Spirit Walkers: Curse of the Cypress Witch

Spirit Walkers: Curse of the Cypress Witch is an adventure game set in an enchanted forest. It follows the story of a group of friends that decide to visit the woods to find out if the ghosts stories heard about it are true.

The place is said to be cursed by an ancient spell that turned a young bride into a witch, and her ghost seems to be the author of a series of accidents. Unlike what one may expect from a story like this, the game proposes a relaxed gameplay with a lovely atmosphere that will surprise with its stunning visuals.

The game plays similarly to other hidden-object games around; you need to explore the game area with your mouse and the cursor will tell you when there is something to pay attention to. It is totally based on the search of hidden elements, which you can pick up from any location, as well as from mini puzzles and hidden-object scenes. The items found can help you solve puzzles and overcome different obstacles that prevent you from moving on; you may need tools to fix a broken bridge, look for keys to open a doors or cases, or find the items of a magic potion that will let you travel in time. Some items need to be combined with others in order to create a useful tool. Besides, there is a lot of interaction with the environment and with the rest of the characters, to the point that even some objects can be obtained simply by talking to them. Hidden-object scenes are not really numerous nor particularly hard to solve; instead of a list of items, you will see a few silhouettes for the objects you need to find in a crowded, static scene.

The story is attractive and manages to captivate from the beginning. The only thing I found a bit annoying about it, though, was the amount of dialogs that often interrupt the course of the game. You're constantly being told what is going on, what to do, where to go, and what not, by means of cutscenes and dialogs between the characters.

That said, I have to add that the game looks absolutely gorgeous. There is a great level of detail and a vast area to explore, which should take a few hours to complete. I also liked the fact that the game avoids the horror-themed game cliché by telling a suspense story from a different perspective.