The Bar is a breathtakingly beautiful point-and-click room-escape game presented by IDAC and translated by Mark Bowers. It begins with an intriguing story of a couple who promise that if they parted they would meet again in 50 years at this bar. The lovers have separated, time has passed, and here you are waiting at the empty bar. But... where is she? The Bar is a very atmospheric room-escape game that steals you with its ambience and stunningly rendered scenery then holds you with some challenging puzzles.
The Bar is an item-centric game where you must collect various objects from around the bar and use them in creative ways. You're limited to one room that you can pivot around in and search, but you'll need to turn around every corner, lift every napkin and mix every drink to find what you need.
A major part of the game is using items in conjunction with each other. Simply click on an item in your inventory and choose "About". A close-up of the chosen object appears and you can click on it for more info. To use another item with this one, just click it while in this zoomed-in mode, then click on the item you're viewing. If you've used an item for its purpose it greys out in your inventory and can no longer be selected.
Analysis: Like most room escape games, The Bar combines one part exploration and two parts frantic clicking. An oddly welcome gameplay mechanic are arrows you click to change views inside the bar. This frees the rest of the screen for mad mouse clicking sprees to find new items and crannies to peer into.
My only complaint is that toward the end a few of the puzzles are quite obscure. Only through completely random luck (or cheating) can you find out what to do next. A few puzzles seem to have nothing to do with the story, they're just problems that need to be solved in order to proceed. A bit of a disappointment, but the rest of the game is very rewarding.
Give The Bar a try.
Walkthrough Guide
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The Bar Walkthrough - Starting Out
You start off facing a window and countertop. Read the diary in your inventory.
Click forward on the screen and pick up the coaster. Also look at the book sitting on the counter.
Go right twice, then pick up the wine bottle opener from the counter.
Click under the cabinet to get the lighter.
From this position, click in the right part of the screen to get a bottle of wine. Look where the bottle was to pick up the suitcase.
Go right once. From this vantage point we will check out the counter top from three different angles. Just click on the named part of the bar to zoom in.
Left side: Click on the fourth bottle from the left on the bottom shelf to get the bottle of Habani Club rum. Then click towards the black part of the counter, open the ice chest and take the block of ice. Also get the blender from this screen.
Center: Get the lime juice from the mixers on the left, the ice pick from the center, and the cloth from the right.
Right side: Click near the bottles to get a broken glass.
Go right twice, then zoom in on the covered table. Get the red cell phone from the right side.
Item Combining
After you have completed the above portion, you'll need to use some of the items in conjunction with each other to progress.
Click on the blender, click "About Items", then click on the top of the item. Click on the bottle of rum, then the cup of lemon juice. You'll make a daiquiri. Repeat to make a double daiquiri.
Go back to the Old Man and the Sea book on the counter. Click on it to reveal a key.
Take the key and use it on the locked cabinet below the mirror. You'll get a locked green box.
Go to the screen where you can see the bar, a glass, and the door in the background. Zoom in on the bar.
Select the ice pick and use it near the center of the bar. It should make a white dot appear. Use the empty glass and place it over the dot.
Click on the glass to see the shadow it makes on the ceiling.
Select the wine bottle opener, click "About Items", then click the item twice to reveal a ring.
Click on the lighter, click "About Items", then click a few more times to open it and reveal another ring.
Check out the block of ice. It's melted to reveal a third ring. Click the ring to have a look at all three, then click on the cloth to wipe them clean. The letters say XYZ.
From the diary entry, we get the password for the silver case: 1972. Open the case and take out the card. Go just right of the counter where the book is, zoom in and click the card to place it in front of you. The holes show a set of numbers: the password for the cell phone (1952).
Click on the coaster, click "About Items", then click anywhere on the top to reveal a website. You can go to this URL, but it won't help you with the game directly.
Click the cell phone, click "About Items", then click on the top screen. At this password screen, click on the card you just used to insert the password.
Click "Ok" after you've done this, then choose a drink. Each one unlocks a different ending.
Now click on the green box and zoom in on the lock mechanism. Enter the code 9999 to open it and reveal a key.
Take this key and unlock the door to leave the bar. Depending on which drink you chose earlier, you'll get a different ending, all of which tell bits of a story you can piece together.
Congratulations! You're done!
Posted by: vicki | June 25, 2006 10:12 AM