A Bark in the Dark

September 19, 2007

Platform: Flash

Tags: bbonte, cgdc3, competition, flash, free, game, kidsafe, macwinlinux, pointandclick, replaytheme

By JohnB | add to favorites | add to your website | Comments (105)

A Bark in the Dark is a point-and-click game created by Bart Bonte (author of Chicken Grow, Fields of Logic and more) entered into our 3rd Casual Gameplay Design Competition. This title takes the replay theme quite literally and incorporates a few sub-games that you must complete in order to win. And the puppy? Cutest. Animal. Ever.

Controls are as simple as any point-and-click adventure game, just click what you want to interact with. To move, slide the cursor to the edge of the screen and click. Items are used by highlighting them and then clicking where you want to use them.

Puzzle solutions in A Bark in the Dark aren't always immediately obvious, forcing you to experiment in order to find the right answer. The experimentation is part of the fun, however, and even an "incorrect" set-up leads to something entertaining. Once you gather the items you need it's a fairly simple matter to assemble everything correctly and proceed through the game.

Analysis: A Bark in the Dark has all the trappings of a classic Bart Bonte game: a straightforward point-and-click with odd puzzles and a dash of wackiness here and there. The difficulty is toned down quite a bit in this game, so don't expect your synapses to get in a tangle. You will need to summon your arcade reflexes and memory to complete the sub-games, however.

It was a nice change of pace to have games buried within the game, but being forced to complete them in order to continue can be frustrating for some players. Sure, the games weren't too difficult, but if a player happens to fail and discovers he/she has to start the mini-game over, many will simply close the browser window rather than see the the game through. It's always a touchy situation to mix genres in this manner, but A Bark in the Dark barely manages to pull it off.

Another fun point-and-click game from Bart Bonte! Play A Bark in the Dark.

Jay Jay - Bart has entered every one of our competitions so far, and it is a pleasure to have A Bark in the Dark as part of the collection for our 3rd. The inclusion of the "familiar statue" and the contraption that gets constructed in the game made me laugh out loud while playing this one. Besides the stylized graphics we're used to seeing in his games, and the sometimes annoying bird or bark, it's the injection of humor into his games that makes them so enjoyable to play. A well thought-out game with no major flaws. One of these times, Bart, I promise we'll have a "point-and-click" theme for a competition. :)

A Bark in the Dark walkthrough now available!

Currently 4.6/5
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Rating: 4.6/5 (60 votes cast)

Walkthrough Guide

Complete Walkthrough for A Bark in the Dark:

Go right one screen.
Click on the part of the baseboard that seems to be sticking out to get the "piece of wood".
Go right another screen.
Grab the dog bone and the familiar looking sculpture.
Right again, getting both the glass on the stool and the mouse food on the other stool.
Now go back to the mouse cage and place the glass in the cage.
Also place some mouse food on top of the strange tower.
The mouse should eat the food and knock down the glass.
Now place the peice of wood on the glass, the jig statue on the peice of wood, and one again some mouse food on the tower.
The mouse should fly and knock off the vase.
Go left and pick up a key.
Go left one screen and unlock the sports bag to get the extension cable.
Use the cable to plug in the game.
Follow the on screen instructions.
- Level 1:
  Repeat the dogs barks.
- Level 2:
  Same.
- Level 3:
  Same. Remember to ignore red barks.
- Level 4:
  Same. Remember to ignore red barks.
- Level 5:
  Repeat the dogs barks in a reverse order.
- Level 6:
  Same. Remember to ignore red barks.
- Level 7:
  Same. Remember to ignore red barks.
- Level 8:
  Same. Remember to ignore red barks.
- Level 9:
  Repeat the dogs barks.
Write down/ remember your 4-digit completion code.
Go to the phone beside the door.
Click to drop the receiver.
Now use your completion code on the phone, i.e. if your code is 4321, click on the phone 4 times, wait for it to say "4 beeps!?", then click 3 times, wait, 2 times, etc.
If done correctly, the door should unlock.
Go through the door to the garden.
Replay the lamp puzzle by placing food on the feeding platforms, so the mice run across the wires, turning on the bulbs as they run them over.
- Level 1:
  Click the bottom feeder, wait for the mouse to pass the middle light, then click the top feeder.
- Level 2:
  Click the top then quickly the bottom feeder.
- Level 3:
  Click the bottom, then top feeder. Time it so that the bottom light is illuminated before the third.
- Level 4:
  Click the top, then bottom, then middle feeder.
- Level 5:
  Click the feeders from the bottom to the top. (4th, 3rd, 2nd, 1st)
Feed the dog the bone.
Well done! (Enjoy the authors comments)

Posted by: Vinny | July 16, 2007 7:04 PM

105 Comments [leave a comment]

Yay, Great game, love everything from bonte. More games! More games!

Posted by: Vinny | July 16, 2007 6:17 PM

I'd have to say that A Bark in the Dark was a walk in the park! It was the hardest, but it was very entertaining!!

Posted by: Straeph | July 16, 2007 6:34 PM

Thanks for another fun game. I wish the "memory" video game had been a bit more of a challenge, but really enjoyed how there was another set of fun timing puzzles once you escaped from the house.

Cute as all Bonte games too.

Posted by: Macdrum | July 16, 2007 6:36 PM

Good game, quite easy though, had to play the arcade game twice tough, didn't read that well there :P

and poor mouse :( :P

Posted by: DoF | July 16, 2007 6:40 PM

A fun game, I really enjoyed the timing puzzles.

Posted by: Syz | July 16, 2007 6:41 PM

wow that was easy

get mouse food, statue, and wood piece, and cup, put cup in the aquarium then place the wood piece on top of cup and then attach statue, place mouse food on the top pillar in the mouse tank, mouse will fly up and knock over the green vase giving you a key and a code, the number given has to be put into the phone and then you can play the game. follow the instructions and then go outside and follow the sequence of the lights. then on the last one give the dog a bone voila done!!!

Posted by: spoiler of fun | July 16, 2007 6:42 PM

Stupendous! And its just the first one entered! You know what that means... BETTER GAMES ARE COMING! Unique themes are the bomb, for the next one it really has to be extremely abstract!

Posted by: Zace

| July 16, 2007 6:43 PM

Great game! The first point and click I completed without tearing my hair out in frustration. Easy to tell what needs to be done but just the right level of difficulty in trying to pull it off. The mouse thing made me chuckle :)

Posted by: Kaykee | July 16, 2007 6:45 PM

I'm liking this. Creative, fun and stylish and very much in the mood of the other Bonte games.

Posted by: jbeaver | July 16, 2007 6:46 PM

This is a lovely game, and very cleverly done with the telephone part. I just wish there weren't so many lightbulb games - 3 would have been enough. Other than that, loved it. *thumbs up*

Posted by: Val | July 16, 2007 6:53 PM

Gee, thanks, spoiler-of-fun. But: when you say

place the wood piece on top of cup

how exactly do you do that?

Posted by: Tahnan | July 16, 2007 6:56 PM

Complete Walkthrough for A Bark in the Dark:

Go right one screen.
Click on the part of the baseboard that seems to be sticking out to get the "piece of wood".
Go right another screen.
Grab the dog bone and the familiar looking sculpture.
Right again, getting both the glass on the stool and the mouse food on the other stool.
Now go back to the mouse cage and place the glass in the cage.
Also place some mouse food on top of the strange tower.
The mouse should eat the food and knock down the glass.
Now place the peice of wood on the glass, the jig statue on the peice of wood, and one again some mouse food on the tower.
The mouse should fly and knock off the vase.
Go left and pick up a key.
Go left one screen and unlock the sports bag to get the extension cable.
Use the cable to plug in the game.
Follow the on screen instructions.
- Level 1:
  Repeat the dogs barks.
- Level 2:
  Same.
- Level 3:
  Same. Remember to ignore red barks.
- Level 4:
  Same. Remember to ignore red barks.
- Level 5:
  Repeat the dogs barks in a reverse order.
- Level 6:
  Same. Remember to ignore red barks.
- Level 7:
  Same. Remember to ignore red barks.
- Level 8:
  Same. Remember to ignore red barks.
- Level 9:
  Repeat the dogs barks.
Write down/ remember your 4-digit completion code.
Go to the phone beside the door.
Click to drop the receiver.
Now use your completion code on the phone, i.e. if your code is 4321, click on the phone 4 times, wait for it to say "4 beeps!?", then click 3 times, wait, 2 times, etc.
If done correctly, the door should unlock.
Go through the door to the garden.
Replay the lamp puzzle by placing food on the feeding platforms, so the mice run across the wires, turning on the bulbs as they run them over.
- Level 1:
  Click the bottom feeder, wait for the mouse to pass the middle light, then click the top feeder.
- Level 2:
  Click the top then quickly the bottom feeder.
- Level 3:
  Click the bottom, then top feeder. Time it so that the bottom light is illuminated before the third.
- Level 4:
  Click the top, then bottom, then middle feeder.
- Level 5:
  Click the feeders from the bottom to the top. (4th, 3rd, 2nd, 1st)
Feed the dog the bone.
Well done! (Enjoy the authors comments)

Posted by: Vinny | July 16, 2007 7:04 PM

That was a VERY nice point and click game, one that was exactly the right length and fairly easy for me, one who can never finish a point and click without spoilers...
Can't wait for more!

Posted by: Maerad | July 16, 2007 7:06 PM

I really enjoyed the puzzles in the game. they were just hard enough to have me replay them once or twice, but not needlessly hard. Like Kaykee said, it's the first point-and-click where I didn't pull my hair out because the steps were too complicated or didn't make sense.

I also liked the aesthetics, especially the cute dogs and the simple environment. I wish the typing at the beginning and end was smoother, and the sound was less electronic-ey (for lack of a better word). It seemed to clash with the visuals of the game, but that could just be me.

A very enjoyable puzzle game, though. Great job Bart!

Posted by: moopy | July 16, 2007 7:07 PM

Tahnan -- For the

wood on the cup

to work, you need to

give the mouse the food after placing the cup.

Then, do as told by spoiler of fun.

Posted by: st10109ed | July 16, 2007 7:09 PM

heh. If you beat it and use the go back button in the interface to start the game over the "win" music beat continues to play in the background.

Posted by: l0ser

| July 16, 2007 7:10 PM

WALKTHROUGH
(only for the inside)

1. go to door scene
2.pick up WOOD
3.go to mouse house scene
4.pick up BONE
5.pick up SCULPTURE (it's the JIG icon!)
6.go to arcade scene
7.pick up MOUSE FOOD
8.pick up EMPTY GLASS
9.go to mouse house scene
10.put EMPTY GLASS in mouse house
11.put MOUSE FOOD on the tower thing
12.put WOOD in the mouse house
13.put JIG ICON in the mouse house
14.put MOUSE FOOD on the tower again
15.go to door scene
16.pick up KEY
17.go to couch scene
18.put KEY in the lock on the bag
19.pick up ECSTENCHEN CORD
20.go to arcade scene
21.put ECSTENCHEN CORD in the plug
22.play the arcade game like you did in the bart bonte game where you feed the parrot
23.look at the code
24.go to door scene
25.enter the code from the game on the telephone for exsample the code: 65. i click the button 6 times wait for him to say 6 beeps i click to button 5 times
26.click the door

Posted by: reece | July 16, 2007 7:10 PM

... I think I just lost a mouse, and I'm a little bit concerned for it's safety...

Posted by: charmander

| July 16, 2007 7:16 PM

Great game Bart! The comments at the end were amusing. :)

Posted by: Zengief

| July 16, 2007 7:20 PM

Does not work for me. I'm using Flash Player 9, Firefox, Ubuntu feisty. The flash movie hangs on the loading screen, although I can hear the background music. Anyone else?

Posted by: Diego | July 16, 2007 7:24 PM

Diego - you must disable your ad blocker to view the competition entries. Apparently it interferes with the loading that's done within the competition UI.

(not that I'm complaining)

Posted by: jay

| July 16, 2007 7:31 PM

jay: It works now. Thanks! Now I know why some other flash games weren't loading :P

Posted by: Diego | July 16, 2007 7:51 PM

I liked the variations in the video game. Thanks for another fun few minutes!

Posted by: chelle

| July 16, 2007 8:47 PM

great little game. I liked the game within the game! the only issues I had with it, was that the mouse part was a bit too dark for me. I had to close the blinds and turn the brightness up to be able to even see that there were mice there! lol aside from that though, it was a cute little game.

Posted by: lab_brat

| July 16, 2007 9:12 PM

that was great!
thanks bonte :)

I enjoyed the graphics, as always, as well as the animal theme, as always.

the timing puzzle was a lot of fun, and i am proud to say i did it on my own :P

i almost feel the third replay element was chasing the mouse around once again :)
(the first two being the 2 replay puzzles)

btw, i kept my window open for another 2 minutes to see if there were any last minute emergency messages from mr. bonte, but alas, i guess "this is the end" was the end)

Posted by: OfficiallyHaphazard

| July 16, 2007 9:46 PM

This game was great! It only took ten minutes but sometimes you just want to take a little break and this is perfect for that! The music was cute and the art-work whimsical. A great appetizer for your game competition!

Posted by: joye

| July 16, 2007 9:56 PM

that was superfun, just enough pnc mixed with those SUPERFUN mouse puzzles (could be a game unto itself, with like 20 levels or something...) excellent job!

Posted by: Allegra

| July 16, 2007 9:56 PM

It was very hard to see the mouse platforms at the end of the game. Even with my monitor brightness all the way up, it was very dark. I gave up in frustration.

Posted by: Gupfee | July 16, 2007 10:05 PM

I know one game that's getting a paypal dollar from me. Are we doing that again this time Jay?

Bonte's games are always so good, and this one added the cutest dog ever. Perfect!

Posted by: Kate | July 16, 2007 10:28 PM

Yes, Kate, we'll be doing the audience prize voting again, but not until all the entries have been revealed. =)

Posted by: jay

| July 16, 2007 10:33 PM

I should actually learn how to make flash so I can make games like this. I can't believe this was made in one month's time (the only group that I thought could make good games really fast was Nitrome =) ). I've always wanted one of these escape-the-room games to say something like, "I don't know where I am. Why must the designers always give us room escapers amnesia? I must escape!"

Posted by: Shaun

| July 16, 2007 11:25 PM

Good Game in every way! graphics, music, puzzle design and difficulty level, cuteness of the mouse puzzle. The sense of humour is especially much appreciated - the highest fps in the world can't give it.

It's hard to think of a criticism... but I have a subtle one about the "red" dogs...

I didn't read the instructions properly about not hitting "red" dogs (the rule is that "people never read instructions" - but that's not the criticism). When the red dog is the last one, you still succeed even if you have no idea about not hitting red dogs, because the last button press is ignored (much like Mitch Hedburg dialing 1800-I-REALLY-ENJOY-CARPETING, with "too many letters man"). And so I got through the puzzle, anyway, as if it weren't there...

A suggestion is to never have a "red" dog in the last position of a sequence. Eg. if you compute the red dog's position with random(sequenceLength), the simplest solution would be to use random(sequenceLength-1). The other way is to regenerate the number if it turns out in the last position (this way's useful if you have other constraints).

As for the instructions, I can't think of a simpler alternative, apart from an elaborate demo (with buttons being pressed to show the correct sequence - and a label popping up above the button corresponding to the red dog, saying "DON'T PRESS").

Another way is to use a big "X" over the dog that is not to be pressed, instead of (or in addition to) the dog being red. But I think that changes the puzzle a lot...

This post seems kinda long, but feedback was asked for.

Posted by: yow

| July 16, 2007 11:28 PM

Regarding the red dog:

I didn't read the instructions properly either! Oops! I think you've got a point, yow, about the red dogs being last, but I don't think a simpler alternative to the instructions is necessary.

I knew that I was messing up, I knew the red had to mean something, I can either a) wait until my lives are up, return to the starting screen, and have a chance to read the directions again or b) figure it out like any other puzzle in the game.

I happened to just stumble upon the "don't click the red dogs" idea (solution b), which actually added a bit of puzzle-solving fun to the game for me. It might be annoying to have additional stuff in a longer game but in this shorter (really nice length, for me) game, I think it's just fine.

Posted by: kellyhalia | July 16, 2007 11:44 PM

kellyhalia: yeah, I think you're right, just treating the "red dogs" as a puzzle works well. I had the same reaction as you. But I was unlucky (lucky?) to have it in the last position several times, so I was succeeding half the time anyway. Not getting the intended feedback makes a harder puzzle! :-)

And my eyes did read the instructions - they just didn't register with me.

I should stress that this criticism is very subtle, about one minor part of the game. I really enjoyed the game overall. Very lovely.

Posted by: yow

| July 17, 2007 12:00 AM

I'm sorry, but I really need closure. I NEED to know what happened to the mouse that got out of the tank. Did it DIE? Did it escape into the wild? Did it find its mommy??? Come on! It can't just disappear!

Posted by: charmander

| July 17, 2007 1:21 AM

yow: I definitely agree with your point about it being harder without the proper feedback.

charmander: I think it went

outside to play with the other mice in the lightbulb puzzle

. So it didn't die, and it found its mommy :-) :-)

Posted by: kellyhalia | July 17, 2007 1:41 AM

Fun game!

I just wish there were more mouse areobatics... Funny stuff, that!

Posted by: Dave

| July 17, 2007 2:11 AM

Eh, I didn't really enjoy this. It felt disconnected, like two games crudely hacked together into one, neither of which was very original or challenging. One might argue that I shouldn't expect too much from a month's work, but I do know the previous competitions have quite enthralled me. Hopefully the other entries will be better.

Posted by: Skatche | July 17, 2007 2:16 AM

Really a great first entry! Throughly enjoyable, intuitive play, and a really interesting take on the "replay" theme. Loved the mice used in place of the typical robot as brainless followers. ; )
Can't wait to see more from this contest - definitely going to be dropping my gelt in the voting bucket.

Posted by: Catgrin | July 17, 2007 2:19 AM

I enjoyed this game, though it was a bit simple... I liked the combined elements of our favorite p&c games with the replay pieces. The red dogs thing psyched me up to expect greater levels of difficulty than actually manifested over the course of the 9 levels, but considering I don't finish most games without some hints, I guess I shouldn't be complaining that I managed this one on my own. The mice on the power lines was probably the trickiest part of the whole game just 'cause timing stuff has always seemed to be more of a hand-eye coordination skill than a puzzle or memory deal (the skill sets generally required for replay/play back sorts of games). On the whole, I enjoyed this game and could see it being the basis for a more complex/challenging rendering of the central puzzles.

Posted by: Vvicked | July 17, 2007 2:22 AM

Great little game. I think it is kind of funny how physics got involved.

Posted by: Anonymous | July 17, 2007 2:31 AM

Really enjoyed the game, particularly liked that it continued once the door was unlocked...

Well done :) A great start to my day!

Posted by: Escapee | July 17, 2007 3:28 AM

A really, really great start to the contest. Just the right level of difficulty and length.

Posted by: Wulfo

| July 17, 2007 4:02 AM

That was fun! Particularly liked the little statue!

Posted by: Dom | July 17, 2007 5:29 AM

would you please change the ending? the flashing like that has a chance of affecting people with light sensitive epilepsy. otherwise, fun game.

Posted by: Sam | July 17, 2007 6:07 AM

This was a perfect way to spend a few minutes of my morning--easy enough, but still rewarding--perfectly casual.

Posted by: Erika

| July 17, 2007 9:19 AM

The comments so far have been overwhelmingly positive, but I have to say this one didn't really do much for me. While the mini-games within the game itself were amusing, they made little sense in the game world.

I can kind of see the video game giving you the code to open the door (it does sort of make sense--I guess--within the game world), but going outside and having to solve those mouse/light problems to move to the next screen to find the dog and give him the bone? That made absolutely no sense at all.

I realize this is a rather common problem with these escape-the-room games, but I like my games to have some level of coherency, and this one just became completely incoherent at the end. In essence, it was just a jumble of puzzles. If it had presented itself as such I would have had no problem with it, but it pretends to have a story.

It was a good effort, fun in its own way, and I give the author credit for putting together the game in a month's time. But, while I hate to be overcritical, I have a feeling that this one is going to end up near the bottom of the pile.

Posted by: Suho1004

| July 17, 2007 9:31 AM

A pleasant little game. Definitely casual, definitely includes the "replay" theme.
I give it a rank of B+. It was fun, but I reserve A's for things that really impress me.

Posted by: JonMW | July 17, 2007 10:09 AM

what an awsome game!! i like all the bonte games anyway (and i should know from completing it on my only day off from work during the week)

anyway can wait to see what the other competitors come up with .....

if anyone has got a way into making these games and such on a mac please tell me im interested in html from my aunts giving me their commador 16 to my rents buying me a amstrad computer with built in mega drive

now my boy freind has got a mac and im willing to learn everything about them well interested in graffix and everything really

FfireX

Posted by: Ffire | July 17, 2007 10:12 AM

This is the first Bonte I've ever been able to do without help or a walkthrough, so it's probably going to be pretty easy for most of the rest of you. :-)

Thank you for a great game!! Keep 'em coming!!!

Posted by: BoatGuy | July 17, 2007 11:48 AM

hei bart,goeie game,leuke puzzel op het einde met de muizen.keep it up LOL

Posted by: croontje | July 17, 2007 12:29 PM

Very nice game. I quite enjoyed it!

Posted by: fwissy | July 17, 2007 2:56 PM

The bark game-within-the-game did not work in Safari. It kept telling me I had done it wrong when I did it correctly and at least one time, it told me I had done it right one bark too early.

Posted by: parabasis | July 17, 2007 3:10 PM

I liked this, there were too many mouse puzzles at the end - 3 would be enough. The light bulb ending was cool.

Posted by: iks | July 17, 2007 3:14 PM

I have enjoyed all of the Bonte games and this latest offering lives up to expectations. Very enjoyable and not too taxing. However I am concerned about the mouse's whereabouts...

Posted by: Xavirez | July 17, 2007 3:25 PM

I hate to be negative but I guess I have some criticism. The thing that annoys me about some point and click games is when I have to engage in a series of clicks to set up some chain of events that allows me access to something that I would have had access to were I in the real world. The quintessential example of this is when you "can't reach" something on a shelf even though there are obviously plenty of objects in the room you could climb or move to get to the shelf.

In this game

why did I have to set up a Rube Goldberg device in the mouse's cage in order to get the key from the vase? In the real world couldn't I have just looked into the vase? picked it up? turned it over and shaken it? Why couldn't I have placed the cup down on it's side in the cage rather than on it's bottom and then force the mouse to knock it over? Could I have at least tried to push the game machine over to the outlet before deciding it needed an extension cord? Why didn't I try to tear open the bag with something sharp in the room?

maybe I am just being overly cross but this sort of thing detracts from my ability to "suspend disbelief."

Posted by: Stephen | July 17, 2007 4:11 PM

I have to agree with the posters who found the puzzles illogical. I wanted to see any one of the mini-games developed further, rather than loosely combining them in a pseudo-escape-the-room framework. However, I still found the whole thing charming and playable. The presentation is so whimsical that the somewhat shaky logic didn't bother me as much as it normally would have. I'm a sucker for a game with a sense of humor.

Posted by: Psychotronic

| July 17, 2007 8:17 PM

I enjoyed this game up until the light puzzle at the end--like others, I couldn't see anything, and ended up screenshotting the game and pasting into an image editor to adjust the contrast.

It's very cute, though.

Posted by: Cat | July 17, 2007 10:32 PM

Cute game! And I think maybe the first I've ever gotten through without cheating ;). The light puzzles were a bit of a challenge, as well. I enjoyed it! Does Bart have a thing against mice? I love that noise they always make. I would have liked to see the room section expanded a bit into a bigger escape game, but overall very sweet if a bit short.

Posted by: Kim | July 17, 2007 10:53 PM

parabasis: sounds like the red dog problem (see my post above)

Posted by: yow

| July 18, 2007 2:23 AM

Sorry, I had to laugh a bit when I read the "suspension of disbelief" comment.

Yes, puzzles have no sense narratively, but they are not very illogical, or perhaps the game is easy enough you can forgive the nonsense of catapulting the rat and so on.

I find pixel-hunting problems (which this game thankfully doesn't have) much more problematic and illogical in these types of games. For instance, you have to click the exact right pixel to "look beside the sofa". Why, is the "side of the sofa" such an microscopically small area? Or you have to click the exact corner of the picture to remove it. Are all the other corners of the picture ultra-slippery or something? And don't get me even started on the need to find gazillions of keys even after you get an axe or something simmilar which would happily smash all those locked cabinets, desk drawers or doors into small bits. "That door is locked." - well why don't you do "Heeeree's Johnny!" on it, genius??

Posted by: baba44713

| July 18, 2007 9:30 AM

eh... not up to Bonte's usual standard, I don't think. Replay was only incorporated in a very literal, predictable sense. The only way I figured out the mouse puzzle was by clicking around trial and error style, and I don't see anything in the room to suggest the "right" way to figure it out instead. Seeing as this was the only "puzzle" (the others were more "minigames") I found the whole thing to be way too easy and not to have much value outside of the competition. Bonte himself seems to realize this as he felt the need to include an explanation of the competition and the replay theme at th end of the game...I did like the "familiar statue" though...!

Posted by: elemeno | July 18, 2007 9:43 AM

SO far this is the definite winner!
Great lunch or break game.
Loved the use of the jigman statue.

Friction thing & Jigman Joining were too complicated/frustrating for my limited ability & I just don't enjoy shooting games, esp if I have to use the keypad.

Wonderful how this competition encourages creativity; thanks, Jay!

Posted by: Zann | July 18, 2007 11:03 AM

Wow! Finally a Bonte game that I could do without hints! I thought his continuing animal themes are really cute. I like that he has a "signature." The use of the JIG logo was great! Thumbs up!

Posted by: mrsallisonf | July 18, 2007 1:08 PM

Thanks to Bart Bronte for creating a point and click mixed with the right level of difficulty so I can make my way through without losing heart too early on! It's my first point and click game that I don't need a walkthrough at all! I agree with those along the similar lines.

Posted by: shobaday | July 19, 2007 9:50 AM

Wow... this was by far the easiest BONTE game yet.

You don't need a walkthrough, just pay attention!
You'll get it in no time.

Posted by: tankgirl23 | July 19, 2007 2:18 PM

This game was extremely cute!

Posted by: Kim | July 19, 2007 3:35 PM

Gorgeous game! The puzzles are very confusing and extraordinary! Thanx a lot!

Posted by: damngringo | July 20, 2007 5:27 AM

Definately the best Bonte game so far!!! I thought the arcade game was good, the dog is really cute! The mice got on my nerves a bit but it was worth it just to see the little dog dance!

Posted by: Naomi | July 20, 2007 9:46 AM

this game iz bangin'

Posted by: bryan | July 20, 2007 4:39 PM

Easy and cute little game I enjoyed it Thanks =)

Posted by: Callista | July 22, 2007 5:50 PM

Why isn't there a bbonte tag for this game?

Posted by: Dorham | July 25, 2007 10:14 AM

It was my oversight. Thanks for catching that, it's fixed now. =)

Posted by: jay

| July 25, 2007 12:22 PM

I loved this game!!! Pefect for me, thumbs up.

Posted by: Hannah | July 27, 2007 4:16 PM

wow i really loved this game! keep up the good work!

Posted by: impie | July 29, 2007 9:32 AM

i dont understand half the game.

honestly, why couldnt you just look ito the vase instead of knocking it over with a flying mouse propelled by a seesaw made out of a cup that the same mouse had to knock over and a plank of wood? not to mention the "familiar" statue!!!

if the game had more depth then it would be much better. Also it was hard to follow without looking at the walkthrough.

After all my negative comments, I still have to say it was a good game.
:)

Posted by: bob | August 6, 2007 2:58 PM

Wow! the first point and click game I've finished all by myself! m=no hints, no peeks, no nothing!

Posted by: TaladorPhoenix | August 11, 2007 4:33 PM

AWESOME GAME! One of my two favorites in the contest. I really enjoy point and click games- and if only this was closer to the theme, it would deserve to win, IMHO.

Posted by: Me | August 15, 2007 3:02 PM

thats so cute I love it

Posted by: Nona | August 15, 2007 5:23 PM

That Game was so cool! I tried that bark game like 5 times before i started saying 3,1,2,1 backward so.. 1,2,1,3 Yay!

I can Never finish point and click games without spoilers, it was challenging and to time the mice just the right time was fun, I cant wait to play the next one! .. If there is one.. :)

Posted by: Josh | August 24, 2007 8:17 PM

=] it was easy and i didnt need any walk throughs, but i like the type of escape games where even if you have a walk through, you still need half a brain.

Posted by: Hethyr | August 26, 2007 8:59 PM

too noisy :( dont like noisy escape games...

Posted by: Anonymous | September 13, 2007 11:56 AM

Awesome and cute as can be!!! Loved this one!!

Posted by: clay | September 17, 2007 2:27 AM

What's up with these old games?

Posted by: Dr. Pepsi | September 19, 2007 10:58 PM

What's up is that when we roll out the competition entries initially, all we do is introduce them.

A full review is saved for after the competition is over.

This is the full review for A Bark in the Dark.

Posted by: jay

| September 19, 2007 11:21 PM

Oh man, I remember being so frustrated with this game. I think I liked it though...

Posted by: Scramble125

| September 20, 2007 1:29 AM

This is THE BEST escape-the-room game I have EVER played. When I say best I don't mean best for everyone, just for specific people like me, I guess - I know everybody likes different things. But for people who have difficulty with long games and tons of pixel hunting, this is a really great game.

Posted by: kellyhalia | September 20, 2007 2:43 AM

Jayisgames is my new joy, point-and-click escape games are my new addiction, and Bart's game was the first I did all by myself. I loved the graphics enough to dance with the dog all the way through the cute ending. I love this site and loved playing this fun fast game.

Posted by: Liz | September 20, 2007 9:34 AM

Very straightforward (I am normally terrible at these room escape games), but I had difficulty seeing the second set of puzzles, I wish games designers would test games on a (only slightly) low brightness level...

Posted by: Bistromathic | September 20, 2007 3:08 PM

Fun game...a piece of paper and pen helps for the light bulbs.

Posted by: Scoobysnack | September 21, 2007 1:52 PM

Kudos to Bart Bonte for a fun game with a smiley ending.

Loved the cool tune and the happy mongrel.

Posted by: Zeke

| September 26, 2007 3:16 AM

how do you put the thing in the mouse cage

Posted by: Anonymous | November 3, 2007 10:28 AM

I realize it's bark in the DARK, but it's no fun when it's so dark you have no idea what the hell is going on! the whole outdoor sequence is useless.

Posted by: Anonymous | November 4, 2007 1:12 AM

very nice

Posted by: Anonymous | November 5, 2007 10:43 PM

vinny that was a very nice walkthrough but for my experience at least, the level five in the outside garden was M

4th, 2nd, 3rd, 1st.

other than that that was AWESOME.
the game was a bit easy though.

Posted by: Anonymous | November 9, 2007 6:29 PM

I don't understand level 4 of the lightbulb and mouse part.
Click bottom then top feeder, time it so the bottom bulb is illuminated before the third??
Please help

Posted by: Hannah Moo | November 10, 2007 12:46 PM

omg got ...so easy wow i completed in bout 5 mins

Posted by: Anonymous | November 16, 2007 9:11 PM

ohh my lord!!that is the most sweetest dog in the hole world!he is so sweet rocking his head like that ...i loove this game :))))

Posted by: aha | November 21, 2007 4:45 AM

Fun little game, but for some reason the barking dog mini-game took me WAY more tries than it should have. Maybe I shouldn't play these at 4 AM.

Posted by: Jeremy H

| February 8, 2008 4:22 AM

The puppy is way too cute!!!!!!!!

Posted by: iwuvpuppies!(andjonathon: ) ) | February 15, 2008 6:27 PM

hi i just wanted to say,i LOVE this game the puppy is over happy and cute!!!

Posted by: jared | February 24, 2008 3:36 PM

Very fun game (though I had to look at the walkthrough one time) and the puppy in the ending is the most adorable thing I've ever seen!

Posted by: Catu | March 18, 2008 9:19 PM

still love the cute little mouse (he he)

Posted by: Saphire913

| March 25, 2008 5:17 PM

Oh my... I just started the game and I am already laughing. Literally, laughing out loud. I couldn't help myself when

I realized that you were supposed to make a catapult for the mouse. I chuckled there, but I died when it crashed into the vase! Oh, animal cruelty. At least it is animated.

Posted by: Sarah Mac | July 25, 2008 5:35 PM

aaww, really cute, I love all of the bonte games!

Posted by: The Wolf's Shadow

| July 29, 2008 2:18 PM

Update