A wonderful way to avoid thinking about the future is.... to play another game. Something like Haunted Manor: Lord of Mirrors. Denial and escapism work perfectly when graduation looms, and you know zero about what to do once you toss that mortarboard in the air.
And, escapism takes on an even more ironic dimension when the main character in the game reminds you of yourself just a little too much. In Haunted Manor: Lord of Mirrors, two guys dare their friend to enter the creepy manor on the edge of town. Why is it that when guys make stupid moves the words “dare” and “bet” inevitably figure into the scenario?
Once inside, Stan approaches a mirror at the end of a long corridor, only to see himself with another's eyes in the reflection. Suddenly, the mirror shatters and Stan is trapped inside. Only by moving systematically, room by room, to collect mirror “shards” to reassemble the mirror and solve puzzles along the way, can Stan hope to escape the Lord of Mirrors.
I believe Top Evidence released this one prior to Queen of Death (see my last walkthrough), so I sort of went backward in playing this. Not that the stories are related; they aren't, but just in terms of the sophistication of gameplay and graphics. Looks like they took the lessons learned with Lord of Mirrors and really stepped up their game with Queen of Death.
Gameplay proceeds in a very linear fashion. You move from room to room, generally solving one main problem for the lost soul locked in that area. Many times, it involves turning on the lights, as the Lord of Mirrors prefers the darkness. For example, the Nanny is in the Electrical Room (why she isn't in the Nursery is a question for another time) and you sort of need to rewire the fuse box to set things right. (I'm sure my dad would say rewiring a fuse box sounds more like real life than an amusement.) Often, this requires items you pick up playing the Hidden Object Areas in that room a couple of times. Once you solve that room's “problem,” you are rewarded with a mirror shard. At that point, you pass through a mirror in that room to move to the next room and its puzzles.
The Hidden Object Areas are fairly standard, but the other puzzles border on the unique. Anytime I can solve puzzles that include pouring vintage grape from casks in the wine cellar... I'm there! Don't expect anything too difficult. You can “skip” the skip button for the most part or use the game's very good built-in help for anything else.
The audio isn't much to speak of, mostly howling winds. And, don't expect any voice acting. Dissolving “stills” with text along the top is the order of the day here.
Overall, Haunted Manor: Lord of Mirrors is an above average game in every sense of the word. Give it a try with my walkthrough.
