You are as previously mentioned a successful journalist leading a quiet life, that is if you don’t count the articles about serial killers. You are the only one following in close detail the cases of the Dorian Gray killer; A strange and unknowable man that kidnaps people, never to be seen again. In your descriptions you weren’t too kind to this Dorian character, and you were even close on his trail, so it comes as no surprise that you become his target next.
Yet, instead of kidnaping you, he takes your soon to be fiancé and taunts you to get her. Of course if you call the police, he will simply kill her. With little choice, you go to the meeting spot, encountering a strange manor filled to the brim with traps and deadly puzzles, all the while being mocked by Dorian from different speakers all around the manor. This makes it not only personal for your character, but also for you as the player, so you can finally shut him up.
The presentation and art style of this game is stellar. The detailed backgrounds and fully fledged characters really pull you into the story, with constant little snippets of animation showing how the story moves forward. In its style it is reminiscent of old Noir films with a modern touch. Besides the visual department, something that also stands out is the sound design. Not only on its good use of background music to set the mood, but also because the game is fully voice acted. Since the biggest point of the game is its narrative, having the characters actually speak makes it much easier to follow.
This is all without mentioning the 3D animations all over the game, from characters moving outside of cutscenes to objects that react to your mouse movement even when they aren’t used for any puzzles. The game is aware of its level of presentation, with certain objects having only a zoom style interaction; they aren’t required for gameplay, yet are a grim reminder of who you are dealing with. You’ll know them when you see them.
In terms of gameplay, the game starts off with plenty of difficulty settings to choose from, including the ability to deeply customize said settings, like the timer for the hints or the like. One important setting among them is the “relaxed” mode, meant for people looking for something more akin to a TV show than a game. This is a great option that makes a really good story accessible to a more broad audience.
Yet playing the game is incredibly fulfilling, and certainly not impossible to figure out. You are given plenty of clues before ever needing to use the “hint” button, and the games themselves are quite fun. You will spend the main bulk of Brink of Consciousness playing Hidden Object style gameplay, where you are prompted to find different items in a cluttered space. Between and among these sections are different puzzles, some of which may require logic, others memory, and others simply an item that has to be found in a different scenario.
The journalist keeps track of every clue he has found in his notebook, so whenever you need to refresh your memory on a certain code you can always count on your notes to be at hand. The main puzzle for you to solve is the List. You are shown a scene with plenty of cluttered items, and you have to find and click on the ones shown on a list. Sometimes the list is made of words, other times of objects that you need to place on the scene. These List puzzles are found all throughout the game and sometimes you need to do the same one twice in order to get multiple useful objects.
Brink of Consciousness: Dorian Gray Syndrome is an intriguing detective story that will keep you on your toes at every turn, not sure who or what to trust. It is a ride well worth getting into. Try it for free and download it from Gametop right now!
If you enjoy these free games, you will love this list of our 10 Best Hidden Object Games!
