Framed review
Framed is a noir puzzle game where you rearrange comic panels to manipulate the story. You play the main character: a spy/thief who runs through the city trying to escape from the police, or trying not to fall off a roof or ledge. While the game is fun to play, it lacks any kind of back story or instructions.
Pros
Addictive gameplay: We really liked the noir feel of the game, with the layout and the characters, as well as the jazz soundtrack. And like a good noir book or comic, we wanted to get through the panels to see what was going to happen next in the story.
Smooth transitions: Rearranging the panels is as easy as swiping your finger up and down and left to right. There was no lag time when moving to the next page of comic panels.
Pro graphics: Overall, the game has a very professionally designed look and feel.
Cons
No help guide: The game doesn't keep score or have any kind of time limit, and even though it didn't take that long to figure out how to play Framed, we still weren't entirely sure we had the whole gist of the game. It would benefit from a quick guide to get started and/or a backstory to explain your character and your purpose.
Not a lot of interaction: While we certainly appreciated Framed's simple design, it could use more interactive controls. It only lets the player move forward in the game or refresh the panels; there's no way to move back to a previous screen or panel or to start over.
Bottom Line
Overall, we really enjoyed the game. It's both fun and addictive and easy to figure out if you have a little time to kill. Anyone who enjoys puzzles will enjoy this unique game.
