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| 24 APR 2006 at 3:27am |
AndromusGuild Master
Posts : 5538
Joined: 6 NOV 2002
Status : Offline | All done! Well, it's shorter than I would I've liked, and the game area is somewhat confined, but the developers make good use of the space. Lots of stuff to look at, and fiddle around with, quite a bit of stuff not vital to the game. I like that attention to detail. It adds a lot of color to the game, something I appreciate developers taking the time to do.
Puzzles are very logical. Always good to see, but here it made the game fairly easy, perhaps more than I would have liked, but I had a lot of fun nonetheless. As an Anglophile there haven't been enough games set in England for my taste, so this was nice to see. And game that lets me play around with gadgets to solve puzzles is OK in my book, I'd love to see more of that kind of thing in games. Wished I could have used them a bit more than I did, though.
Very good use of ambient noises here to create an unsettling effect. You never quite feel alone in this game, whether indoors or out, something might be just around the corner.
Loved the goofy radio advertisements! I spent a little time listening to the radio to hear the different "stations", with their unique music. Very nice touch.
So this is something like Darkfall, in using gadgets, assembling clues from various places to solve puzzles? Interesting, I really, really need to play that.
To sum Barrow Hill up, it's an enjoyable little game that should keep you glued to your computer for a weekend. I'd give it a B-, or a 7/10 on the JA review forum scale. I'll be very interested to see what the folks at Shadow Tor Studios will come up with in the future.
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| 24 APR 2006 at 5:15am |
jalexSchattenjger
Posts : 2503
Joined: 5 MAR 2003
Status : Offline | I would have to say for me it was Tex Murphy Pandora Directive.
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| 24 APR 2006 at 5:46pm |
jonathanboakesSpace Cadet
Posts : 140
Joined: 10 MAY 2003
Status : Online | Yes, I think it would be safe to say that Barrow Hill and Dark Fall 1 have some elements in common. You solve many smaller puzzles to gain knowledge/items to solve a larger enigma. The Dark Fall gadgets enable you to locate and converse with ghosts. Personally, though, I think Barrow Hill exhibits a tighter story, and atmosphere, than either Dark Fall.
Incidentally, I noticed the new Barrow Hill website was launched this morning, with a lot of fun features. An interactive map of 'The "Real" Barrow Hill' looks at places that inspired the game, while the 'cut out and keep' Barrow Hill models are pure silly fun. There's also a full demo, and gameplay trailer to download from the site or one of the authorised 'mirror' sites.
The Official Barrow Hill Website
Happy hunting.
Jonathan
[img]http://www.darklingroom.co.uk/warning.jpg[/img]&&[url=http://www.thelostcrown.co.uk]Darkling Room: The Lost Crown[/url] / [url=http://www.barrow-hill.co.uk/sales]Playing: Barrow Hill[/url]
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| 25 APR 2006 at 2:02am |
KoriSorcerer Apprentice
Posts : 399
Joined: 27 MAR 2003
Status : Offline | Randy
The Buy Game section on the AJ main page sure is small. It is real easy to get overlooked. It would not hurt to double the ad space size. Also you might consider adding some text telling viewers 'why' they should buy a game from AJ instead of Amazon.com. Perhaps a single line saying something like: Support Adventure Gaming and Indie developers by buying your adventure games here, etc.,(or something like that).
Anyway, I am not telling you how to run your business, it's just a suggestion.
Kori
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| 25 APR 2006 at 1:19pm |
Randy-JAJourneyman
Posts : 1351
Joined: 11 OCT 2002
Location: US
Status : Offline | Good points Kori, thanks
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| 25 APR 2006 at 6:20pm |
IviniaGuild Master
Posts : 4459
Joined: 7 JUN 2003
Location: US
Status : Offline | One thing that might be a little confusing is is where it says DVD case. Some people might take that to mean its on DVD. Not sure if 'CD format' or 'DVD format' can be fit into there. I know Barrow Hill only comes as a DVD format and I think that going to become more prevalent.
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| 25 APR 2006 at 7:55pm |
jonathanboakesSpace Cadet
Posts : 140
Joined: 10 MAY 2003
Status : Online | Just a quick question, who is the best person to approach regarding the JA Store? A chat with some other developers has found that quite a few didn't know that Indies were allowed in the store. It might be a good idea to send out a round robin with details, or give some indication of who to chat to. I, for one, would love to see more indies in the store.
Jonathan
[img]http://www.darklingroom.co.uk/warning.jpg[/img]&&[url=http://www.thelostcrown.co.uk]Darkling Room: The Lost Crown[/url] / [url=http://www.barrow-hill.co.uk/sales]Playing: Barrow Hill[/url]
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| 25 APR 2006 at 8:35pm |
InteractIntergalactic Janitor
Posts : 24
Joined: 3 NOV 2005
Status : Online | Any indie wishing to sell their games in the JA Store should contact me. I can be reached at:
justadventuregames@gmail.com
or by phone:
800-479-1323
One other note since this is in the Barrow Hill forum - the JA Store WILL be selling Barrow Hill within the next few weeks.
Thanks!
Dave Sparks
JA Store Guy
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| 25 APR 2006 at 9:54pm |
InteractIntergalactic Janitor
Posts : 24
Joined: 3 NOV 2005
Status : Online | Originally Posted By Ivinia (25 APR 2006 6:19pm)
One thing that might be a little confusing is is where it says DVD case. Some people might take that to mean its on DVD. Not sure if 'CD format' or 'DVD format' can be fit into there. I know Barrow Hill only comes as a DVD format and I think that going to become more prevalent.
DVD Drives seem so prevalent now that we haven't bothered listing media type on the store page. However, the adventure genre seems to harbor quite a few packaging afficionados and collectors who are less interested in games packaged in jewel cases and DVD cases so we do list the packaging style for their benefit. Many new games are coming, like Dreamfall and CSI, in the double sized hard DVD case. We're not listing those as "VD case" since they are still the same size as traditional mini boxes.
Hope that helps.
-dave
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| 25 APR 2006 at 10:25pm |
| Deleted User | Originally Posted By Interact (25 APR 2006 8:34pm)
A
One other note since this is in the Barrow Hill forum - the JA Store WILL be selling Barrow Hill within the next few weeks.
Thanks!
Dave Sparks
JA Store Guy
Great news! I'll be watching for it so I can buy one of my own.
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| 25 APR 2006 at 10:36pm |
IviniaGuild Master
Posts : 4459
Joined: 7 JUN 2003
Location: US
Status : Offline | Originally Posted By wowforz (25 APR 2006 10:25pm)
Great news! I'll be watching for it so I can buy one of my own.
LOL, well you can still buy one of your own direct from the developer! [smiley=laughing.gif]
Of course, depending on where you are from, the JA Store could be a better option because of the lower shipping costs and 3 day shipping time. If you are buying multiple titles, going to the JA Store is a no-brainer.
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| 25 APR 2006 at 10:40pm |
| Deleted User | But the developer's web page says that preoders are closed and says to come back at an unspecified later date to purchase.
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| 25 APR 2006 at 10:46pm |
| Deleted User | Oops. My bad! I just went to Shadow Tor Studio's webpage and see it's now for sale.
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| 25 APR 2006 at 10:59pm |
IviniaGuild Master
Posts : 4459
Joined: 7 JUN 2003
Location: US
Status : Offline | It went on sale on the 24th. I pre-ordered, that's why I already have mine.
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| 25 APR 2006 at 11:01pm |
WimliGuild Master
Posts : 3259
Joined: 14 MAR 2003
Status : Offline | Originally Posted By Ivinia (25 APR 2006 10:35pm)
Originally Posted By wowforz (25 APR 2006 10:25pm)
Great news! I'll be watching for it so I can buy one of my own.
LOL, well you can still buy one of your own direct from the developer! [smiley=laughing.gif]
Of course, depending on where you are from, the JA Store could be a better option because of the lower shipping costs and 3 day shipping time. If you are buying multiple titles, going to the JA Store is a no-brainer.
If you're living in the US or Canada, you're probably right. If you live anywhere else, I'm inclined to think you're very wrong. I think the JA store is a great idea, but the shipping costs for outside the US/Canada seem to be a bit on the extravagant side. I just received two games, send to me from the States, and it cost the sender 7 Dollars (granted, they were two dvd cases and the JA store sells games in larger boxes as well). Now if I order two games from the JA store, shipping costs alone would amount to a whopping 16 Dollars. I'd love to, because they have a great selection of games, but this prevents me from doing any multi-shopping at the JA store anytime soon.
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| 25 APR 2006 at 11:37pm |
ShanyGuild Master
Posts : 3313
Joined: 19 JUN 2003
Status : Online | Those prices aren't so bad if you don't have a better option. Where I live the main store that sells (or used to sell) adventure games would charge 250 NIS (50$) for any new adventure, regardless of it's price in the US. So even Dreamfall, which is 40$ would cost me less if I ordered it.
It is rather strange that the shipping cost is per game and not per order, but I guess there's a reason behind it.
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| 26 APR 2006 at 12:00am |
ShanyGuild Master
Posts : 3313
Joined: 19 JUN 2003
Status : Online | Well, I did mean cases where there's no better option...
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| 26 APR 2006 at 12:24am |
InteractIntergalactic Janitor
Posts : 24
Joined: 3 NOV 2005
Status : Online | Originally Posted By Shany (25 APR 2006 11:37pm)
It is rather strange that the shipping cost is per game and not per order, but I guess there's a reason behind it.
The cost to ship a package via Air Mail increases every 4 ounces. The vast majority of boxed games end up weighing between 8 and 12 ounces. The cost to ship a package in those weights to Europe is $7.95. The cost to ship a package of that weight to Australia/New Zealand is $8.85. We sell some things that weigh less and make a bit on shipping, we sell some things that weigh more and lose a bit on shipping. All told it just about evens out.
-dave
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| 26 APR 2006 at 2:10am |
KoriSorcerer Apprentice
Posts : 399
Joined: 27 MAR 2003
Status : Offline | >Good points Kori, thanks<
Randy
I just finished ordering Dreamfall from 'your' store. I normally order all my games from Amazon.com. Price is not my main concern when ordering a game. I had to ask myself why I used Amazon.com in instead of all the other game sources, and the answer was convenience. They have my credit card information. All I have to do to buy a game is type in my pass word and hit Purchase. The rest in automatic. You need to make ordering games as easy as possible for the customer and perhaps they will switch to your store.
Another thing I would do is 'always' have a small ten point line with any review or any article on a game(at the head or tail of the article), such as: Buy at JA store!
Keep it short and to the point, and put it with any game you write about, to keep this message on the reader's mind for their next game purchase.
That's about it. I have my own internet business (not related to games), so stuff like this is always on my mind. I will order my games from your store in the future to help support your site. I don't post much, but I have been visiting it everyday for years.
Kori
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| 26 APR 2006 at 6:27pm |
jonathanboakesSpace Cadet
Posts : 140
Joined: 10 MAY 2003
Status : Online | Thanks Dave! That's sure to help get some (more) indie games in the store.
[img]http://www.darklingroom.co.uk/warning.jpg[/img]&&[url=http://www.thelostcrown.co.uk]Darkling Room: The Lost Crown[/url] / [url=http://www.barrow-hill.co.uk/sales]Playing: Barrow Hill[/url]
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| 26 APR 2006 at 11:36pm |
InteractIntergalactic Janitor
Posts : 24
Joined: 3 NOV 2005
Status : Online | Originally Posted By jonathanboakes (26 APR 2006 6:26pm)
Thanks Dave! That's sure to help get some (more) indie games in the store.
Yup - We'll be carrying Tears of Betrayal in a few weeks thanks to this thread.
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| 27 APR 2006 at 10:41pm |
WimliGuild Master
Posts : 3259
Joined: 14 MAR 2003
Status : Offline | Thanks for the explanation Interact! I had no idea shipping costs were that expensive. :-/ Too bad really, cause apart from that, the JA store is a great initiative. It just won't be for me.
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| 29 APR 2006 at 9:18am |
CulturaJourneyman
Posts : 1337
Joined: 1 SEP 2004
Location: NL, Amersfoort
Status : Offline | I ordered Scratches and Voyage from JA+ and was very pleased with speed and packaging. Paying through paypal is a breeze, so the store is most def. an asset to the site. These are games that are sometimes hard to get over here in The Netherlands. And since I ship many games myself through Ebay, I know that shipping costs at JA+ are very reasonable. Thanks Dave! And thanks Randy for initiating it.
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| 29 APR 2006 at 10:18pm |
| Deleted User | fyi
I ordered Barrow Hill from Shadow Tor's website in the UK on 4/26 and I received it in Californua USA on 4/29! 3 days to ship from England to the west coast of the Pacific Ocean! I'm impressed. And the postage sticker says "Royal Mail - Postage Paid - UK- L 1.66 (1.66 British Currency). But keep in mind it shipped in a DVD Case (no cardboard box) - postage class was "small package" which is probably cheaper than sending a larger boxed game.
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| 1 MAY 2006 at 10:06pm |
gameplayerIntergalactic Janitor
Posts : 98
Joined: 25 AUG 2004
Status : Online | Just finished Barrow Hill what a wonderful game this is and the Matt and crew had some great imagination when it came for the surprises in the game. It was a challenging game for me had made several mistakes had to go back to get them right but, worth all the work to play it. I did not want to rush through this game as it was really a lot of fun to play. I was surprise how fast I got my Barrow Hill from Matt too I had it couple days no hassle which is nice. The other side of the world and it is here before you know it. Not like some places it takes sometimes a week or more plus high price for postal service. [smiley=happy.gif]
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