need more of this
newgrounds needs more horror point-and-click games just like this as exmortis
i lv this kind of games
there should be more just like this one
Reviews for "Nocturnal Letters (sized)"
Ms-Bowser responds:
Yes! I agree! You can never have too many horror games :D
Truly Magnificent!
"Nocturnal Letters" is one of the games I treasure the most, along with Exmortis 1 and 2. The game's plot is kind of hard to understand but its eerieness makes up for it. It deserves a 10/10 for its originality and suspensful storyline. I truly applaud you Ms-Browser, and look forward to your other submissions.
Concerning the graphics and gameplay, I don't really look into those type of things. I look for originality and compelling plots in games, and "Nocturnal Letters" certainly has both of those elements. ^_^
Ms-Bowser responds:
Wow! Thanks! :)
I'm happy to be mentioned with Exmortis as both of them are good!
Yes! I also look for these things in a game ^^
It wouldn't hurt the game to have better GP and graphics, but let's say I realised my limitations^_^
One of My Favorites!
I've played and replayed this numerous times since it first popped up on lazylaces. The atmosphere is great, the soundtrack very fitting, and the storyline is tops. Almost a Twin Peaks-esque kind of feel about it. Can't wait to see what else is in the works. Cheers!
Ms-Bowser responds:
Yay! I'm so happy to hear that :)
I have actually not watched twin peaks, maybe I should? ^^
I'm very happy about the soundtrack as well, I was lucky to find something so good!
My current project is an RPG,by the way..
One of the greatest!
My god! Why aren't you making more submissions like this? This is so great. I love the plot, I love the gameplay (or lack thereof), I love the easter eggs. Please, make more! Pleasepleasepleasepleasepleaseplease!
Ms-Bowser responds:
Thank you!! :D Happy that someone liked my easter eggs ^^ Oh, it will be a while before I make something new.. .__. Lack of resources.. But when I do, I'll contact all my fans :D Don't stop hoping!
Trully Great ^_^
First of all, please exceuse me if there's some bad grammar or sentence constructions in the review because I'm not a native English-speaker ^^.
XD, I can't believe I created an account just to make this review... and it doesn't seem I'm the first one too o_O".
...anyways, I'll start with the bad parts, so that I can finish with the good ones =P.
About the graphics: other than the lack of fluid animation in some moments that required them, items antd ghosts that look out of place or a little akward, and the general pixelation, I think you've done a nice work with your resources. But still, it would be far better to use higher resolution photos and then blur them (if possible, obviously).
About the gameplay: navigation in the house was a little hard in the beginning (you don't see where you're going through the pictures).
And... that's pretty much it =P now onto the good parts.
First of all, it's really great to see a scary horror game that relies more in the plot than with cheap screamers. I think the best part of the game is the storyline, and how little clues to it were before our own eyes, very subtly, since the beginning. The other great part is the music (specially the main theme), it creates the feeling of a heavy atmosphere, with something covering it like if it was submerged... at the same time it suits perfectly a residencial scenery, and a family-themed story where things start to go wrong... very creepy O_O.
Also, about the ending, well... it's true that it's a cliché, but I think that in this case it suits the story, considering the nature of Ivy's relationships.
Since I've always had a little dream of becoming a game author too, it makes me really happy to see that making this kind of thing is possible even with limited ressources ^_^". Of course it's not the best, fine-tuned game, but it's overall great, and there are some elements that are better than many comercial games.
About a possible sequel... well, sequels do ruin stories often, but it's up to you, if you're capable of making a story even better than this one, and as rich in details as in this game. The problem is that the conclusion doesn't really seem to open up the story, rather, it closes it. So the only obviously possible seqel would focus in the only character that wasn't much devellopped, and that would be Jake (either in the past or in the future), but then again, you're the author XD, I'm just the fan here, throuwing out ideas (as fans usually do XDD).
Also, I'm a bit curious about what are the two possible reasons for what happened to Ivy that you spoke of in the author notes... I have thought of the intoxication through the river, but then, although it explains why she only got worse after escaping through the river, but it doesn't explain the rotting armchair. The other would be that she had a double personality ever since the accident with her grandfather... but then it doesn't explain why would she search for her brother's gift while in a blackout.
So... that's all I have to say about the game ^_^. Synthetising, I'd say that although the game has a few noticeable bad points, the most important things in a horror game were very well exploited and treated with care. And these things would be the storyline rich in details and misleads, and the atmosphere, through the (even if they were ugly) blurred graphics, the disorientating, a little fantasious music, and the also very detailed, disturbing 'staging' of the story (the characters' personalities, the mess around the house, the river, even the lack of mirrors, etc...). Nice job ^_^!! I'd love to see more games coming from you.
Ms-Bowser responds:
Thank you so much for your long review (the longest yet!) :D :)
And no need to worry about your English, I'm not native either;)
Reading reviews and mails from people who enjoyed my game is a great pleasure. If I can reach just a few, it's well worth the effort :)
So, I want to encourage you to make your own game! Just give it a try :D
My resources were VERY limited. I just had a vision, a lot of passion, a camera, and a computer. The rest I downloaded. I used photos as much as I could for the graphics. I learned to use Flash,asking in the forums when I got stuck. And I did it in about 60 days ^_^
Hm, I'll try to keep it short from here ^^'
The visuals and the navigation are problems. I wish I would have spent more time on them ^^'
I knew from my experience that if the story is good, gameplay problems and "ugliness" would not stop me from enjoying a game.. And I hoped this would be the case.
I'm happy you liked the story :)
And as for the music, your description matches my thoughts exactly!
Actually, the music and story was so heavy, that it affected my mood a bit during the development... o_O
Hm, right now I'm working on soemthing very different.
But I would like to do a sequel. And it's just like you say, it would indeed be about Jake ^_^
There are some things left unsolved: -Where did the family go? (in the ending, the doctor mentions they could not find the family, only the mother, who had been stabbed with glass shards) -Ivy was about to be signed out from the mental institution..
We'll see.. Maybe a sequel ^^
The two reasons, as I usually say are:
- Insanity, through the chemicals of the river. The entire family was affected, Ivy the most, since she was always a bit unstable. She has blackouts. She writes letters to herself...trying to make her "normal self" be destroyed. She searches for the gift, subcounsciously, in her sleep to save herself. The gift would remind her of the pure and good feelings, allowing her "normal self" to regain complete control... at least long enough to... make sure she will never hurt anyone again.
-They are actually seeing "ghosts", something supernatural. The ghosts wrote the letters. They're trying to use Ivy, possess her. During the blackouts, she was posessed. Cheesy? I find it creepy ^^
Hm, did that make sense? ^^'
About the armchair, sorry but no big mystery there.. It's a symbol for how Ivy feels in her house, and about herself. Something's wrong, something "stinks" and it keeps getting worse....
Thank you again! :D
And you should really give it a go, making your own game! ^_^
Let me know when you finish it, and I'll happily play it.