Natural Threat: Ominous Shores Review (Windows PC)

Alawar Entertainment’s new game, Natural Threat – Ominous Shores, is the most recent in their long line of very good hidden object games. I figured this was going to be like the common Facebook games you see pop up from time to time. Alawar appears to have a great reputation for putting out wonderful games but since I had not heard of the company previously, I was skeptical. Once I hit the download button, I was faced with around a 600MB download for the game which instantly started to build my anticipation. After I finished the game, I now understand why Alawar Entertainment has a good reputation for making an enjoyable game.

Gameplay 

Natural Threat begins with a tutorial mission that introduces the main antagonist, Professor Steiner, the crazy professor that creates the problems. The game starts off as an interesting experiment and quickly spirals out of control as plants start to take over the island. You play as a shipwrecked vacationer whose friends start to disappear due to the creepy looking plants. Your objective is to not only find your friends but also to figure out the mystery of this weird island. You must solve interesting puzzles, explore some interesting landscapes, and of course, find hidden objects.

The hidden object puzzles are pretty straight forward. For the most part, most of the items can be found with minimal hints but there are definitely some that are impossible to see. Some of the items have to be combined to make the object you are looking for which is a welcome addition to the game. The hint system is very good because it recharges so you cannot use it over and over. Throughout the entire game, you are also able to use these hints to point you in the right direction if you get stuck. There are two difficult levels, I played on the normal difficulty which had the recharging hints but the hard difficulty limits the number of clues you can use period.

The other puzzles are also good and they are all different for the most part which keeps you engaged rather than having to do the same puzzle over and over again. The only gripe I had refers to the difficulty of the puzzles aside from the hidden object themes. Some are so incredibly hard, even on normal, that I had to go and check the walkthrough just to advance through the game. This is not necessarily a bad thing since the level of difficulty is key in a puzzler game and it did not happen very often.

In general, the navigation throughout the game and the direction it sends you is pretty good. The game responds quickly and the “hit-box” for clicking items is large enough to where you do not have to have the precision of a surgeon to hit something. The story kept me engaged throughout the game and the fun little twists and turns that were introduced were refreshing. I can definitely say that this game is not predictable. Sure you have to rescue your friends but as the back story is uncovered, it paints the picture of the game as a whole very well. I found myself quite satisfied with the ending and there were not really any loose ends the story had to tie up.