Drawn®: Dark Flight™ Collector's Edition Reviews

One of my favourite game series as a kid. When i last played this, the bug hadn't been fixed--i never got to finish it. I'm really happy that i could, now, years and years later. It worked completely fine for me, here in 2024! No issues or bugs to speak of. The puzzles are challenging but all solvable, and i love that there's no penalty for hints or skipping puzzles altogether when you need to. It makes the game much more accessible imo! Prevents frustration, too. The art is gorgeous, as is the soundtrack. Really glad i was able to revisit it and enjoy all over again :')

Drawn: Dark Flight is the second in the series of Drawn games. You continue right where you left off in the first game and the artwork, style and gameplay are much the same as the first game. The soundtrack is lovely and the puzzles are unique while maintaining the same style of puzzles. I couldn't help but think that the voiceover narration and one character encountered sounded just like the Preacher in the Enigmatis games. Nice to see his character as a helper instead of the antagonist. These games are so charming and entertaining. Definite recommendation!

A really nice sequel. The minigames are pretty hard but you can skip them so this is not a big problem. The story came to a good conclusion and the bonus was a nice end to the story, even though it could have been done way better. Still a really nice game with nice graphics and again cool mechanics. I can highly recommend it

I wanted to write a good review on this game. I wanted to, but couldn't because it will not run past the "Messenger in a Bottle" sequence where the sun comes out. It crashes with some "exception EAaccess Violation in module 'Drawnll.exe". Read of address 00000078." I tried reinstalling to no avail. I even did some poking around on the web to see if anyone else had this issue. I didn't look hard or nothing so I ain't saying you mightn't find something if you look, but I was disgusted by it. Oh well. On to more well tended pastures.

I love these games, the whole trilogy, and have loved them since they were first published. However, as of writing in July of 2023, they no longer work on Windows. I have tried every compatibility setting, and I'm not illiterate when it comes to fixing computers, but nothing I have done makes these games run anymore. It breaks my heart, because the puzzles are fun, the story is interesting, the art and music are some of the most beautiful I have ever seen, but they are no longer playable and it seems Big Fish and Steam have no plans on fixing this. Do not spend your money on these games unless you are running an OLD pc still on Windows XP.

I really liked the first game in the series, and this one looked to be great as well. There's unfortunately a game-stopping bug in the Town section, where a required item is missing. Refunded.

Just as in the first game (Drawn: The Painted Tower) I enjoyed this immensely. The art style is beautiful, the soundtrack is beautiful and the voice acting was well-done, which is rare in this genre. The puzzles require some patience and thinking in some cases, and that is a plus for me. My only complaint at all is that it seemed a little short to me, but at the end, offers bonus content, as well as achievements and trading cards. ((As of this edit: 1.14.18, there appears to no longer be trading cards/achievements. bummer)) When it was first released on Steam, there was an issue with a very game-breaking bug... I was shocked to see support on Steam's end was on the ball and quite helpful. They replied to our complaints and within a very short time a fix was released. Problem solved and no more bugs. Overall, this is a dreamy and artistic story and I look forward to the 3rd game arriving on Steam.

I played and enjoyed this game a long time ago and thought I would buy it from Steam for my new computer. Unfortunately, I guess the developers didn't update it for modern operating systems and the game crashes a short ways into it. Too bad, it was a good game.

I enjoyed the first game, but this one has a known glitch that makes it impossible to progress and finish the game. I tried contacting Big Fish but got an automated message directing me to their forums. Had to request a refund. Very disappointing.

[b]The sequel to [i]The Painted Tower[/i], [i]Drawn: Dark Flight[/i] tells of Iris's pursuit to overthrow the evil sorceror and reclaim her throne. Like all sequels [i]Dark Flight[/i] expands the world, detaling more of the kingdom's history, setting up the antagonist and allowing you to venture further into the world. Yet for all this it fell somewhat short.[/b] [list][h1]Pros[/h1] [*]Continuation of the same art style that was so appealing to the first game [*]Incredibly varied puzzles [*]Immersive atmosphere with a stellar soundtrack [h1]Cons[/h1] [*]No widescreen support [*]Villains are not truly threatening [*]Making the unnamed protagonist the sidekick works to uplift Iris, but destroys the players sense of accomplishment [/list] The world of Drawn is given weight by its symbolic meaning and use of archetypal images. Something I found incredibly appealing in the first game. The narrative was enriched by knowledge of the symbols it used beacuse of their broader cultural meaning. In [i]Dark Flight[/i] however this is no longer so effective. In the first game the journey, was yours, the players journey. The first person perspective was compelling because it was your own deductions that drew you onwards. In this game the second title, its Iris's journey and in losing the focus on the player the game loses much of its charm. There's no aura of mystery here, no compelling need to find the missing girl, instead you're told what to do and where to go. The puzzle solving as a means of interaction is given weight when the narrative itself is about unravelling a mystery. Here there is no mystery and your deductive and reasoning powers no longer feel as validated. There's no story to the puzzles either after the beginning instead they are routine solutions to surpass barriers, rather than a way to explore lore. And that's it, this is no longer about exploring but about being told. https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1768741807 That isn't to say the puzzles are no longer enjoyable to play. They are in fact the games saving grace. Like the first title they are ingenious in execution and offer an immense variety to challenge you cognitively. From visio-spatial logic such as the colour by spreading paint puzzle to mechanical, in rotating objects, to even a memorization puzzle that simultaneously test your observation skills to decipher symbols on pillars. It's really quite astonishing all the ways they've come up with to enhance the puzzle experience. Although some were familiar from the first game, they are still presented uniquely enough with small twists to make them fresh and exciting all over again. The adventure aspects were slightly more frustrating, one section in particular was quite obscure, with lots of backtracking in order to obtain four musical notes with each note following precisely the same procedure to acquire (not in terms of objects but in terms of what the player must do, making it frustratingly repetitive). This was particularly egregious as it occurs just before the end, and felt like it was there to merely pad out play time, perhaps it would be more forgiving to place repetitive sequences closer to midgame than near the end. https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1768742308 The graphics themselves are once again exquisite, the inventiveness of the puzzles is captured within the framework of the surreal art. It does tend towards cliches more this time around, with the darker tone being evinced by carnival caricatures and a black misty raven that don't quite hold the same significance to an international audience than its Americana aesthetics convey. Yet this is a minor distraction from its other choices that do transition more effectively across cultures such as the importance of books as preservers of knowledge. With the town and outside world being more angular the softer colour tones began to distract slightly from the harshness of the setting, dulling the images down instead of heightening their fearful aspects. The animations were superb though and did work well with the marionettes in this instance. Everything seems slightly jerky as though pulled by strings, not an animation style that is normally acceptable but it fits well here. https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1768740914 The accompanying soundtrack is exquisite with a slow soft violence that just stirs the edges of your consciousness as you play. The combination of crying violins and sombre cellos carries the fairytale themes, and the tragedy is caught by the chords of the minor keys it is composed in. Occasionally drums and horns add a more martial combative air to aid the tension. These are interspersed with a few more upbeat melodies though they are far and few between. Sadly the voice acting is sub par with little intonation given and even the urging to assist Iris falls somewhat flat. [i]Drawn: Dark Flight[/i] does everything expected of a sequel. It extends the lore and the story did lend agency to its princess yet did not contain quite the same sense of wonder as its precursor. It is still an excellent title, with superb execution but lacks the depth and integrated symbolism that made the first title so particularly memorable. [h1]Score: ~7/10~[/h1] My review for Part 1: The Painted Tower is available [url=https://steamcommunity.com/id/deisophia/recommended/51060/]here[/url] [quote]If you enjoyed this review please follow my curator [b][url=https://store.steampowered.com/curator/34987471/]Virtual Visions[/url][/b] for more recommendations.[/quote]