* NOW UPDATED WITH THE LATEST GAMES! *

The Dark Parables series is an incredibly beautiful fantasy adventure game series!!  The painted backgrounds and illustrated characters are freaking gooorgeous to look at while enjoying the game.  They are point-and-click adventure games involving solving puzzles and cleverly using items to advance, which is a relaxing genre to play while remaining engaging!

But what’s cool about Dark Parables in particular is that each of the games’ settings are wonderful, magical fairy tale stories!!  There are very cool interpretations of Red Riding Hood (where the “Red Riding Hood Sisters” are a band of rangers in the woods), Cinderella (where “Cinderella” is a title given to legendary girls that exhibit traits such as strength, kindness, diligence, etc.), and others (keep reading and I’ll describe each of them!).  The protagonist is an adventurous detective who investigates the strange and mysterious happenings around the world, wherever these fairy tale-like circumstances pop up.

Some of these are very suspenseful in nature, and watching the cool cinematics (where the art work is animated very awesomely) can get pretty intense!

As with the Awakening series, I had a really hard time navigating my way through the series to play them in order, so I made this list!  There are small continuities and nods between the games, but you are absolutely allowed to play them in whatever order you wish without any real context penalties if you decide to skip around.

Dark Parables: Curse of Briar Rose

The first in the Dark Parables storyline explores Sleeping Beauty.
It takes place in Edinburgh, Scotland!

1000 years ago, Sleeping Beauty was kissed by a prince,
which removed a terrible curse from the kingdom.
The rampant briars were held at bay, but the poor princess was left in her slumber…

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Dark Parables: The Exiled Prince

The story of the Frog Prince, set in the Black Forest in Germany.

Many centuries ago, a princess kissed a frog
and transformed him into a handsome prince.  Unlike the fable, they never ended
happily ever after.  It is rumored that the Frog Prince
is still alive and now roams the deserted path in the Black Forest,
capturing unsuspecting visitors. When the chancellor’s daughter goes missing,
you are sent to investigate her disappearance.

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Dark Parables: Rise of the Snow Queen

A combination of The Snow Queen and Snow White.
Takes place in the Bernese Alps of Switzerland.

From the ashes of the snow, the legendary Snow Queen
rises and terrorizes nearby villages with her supernatural powers.
Rescue the missing children and stop the fabled Snow Queen
before her sorrow brings upon the destruction of the world…

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Dark Parables: The Red Riding Hood Sisters

An adventurous interpretation of Little Red Riding Hood
in the Vosges Mountains of France.

Centuries ago, the first Red Riding Hood defeated the wolf
and established the Order of Red Riding Hood Sisters. Recently,
the nefarious Wolf Queen entrapped the sisters and planned
to unleash legions of ravaging wolves onto our world…

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Dark Parables: The Final Cinderella

A variable mix of tales including Cinderella and Pinoccio as well as
elements from Donkeyskin and Kongji and Patzzi, taking place
in the Matese Mountains of Italy.

For decades, a mysterious witch, known as the evil Godmother,
has been hunting maidens in search of the legendary “Cinderella.”
Rescue the Final Cinderella from the evil Godmother’s clutches,
and stop her evil plans to conquer the world!

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Dark Parables: Jack and the Sky Kingdom

Um… is it just me, or is Jack REALLY handsome…?
Jack and the Beanstalk, Robin Hood, and Rumpelstiltskin combine
for this game set in Alblasserwaard, South Holland.

The legendary Sky Kingdom suddenly appears
and a destructive barrage is unleashed upon an unsuspecting town.
Embark on an investigation to rescue the townspeople.
In this quest, you will meet Jack –
an infamous treasure hunter who shares a secret past with the Kingdom –
and discover the tragic history behind the chaos.

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Dark Parables: Ballad of Rapunzel

An especially pastel, floral-centric take on Rapunzel,
set on Mount Sněžka in the Czech Republic.

You’ve been called to the kingdom of Floralia to track down the source
of a mysterious pollen spreading throughout the world.
Rumor has it that Princess Rapunzel is somehow involved –
the haunting melody she sings appears to summon the pollen…
But how did the once-loved princess come to control such a deadly force?
And who is the mysterious, shadowy figure always by her side?
The secrets you uncover may be darker than you imagined.

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Dark Parables: The Little Mermaid and the Purple Tide

The coloration and setting of this game in particular are strikingly beautiful
with all of that blue and purple!!  This story is clearly the Little Mermaid,
and it takes place on the Greek island of Crete.

Follow the clues as they take you to an underwater kingdom!
You’ve been called to investigate a strange purple tide.
And that’s when the mermaid shows up…

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Dark Parables: Queen of Sands

This setting draws from the mythical figure of the Sandman
and also borrows a bit from Beauty & the Beast.
It takes place in Provence, France.

Townspeople are disappearing in the provincial city of Montafleur
as its streets are overrun by nightmarish creatures that vanish into a purple mist.
The Red Riding Hood Sisters were called in to investigate,
but they’ve got their hands full chasing a ferocious beast
last seen along the outskirts of town. Explore the lush French countryside
as you team up with Ruth and Brianne to uncover the dark secrets
behind Montafleur’s world-famous perfumes. Unmask the true villain,
before their nightmares spread to the entire world.

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Dark Parables: Goldilocks and the Fallen Star

The fairy tales involved this time are Goldilocks & The Three Bears
with flavorings of King Midas.

The Kingdom of Barsia has been invaded by mechanical beasts
that are attacking its citizens. You’ve been called in
to investigate these attacks and discover the origins of a mysterious artifact.
Can this artifact save the kingdom… or will lead them down an even darker path?
Only you can help Queen Valla discover the answers.

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Dark Parables: The Swan Princess and the Dire Tree

Strange cracks are covering Dire Island, home of the Swan Kingdom,
but then an unknown thief steals the magical seed
that holds the key to keeping all of nature in balance!
Can you catch the culprit and save the kingdom before it crumbles?

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Dark Parables: The Thief and the Tinderbox

It’s the eve of Gerda and Gwyn’s wedding, but a rogue arsonist
is setting the Mountain Kingdom’s forests on fire!
Your investigation will take you deep within the forest
where a dangerous artifact will be unearthed, one that could spell doom
for the whole world! An old friend will surface and his deepest desires
will determine the fate of the Mountain Kingdom.
Be careful what you wish for!!

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Dark Parables: Requiem for the Forgotten Shadow

The people of Anaben are falling ill from a strange illness –
one that makes them become shadows of their former selves!
Your investigation takes a mystical turn as you uncover evidence
proving a darker magic at work. Can you restore the people
before it’s too late, or will you succumb to shadows as well?

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Dark Parables: Return of the Salt Princess

Okay, I like this one because the princess is named Brigid,
making this the third game I’ve encountered recently
with a character that has a variation of the name “Bridget” (my name 😋).
The others are Brighid in Xenoblade Chronicles 2,
and Brigitte and Overwatch~

Together, we shall form a mighty League of Bridgets. 💪

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In June this past Summer, an incredibly cute MMO that I had been enjoying closed its servers. ・°・(ノД｀)・°・  But, I enjoyed it heartily in the time that I played!

I’m a big fan of X-Legends’ games!!  Their artwork and character designs are sooo cuute, and they always have the most colorful and whimsical backgrounds and settings.  Spirit Tales was ESPECIALLY whimsical, because it was the ‘tiniest’ and cutest of their games, in terms of character design~

See?  It looked like this!

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This is going to be a reeeeaaally image-heavy post, so I’m putting a cut here!!  Check out the rest of my memories (and my cute spicy red bunny character) below!

Read the rest of this entry »

It’s been a little while since my last Steam game roundup!  Here is a selection of games I’ve discovered recently that are widely varied, but the connecting thread throughout is that they have cool or pretty art work!

As with all of my Steam recommendations, G2A is the preferred method for getting Steam keys on the cheap!  You don’t have to wait for the games to go on sale, just pick up a key from there for a couple bucks!

Littlewitch Romanesque: Editio Regia

That’s quite a title! oAo
Littlewitch Romanesque is a sim game reminiscent of Princess Maker!!
The art is sooo beautiful, and scenes play out in comic panels and speech bubbles
for a very artistic effect!

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Audition Online

This is an MMO from the early oughts, so if you are/were a fan
of games like Mabinogi or Dream of Mirror Online,
then its visual style will look about comparable!
This is a rhythm game where you can customize a cute anime character
and compete (or cooperate) with others online!

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Treeker: The Lost Glasses

This is a mysterious and meditative adventure/puzzle game.
I was drawn to it because I looooove the lowpoly environments –
awesome abstracted trees like those in the above screenshot
are my absolute weakness!

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Journey of the Light

Another adventure puzzle game, this time with an overhead view
and beautiful painted natural environments!
The color scheme is cool and blue~

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Cloudbuilt

This one is a high-paced action platformer!
The characters in the art work look so cyberpunk-y and cool!
There are some very imaginative environments for blasting through! *o*

 

There is such a wonderfully cute roundup of games coming out in the next handful of months before the holidays!  It’s so rare to get happy, colorful, cute games – and there are so, so many of them all happening together in such a short time!  I’m so excited seeing all of them!

*All of the release dates listed here are according to their Amazon listings as of the time of this writing – they may change!

Yoshi’s Woolly World

This was first shown at E3 some years back –
for some time it was only known as “Yarn Yoshi!”
But it’s finally coming out in the US on October 16 –
I’m so excited!  And I can’t wait to play co-op! ^o^
There are so many cute yarn Yoshi designs to unlock and play as, too!
OH!!  And there will be these adorable yarn Yoshi Amiibos!!

Pink Yarn Yoshi Amiibo

I need one!!!

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Return to PopoloCrois: A Story of Seasons Fairytale

Ahhhh this looks so preciousssss!!
Story of Seasons is the current localization name for the Harvest Moon series,
so really, this has the same “Fantasy Harvest Moon” subtitle as Rune Factory!
This PopoloCrois adaptation of Story of Seasons looks like a combination
of Rune Factory and Fantasy Life – my favorite game from last year!
I’m really looking forward to it!

PopoloCrois: Story of Seasons comes out January 5, 2016!

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Yo-Kai Watch

Yo-Kai Watch is an INCREDIBLE sensation in Japan,
and this is the first installment of it reaching the US!
It will be coming over along with a cartoon on TV
and toys licensed by Hasbro.
I hope it becomes very successful, because it is a wonderful world
filled with kooky Yo-Kai critters that make for an awesomely fun
little monster-collecting, RPG-battling experience!
And the girl hero that you can play as is super cute! n_n

Yo-Kai Watch comes out November 6!!

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Moco Moco Friends

OK… LOOK AT HOW CUTE THIS IS… THIS IS INSANE!!!
Moco Moco Friends is a monster-collecting and RPG-battling game
much like Yo-Kai Watch, except your player character and all of her friends
are adorable magical witch girls, and their monsters are cuddly plushes!
Really, seriously, this is the Pokemon-like game
that I have been waiting for since the monster genre first emerged.
I can’t believe it took THIS long for a 100% cutesy version of the genre to happen.

Moco Moco Friends comes out November 17!

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Animal Crossing: Happy Home Designer

After New Leaf was insanely successful,
this spinoff game centered on designing cute homes for your animal neighbors
will be out on September 25!
The options for customizing homes (and the yards outside of them)
are SO HUGELY enhanced – you have to watch videos or trailers
of this game to see it in action, it’s all sooo cuuuute!!

It has been a little while since I last featured these games, and a whole slew of new ones have come out since the last time I covered them!!  Here are the highest-rated and most popular mystery adventure games at the moment – click through to any of them to try out a demo of them for free!

Dark Realm: Princess of Ice

Mad Head presents the exciting continuation of the Dark Realm story line! This time, a magic bear summons you to help save the neighboring kingdom of Nypha. Find out what has Nypha and its princess trapped in a death grip of cold. As a fire-wielder, you have a few tricks up your sleeve, but the bear’s given you some special abilities too! You’ll be thrilled by the fun new Match-3 mechanic and enjoy adventurous interactions along the way.

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Sable Maze: Forbidden Garden

Your parents always told you to stay away from the mysterious hedge maze behind their house… and you’re about to find out why. On the eve of your wedding, your fiancé, Ryan, is kidnapped by a mysterious force and dragged straight to the heart of the maze – or so it seems. As you follow his trail, you discover that the labyrinth contains a door to another world… and whoever is on the other side has a vendetta against your entire family. Can you uncover the roots of their hatred and bring Ryan back before all is lost?

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Witches’ Legacy: The Dark Throne

What should have been a day of celebration turns into a nightmare as good witch Lynn is possessed by a strange evil force! As her witch hunter-turned-husband, you must follow Lynn into the Other World and defeat whatever has a hold on her.EleFun brings you a story rich with family history and witches’ lore in this thrilling continuation of the popular Witches’ Legacyseries. You’ll love your impish helper as much as the innovative hidden-object games and puzzles.

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Phantasmat: The Dread of Oakvale

It’s the end of the world… at least in Oakville. Find out what’s really happening in a town where everyone seems to be missing, and a strange mystic is warning citizens of the coming apocalypse. As fans of the Phantasmat series know, it’s hard to tell who’s really dead and who’s really alive in this world. The eerie continuation comes from Eipix, makers of the popular Final Cut and Myths of the World games! Play a new variety of puzzles and hidden-object games, including interactive morphing scenes, silhouettes, and multiple zoom HOPs.

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Beyond: Light Advent

Ohhhh look at the cuuuute little :3-faced robot in this one!!

As a child, you had a wonderful imaginary friend from outer space. Nix taught you about the stars and inspired you become an astronomer. Years later, while investigating a mysterious object in the sky, you discover that your imaginary friend was real all along! He’s come to warn Earth of a terrible threat – a merciless race of aliens is fast approaching, and you and Nix are the only ones who can stop them. Can you save both your friend’s planet and your own in time? Your journey will take you into the past and beyond the stars!!