What a cleverly planned game. The plot: you’re in a dead-end, boring cubicle job but always dreamed of doing something more interesting. One day you see a TV ad for a Magician’s Handbook and, thinking this could be your big career change, you order the thing. What ensues is your magical training, which takes you to Cursed Valley where you’ll need to find and defeat the cause of the valley’s curse.

Like many HOG games, this one gets harder as you work your way through the 13 chapters. You have the option to play it timed or not. (Since I play to relax, I chose the casual mode.) This game has several twists the others I’ve played have not. First, in addition to looking for objects on a list, you’re also looking for magic coins and “repel” markers (more on that in a sec). Get enough coins and you unlock new wands. I’m not sure what they do but, hey, they’re pretty.

Along the way you, the magician apprentice, are learning new spells. One of the more important spells is Repel. See, this game is beautifully done but each of the locations is subject to atmospheric distractions: flying magic books, spiders dangling from threads, glittering gold, etc. At first I didn’t pay much attention to those distractions, but as the game goes on you start to realize they really *do* distract. That’s where the Repel spell comes in; by finding a repel marker — or using your spell — you can eliminate the distractions and, at the same time, make the picture considerably clearer so it’s easy to locate hidden objects. Of course, all spells fade in time, so you’ll need to hunt fast or wait until the spell charge renews itself.

The story line is charming, with plenty of humor. The game play is fun, although some of the items at the highest levels were VERY difficult to locate. It took around 7 hours total for me to finish this game (see previous comment about casual play), and when it was done I jumped onto Amazon because I plan to download the sequel as soon as I’m done typing this. Good fun!
Rating: 4 / 5