The Mystery of the Dragon Prince

The following review is divided into several sections (see the list below). Some are specifically for the actual review, others for installation and problems with the game, suggestion for those able to post their own opinions of the game plus a final section that links to other games, which I've added in case you don't fancy todays game.

⦁ In Brief
⦁ Installation:
⦁ Introduction:
⦁ The Game:
⦁ Conclusion:
⦁ Videos of the Game (will contain spoilers)
⦁ Suggestions:
⦁ Problems getting the game to work:
⦁ Useful Information not related to today's game giveaway:

In Brief

An eight year old Hidden Object Game

Installation:

The Mystery of the Dragon Prince downloads to a 98.1 MB zip file that unzips to three files, (a setup.gcd security wrapper, the set-up file and a read me). Those with multiple hard drives can save games on any drive they wish by replacing the C drive with whatever drive letter they wish the game to be installed to or if you have multiple hard drives you can save games on any drive you wish by replacing the C drive letter in the path with whatever drive letter you wish the game to be installed to. The newly installed game is 99.3 MB in size. The game installs to the following path by default:

C:\Program Files (x86)\MyPlayCity.com\The Mystery of the Dragon Prince

However, if you prefer a different path for installation for example I use G:\Games\ name of game instead of 'C:\Program Files (x86)\MyPlayCity\name of game'. You can edit the default path when the Setup - The Mystery of the Dragon Prince - Select Destination Location window appears.

Four shortcuts are installed to the desktop, three of which can be safely deleted (i.e. Play Online Games, MyPlayCity Games and shortcuts to a free online game; the name of which may vary each week). If you don't want to install the games shortcut to the desktop during installation, just make sure the install desktop shortcut is unchecked when the 'additional task's window appears; you will still get two of the other MyPlayCity shortcuts installed i.e. the Play Online Games and MyPlayCity Games shortcuts. Also, if you don't like icons installed to the quick launch task bar, make sure you also uncheck the appropriate checkbox when the 'additional task's window appears (after the Select Start Menu Folder window).

Introduction:

Explore an ancient castle that has been cursed! Solve the mystery of the Dragon Prince in this exciting Hidden Object game! After receiving an invitation at home, set off on an exciting adventure inside of an old castle. Solve puzzles, find Hidden Objects, and explore different rooms in The Mystery of the Dragon Prince!

Edited reference accessed HERE. 5th January 2019

The Game:

Nevosoft has a long and fairly accomplished track record in the casual realm, with popular games like Mushroom Age and Vampireville to its credit. That’s what makes The Mystery of the Dragon Prince such a surprise, as it’s a badly dated, poorly executed hidden object hybrid adventure that doesn’t come close to the company’s own highest standards. The premise is simple enough: A woman named Anna receives a letter imploring her to come to an old castle to save it, but the letter is 200 years old. Intrigued, she heads off to this castle (apparently she knows where it is from only a picture, because its location is never otherwise specified) and discovers that it’s fallen under a dark magic spell that has mystically preserved it, empty and unchanged for two centuries. At the urging of the old gardener who calls her “Countess”, Anna’s challenge is to explore the castle, solve its puzzles, and try to undo its curse.

This is easier said than done, as the original spell distorted some castle functions, including simple door locks. That sets up the convenient opportunity to roam around looking for crystals, keys, and practical items like matches and water faucets. Some are found in the main environments and others in hidden object screens that feature an annoying amount of shuffling items around to see what’s behind them. Apart from that, it’s a very traditional casual adventure hybrid, really, but there’s just nothing to support it. The hazy graphics would have looked bad years ago, there is no voicework of any kind, and the music is eminently forgettable. The presentation isn’t the only shoddy element, however. Though interative areas sparkle, it’s very difficult to find exits in the castle’s meandering layout, making it easy to overlook new areas. The hint option charges glacially and is totally useless for most of the standalone puzzles. When confronted with a tiled jigsaw or pipe alignment task, it brilliantly highlights one square, as if that’s supposed to mean something. That’s it for help, too, as there’s no skip option at all, no hints whatsoever for the adventuring segments… and no notebook, no map, no objective list, or any of the other modern conveniences casual gamers have come to expect. There are a few promising encounters with a dwarf, troll, and dragon, but these quickly fizzle out. With no compelling story or gameplay driving you forward, then, in the end there’s really no reason for players to bother.

Edited reference accessed HERE. Originally posted by AG Staff {Jack Allin, Merlina McGovern, and Robin Parker} December 10, 2010, reposted by Whiterabbit-uk January 5th 2019

Conclusion:

Conclusion to be posted later. I've not played the game long enough to give a fair assessment

Videos and Walk through of The Mystery of the Dragon Prince....... (SPOILER ALERT):

You can see several in-game videos of game play HERE, HERE, HERE, HERE (part 1) & HERE (part 2) and a written walk through HERE.

Suggestions:

After you've had an opportunity to play today's giveaway please take a few moments to give some positive or negative feedback; for example, what you liked or disliked about the game, or how it could be improved. If you don't like the genre at all, please explain why and if any, what improvements would change your mind? If you don't have time to post a comment today, please do so at your convenience, thank you. If you wish to post a review or comment about the game later, you can access the comments section by going to the game giveaways home page, then scroll to the bottom of the page where it says Archives and select the date the giveaway was live (giveaway days are in bold type). This will open the appropriate page for you to post your comment or review. Alternatively, you can google the name of the game and include Gamegiveawayoftheday in the search. This should give you a list of links to whenever this game was given away.

If you miss today's game giveaway you can always get the game via MyPlayCity 24/7 HERE; or If you prefer to purchase the game you can get it HERE via Big Fish Games.

Problems getting the game to work:

If you're having problems installing or activating or getting The Mystery of the Dragon Prince to work please visit the FAQ's Thread HERE and read through the communities comments because sometimes fixes have already been posted, for example, a common issue seen since the Themida wrapper was introduced three years ago is that some community members installation of the game are blocked by their security because Themida code has been known to hide malware, (usually an error message is flagged for example 'The executable is corrupted' even though in reality it is not); so as a precaution some anti malware programs will block and even delete the suspect installation files even though the files (i.e. the setup, read me and setup.gcd files are actually totally free from malware. This issue can be solved either by rebooting your computer in safe mode with networking or a quicker method is to temporarily turn off your security software to allow the installation. You could also try white-listing the setup.gcd file. In the almost 12 years this game giveaway site has been operating there has 'never' been a game given away that was infected with malware.

If for any reason you want to contact the giveaway team, for example, you have a game to offer the community, or are unable to download the latest game or other issues that the FAQ's thread or these comments don't cover or solve you can do so HERE

I'd like to take this opportunity to thank MyPlayCity for giving away The Mystery of the Dragon Prince and also to the game giveaway team, as always, for securing other ways to get free games.

Useful Information not related to today's game giveaway:

If The Mystery of the Dragon Prince doesn't interest you, but you still hanker for something new to play, you'll find details of some game deals whether they be sale items, indie bundles or games being given away for free HERE (I've not updated the thread in a while, but most of the links still take you to the latest deals).

The rest of the information that used to be posted in the game review can be found in the forums HERE. Finally, check out Delenns threads for details of other free games and offers HERE and elsewhere in the game discussion forums HERE, (usually on the first page of the game discussion forums).