Pahelika: Revelations, although a sequel to Pahelika: Secret Legends is a self-contained game by the Indian studio Ironcode Gaming. Originally launched back in 2011, the HD update brings the game up to date with the list of changes, a better graphics engine core which allows high resolutions scaling without any degradation in graphics. The in-game art has been overhauled for high resolution support.
The story is clearly not the focus here, rather the puzzles are. It is with the puzzles that Pahelika: Revelations HD does really well. The puzzle design is varied and interesting. It also does a good job of pacing the more difficult puzzles with the easy ones to keep the gameplay flowing. Most of the time you will switch between finding hidden objects on the screen and items for your inventory. There are occasional illogical puzzles, but that is a staple in the genre and the use of hint system reduces the frustration a lot. An interesting element is the use of scroll crafting to cast spells. There are many different types of spell scrolls you can create to be used in different situations, like unlocking doors, dispelling magic barriers or to activate portals.
The story is not particularly a well written one. The main story involves Sudesh (you) to use his puzzle solving skills to stop an evil wizard named Krur Jalaal from gaining control of all of the world’s magic. The main plot cannot get any more generic than this. The story also takes itself too seriously but lacks the conviction to carry that out, owing to poor presentation. The way events unfold leave you puzzled as it often breaks logic, you are left wondering how did you reach this new place all of a sudden. What little explanation it offers comes through brief cut-scenes between the levels, with a simple pan and zoom on a grainy comic styled artbook with laughable voice acting. There is lore to be found in the notes and diaries you collect throughout the game. You will have conversations with the very few NPC’s present but even with the use of a branching dialog tree, it leads to same result.
The hint system on casual mode made is a welcome addition. It is on a timer to prevent abuse with the time delay being long enough for me to try a few things out before giving up to check out the next hint. The good thing about the system is that it does different things based on which room you are in. Sometimes it will guide me to the correct room without being used up, then I have the option to try to solve the room or use up the hints to tell me exactly what to do. This is one of the better hint system I have seen but unfortunately it does not work all the time. On some occasions its gave me hints in the wrong order and for some rooms there were no hints whatsoever.
Even with the HD update Pahelika Revelations feels like a dated game. The original content never feels meritorious to demanded an HD remake. Speaking of which, even with the updated engine the game does not feel HD at all. Yes it can run at higher resolutions but still in a 4:3 aspect ratio, running in windowed mode seemed like a better option to me. Also going fullscreen shows off the poor quality of the assets owing to an art style that has not aged well. The game lacks severely in any options and gameplay modes except for the inclusion of a Hardcore mode where the puzzles are more difficult. You can go back and forth between the two modes at any point of the game.
This is not a bad game but wrapped in poor packaging with dust on top. For fans of the puzzle genre it would be worthwhile to pick this up on a sale or a bundle and you will have a good time. I cannot recommend a full price purchase as there are many other titles within the same price range which are much more pleasing to look at.
Note: A complete official walkthrough is available at Link.
In keeping with our policy we will not be giving a score to the HD remake and give you our recommendation instead.
