In all honesty, Allora and the Broken Portal was not what I was expecting. When I downloaded the game, I thought I was getting a hybrid first-person adventure/hidden object game. Hybrid games take elements from each genre and combine them to provide a more interactive gaming experience.
For me, this casual game was a straight seek and click. Beside occasional conversations with Allora and the mouse assistant, there was very little interaction with the environment which is typical of straight hidden object games. I don’t like this because, after awhile, these games become tedious to play. It took me about three weeks to complete Allora and the Broken Portal because I would get bored after 15 minutes.
The game’s artwork is beautiful and the music was pleasant to listen to. The hidden object puzzles were moderately challenging and navigating the game is straight-forward. Unlike the dark themes of other hidden object games, Allora and the Broken Portal is light and optimistic. I found the storyline to be pretty basic, but I did enjoy the fact that no one died, no one was trying to kill me, and no ghosts were randomly jumping out from behind doors.
One of the things that annoyed me the most about the game, though, was the constant in-game notification of incomplete areas. As noted before, the hidden object puzzles spanned multiple panels. The game is programmed to display arrows telling you where those rooms are and that you have not completed them yet. I’m sure many people will find this useful. However, the constant but random blinking was intensely annoying, which was another reason I couldn’t finish the game in one sitting.
You get a reasonable amount of game play for your money. Overall, I think this game is great for when you have a few hours of free time and you don’t want to do anything challenging. I would say that Allora and the Broken Portal is the Solitaire of the hidden object games, and worth purchasing if that’s what you are looking for.
Side Notes for Allora and the Broken Portal
While searching the Internet to see what other people have said about Allora and the Broken Portal, I came across this review on The Productivity Suck. The writer brought up something that bothered me a little bit while playing the game. The way Allora is represented. Sexism in gaming is nothing new, so originally I wasn’t going to comment on this. But since someone else brought it up, I’m going to add my two cents.
Allora is a calendar girl. She’s wearing this skimpy two-piece outfit that displays more skin than it covers. Even though 74% of people who purchase casual games are women, Allora and the Broken Portal is obviously created for the boys. So if you don’t like sexist representations of women in games, then you don’t want to buy this one.
Allora and the Broken Portal Metadata:
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Rating:
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Publisher: AZ-Art Development Studios
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Release Date: April 2011
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Genre: Hidden Object Games
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Price: $6.99 for Big Fish Game Members | $9.99 for Non-Members
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Buy Allora and the Broken Portal from Big Fish Games. The first hour is free to play! New customers get it for $4.99 by entering Big Fish Coupon code NEW50
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Click here to get tips from the game walkthrough guide
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