Developed by Pewter Games, the Irish studio is simply composed by two developers, but their work of love for Point & Click adventures sure reflects on The Little Acre, a short but adorable adventure.
Life at this little acre is never dull. Aidan tries his best to raise his young daughter Lily. His father (Lily’s grandfather), is always busy with some new invention, and even the family dog Douglas is always busy making sure Lily doesn’t do anything dangerous! As interesting as it seems, their life will only get even more alluring when Aiden finds a strange Portal in the yard shack. What could it be? More importantly, where does it lead to?
The Little Acre is story of pursuing your loved ones, even if that leads to the most unknown and dangerous place. A simple but very well developed storyline, with a great direction and production. As the narrative goes, it’s a really fun title, and follows a very intriguing storyline, one that will surely keep one curious throughout the adventure.
Dialogues suit the game and makes it impossible not to love every character. I personally went through this title always smiling, since the humour is very well placed, and the events are charismatic. Although it may leave a trail of a title directed to the young ones, The Little Acre is actually very family-friendly, and equally enjoyable across all ages. The subliminal humour of Lily dealing with her imagination and Aidan's endeavours to understand his father's inventions are strong points in the narrative.
One of the most amazing points of this indie game is definitely the art direction. It’s like watching a cartoon, and a really good one for that matter. Hand drawn, and with amazing attention to detail, the characters come to life exceptionally well. Their expressions are satisfying to look at, as they portray so many feelings through facial and body expressions. The design is fluid, colorful and renders blend perfectly naturally with the background. The artistic choice is not pretentious and it’s entertaining to watch the fusion from cutscenes to gameplay.
The Little Acre is very appropriate for newcomers to the Point & Click genre, as it delivers a simple gameplay style with no particular mechanics other than some puzzles. Players control both Aiden and Lily as they progress through story events, and both plays out the same, focusing on Interaction with objects, and NPC’s.
Without a significantly large area to explore, levels consist of small scenarios with a main goal to accomplish, and once completed, the game moves on to another chapter. It’s a story-driven adventure, and the puzzles involved are very reminiscent of older Point & Click games, with the exception of the difficulty, that is really intuitive and easy.
It’s possible to finish the game in just 40 minutes, and 60% of that time are cutscenes or dialogues that are unskippable. This does not mean your first time with the game will take this time, since interacting with every character and object, plus the initial exploration, may extend your experience up to 3 hours.
Voice acting is another part of this adventure. One can tell they were recorded in a humble studio, but despite the quality itself, the talent and dedication is there. One thing I personally like about actors in The Little Acre, is how they don’t simply read the paper in front of them, but rather play the character at hand. Simple means, but high quality professionalism.
The soundtrack is pretty nice, and flows really well within this small adventure. Changes accordingly with the mood of the events, and the simple melodies create a great mix of smooth, peaceful acts, as well as the deep and mysterious pace, in a minimalist neo-classic composure.
The Little Acre is a sweet little indie Point & Click title that absolutely deserves recognition. Although I personally felt the ending was somehow rushed regarding the cutscene and events, I deeply enjoyed the story, characters, and design! Highly recommended to anyone who either loves a great story or enjoys Point & Clicks.