User Reviews (21 - 31 of 65)

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Highly Imaginative Puzzle Game

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 3 / 3
Date: May 02, 2005
Author: Amazon User

This is a great game. I would classify it as a puzzle game with a story that is a cross between Horror and Fantasy (Those kids on level 2 are so creepy!). Normally I do not have much patience with games that just involve talking to people and collecting objects, but in this game I found that I liked the levels so much that it did not seem at all boring.

The levels are very diverse. You play as a mental patient walking through a hospital who turns into a little girl visiting the circus, who then changes back to himself only to turn into a comic book hero in an insect colony on the next level. It all may sound a little confusing, but it is all part of the same story.

The graphics, sound, and story all feel like a psychotic psychedelic dream. (One of the creators even thanks his dealer in the end credits.)

The game is not perfect however. Before you begin playing you must get a patch for the game. Even though the defect is only on level 2 it feels incredibly frustrating to know that you have to start the entire game over. So make sure you fix it before you begin.

Second, the controls very often feel less than precise. It feels like half the game is spent running up and down stairs when all you want to do is walk past a staircase. And the handful of action sequences make it clear just how precarious the controls are.

Lastly, I thought that the puzzles were either a little too easy or way too hard. I broke down and cheated by looking at one of the online walkthroughs when I was hopelessly stuck. When I looked at the solution I felt that I would never have solved it on my own (case in point: that bug control panel to the furnace in "The Hive").

The drawbacks of the game, however, are dwarfed by all of the things that are done well.

Scary in the most personal way possible o.O

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 3 / 3
Date: June 16, 2006
Author: Amazon User

This is the kind of game that sneaks its way past your defenses and bursts into flame right inside your horrified mind. Starting off rather innocuously in a vaguely noir setting, the story morphs into something worthy of Poe or Lovecraft or even (*shudder*) Kafka. The vague feeling of someone stepping on your future grave persists (and this is absolutely unique in all my game-playing experience) even after significant breaks in play (when one simply has to stop playing and say, go to work lol).

Anyway, you will be disturbed by this game, but not in the horror genre's usual "I have no imagination so I must bleed" way. Subtlety, symbolism and tantalizing hints at "reality" underlie every scenario conceived of in this truly wonderful game.

A good beginners game

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 3 / 4
Date: November 16, 1999
Author: Amazon User

I loved the subject and the way the transformations were handled. I loved playing the Aztec god.

The puzzles aren't as hard as some games but you won't be banging your head against the wall either because the puzzles don't make sense. If you just sit back and enjoy it the game will embrace you into its world.

Great Game!

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 3 / 4
Date: December 12, 2001
Author: Amazon User

It's so hard to find good PC games today. Most games are about killing and shooting people. (...) I couldn't resist the cover. It looked so creepy. I installed the game and it was fine until I got stuck in the second chapter because of a bug. I had to take the game back to the store because the downloadable patch didn't work. I was very disappointed. From what I saw, I wanted to finish the game. About a year later I got the game from Amazon for less than half the price I paid [before at the other store]. And the game worked! No bugs. I loved the game. The story line was so interesting. The graphics were incredible. I would recommend this game to anyone, but be careful with children. This game scared the hell out of me!

One of my favorite games

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 2 / 2
Date: December 05, 1999
Author: Amazon User

This game blends fantasy with human nature. Some of the episodes can seem a little hokey, but at the end you realize that they are all kind of symbols for Max's real life. Altogether, this is a "mood" game- it sets a mood and puts you into one. IN conclusion. . it's great! Play it!

XP users, there is a way...

3 Rating: 3, Useful: 2 / 2
Date: February 10, 2004
Author: Amazon User

I've run this on my XP, and have of course dealt with numerous crashes. I've found a way to proceed, none the less. As you proceed, if your system works with it at all, keep saving the game. When it crashes, start a new game and intentionally crash it in the Tower Cells, at the VCR. Then, reopen your saved game and go on. You'll have to do this a LOT, but it's gotten me as far as the Lost Village (toward the end). Unfortunately, am now stuck there. If I figure this out, I'll let you know.

I'd give zero stars if I could

1 Rating: 1, Useful: 3 / 6
Date: December 01, 2003
Author: Amazon User

I have to echo what other frustrated XP users have said - even though the package says it works with XP, it clearly doesn't. Too bad...looked like a fun game.

Top Tier Adventure Game

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 2 / 3
Date: November 07, 2002
Author: Amazon User

I am mourning the slow death of the Adventure Genre. I remember when Sierra was pumping out incredible adventure games at a very impressive rate...............seemingly successful ones too. However Sierra is for all practical purposes dead in the Adventure world(see KQ:mask of eternity). Sadly Gabriel Knight(the best series ever in my opinion), Quest for Glory(second best series) and the rest of their catalogue will probably never get to see the light of day again(unless they get worked into a quake installment somehow lol).

This lack of productivity in the genre left me searching for older games in the field that I had never played. I found Sanitarium online for relatively cheap and ordered it........I was not dissapointed........It is by far one of the most imaginative storylines I've come across. The gameplay is perhaps too easy for the most part, though there are some moderately tough puzzles to figure out. And while the voice acting ranges from horrible(unfortunately the lead is the horrible part of it) to slightly above average(the children of chapter two were extremely creepy), it makes up for its other deficiencies with an incredible story .

DOES NOT WORK ON WIN XP!

1 Rating: 1, Useful: 2 / 3
Date: October 08, 2003
Author: Amazon User

You can't give it zero star so I am stuck with giving it one... Oh well, the box is kinda nice. But Windows XP users, beware: this game will NOT work on your machine despite what it claims on the box. At best, you MIGHT be able to play for a short while before the fatal crash. I went as far as playing it for 10 seconds. My verdict, useless piece of crap! This company gets on my black list for lying about its product

Creative and Inventive Story

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 2 / 3
Date: June 27, 2004
Author: Amazon User

I just got done with the game and though it is an older game, I quite enjoyed it. The game is plot driven and kept my interest. There were plenty of cut scenes that brought the story along and being that I bought it for 2.50 in the clearance section, I can't complain. One problem though - a technical one - if you have a ATI Raedeon card, you'll have a hard time running the game in Win XP. I tried and it kept crashing, but when I installed the game on another computer with a Nivida Card, it ran perfect with no problems. So if you have an Nivida Card and like adventure games, this is a good one.

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