Unravel an ancient mystery and search for an ancient treasure on England’s fog-shrouded coastline, famed for its legends of smugglers, pirates and ghosts. Join ghost-hunters Nigel Danvers and Lucy Reubans as they investigate a tale of horror and haunting. Wielding the tools of the modern-day ghost-hunter in a cinematic, richly detailed interactive world of wind-swept coastlines and crumbling crypts, you will be captivated, taunted and teased by mind-bending puzzles and interactions with the town ‘locals’. But, be warned, there are those who will stop at nothing to prevent Nigel discovering “that which should stay hidden”. With nerves of steel and wits to match, in your search for The Lost Crown you will soon discover long lost secrets previously known only to the dead!
Title: The Lost Crown | Series: The Last Crown | Website: http://www.thelostcrown.co.uk/ | Publisher: Iceberg Interactive | Developer: Darkling Studios | Release Date: 31st of December, 2008 | Genre: Adventure Point & Click Horror | Platform: Steam (Windows) | Rating: 4 out of 5 | Source: Self-Purchased
The Lost Crown: A Ghost-Hunting Adventure Review
The Lost Crown is from the same studio that also does the DarkFall series and the Barrow Hill games. I reviewed Barrow Hill: Curse of the Ancient Circle and wasn’t exactly thrilled with it but I do love the DarkFall series.
The Lost Crown is a point and click adventure game but instead of the traditional first person view, you get a third person view of Nigel. That had mixed results, for me. I liked seeing Nigel and seeing my character navigate the world and interact with it. However, the walking animation was a little awkward looking at times. As Nigel walked he looked a little ‘floaty’ looking and when he turned it was…off. His lower half would turn and then his torso. It was only a couple of milliseconds off but it was noticeable. It looks like that has been improved in the current games in the series.
The art was so very nicely done. It has a black and white aesthetic with bits of color here and there. It looks great. My only issue with it was that the cursor itself was white so it would occasionally get lost against the background and I would have to move it to find it again. The people looked good and the sound design was excellent. A little too good at times, in fact. When playing at night, if I was by the shore, I would doze off because the sounds of nature and waves would totally put me right out.
The story is good, as well. The plot follows Nigel after he ‘accidentally’ spies on a secret project at Hadden Industries (a name that pops up frequently in other games, as well) and ‘accidentally’ steals documents revealing a portal to a ghost dimension (perhaps). Luckily, Nigel’s boss is pretty understanding and sends Nigel some ghost hunting equipment. And the hunt is on! There’s a main plot about Nigel trying to find the titular lost crown. There’s also some sub-plots bout a catnapper and some ghosts you have to help free or sometimes just interact with to further your own quest to find the lost crown.
One of the highlights is the interactions between people. A lot of the dialogue is genuinely funny and the acting is very believable. I really like the interactions between Nigel and Lucy. The end hangs on a bit of a cliffhanger (not with the main story, though, that is wrapped up very satisfactorily) that promises more of the Nigel and Lucy team.
If I had to complain about an aspect it would be that sometimes there wasn’t much direction given. Nigel has a journal that lets you know your current goals but it’s not always clear how you’re supposed to accomplish the objectives. The puzzles are good and don’t rely on dream logic to solve. I liked that a lot.
There were some genuinely creepy moments and it was a heck of a lot creepier than Barrow Hill: Curse of the Ancient Circle. It feels as though there is a genuine threat at times and that is much better than a big rock.
I would definitely recommend it if you like adventure games. It’s a slow-burner on story, though, so if you like your plots and gameplay more fast-paced you might not enjoy it. It does a fantastic job of creating the town and making it feel really real. The production team used actual pictures of towns in Cornwall and England and recreate them beautifully. If you want something a bit more slower paced and story-oriented then I definitely recommend it. The next game in the series is The Last Crown: Midnight Horror so be sure to keep on the lookout for an upcoming review!
GracieKat was the first co-host of Sci-Fi & Scary, Lilyn’s partner-in-crime, and sub-head of the Kali Krew. She reviews horror books, movies, and games for the site. She also does a weekly Focus on the Frightful feature, and is the site list-maker. She is also in control of the Sci-Fi & Scary podcast which will relaunch soon.
