmörder entwischt und er dafür von der Presse zerrissen wird. Seine Marke muss er abgeben. Davon lässt sich Lazarus - der lieber Lars genannt wird - aber nicht unterkriegen und er ermittelt auf eigene Faust weiter. Im Rahmen seiner Ermittlungen tut sich ein neuer Fall auf. Die Tochter eines reichen Unternehmers wird entführt. Dabei handelt es sich aber nicht um eine typische Entführung mit einer Lösegeldforderung. Also was steckt dahinter? Alles wird mysteriöser und übernatürlicher, als es am Anfang den Anschein hat...
Bei seinem Abenteuer wird Lazarus von der Polizei-Praktikantin Alice unterstützt. Alice ist ein spielbarer Charakter und viel mehr als eine einfache Praktikantin. Sie erweist sich als ebenbürtige Partnerin für Lars. Das Ermittler-Duo hat ein gefährliches Abenteuer zu überstehen.
Aufbau und Umfang:
Inzwischen liegt ein vollständiges Adventure vor, welches aus zwei Teilen besteht. Ich habe für beide Teile ca. 20 Stunden Spielzeit benötigt und mich zu keiner Zeit gelangweilt. Der Umfang ist für ein Adventurespiel demnach sehr ordentlich.
Die Zerstückelung in zwei Teile ist wohl in erster Linie auf die Finanzierung des Spiels zurück zu führen. Wenn man bedenkt, dass das Spiel im Jahr 2019 mit einem Mini-Budget von gerade mal 9.928 € über Kickstarter finanziert wurde, ist das schon bemerkenswert was hier geleistet und Mitte 2020 veröffentlicht wurde.
Das Gute ist, wer es jetzt kauft, erhält ein fertiges Produkt. Man muss nicht ungeduldig auf die Fortsetzung warten. Denn Part 1 hört mitten in der Geschichte auf. Da ist das schon wünschenswert direkt mit Part 2 fortfahren zu können. Ich kann mir nur vorstellen, wie frustrierend es sein musste erst mal einige Zeit auf die Entwicklung von Part 2 warten zu müssen.
Das Spiel endet allerdings auch nach Part 2 so, dass die Entwickler jede Möglichkeit haben hier eine Fortsetzung draufzusatteln.
Grafik und Ton:
Bei der Grafik handelt es sich um eine Comicgrafik, die man so auch in einem Kinderbuch erwarten könnte. Der Zeichenstil wirkt etwas zu unschuldig, naiv und farbenfroh um auf die ernsthafte und erwachsene Handlung zu passen. Aber man gewöhnt sich daran. Der Stil war für mich etwas gewöhnungsbedürftig, was aber keinesfalls bedeuten soll, dass er schlecht ist. Hier waren Zeichner und Künstler am Werk, die Liebe reingesteckt haben. Das merkt man schon.
Die englische Sprachausgabe ist gut und gerade die Stimmen der Hauptcharaktere Lars und Alice sind angenehm und passend. Leider gibt es keine deutsche Vertonung, aber dafür inzwischen deutsche Untertitel. Die Musik kommt wohl dosiert und subtil zum Einsatz. In manchen Screens ist es ruhig, mal hört man Musik von einem Straßenmusikanten, oder passende Klänge in einer Kirche. Erhält man bestimmte Gegenstände oder löst ein Rätsel, wird dies ähnlich musikalisch unterstrichen, wie man es aus Baphomets Fluch kennt.
Man erkennt an einigen Punkten, dass Baphomets Fluch eines der Vorbilder war. Dabei wirkt “The Hand of Glory” aber zu keiner Zeit wie ein billiger Abklatsch des Vorbildes. Es hat seinen eigenen Stil, seinen eigenen Charme und kann mit dem Vorbild durchaus mithalten.
Rätsel und Steuerung:
Die Rätsel sind abwechslungsreich, kreativ und gut in den Verlauf der Geschichte integriert. Der Schweregrad wird dabei nie unfair und unlogisch. Ich wurde jedenfalls als Spieler gut bei Laune gehalten, ohne dass Frustration aufkam.
Die Steuerung, Menüführung und Technik liefert all das was man von einem modernen Adventure erwarten darf. Eine Hotspotanzeige ist hier ebenso selbstverständlich, wie ein Notizbuch in dem die aktuellen Aufgaben festgehalten werden.
Fanfiktion und Randnotiz:
Da das Spiel so endet, dass hier ein weiteres Abenteuer denkbar wäre, würde ich mir auch eine Fortsetzung wünschen. Viele Grüße an das italienische Entwicklerteam! Ich hoffe das Spiel ist kommerziell erfolgreich genug, damit eine Fortsetzung realisiert werden kann.
Was mich bei meinen Recherchen doch etwas stutzig gemacht hat, dass dieser Entwickler scheinbar an den beiden Adventure Episoden “Shadow of the Vatican” beteiligt war. Diese beiden Episoden habe ich negativ bewertet. Also “The Hand of Glory” ist ein Quantensprung in die richtige Richtung im Vergleich zu “Shadow of the Vatican”.
Fazit:
Ein wirklich gutes Adventure, was mit Liebe und einem guten Händchen produziert wurde. Es lehnt sich an die klassischen und großen Adventure-Vorbilder an, kopiert dabei aber nicht, sondern bleibt etwas Eigenständiges.
Bewertung: 84 %
???? Powered by HoI 4 Deu Curators group in German / English ????
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1201 Std. insgesamt
Verfasst: 30.06.21 07:43
Ich weiß nicht, wann ich zuletzt ein Adventure mit dieser Anzahl an Locations und Umfang gespielt habe. Das Spiel wirkt trotz vieler Locations aber nie überfrachtet mit Objekten und Points of Interest, sodass es immer entspannt zu spielen ist und nicht anstrengend oder stressig wird.
Ich bin überrascht, dass dieses tolle Game nicht in der Spiele-Zeitschrift meines Vertrauens getestet wurde.
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463 Std. insgesamt
Verfasst: 07.07.20 14:56
Vom Ruhm und von Glücksbringern – handgetrocknet (Teil 1)
Aus der Emilia-Romagna kommt das klassische Point and Click-Adventure The Hand of Glory, dessen 1. Teil – der 2. Teil wird im Herbst als kostenloser DLC veröffentlicht – mir wirklich sehr gut gefallen hat; und das lag nicht nur am verrückten Miami, das als Location herhält.
Auch Lötlampen sind wichtige Zeugen – Die Geschichte
Nichts weiß man über die Vergangenheit: Warum Locken weiß sind, ein Finger fehlt, oder warum er so überdreht ist. Fakt ist: Der Detektiv Lazarus Bundy schafft es nicht, den Schurken „Blowtorch“ festzunehmen, ermittelt auf eigene Faust, wird gekündigt und startet auf eigene Faust durch. Ein Plot, den man schon zu oft gesehen/gelesen/gespielt hat. Und doch fühlt sich alles recht frisch an: Denn hinter allem schwelt natürlich ein tiefgründiges Mysterium, das in Form des „Doktors“ den Sherly-Verschnitt an den Rand des Abgrunds bringt: Entführung, Drohungen und wagemutige Manöver stehen an der Tagesordnung. Und wenn es mal nicht weiter geht, hilft Alice als technikaffine Volontärin weiter, bis am Ende einfach alles aussichtslos ist … ähem … es ein offenes Ende gibt, das zum 2. Teil überleitet.
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2153641832
Bingo! – Art der Geschichte und die Rätsel
Ein klassisches Point and Click-Adventure also, und das in allen Belangen: Mit Inventar, einem Mantel, in den alles passt, Gesprächen, Rätseln und man kann STERBEN! Was? Ja, Baphomets Fluch stand in vielen Dingen Pate – und das ist gut so! Es gibt ein Tutorial für die nach 2000 Geborenen, eine Hotspot-Anzeige für die ungeduldigen Pixelhunter-Hasser und einen „Quest-Erinnerungs-Notizblock“ für alle Kurzzeitgedächtnis-Spieler; ein paar Abstriche an den Zeitgeist hat man also gemacht.
Die Rätsel als wichtige Eigenheit des Abenteuers sind durchweg relativ einfache Hol-Anwende oder Kombinier-Rätsel mit drei, vier Ausnahmen, die einen um die Ecke denken lassen und einige Zwischenschritte erfordern. Das ist eine gute Mischung aus Anspruch und Zeitvertreib zum Vorankommen. Bingo-, Piano- und Kartenrätsel haben mir jedenfalls gut gefallen, sie waren schön ausgedacht und vor allem logisch. Alice kann darüber hinaus die Körpersprache von anderen in einem Minispiel interpretieren: eine nette Idee, die aber nur zwei Mal zum Einsatz kam; aber vielleicht ja im zweiten Teil öfter.
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2156363195
Farbiges Miami, ein Witz? – Grafik, Musik und Humor
Miami mit seinen hippen Multikulti-Einwohnern inklusive Workout-Verliebtheit wird farbenfroh und humorvoll in Szene gesetzt. Allein die Schnellreisekarte ist ein Augenschmaus. Daneben sind die Locations meist in 2-3 Bildschirme geteilt, mit einfacher, großflächiger Comic-Gestaltung, aber detailverliebten lebendigen Animationen; das ist doch gut auszuhalten. Der Sound ist mir nicht weiter aufgefallen; positiv ist auf jeden Fall die englische Sprachausgabe hervorzuheben, sehr gut gemacht.
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2148370573
Weiter müssen wir über den Humor reden: Gerade wir als Lazarus Bundy machen einige Witze, die teils erzwungen wirken, teils richtig lustig sind. Aber manchmal auch aus der Zeit gefallen leicht sexistisch – natürlich aus der Sicht des alternden Detektivs, aber mitunter etwas zu stark.
Sonstiges
Von den 28 Errungenschaften sind die Hälfte im Spielfortgang zu erreichen, der Rest durch genaues Abklicken und ein paar wenige nur mit einem zweiten Spieldurchgang/save. Steam-Sammelkarten gibt es noch nicht, da Hands of Glory noch im „Steam-Probemodus“ steckt. Der Kostenfaktor von 16,99 € deckt beide Teile ab mitsamt deutschen Untertiteln; für den ersten Teil habe ich nicht ganz 8 Stunden gebraucht – passt also.
Lust auf mehr Reviews mit einmal mehr und einmal weniger archäologischen Anmerkungen? Probier doch meine Kuratoren-Gruppe The Archaeologist plays… aus.
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1067 Std. insgesamt
Verfasst: 15.03.22 03:32
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862 Std. insgesamt
Verfasst: 17.01.22 19:20
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1931 Std. insgesamt
Verfasst: 03.07.21 11:13
Story & setting
You start as Lazarus Bundy, a detective in Miami. He appears to be the muze for the serial killer Blowtorch, because that man is addresses him personally through his communications. Lars, as he is called, hunts this Blowtorch without respect for protocol (or his own health), which gets him suspended (and nearly killed). This is where the game starts.
The plot of the game shifts from the initial setting towards an old European myth about The Hand of Glory in a gradual matter. More information about the title later.
The game has two parts, which have been released with six months in between them. While part two continues the bigger story, both parts are very different from each other. Part 1 is in Miami, part two is mainly in Italy. In both parts all locations are connected via the map, and the locations barely have any deeper locations. What I mean is, travelling takes little time, never do you have to traverse many screens.
When you play as Lars, he narrates himself in past tense, as if reading his hindsight report. This is very funny!
The game has clear 'chunks' of gameplay, after which you can stop satisfied to continue another time. You even get to play another character, the female intern Alice, and this enhances the experience greatly, especially because this is a:
Detective P&C
Borderline moonlogic, I called this game at one point. Lars carries so much stuff around!! That makes the typical P&C philosophy of 'trying everything on everything' significantly harder, although I have to add that combining items in the inventory happens less often and is mostly clear. This is a detective game, so tougher P&C puzzles can be expected. For people who just want to experience the story, there are good community guides available. I decided after the prologue that it's slightly too difficult for me, so I used a guide.
The Hand of Glory - title
For the longest time during my playthrough, I had my doubts about the title. THOG isn't catchy, especially if you don't know the historical reference of it. Lazarus Bundy would be catchier, in my opinion.
It's only during the end of the game of the game that 'The Hand of Glory' has significance, maybe it was better to involve the title much earlier in the game.
The Hand of Glory is based on an old European belief that the severed hand of a hanged man yields power. For more information, see Wikipedia. I guess that's why we stopped hanging people nowadays.
My time with THOG
I had a good time playing this game. A couple of things I liked:
+ good cartoony drawings
+ good voice acting for the main characters, and good enough for the others
+ very good pacing of the game (although the ending is a bit fast)
+ likeable protagonists (Lars likes to push it, but he remains in the likeable zone)
+ the game doesn't shy away from mature jokes and doesn't overdo it
+ no difficult action scenes
- if you get stuck, there is nothing that hints towards the solution
- the negative responses of applying wrong items to situations are very generic, although I understand that it would be massive work to voice everything
I would have liked if the voices in Italy would have an Italian accent, however I take any voice acting over none any day!
The ending did raise some questions in me, like [spoiler]
- Radwed was very keen during the whole game, however at the end he quite easily succumbed, yet he was 'more powerful than ever'! I had the slight feeling that the end was rushed, because indeed the game is quite long already.
- Blowtorch? What happened?
- Why 'recruit' Lars through such complicated means? [/spoiler]
Should you want to play the demo, which beholds the prologue, a little warning: it doesn't hold the same functionalities as the game. No options menu (the voices are really quiet), no tutorial (the game explains many things, like for instance using the cellphone).
83/100
More reviews at Omnivore Gamer, games that are easy to control (for handicapped gamers). | [/tr]
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1309 Std. insgesamt
Verfasst: 23.06.21 17:06
The Hand of Glory
What a fun Point and Click this was. Genuinely tough in a few spots. ????
[list]
We just finished this in a Group Play; we all enjoyed it and look forward to more!
A studio of three people created this, their first joint venture. There is no caveat about “for a first-time effort”. It was a good solid game with an in-depth story, many lines of dialogue, many locations, and two playable characters. I am enough of a nerd that the color detail caught my eye, it was really detailed in little ways that made it all so complimentary.
There is a lot going on here. The main protagonist is smart-alecky (quite often) person, not really overbearing to me though. The other characters provide a good buffer and there is balance there.
My favorite locations in the game were in Italy. The legend the game is based on is historically accurate, the landmarks are real. It took me a long time to play because I kept double checking for accuracy. :-))
I did get stuck a couple of times and threw everything I had at it to figure out what needed done. I suspect that was just me, not many players needed to ask for a hint.
You can die. It is an easy respawn and the game will auto-save for you so you need not repeat actions, or you can utilize the unlimited save spots.
At times you will need to go back to get something or your inventory would be massive! It's usually a short trip or the game was telling me I missed a trigger.
Controls:
Standard controls you would expect in a Point and Click game.
Inventory runs across the top, just hover.
You have a notebook or a tablet depending on the character you are at that time.
Space-bar for hot-spots
Left click for item description, right click for further information.
Fast travel map
Manual and auto-save
Note that you should right click and inspect items in your inventory to ensure you know everything it can do.
This will be on the Summer Sale so get ready for about 15 hours of play!
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801 Std. insgesamt
Verfasst: 23.04.21 04:03
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1001 Std. insgesamt
Verfasst: 12.03.21 01:16
The puzzles were challenging in parts, but except for a very few toss everything at the wall and see what sticks situations, mostly they were logical and fit in with the story. I liked the art work and thought the voice overs were well done (despite no Italian accents in Italy! :-) ) My play time was over 15 hours to complete the entire game and so to me, the amount game play was easily worth the price. I had a lot of fun with this mystery comedy and would love to see more adventures from these developers. I highly recommend this game!
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1061 Std. insgesamt
Verfasst: 12.02.21 18:02
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624 Std. insgesamt
Verfasst: 04.02.21 20:29
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783 Std. insgesamt
Verfasst: 14.01.21 22:09
Zitat:
For more puzzle game reviews, news and everything puzzle-related, follow Puzzle Lovers and check out our Steam group.
in the hand of glory detective lars bundy and his trusty bike, greendart, are hot on the trail of a serial killer. we find them in front of an apartment building, trying to talk to the next possible victim of the killer. things happen, bundy gets suspended, but the malefactor is not gone, plus a rich kid disappears around the same time as well. bundy decides to solve the cases himself, hoping it'd make his superiors reinstate him. not gonna spoil more of the story, there's obviously twists and turns and secrets and revelations, some less predictable than others.
I didn't find the narrative particularly gripping or the characters especially memorable, but it was a mostly enjoyable experience. the two protagonists are fine, though lars is your typical smart aleck, his over-the-top introduction of himself got old after the very first time. alice, the intern at the cop shop, is very effective as a sidekick and has a more active part in the second half of the game. some of the minor characters were cool as well, wilo being my favorite with his paranoia.
besides the usual point & click mechanics of walking around, talking to everyone, taking, combining and using items, there's the occasional more involved puzzle, some of which I really enjoyed (the map in part 1 and the safe in part 2, for instance). unfortunately, the game is littered with death and timed sequences, always annoying, always unnecessary, a waste of everybody's time. no progress is lost, you just gotta keep trying until the situation is handled, and on two occasions I got stuck because I didn't realize 'almost dying' was how to make progress. I guess I could've learned from the first and used it the second time, but ideally developers would do away with this. I like a good death scene, but point & clicks aren't action games.
another thing I could live without is the 'I might do that later when I need it' way of handling interactions. the game literally tells you that it's a valid action and will be necessary to perform soon, so why can't I just grab everything without all this nonsense? sure, it makes the inventory less cluttered and the game more linear and idiot-proof, but also leads to a lot of unnecessary back and forth, and figuring out item combinations is part of the deal anyway. instead of wasting resources on animating death sequences and playing them after every incorrect item use, maybe concentrate on improving this part of the game.
a kind of unique selling point in the mechanics department is alice's superpower of kinesics (the study of nonverbal communication). it involves a minigame, each gesture has to be matched up with the correct interpretation for alice to draw some conclusions and act accordingly. the game won't tell you which ones are incorrect, gotta keep trying. it's not used a whole lot, but it mixed things up, I liked it.
the presentation is mostly fine. graphics are colorful and vibrant, characters are animated reasonably well, and overall the game looks good, especially compared to earlier versions seen in the extras section, but there's still an amateurish flash game feeling here and there. can't really put my finger on it, it's just not as cartoony as it could be. and while there's some good voice work from the two protagonists, the rest leaves a lot to be desired, though I've certainly heard a lot worse.
the technical aspects are far from perfect. on the plus side, there's an optional tutorial, saving is possible anytime outside a cutscene and over as many slots as you want (overwrite prompt, date and thumbnail, no naming), there's windowed mode and relaxed reading mode, where text only advances after a click, but volume settings are largely useless, as cutscenes and relevatory music play at full blast no matter what. true, nobody forced me to play in the middle of the night when everything's quiet, but I expect implemented features to work as they should. music overpowering dialog is unacceptable, and since seemingly every other action is set to be dramatic, there's a lot of it happening here.
further technical issues include mouse wheel only revealing hotspots for a few seconds, while space shows them as long as the key is pressed, and the wheel can't be used to scroll the inventory either. there are also typos here and there, and for the first hour or so I didn't get thumbnails with my saves, nor did esc bring up the pause menu. oh, and characters can't run, and sometimes they take the scenic route around a room before commenting on something. luckily, scene transitions can be made shorter work of by double clicking.
this all sounds very negative, I guess, but I already said that on the whole it's mostly enjoyable, if nothing special, plus some of the good stuff is evident from the screenshots and trailers, there's even a demo to try, so might as well highlight the more questionable things. it's a decent game, put together relatively well, took me less than 12 hours to complete (for the 15+ touted on the store page you'd have to get stuck really badly over and over again), but the audio and other issues and the annoying timed and death scenes ruined some of it. if you like point & click adventures, you'll most likely enjoy this as well, but it's not gonna enter any halls of fame.
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1354 Std. insgesamt
Verfasst: 06.01.21 21:57
A love letter to the sworn lovers of traditional point 'n' click adventure games. All of them should, in return, make sure to buy the game at full price, without waiting for it to be included in any kind of bundle, if they want to have the chance to play more games like The Hand of Glory in the future...
https://ragequit.gr/reviews/item/the-hand-of-glory-pc-review/
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2170 Std. insgesamt
Verfasst: 07.12.20 19:39
It begins more unspectacular but soon the story takes a turn when Lars, our unheroic protagonist, discovers,that there is more behind a normal kidnapping. He and the ex-intern Alice seem to have lost at the end of part 1 - but with part 2 they follow the leads to Italy.
Here they can bring all to an end.
We, as players, take over the role of Lars or Alice in various chapters. As Alice we have a special ability for analysis of persons, which comes in handy and is a nice detail - very fun to use! As Lars, we seem a bit clumsy often but clever solving our tasks finally.
Gameplay is point & click with (surprise) a small bit of action in part 2. Mostly our tasks, which are noted for us in a diary block or tablet, are solvable rather intuitively, at times not. Then we need to think 'around the corner' - which is fun as well.
I highly recommend this game!
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813 Std. insgesamt
Verfasst: 18.10.20 03:20
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639 Std. insgesamt
Verfasst: 04.10.20 18:58
The Hand of Glory
An impressive point and click adventure with great visuals and sound. Puzzles are interesting and diverse and the story keeps you interested throughout part one.
Zitat:
Lazarus Bundy, once Miami’s top detective, has fallen from grace after a disastrous case investigating a wanted serial killer called Blowtorch.
A new case surfaces of a kidnapping involving the wealthy Mulzberg family. Bundy, even though suspended, decides to take on the case and enlists the help of a fresh out of college intern called Alice. Together they start to unravel the mystery behind the kidnapping.
A new case surfaces of a kidnapping involving the wealthy Mulzberg family. Bundy, even though suspended, decides to take on the case and enlists the help of a fresh out of college intern called Alice. Together they start to unravel the mystery behind the kidnapping.
First Impressions????
The first thing to note is that the story concludes in two parts and currently part one is available only. Part two will be provided free of charge for owners of the game on Nov 18 2020.
There are obvious similarities between Hand of Glory and The Broken Sword Series. Visuals and sound will seem familiar although they are slightly outshined by Broken Sword in my opinion. The inclusion of two playable main characters is another comparison although Alice has a much smaller part than Nicole did. I don’t think it is far behind Broken Sword in its execution and overall appeal. I was very impressed.
For people who haven’t played The Broken Sword series Hand of Glory is a point and click adventure game set in Miami with part two set somewhere in Italy.
All the ingredients of a great adventure game are here. It has nice graphics, dramatic music and effects, professional voice acting and some very clever puzzles which will test even the most experienced in this genre. It’s all wrapped up in a light hearted story which has enough twists and turns to keep you engaged for the eight or nine hours.
Most of the characters are all extremely well portrayed and all have interesting back stories and personas. I wondered whether there was a budget injection or change of direction as the early part of the game seems different to the rest of it; Notably Lazarus’s voice acting and a couple of underdeveloped and slightly annoying characters.
I enjoyed the puzzles in the game. They were original, fresh and proved to be quite difficult in places. Using your inventory is easy although it’s sometimes annoying when you want to cancel an object without it triggering some descriptive text.
There isn’t much inventory combining which sometimes proves to be painful but some of the bigger puzzles can be interpreted differently which can cause confusion. There is no hint system to help you either but objects of interest can be highlighted by the mouse wheel or the space bar.
Lazarus and Alice can exit screens immediately, which is always welcomed, and later on in the game you’ll be able to fast track to any part of the city that you’ve discovered using your trusty moped Green Dart.
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2244271190
Zitat:
If you like point and click adventures then I would highly recommend this title. It is the most fun I have had playing a game of this genre for a very long time. Even though it has vibes of Broken Sword, it still has its own identity and the characters are likeable, the puzzles are interesting and challenging, and the story is intriguing.
More Information
Story????
There are two overarching storylines. One branch involves the serial killer Blowtorch and the other involves the kidnapping of Kathrin Mulzberg.
Both stories are exciting and enjoyable. There are a few twists and turns and nothing seems obvious or predictable.
The story concludes on a cliffhanger with a lot of unanswered questions and will continue in beautiful Italy.
Gameplay????️
Hand of Glory follows the usual point and click guidelines with items in your inventory acting as props to solve various tasks you are assigned during your investigation.
You do have a very handy notebook which keeps track of all your outstanding assignments that you need to complete. The notebook will tell you where you need to go and is very useful for reminding you where you left off after a saved game for example. Once tasks on the notebook are performed, they will be crossed off the list leaving you with the remainder to concentrate on.
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2243309808
Once you fix your bike, you’ll be able to travel to any part of the city you have already visited and also you can exit any screen so there is no tedious walking around at all. The locations are compact so everything is fast paced and there are not too many red herrings on screen like in some games of this type. Most highlighted objects will be relevant at some point.
You’ll play as two characters, Lazarus Bundy and Alice. For the majority of the game you’ll play as Lazarus and use Alice as a point of reference where she can perform research and aid in any technological problems like hacking phones.
For a short period, you’ll play as Alice but it feels like a bit of a novelty. Alice studied Kinesics at college and is able to read people’s body language. There is a brief section where you have to observe and answer a set of multiple-choice questions regarding their mannerisms. It feels a bit out of place but a welcome change of pace nonetheless. The rest of the time you will control Lazarus.
Puzzles range from basic inventory solutions to more complicated inventory combinations but never more than two items and this occurs a lot less than most adventure games. As usual you need to examine everything and certain objects will need to be examined again as the game progresses. There are a few multi-layered fetch quests and some escape room puzzles which are quite difficult. There are rarely any instructions to these puzzles although examining objects can reward you with clues. The instructions you do get are usually a little vague and can be interpreted in different ways. I did have to use a walkthrough at a couple of points.
There are a few high-pressure moments where you need to escape from a dangerous situation or you will die. The narrative suggests that these are timed but there is no countdown or any suggestion that you really have to rush. Ultimately, you’ll get one chance to perform the right move, which can involve using your inventory, otherwise you’ll die and have to try again. These sequences are rare and are quite short so starting again is no hassle.
Graphics????
I was very impressed with the visual art in Hand of Glory. Everything is hand drawn and has a distinct charm. Character’s emotions are illustrated well and their movements are realistic. Each character has a distinct look and personality and the environments are interesting.
Dialogue text is large, clear and easy to read with a pleasing font.
There is a lot of variety in the presentation of the game with cutscenes, asides and different ways of portraying the story. It keeps it from feeling repetitive and works really well.
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Sound????
The voice acting is excellent. Each character sounds different and acting is full of emotion and expression.
I was paying particular notice to sound effects and music, as this can often be let down in an adventure game, but the musical score was great. Orchestral music plays when any dramatic sequences occur and the background music is subtle and pleasant.
Conclusion????
Zitat:
The Hand of Glory is an excellent example of the point and click genre and I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend it at full price.
The presentation is professional and the story is told in an interesting and clever way. Characters are voiced and developed well and puzzles are varied and imaginative. I can’t wait for the next installment.
The presentation is professional and the story is told in an interesting and clever way. Characters are voiced and developed well and puzzles are varied and imaginative. I can’t wait for the next installment.
Curator Info:
Zitat:
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455 Std. insgesamt
Verfasst: 09.08.20 22:21
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629 Std. insgesamt
Verfasst: 07.07.20 07:00
This was overall a great experience and looking forward to the next episode!
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508 Std. insgesamt
Verfasst: 05.07.20 19:36
The puzzles had a nice balance of complexity where I only found myself completely stuck once and it turned out that I just hadn't been paying attention properly.
I'd definitely recommend this game to any adventure game fans.
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488 Std. insgesamt
Verfasst: 14.06.20 20:25
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336 Std. insgesamt
Verfasst: 11.06.20 00:46
A lot of love was put into the cartoon-style animations and colorful backgrounds.
It would be easy to expect this game to be all fun and hi-jinks and there is a lot of that but there are also some very tender and heartfelt moments.
There is a second part still to come, which is expected later in 2020 and will be given to people who already own the game at no additional cost. The first part is about 4 to 7 hours long and ends on a pretty major cliffhanger. I am on the edge of my seat for the conclusion and I am hoping to see more from Madit.
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758 Std. insgesamt
Verfasst: 10.06.20 20:58
But my favorite was alway's the Gabriel Knight, and the Broken Sword games. And this one gives me a great
Dejavu with George and Nicole, oh man fantastic. This game looks great runs very smooth en puzzles are fun.
Well i played only for 1 smal hour but if the games continu with this quality i can only say Weldone !
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Oke i've done it til the end of part 1 without a walktrough only 1 hint for the music sheet puzzle.
The story gets better and better. Can't wait for part 2 .
Great job.
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797 Std. insgesamt
Verfasst: 09.06.20 16:04
The main character needs some time to heat up but he's enjoyable, Alice is immediately very good and she puts in the game a little bit of Jane Jensen's influence. Great voices and animations!
I think it will be a good challenge for expert players and a little hard for newbies but puzzles are overall fair. If you like old-school adventures this is a safe bet, also suitable for new players.
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511 Std. insgesamt
Verfasst: 09.06.20 13:41
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Release:09.06.2020
Genre:
Adventure
Entwickler:keine Infos
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