Blackwell Unbound (2007)

Much like the first game in the Blackwell series, Unbound feels like an unusually polished game jam entry more than a standalone commercial release. But you know, I can see things getting better with this one. The graphics and music are better than the original, the character writing is more consistent, most of the puzzles are more logical (though Columbia University is so poorly clued, I'm still not convinced I didn't miss something). It's a perfectly functional little mystery game. Nothing to write home about but not a bad time for $5.

Ultimately, these early games still feel like an obligation before I get to the game I actually want to play (the much-hyped series finale), but I'm at least having a pleasant enough time working through them.

Just about everything I look for in a point and click mystery. It wasn't too difficult. There was one clue (Columbia University) that I simply do not understand how anyone would ever have guessed that without a guide but otherwise, the puzzles required some thinking but weren't too absurd. This one makes better use of switching between the two characters to find each clue than the first game did. The art is nice. The music is a soothing jazz that works perfectly as backdrop. The voice acting remains meh but it actually has voice acting.

What I really liked about this is that it starts to develop some lore about the game world. I hope the developing mystery uncovered in this game is further explored in the future games. I love a good unfolding story.

It worked perfectly on my Steam Deck.

It suffers most of the same issues as Legacy. The puzzles are just so bottlenecked, there is such a limit on hints and possibilities. You have only one thing you can do at any time, and it takes so much travelling around, trying anything to unlock that one line of dialogue. It's just not my cup of tea, it becomes extremely tedious. Also, the artwork is just so unattractive, especially the color schemes.

Improvements are in the plot, UI (letting you finally use inventory items through click and drag). and the puzzles at least have some logic to them, though extremely tedious and like I said, bottlenecked.

Blackwell Unbound is a game that feels only slightly head and shoulders above its predecessor, but rightly earns its place with an exploration into the mystery of Rosa's aunt Lauren and what may have happened to her long ago.

Lauren and her spirit guide Joey play very similarly to the Blackwell Legacy, with the same point and click interface, usage of items, and convincing of ghosts to move on. There are two mysteries wrapped into a single story, which is marginally more content and feels a little more like a full game, and nothing is too particularly obtuse (which is great for an adventure game!)

The new gameplay feature that feels a little more interesting is the introduction of character switching. Instead of asking Joey to do things, the player can switch places between Lauren and Joey, allowing for some more interesting interactions and possibilities between the two, where one character might be more suited to a specific task.

Blackwell Unbound is a thoroughly good followup to the Blackwell Legacy. The back and forth between investigations can be a bit repetitive, but the story deftly weaves two ghosts into a mysterious figure called the Countess and does not disappoint.

Initially, I was disappointed this game was a prequel. I felt Rosa was prime for some more much needed character development, but I actually came to enjoy Lauren more than Rosa. I'd love another game about Lauren solving ghost crimes back in the day.
We're just thrown into the game at a point where her & Joey have been doing this for several years, so everything isn't as new and fresh as it was with Rosa. Through this we get more characterization for Joey, who comes into being a great character. We're also given direct control over Joey starting in this game.
Being set in the 70's and with a soundtrack that's a little more jazzy, this game series also starts to pick up the sorta gritty, film noir, detective feel.

This game is also a little short to demand a price tag, but the audio quality is much better. This game also came with bloopers, which I wish appeared in the other games.