Lost Souls (18): Endgame and REVIEW

[First published October 14, 2010]
Sigh. I finished. Got both endings too.

I should have been able to play this entire game in about a week, and would have done that but for responsibility, and frankly, fear. I let the game get to me. Normally I would have played my heart out in the evenings, but I really didn't want to play this game unless it was daylight.

Well, also, I did want to drag it out. I love Jonathan's games. I'm really hoping that the next TLC game will be every bit as long as the first (sorry Jonathan!)

Plus, it's true that for over a month I had other things that pulled me away from the game. Dad had some problems. I had my first vacation in two years. Kirkus, thankfully, tripled the number of books they sent me. Also, when you stop for awhile, inertia sets in: hey, I really want to get back to my game--tomorrow, absolutely! Nope.

But, sigh, it's done now.

Actually I did get some playing time in on Tuesday, just for about a half an hour before my sister arrived. I did find an item in Matilda's room, but there was no message from Echo.

So, where to go? I never could figure out how to get into Room 2F, which is boarded up (but not crossed out on the map, so I thought there might be a way). Absent that, though, I figured I was finished with the second floor. Tried to get up to "my" room on the third floor and got killed again.

OK, where else do I have unfinished business? Back out to the fire, and at last I learned that I had acquired the item that the fire wanted (not saying where or when I got it). Also, I acquired the last doll (not saying where I got that either).

Back to the owl's hunting ground, and when I got there, wow! Are the ghosts taking over? That's where I saved, and returned to the game today, after I got my Kirkus book done.

At last, the doll puzzle. Clearly, it was time for the endgame. Really, after all this time thinking about the items and clues I have, it was a cinch. Got the last bit of the ringed thingy, and figured out how to work that. The TV movie helped lots, although the same information is available in the book of symbols.

Got a message from Echo about hiding "here." Looked everywhere in the area, but nope, nothing there. Also, tried the ladies room again, but no, there was nothing different in the script there. Dunno why that scissors stash is there by the fire.

Nowhere else to go but back to the third floor. And indeed, Echo tells me to go there. I figure that the ringed thingy would get me up the stairs, and yup, this was a nice effect. Also, when you first get to the third-floor hallway, I swear it tilted back and forth. Very nice indeed.

Leading me to the final major puzzle. Simple, really, Creepy, absolutely. The real problem was figuring out what the dratted puzzle was. However, there really aren't too many possibilities. All you can do is touch stuff, and listen. Eventually it becomes fairly clear what you have to do. It does take a bit of thinking, but that's a well-designed puzzle.

At last, I faced Room 3F. I've got the key. I enter.

Dunno what other players would think of Room 3F, but I loved it. Especially as I happened to pick the more optimistic ending. I remembered a brief episode from much earlier in the game that referred to the optimistic ending, so it all fit together and made sense. Plus, I got to do one more lock pick puzzle.

Went back to see if the other choice was any different, and it sure was! It's probably the choice the Inspector himself would have made, but then, we've already decided that he's a bit mad. Nicely done ending, also. Really didn't expect this game to have a happy ending.


REVIEW

My verdict on the game: A-minus. It would be a straight A except for the moth and "shiny packages" puzzles, which were lame, and a few technical glitches. I thought it was a bit too creepy, but that's just my taste. I try not to fault games that don't fit my taste--that's not the game's problem. For folks who want horror games (actually my favorite genre, despite my squeamishness in this game), they won't find a scarier one anywhere.

The graphics were absolutely marvelous. Way too much gore, I thought, but damn, it was well done gore. Just being in that derelict building was enough to keep you on edge, which is the main reason I mostly stuck to my vow to play only in the daylight (although I finished the game well after dark tonight). The mannequins really worked to raise the creepy level. Still don't know why they were there in the hotel, but the effect was splendid. The trash in the hallways, the graffiti on the walls, the excellent eerie sounds (always a major feature in Boakes' games), everything works to grab you in your reptilian brain, and squeeze.

With the two notable exceptions, the puzzles were really well done and extremely well integrated into the storyline. My favorite episodes, of course, were the flashbacks to 1947 and saving the three Lost Souls (would that we could have saved the rest of 'em!) but actually, those really didn't fit this particular storyline.

I very much wish that I'd just gone ahead and sat down and played the thing in about a week, even if it meant playing at night. I allowed myself to get dragged away, although some of it was unavoidable, but lots of it was just, frankly, because I was scared of this game. Well, that's a tribute to the game.

One of the reasons I started this blog was to give myself another incentive to get back to gaming. There are some long-awaited games coming up soon: Bracken Tor, The Last Crown, Gray Matter. I also want to play the last two Carol Reed games (started one and lost it when my hard disk crashed). I want to get back to playing every day, as I used to do.

I will play Lost Souls again, absolutely! I wound up with a few items in the inventory that were never used, such as the vodka and pills, and a light bulb. Did I miss something? Although I was mad at myself for going to the WT so often--some of that was because I stayed away from playing for such long periods--next time I think I might just print the WT out and follow it. I'll undoubtedly find more stuff, and I really want to get everything that's in there!

Too long, too short? Nope. Quite a nice length for the story it wanted to tell. I'd love to see a prequel to this series. My fave part of both the first and third games were the 1947 bits. It would be great to go back to 1947 and watch the whole saga begin. I'd like to see the old hotel as it was meant to be, and really meet Gloria and Andrew, Matilda, Edith and Betty and all the rest. They're like old friends by this time.

Lost Souls really sets a standard for the horror genre. Let's just see someone try to come up with a game that's creepier and downright more frightening than this one. Go ahead and try.