This is the case of Dracula: Origin, a vampire game that follows the traditional point & click pattern and presents you with a truly Gothic adventure full of mystery, romance and terror, in a gloomy environment.

Though I personally don't enjoy this kind of games that much, I must admit Dracula: Origin looks pretty impressive. The game stands out for its highly detailed graphics in the design of characters and especially in the recreation of environments. The sense of realism makes the game experience even more pleasant and rewarding.

The story is also quite an interesting one. You play the role of Van Helsing, the famous scientific whose main aim in life is to destroy the so called Prince of Darkness. Your objectives will then be exploring all the locations you visit, talk to other characters, gather different objects and try to get hints from them all that could take you to Dracula. Like in similar adventures, gameplay is basically reduced to using your mouse to move your character, use objects in your inventory, talk to other people and other actions.

Dracula: Origin will surely please fans of this genre. However it also requires a lot of patience, so if you're not really into conversational adventures maybe you should look elsewhere.

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At first, Mini Ninjas looks and feels very reminiscent of Nintendo's cell-shaded Zelda games. You control a group of Ninjas, one a a time with varied abilities, and have to go on a quest to find who is threatening your village, and why the forest creatures are turning into battling Samurai.

Graphically there are some effects that seem directly taken from Zelda - while you are hacking and slashing your way through enemies, they disappear in a Windwaker-like cloud of smoke, to be replaced by squirrels and other cute animals. It's quite attractive, but the playing field is a bit closed, and sometimes during battles you can lose sight of your character amongst the grass, obstacles and enemies.

Gameplay is fairly simple. While you have a range of weapons and spells at your disposal, most of the time mouse clicking in the general direction of enemies is enough to beat them. For younger gamers, this simplicity will be great, but it doesn't give players much depth. Combat is not as fluid as in other games of this type, and again compared to Zelda it's nowhere near as good. To create this type of game is dangerous, as Nintendo games rarely feel flawed, whereas Mini Ninjas just doesn't come up to scratch.

Mini Ninjas isn't a bad game, but it's not a great one either. If cute ninjas are your thing, you'll no doubt enjoy this, but there are much better questing hack and slash games out there.

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While the hero of the last title, Ezio, is back for the single player campaign, in multiplayer you'll choose between one of eight renaissance characters. These won't be very unique, but that's the point, because in Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood multiplayer, you'll want to blend into the crowds, to try avoid other assassins. It's certainly a break from the more flamboyant in-game avatars we're used to seeing.

In the game we tried, called Wanted, your task is to kill a target without being caught by the enemy, and before the other assassins in the multiplayer game. There's also an Alliance version in Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood, which sees you cooperating to kill targets, against other teams of assassins.

While each character has their own attack styles, it's still pretty automated and easy to execute although they do look good! What we've see so far of Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood is as flashy as gamers have come to expect, while the multiplayer element looks like being something you could spend many hours doing.

Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood looks like being a really exciting game and a great development for the series. Bring on November!

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Another title from Big Fish Games, Jane Lucky is hunting for a hidden artifact shrouded in mystery.

With a non-linear storyline that gently guides players forward at their own pace, Jane Lucky takes you from pyramids to remote islands to jungles, in one single game. The object is to collect objects that can help you solve puzzles to advance you further in the game. These puzzles often require players to rearrange images, memorize sequences or put objects in the right order to obtain a specific goal.

While the graphics in Jane Lucky aren't going to win any prizes, particularly when compared to today's much more detailed RPGs, fans of puzzle solving PC games will find them detailed enough for their click and point endeavors. The majority of Jane Lucky is still-frame, with the occasional action frames complimenting movie cuts that push the game forward or supplement the storyline.

Text boxes are used to interact with other characters or clickable objects in Jane Lucky, and most if not all text contains clues or hints to help solve future puzzles. If you click too often on the same character or object though, expect to get repetitive responses.

Jane Lucky is a fun game for users who enjoy a side of puzzle solving with their adventure storyline.

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If you've played a Lego game before, you'll know what to expect. You will play a selection of the biggest characters in the Pirates of the Caribbean, through the most iconic scenes in the movies. On PC Lego Pirates of the Caribbean looks good, with a cinematic score to accompany the action. Controls are via keyboard or joypad, and we found the keyboard setup to be a little awkward.

While Lego Pirates of the Caribbean may not be based on movies quite as iconic as Star Wars, there is enough comedy in the cut scenes to keep everyone entertained even if the plot gets confusing! Overall, Lego Pirates of the Caribbean offers a good mix of action and puzzles that is great fun to play through.

Lego Pirates of the Caribbean is an excellent entry into the series, even if it doesn't do much to change the format of the Lego games.

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First Impressions

First impressions of L.A. Noire were perhaps over enthusiastic, and the later release of the PC version allows us a more measured view of this interesting game. While it features the huge open world landscape of Los Angeles, L.A. Noire is no GTA sandbox. Rather, this is a game of detective episodes that take place within the city.

Dirty Work

As well as exploration, driving and shooting, Cole Phelps spends a great deal of time looking for clues at crime scenes, and interrogating suspects. Interrogations take advantage of the impressively realistic facial animations in the game. To succeed you need to read the faces of your potential criminals, which is a new experience for gamers. Looking for clues is a little more mundane, but there are subtle in-game pointers to make sure you don't get stuck. The stories are well written and acted, really giving L.A. Noire the feeling of an excellent interactive TV cop drama.

Flaws

There are problems with the game. L.A. Noire is very linear, and although you can do better or worse in interrogations and crime scene investigations, you cannot fail. The game will help you, with a phone call for example, to make sure Cole Phelps has what he needs to get the case moving. The city of Los Angeles is impressive, but doesn't have the 'living city' feel that GTA IV's Liberty City achieved. Playing L.A. Noire sometimes feels like exploring a huge replica of a city, not like actually being a cop in a city.

Conclusion

These criticisms shouldn't dissuade players. L.A. Noire is a deeply satisfying game with some interesting an innovative ideas. Humans faces have never looked so realistic, and the production values are excellent.

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This is a semi-3D game, mixing 2D platforming with some 3D elements. The gameplay is hardly original, but it is at least handled well and offers a polished experience that fans and gamers will enjoy. While The Adventures of Tintin: The Secret of the Unicorn takes it's visual style from the movie, it feels more playful and in line with the comics.

The Adventures of Tintin: The Secret of the Unicorn isn't very challenging, but is fun none the less. Controls are simple, meaning anyone can get to grips with it. You'll play as Tintin, his dog Snowy as well as Captain Haddock. Even better, there's a two player coop mode, set in Captain Haddock's dreams, which are amusingly imaginative and lengthen what would otherwise be too short a game.

Whether you're a fan of Tintin or not, The Adventures of Tintin: The Secret of the Unicorn is a fun and absorbing platform game full of character and atmosphere.

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Following on from the original of 2009, Trine 2 sees the three medieval heroes reuniting to save their kingdom again. There's the Zoya the thief, Pontius the knight and Amadeus the wizard, each with different abilities that you'll need to master to get through the game.

Look and feel

In terms of gameplay and presentation, Trine 2 feels like an improvement over it's pretty predecessor, while not being any kind of revolution. The story isn't fantastic, but it doesn't matter when the game is as good looking and fun to play as Trin 2 is. Medieval fantasy worlds can too often lack any individuality, but the beautiful levels of Trine 2 manage to create their own fairy tale feel.

Online multiplayer

Trine 2 adds online multiplayer, which allows you to jump into games of up to three people, each playing one character, cooperating through the game. Multiplayer is excellently integrated, making it a big improvement, while making perfect use of the three Trine characters.

Trine 2 is rarely a very challenging game, and movement is nowhere near as tight as classic platformers like Mario. This plays more like a fantasy Little Big Planet, which is no bad thing!

If you're looking for a fun adventure that's easy to play and beautiful to look at, Trine 2 will be perfect.

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If you grew up in the 80s and 90s loving Sierra games like Kings Quest 3: To Heir is Human from the popular Kings Quest series, The Mystery of the Dragon Prince should be right up your alley.

Players step into the shoes of Anna, a normal woman leading a mundane life, until one day a letter written centuries ago arrives in her name. Anna is invited to an old castle and quickly finds herself knee deep in a mystery she's determined to solve.

The Mystery of the Dragon Prince requires players to solve puzzle games of varying levels of difficulty to advance in the game. Some of these include memorizing sequences, locating certain items or arranging pictures into the correct order. Although not terribly difficult to complete, some of the puzzles can get a little repetitive or be time-consuming in a way that might make more action-oriented players lose interest.

The graphics in The Mystery of the Dragon Prince are good but not spectacular. The Mystery of the Dragon Prince's imagery is very reminiscent to games you would see in the mid to late 90s in terms of quality and detail. Most of the game takes place in still frames, with more detailed insets being where you complete the puzzles. On very rare occasion, an action frame is included, although these are brief.

Interaction with other characters in The Mystery of the Dragon Prince is done via text that appears on the screen. Oftentimes if you click on a character or an object repeatedly, you're bound to get repetitive responses. Many conversations or text pop-ups contain clues that you'll need to solve future puzzles as well.

The Mystery of the Dragon Prince is a fun game for lovers of older, more traditional PC games.

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First there was Art of Murder: FBI Confidential. Now in Art of Murder: Cards of Destiny, FBI agent Nicole Bonnet returns in an attempt to stop a serial killer whose signature involves leaving playing cards by his victims' bodies.

Art of Murder: Cards of Destiny requires players to solve puzzles in order to advance in the game. These puzzles vary in difficulty, depending on your individual strengths and weaknesses. Some require users to collect items for use against future obstacles, memorize sequences or arrange images to make a full picture. Players who prefer their PC games full of action might become bored with these types of games, although they're very suitable for people who prefer to take time to think through solutions.

The graphics in Art of Murder: Cards of Destiny are what you'd expect in a still-frame game - detailed but not on par with some of the most graphically impressive games available today. In fact, Art of Murder: Cards of Destiny's graphics are quite reminiscent of games in its genre that came out of the 90s. On occasion, there are action frames, although players can't make their character interact within them. When solving puzzles, an even more detailed image will appear overlaying the general still-frame.

You talk to other characters and interact with your surroundings in general in Art of Murder: Cards of Destiny by clicking and reading text boxes that appear on the screen. Some objects won't produce any objects, which implies their lack of significance in your current task. Other objects or characters will end up giving you repetitive text boxes if you repeatedly click on them. Much of the text contains clues that you'll need to make use of to solve future puzzles, so be on the look out.

Art of Murder: Cards of Destiny does contain sensitive content, so it may not be suitable for younger children.

Fans of puzzle solving PC games with engaging storylines will enjoy Art of Murder: Cards of Destiny.

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Similar to The Mystery of the Dragon Prince, Haunted Manor: Lord of Mirrors has you playing Stan Riddle, an unlucky guy who took a dare from friends to enter a haunted mansion. He was subsequently tracked in the mansion by a mysterious figure called the Lord of Mirrors and needs to be guided back to safety.

You can help Stan escape by following screen text directions and solving puzzles. Some puzzles in Haunted Manor: Lord of Mirrors are quite simple, while others are trickier. Often you have to search for specific objects in a cluttered room in order to obtain one that will help you solve your next puzzle.

As you advance through Haunted Manor: Lord of Mirrors, you will encounter a myriad of different spirits throughout the house and get to learn more about the mansion's history, and ultimately how to set yourself free.

The graphics, though detailed, are primarily still frame, so hardcore gamers might find themselves bored by the lack of action throughout. You also can't leave one room to visit others until you've completed the puzzles in each room in Haunted Manor: Lord of Mirrors, which might get frustrating for some. Haunted Manor: Lord of Mirrors does provide hints for when you need them, but once used, you'll have to wait until an hourglass runs out before you can use the hint feature again.

Also, although the game isn't violent, there are spirits that sometimes pop out when you least expect them and the game has a dark feel, which might be scary for some children.

Haunted Manor: Lord of Mirrors is a point and click puzzle game that old school gamers will likely enjoy.

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Graphically impressive, Raymon Origins offers a cartoon feel, along with gorgeous environments. This demo was released in advance of the full PC game, which is scheduled for release on March 29, 2012.

Rayman Origins takes place in a peaceful world called the Glade of Dreams. Peaceful, yes, until Rayman and his friends' snoring disturbs a Land of the Livid Death inhabitant who sends out an army of evil creatures to capture Electoons and throw the Glad into chaos as retaliation.

The goal of Rayman Origins is to free Electoons and collect ruby teeth throughout the game. You can play the game as Rayman, his friend Globox or one of two Teensies in an up to four player co-op.

As you travel through each level in Rayman Origins, the object is to fight enemies and rescue Electoons that have been imprisoned. Your character will obtain new powers and abilities as the game progresses, from running up walls to gliding in midair, swimming and shrinking in size, which keeps things interesting.

The Rayman Origins demo limits the levels you can play, but it gives you a taste of what the full game will be like. You must have Steam installed to play the game.

Rayman Origins is a graphically stunning adventure with a fun storyline.

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