Windows

Passage: Path of Betrayal

Is it worth purchasing Passage: Path of Betrayal for $20, especially since Dreamcatcher has flooded the market with professionally produced games for the same price and other products like Gathering of Developers' Blair Witch games can now be had for $15? After all, it is a "garage game," and while it was done by an amateur, it is not amateurish. Unequivocally and without a doubt--yes. For if we--you--do not support the small adventure game developers now, then there may not be a future for the genre. Passage can only be ordered online or by sending a check or money order, and it ships on one CD with a 16-page manual. As for Darris Hupp, remember when I told you earlier that he has been working on Passage: Path of Betrayal for the past two years? Well, he was only fifteen years old when he began the project. You do the math.

Overall, Passage: Path of Betrayal probably fares about like you’d expect. It’s the first game from a guy working mostly by himself, and so while the ideas behind the game are solid, the actual performance is a little shaky. Still, Passage is better than a lot of the adventures I’ve played lately, and since it’s modestly priced at $20 and provides about 15 hours of gameplay, it’s a pretty good deal.

The developing time of over two years is reflected in a complex story and sophisticated, tricky puzzles, while handling and graphics don't fulfill wishes. The first work of Dragon Works, alias Darris Hupp, is still far away from perfection, shows however a great potential when it comes to story telling and creating puzzles. Some technical and contentwise bugs were eliminated by a patch already and support is excellent. In approximately 20 hours Passage - Path of Betrayal let the players have a lot of puzzle-fun. Recommendable for all those, who put more value on story and puzzle quality than on perfect graphics.

Per essere un gioco amatoriale è ben fatto e divertente, magari per gli avventurieri più giovani o per coloro che amano le avventure tipo "King's quest".

Passage is like a trip back to the days of innocence ... cute graphics, cute music, cute characters ... and even a scoring system to let you know when you are doing the right thing. Innocent though it is I wouldn't recommend it for computer game innocents. If you haven't played many games then it is better to start with something with fewer hitches. Even if a little primitive and rough around the edges it is an engaging game and it oozes enthusiasm. I had a lot of fun fitting it all together. I'm hoping that Darris has gained some valuable experience in making Passage and that he will give us something more in the future. Technically it can't match up to a lot of games that are coming out today but, pointedly, there are a lot of lessons here for many commercial game developers in building a story and designing puzzles that involve, challenge and entertain the player.