One more game to leave you with to sweat it out over the weekend. Mark Arenz over at Ridiculopathy.com, author of the previously reviewed Swinger game, has just released his latest creation and it's a unique combination of point-and-click puzzles with arcade mini-games thrown in for good measure.
Carnyville is a uniquely stylized adventure game that makes use of a monetary structure, health meter, and scoring system to increase replay value, but they also add some frustration to the mix as well.
The object of the game, as with most clicky games, is to find and collect various objects that will allow you to progress through the game. It all leads up to a final encounter with the evil carnival boss.
The addition of a monetary structure limits the number of times you can play the various mini-games to acquire necessary items. Some actions will cause you to take damage to your health meter. If you use up all of the health meter, you may continue playing at a cost of 200 points off your final score.
An unusual game for its type, Carnyville offers something slightly different for those who have become jaded with the point-and-click genre. Still, the addition of arcade elements may be disappointing for some who enjoy these types of games. Overall, a very good effort that can be enjoyed more than once.
Note: the servers that the Ridiculopathy website is hosted on are extremely slow, which may be due to this game being brand new and is therefore getting lots of traffic. Be patient. The game will load, though it took about 15 minutes the first time I tried. Beware of the loud carnival music that begins playing once the game is fully loaded.
Walkthrough Guide
(Please allow page to fully load for spoiler tags to be functional.)
Here is the walkthrough:
Start by taking your wallet from the drawer. Get insulted by your wife if you want, check your reflection in the mirror and realize you're a bit short in the pants dept.
Walk downstairs and into the laundry room (left at the end of the hallway, opposite the door outside). Take the pants between the washer and the dryer, take part of the cookie jar key from the dryer (it's way down and hard to see, just move your pointer around until you hit it). Petting the cat isn't required (or even appreciated) :-)
Step outside and take the second part of the code key from the lawn. Go back inside and into the kitchen. Rummage through the cabinets for a roll of duct tape and a book. Note that one of the cabinets can't be opened.
You now have everything you need to open the jar. The letters represent the colors and the numbers tell you in which order to use them. The switch upstairs is #1, the microwave is #2, the dryer is #3 and switch on the kitchen wall is #4. The jar should now be open, grab the cash.
(And put your shorts on, otherwise you won't be able to buy a wristband. Check the Property Value-O-Meter on the hallway wall if you want, it has probably dropped to Anxiety by now.)
Go outside, buy a wristband and enter. Most of the books can be taken in any order:
One is in the small tent behind the crying child. You don't have to help him now, but if you do, you'll lose a finger and have to buy $15 worth of healing. Make sure you do it, if you decide to do this. It will trigger something later on that you need to do (Trigger the employee's enterance, see below). Talk to the badly drawn guy in the tent to get some hints.
One is between the dart stand and the fish-in-a-barrel stand. Just pick it up.
One can be won by playing darts. You need to play twice, to get both the engine part and the book. If you're gonna bleed out and die somewhere, this is the spot..
One is a prize in the fish shooting. There's no time limit here, wait for a chance to get more than one fish in a shot (I think you need six to win the book). You'll have to play this twice as well, the mirror will be used later on.
(If you're a lousy shot like me, you've just run out of money. Sell plasma to get some cash.)
Now go bob for a screwdriver in the fried foods stand. Wait for it to appear near the basket, click it and hold while you're pulling it into the basket (NOTE that doing this part is the hardest. Make sure you pull the screwdriver before you pops up in the oil, make sure you click and drag). If you catch any food, eat it if you need to boost your health or keep it in your inventory.
Time for a bike stunt. This involves getting to the bike (from the grease trap, go west, north, double east, open the gate by clicking lights 1, 2 and 3), fixing the bike (use the engine part you won in the balloon game and use the duct tape to keep it in place) and riding it.
Navigate between the rocks, ride the ramp and don't let go of the mouse button until you've landed. Claim your bad grammar prize and take the book from the bushes. You can set up the mirror to deflect the laser beams now, if you want to.
Go home and use the screwdriver to fix the cabinet. Take the issue of Unpopular Mechanics. Go back and enter the freakshow tent. To get past the guy with the bow tie, give him the cup. Take the book outside.
Walk through the Employees Only opening and give the magazine to the ferris wheel operator. Go outside and buy a ferris wheel ticket. Take the book from the tree as you glide by.
You now have all eight books. Put them in the bookshelf and rearrange them (BRADBURY). A key appears, take it.
Ride the bike again and use the key to unlock the door. Enter.
Big shootout scene. Shoot Mr. Dark some ten times, don't waste bullets on the fish.
Mission accomplished.
WELL DONE :)
Posted by: remister | August 14, 2005 8:54 AM