Lights Out 10: Done!

So I was able to finish after all, but only because I found that director's cut walkthrough. I mean, honestly. The director's cut eliminated the spitfire hot spot that takes you back to 2004? Why make the player navigate that maze in 2090 over and over again? 

Sigh.

I might have found it on my own, because I went back through the maze to the elevator, but even though I'm well aware that navigation is awful in this game and looked thoroughly, I still didn't find the hotspot that would have led me back to the brick wall on the other side of the 1912 boiler. Needed the WT for that too.

Well. I went back to the stone age because I knew I'd missed something. I should have found at least one inventory item there. But where? Fortunately, the WT solved that for me too. I really was pretty thorough the first time I was in that time zone, but the item is in such an out-of-the-way spot that I can't imagine too many people finding it on the first try. 

This is not where the item is

Once I had that item things went well. I even found another glowing colored circle pattern. And then another. I never did see Polly White's eye in the keyhole--maybe that was changed too, but she did speak to me.

A ghost encounter

Of course I had to go back yet again to 2090 to make the remote controller work and get that last clue. Then back again to the stone age, where I knew I'd find the endgame.

Approaching the Endgame

I had hoped I'd like the game better this time. Maybe if Jonathan hadn't eliminated that easy travel option I would have been happier, but I still can't see the plotline in this. We start with Jonathan's usual ghostly tale, the kind of thing he does extremely well, but we end up with science fiction that really doesn't explain much. Plus, the audio in the endgame is only barely intelligible, so we don't even get that much of a payoff.

Things I liked:

• The graphics. Nicely done.
• Great atmosphere, especially in 1912.
• More ghosts in the director's cut. Good.
• The creepy audio.
• Good puzzles for the most part.
• The start of an intriguing story.

Things I didn't like:

• Difficult navigation--probably because of a low budget.
• The ghost triggers never go away, but repeat and repeat. If you start an encounter with a ghost, you have to finish it.
• Easy puzzles to start, but the final puzzle is nearly impossible without a WT to guide you. Not enough clues as to what's important, and what to do with the clues that we find throughout the game. OK, we know they're clues so we take notes, but putting it all together is one daunting task.
• We have to take notes.
• The intriguing story becomes incomprehensible. We need much more information on how the probe causes the ghosts, or sends people into madness. Why? 
• Eliminating the easy travel in the director's cut was a deeply bad idea.

So all in all, I'm glad I played the director's cut because I want to see all of Jonathan's games, but my opinion of the storyline hasn't changed. We just never get enough information for it to make any real sense.

Nevertheless, how many game designers take the time to thank their players?

In the credits!

And thank you Jonathan, for another good effort, even if this one wasn't quite up to your usual standards. It had plenty of great moments though!