Cursery: The Crooked Man and the Crooked Cat Collector's Edition

Cursery is by my favourite team.....Blue Tea games from Singapore who were involved in the Dark Parable games. Their games always have gorgeous sumptuous graphics of high standard and this game is no exception. You are on a journey with your sister when your coach gets attacked and she is kidnapped by the Crooked Man. Hot on her tail, you discover that girls of her age have been disappearing in the area for over 100 years. The story develops at a cracking pace and you discover pieces of the story as you play along. It kept my attention and I didn't get bored. Main game took me about 6 hours with another hour with bonus game. The extra game is more grim with a slight horror tone to it. Definitely not for children! Graphics are stunning....alternating from gorgeous to creepy. The orchestral/choral music fits the scenes beautifully. You see references to the nursery rhymes along the way. Watch out for the deliciously wicked crooked cat. Yes, you see the crooked house and its mouse!! Strangely enough, there weren't that many HO scenes. The game was more puzzle orientated with mini games galore....some were quite difficult. I skipped a couple because I got frustrated and you're penalised with the hint button locking for a few minutes. There were morphing items which I'm never good at finding! No journal but an interactive and fast travel map is available. This locks in certain areas. I really enjoyed this game which was a very clever adaption of twisted nursery rhymes. A high quality HO game with a very different theme....and a complex character as the 'villian'. Highly recommend. 8.5/10

[h1]Short version: 84%[/h1] Cursery is the kind of warped fairy tale where the scenery perfectly matches the storytelling style. Thanks to its abundance of puzzles and good pacing, it is also something many fragmented object game players will enjoy. [h1]Long version:[/h1] On the surface, ‘Cursery: The Crooked Man and the Crooked Cat’ seems like a standard fairy tale casual adventure game: we play as a usual dashing hero, who witnesses the kidnapping of his sister and sets out to rescue her. It does not take much time for the game to deepen this plot, presenting a dark and relatable motivation for the villain, with a world around him that holds as much tragic past as potential in its complexity (well, as much complexity as the genre allows). Technically, Cursery is a fragmented object one, but this is probably the most downplayed aspect of its gameplay, with only a handful of low-variety scenes. It makes up abundantly in every other area, starting from the straightforward adventure game mechanics, which in turn serve as gateways to the plethora of wonderful conventional puzzles. I have to add though that the bonus chapter is rather different in both story atmosphere and game design, so it may not sit well with everyone.

An older HOP but still one of my favorites. The story is so good and the opening lullaby is sad and haunting. The bonus game is super f*cked up and I love seeing darker stuff in HOPs. Cursery never did as well as it's sister series Dark Parables so I get why they didn't make more but it is still sad that this is the only installment.

So… this is an interesting game. I believe it to be made by the same people that made several of the Dark Parable games. I don’t think they are connected in an “in-game” universe, but there seems to be a similar premise: dark versions of children’s tales (though if you read some of the originals for the Grimm tales… maybe not as far removed). In this game, your sister Renee is kidnapped by the Crooked Man, who seeks the reincarnation of his fiancée. He is helped in this task by a trio of items given to him by Mother Goose. This is not the warm, fuzzy Mother Goose of your childhood, though. This Mother Goose is more like a witch whose help only brings great suffering. Anyway, your task is to rescue your sister before she becomes the next victim. Or perhaps the final victim… The plot is interesting, the HO scenes fun, and the minigames challenging. Very good game of the genre. Well worth the price.

Beautiful game and an interesting story! Aesthetics are 10/10

This game was gorgeous and intriguing from start to finish. Game play was smooth and it isn't one of those where you have to wonder what is supposed to be done next due to ambiguity.

another amazing game and it works on my linux based PC out of the box with Proton.

I enjoy games with a good story and mystery. I also like this take on a childhood nursery rhyme.

Recommend but only on sale Pros .Well-developed ominous atmosphere .Gorgeous artwork/graphics/scenes .Beautiful music; supporting sounds; excellent voice acting .Three difficulty modes (no custom) .Mini-map with fast travel .Stationary toolbar .Mini-puzzles are abundant and challenging .Interactive elements in scenes .Collectables (morphing) .Average length .Strategy guide .Bonus chapter Cons .There was an in-story aftereffect that was silly, without basis or explanation and at odds with the sinister tone of the tale, which broke the immersion (and ruined the story for me) .Very busy artwork/graphics/scenes .No indication when objects in correct position for possible use .Adventure play mainly consisted of collecting icons and putting them in a place with a matching picture, which became dull after a while .Hidden object scenes were few, all the same type (fragmented), repeated and fairly easy Final words (6/10): I wasn’t sure whether to recommend this game or not. The visuals, audials and mini-puzzles are amazing but the story and repetitive adventure play and hidden object scenes are... not. Overall I enjoyed it but would only consider it a fair value on sale.

As all Blue Tea HOP games, this one is wonderful in art, cutscenes and music. The minigames are fresh and new. Only one negative: no steam achievements, although there are ingame achievements...

This game has aged really well. A truly excellent game.

Game is pretty good love twisted fairytails.

5 Stars