Nevertales: Shattered Image – Review

We found the story in this second Nevertales game to be less unique, less creative. Although the elements of Book-Worlds and Travelers are still pretty interesting; at the end of the day, it is just another story of a girl trapped inside another realm, which has been done countless times. Anyway, NeverTales 2 still include solid backstory being told through innovative book-puzzles.

Despite the weakened plot, the visuals are up to standard. All the locations are magnificently drawn and painted, especially that castle scene. Cutscenes are also extremely well-done, characters are expertly voiced and the visual effects are top-notch. The music team also did a wonderful job, the background music is very beautiful and fits the game excellently.

As expected, the gameplay of Nevertales: Shattered Image featured a lot of clever interactions, mini-puzzles, puzzles as well as hidden object scenes. On one hand, many of the puzzles tie in with the story surprisingly well and the hidden object scenes are a blast to play. On the other hand, the majority of the mini-puzzles are either memory games, matching pairs, or jigsaw puzzles – a little more variety would be much appreciated. What disappoints us a little bit is the drop in the level of challenge. While the first Nevertales might not be super challenging, it was sure tougher than this.

As a Collector’s Edition, Nevertales: Shattered Image consists of a great deal of extra content and extra playtime. For us, the main game lasted around 3 and a half hour, plus a 45-minute bonus chapter, and possibly an hour or more of extra gameplay.