Wonderful adventure game that will appeal to the old fans with both the visuals and gameplay.

The story is not a happy one. As so many times before, it takes place in a world that was devastated by an apocalypse. Humans have turned against one another, deadly pollution has spread, and sea levels have increased, flooding most continents.

You follow Aino, a woman on a mission to help a community that has learned to work together while avoiding crime and violence. Because the game is set in Finland in the 1980s, most modern technology is unavailable. More interestingly, the voices are Finnish. There are subtitles, so there's no need to worry, but it's nice to hear a language that fits the setting. Visuals require special mention because they’re amazing. This also includes various animations, especially when you perform actions with your character. The effort is evident.

The gameplay is based on classic point-and-click adventure features that have remained unchanged since the beginning. You move the mouse around the screen looking for hotspots and interact with them. However, you will need to keep your eyes alert because there is no magical button that highlights important things.

When you move your cursor over a hotspot, the object gets a faint highlight. It is very easy to miss something, especially if it is near a bright spot that makes it tough to notice or if there are several objects close together. Fortunately, each highlight is accompanied by a sound cue, allowing you to locate items even when you can't see them.

The mouse actions are dynamic, which means that when you click the left mouse button, your main character will perform the proper action. Although most interactions merely allow you to examine objects and make brief comments, you will not miss anything. If anything is useful, Aino will pick it up.

Unfortunately, some objects become useful only when you learn about them. Toolbox, for instance, has two items that become available when you stumble upon their respective problems. Although there is some classic item using, most puzzles involves machines and switches. These aren’t that hard if you pay attention and remember what they do.

Inventory isn't the best. Instead of a fast button or an inventory bar, you must open your bag with the right mouse button and click on the tool belt to gain access to your belongings. Another issue is that the inventory disappears when you move your mouse outside of the inventory bar. You don't get to pick up many items, so it may not be too annoying, but these extra actions must be done each time you wish to use an item.

Aside from inventory, your backpack contains a water bottle that opens a menu with settings and saving/loading choices, as well as a highly handy map that allows you to quickly travel to destinations. A map also includes information about some key items and people. Another useful feature is double-clicking on exits, which takes you directly to the next screen.

An item is used by clicking on it in the inventory and then on the spot. One fun mechanic that’s used rarely is that some puzzles may have more solutions. This involves your pistol that can blow away problems on your path, both living and non-living. However, you only have three bullets, so it’s not the universal tool.

Interaction with others is limited because you only meet a few humans. Depending on how you deal with these folks, you will reach different endings. Because the game does not lock you out of locations, you can save in a different slot and try all of the possibilities without having to restart.

Besides inventory, your backpack also a water bottle that leads to the menu with settings and saving/loading options, and very useful map that allows you to fast travel to locations. A map also holds important information you get from certain notes. Another nice feature is double-click on exits that instantly moves you to the next screen.

I really liked the atmosphere and it's so nice to hear finnish in a game :) One cannot call the world looking awesome but the graphics are really great. Some of the puzzles were hard.

I'm little hesitant to give a thumbs down review, but the end was just that bad imo.

Three interesting characters and a good story that had me engaged, until the last 10 minutes... There were so many plot twists that it ended in a knot. The end felt rushed, the story went all over the place and things were happening out of the blue. The end felt a like a slap in the face and my first feeling was that I want my 6 hours back.
The game would have benefited from better writing.

The point and click was great, puzzles were mostly good (last three were super hard or then I'm just stupid) and I liked the no hand holding. Aesthetics and sound effects were great and it really looked like old northern Finland. Zooming in on characters faces during cut scenes was a nice little detail.

Conversations rolling on automatically would be a nice QoL instead of having to click after each line.