Dorothea Benedict in the North: Free Computer Game Review: Around the World in 80 Days from Myrealgames.com

The start of the journey: Around the world in 80 days with Mr. Phileas Fogg, Miss Aouda and Passepartout (image courtesy of http://cjrtools.org)

In this busy world, who wants to make most of his/her time by reading a classic and

enjoying a casual computer game at the same time?

In the game “Around the World in 80 Days” which you can download for free from Myrealgames.com and Playrix Entertainment, this is exactly what you will experience. The classic adventure novel around the world in 80 days was written by famous French writer Jules Verne in 1873.

This is a story about a wager made by Phileas Fogg, a wealthy Englishman, against Mr. Stuart, the chairman of the Reform Club, that he could travel the world in 80 days. The chairmanship of Mr. Stuart is at stake. All throughout the game, Mr. Fogg tells his stories and adventures through his journal.

I personally haven’t read the classic yet although I watched its comic movie version lead by Asian Jackie Chan. But I definitely enjoyed reading it in a game set up. This includes the summary of event in a country with “Country Intro” replete with and the conversation of each character (Phileas Fogg, his assistant Passepartout, his Indian love interest Miss Aouda and the protagonist Detective Fix) through bubble thought. (For those who want to go straight to the game, no worries. You just have to click on the “skip dialogue”)

This game may remind you of Bejeweled. Your main goal though is not really to form three or more tiles in a row but to bring the pieces of an item initially found on top to find its way at the bottom by forming three or more tiles in a row. Each item is a piece of an important object usually with cultural value of the country they are visiting.

Aside from reading and playing, you will have the opportunity to visit seven countries: England, France, Egypt, India, China, Japan, and the U.S.A.

As the title suggests, Each country represents the stage and each stage has levels. There are 80 stages but a surprise stages await the gamers.

The downside? Just like any adaptation, it has some alterations. Upon consultation, we learned that there is no mention nor interaction of Mr. Fogg with the pirates. When they were in the U.S., this is the plot that was given. For the fans of classics, this is a definite no-no. But to some, this may just be a sprinkle of creativity.

Meanwhile, music is a plus factor. Music is almost enchanting specially that of India, and the Chinese Oriental has the unique sound that is pleasing to the ears. The latter reminds me of the oriental sound of the Super Mario classic – stage 4 particularly. For relaxation and meditation purposes, you may want to snag the music of Japan.

Graphics is excellent as well.

Around the World in 80 Days: you will have the opportunity to visit seven countries: England, China, Japan, and the U.S.A (image courtesy of http://www.gamezebo.com)

Tips will guide you all throughout. From the “options” tab, you can choose for the game to reveal some tips in each level, although experience will really give you the best tip.

Every good thing gives extra, in this case, once you finished each country’s games, it’s background view is available as your computer’s screensaver. You will enjoy UK’s Big Ben, India’s Taj Majal, or China’s The Great Wall of China among others. The Japan is the one I love most.

How’s the game experience itself? At first, don’t expect for the addiction level to be high. The addiction meter increases at the middle when the stage levels are getting tougher and tougher, that’s when you’ll notice that you’re really thinking of strategies that will work to finish the stage. Gamezebo (http://www.gamezebo.com) says, “Advanced levels call for moving pieces left or right or else they can’t exit the board. A brick wall show at the bottom, providing no way out – not even with a super bomb. This task increases in the challenge and calls for strategic thinking, but it also frustrates the most. Tips appear throughout the game, but nothing about how to get out of a situation like this.”

I couldn’t agree more. I was doing my utmost best finding tips on how to get through that tough part of the game, but it was futile. Nevertheless, I made it to the end, and the toughest parts just made me proud that I finished it ahead of my sister and a friend.

Overall, the rating is 4.0 out of 5.0