https://af.gog.com/en/game/the_will_of_arthur_flabbington?as=1649904300
Based on the recommendation of eviltentacle in another thread, I recently played this game and thought I'd comment on it. The Will of Arthur Flabbington was released in late 2023 by Gugames of Switzerland, and is a humorous point & click adventure game where you work together with an unwilling ghostly partner to lay claim to your titular uncle's bequest.
Some thoughts:
- Very strong puzzle design, some of the best I've seen lately. The puzzles are very logical and once you enter the main part of the game it throws a lot of objects at you at once, not all of which are useful. The game is sneaky about allowing you to take certain actions that seem like they are steps towards a solution when they actually aren't, and you use your companion to solve certain puzzles in clever ways. There are a few times when I got stuck due to moon-logic, but in those cases it usually helped to pay close attention to the object descriptions and conversations for clues
- Plot was typical for a light-hearted adventure, good enough to move the plot along in a satisfying way but nothing outstanding
- Interface is typical modern point & click, with the only actions being to look or interact. No real pixel-hunting although you do need to pay attention to onscreen details
- Graphics are maybe Sam and Max Hit the Road-quality but more realistic, which is a pretty low bar for a contemporary game but at least you could tell what things are supposed to be and there are no dick-noses
- SJW watch: Nothing terrible, although it turns out your uncle's homosexuality is the cause for a lot of the interpersonal drama in the story (shocker). The ghost companion is probably meant to come across as boorish and out-of-touch with current times, but I thought he was very amusing and made some good points:
- Main problems were its length (I finished it in 3 - 4 hours) and the ending (bit of a letdown but not to Thimbleweed Park levels)
Overall I recommend it - at a minimum it's worth picking up on sale and saving for a weekend when you feel like adventure gaming. At first I got a budget Blackwell series vibe due to the graphics and the ghost, but it really doesn't play the same in that there is more emphasis on traditional adventure gaming and less on telling a story. There is a free demo on Steam.
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