Where's Patricia Arquette?

For the people out there who don't know who Patricia Arquette is, she played Allison Dubois in the TV series Medium. Well, it just so happens that Blackwell Legacy kinda reminds me of that television show, it certainly seems to have absorbed some inspiration from it at least.
I was never a fan of Medium but I certainly enjoyed the story, the ghost helping concept and most of the characters in Blackwell Legacy, so through my irrefutable logic, Blackwell Legacy "pwnz" Medium!

Guess I better prepare for all the hate mail from Medium fans...what is that?! There are none?

Story

It all starts with our main character, Rosangela Blackwell scattering her aunt's ashes from the Brooklyn Bridge, we quickly come to the realization that Rosa and her aunt were never really that close, still and since she was the only family Rosa had left, she felt like it was her obligation to perform that last ritual of release, never suspecting that this particular moment would change her life forever.

It does not take long until the player also realizes that Rosa is not exactly a "social butterfly" as she brilliantly puts it, seems like living alone and not knowing anyone from her building is what she prefers, it's actually quite funny to see how Rosa struggles when she needs to leave her comfort zone and deal with other people.

One of the most interesting aspects of the story is how well Rosangela evolves during the 2 to 3 hours that the game lasts. Forced to interact with people thanks to her boss laying  on her the responsibility of investigating a human interest story, she starts to adapt. By the end of the game that extra social confidence is noticeable in a particular scene where two solutions for the same problem exist, Rosa's social skills can come into play there.

It's good to see developers adding more than one solution to certain puzzles, as well as more than one ending, it certainly enriches and improves their games.
As a final note for the story, there is another main character, but I don't want to write about it so I don't spoil the first minutes of the game for anyone.

Gameplay

Like I said, The Blackwell Legacy gives us two main characters, so it's interesting to sometimes be in Rosa's "partner" shoes. While the game doesn't let you alter between them at your own will, it's still a nice addition, even if it's restricted to a few scenes. It certainly introduces a little more variety to a game that otherwise is pretty much the point and click standard.

The puzzles for the most part are not exactly puzzles, they feel much more like investigations, it gives the game a slight touch of realism since you solve most problems by asking the right questions, you know, like a real journalist. You also have a notebook where you can combine names and specific terms given to you, this way adding new options to conversations. Except for one combination of names that didn't make much sense the difficulty is pretty low, all the puzzles are logical and obvious, never spoiling the pace of the story by getting you stuck.

Graphics & Sound

The pixel art that this game presents us, while primitive compared to some other games, is clear and never gets in the way of the gameplay. The characters have some stiff animations while moving around, but during the conversations - arguably the most important parts of the game - the game comes to life with expressive portraits and very decent voice acting for a low budget game like this. The actor that plays Rosa's partner is actually pretty impressive, displaying some genuine talent.

In terms of musical score, the developers opted for a selection of electronic tracks, they all sounded very good even if in some scenes they were clearly out of place.

Final Thoughts

The Blackwell Legacy is one of those short but sweet experiences, while it's still far from a flawless game - there are some bugs like Rosangela failing to pick up items and subtitles not matching what's being said - it still provides the player with a great experience through its interesting and well told story.

Year of Release: 2006

Platforms: PC

Developer: Wadjet Eye Games

8 out of 10

(My thanks to Wadjet Eye Games for providing me with a review copy - http://www.wadjeteyegames.com/blackwell-legacy.html)