Genre: Point-And-Click Adventure 
Release date: July 2, 2015

Back in June in its unfinished state, Anna’s Quest exhibited everything a good adventure game needs: nice art, fun dialog and clever puzzles. The only question mark was how it worked as a whole. Now, the full game having been released, it’s nice to report that aside from a few frustrating puzzle contrivances, Anna’s Quest delivers everything it promises.

Anna’s Quest follows the adventures of a young girl trying to help her sick grandfather. Where does his illness come from? Unbeknownst to Anna, it comes from an evil, scheming witch named Winfriede who’s bent on stealing the telekinetic powers Anna unwittingly shares with her grandfather. When Anna sets out to find a cure but the witch takes her prisoner, thus becoming the first of many obstacles Anna must overcome in order to successfully complete her Quest. Fortunately, she’s not alone.

Early on, Anna meets a young boy named Ben, whom the witch has turned into a teddy bear. The two of them evade the police, rescue kidnapped children, solve a village full of problems and turn Anna’s fledgling telekinetic ability into a powerful tool. They also uncover the depth of Winfriede’s evil plans, which go beyond endangering Anna and her grandfather, and include the destruction of the entire kingdom. Undermining Winfriede takes perception and perseverance, and in the end, even a dose of compassion.

As mentioned in the Anna’s Quest preview, dialog and graphics are the game’s main strengths. Whether it’s grouchy tavern patrons or kids in a schoolyard, character exchanges are amusing and well-writtten. Coupled with good voice acting and charming storybook artwork, Anna’s Quest feels like a fairytale come to life. The light-weight, pastoral music also helps by creating a fanciful effect.

In addition to good dialog, art and music, the game’s overall story makes for a satisfyingly varied (and lengthy) interactive experience. While the pacing in general is good, it’s bogged down on occasion by baffling puzzle contrivances. The last third of the game is especially prone to this, with puzzle solutions that ask players to revisit characters and recheck dialog options to the point of obsessive-compulsiveness. New dialog options trigger almost arbitrarily, and too often the sensible is thrown aside in favor of the unlikely, thus bringing the enjoyment to a sudden and complete stop. 

In spite of this, Anna’s Quest is good for around eight hours of legitimate fun — a bit more if you count the revamped prologue included with purchase. Adventure gamers who enjoy interesting characters, goofy humor, sideways thinking and a good old-fashioned story of good triumphing over evil are bound to get a kick out of it.

+ Cute fairytale artwork + Funny, entertaining dialog and story   – Contrived puzzle solutions