The Dark Eye: Chains of Satinav

 PC
User Score
7.6

Generally favorable reviews- based on 141 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 100 out of 141
  2. Mixed: 26 out of 141
  3. Negative: 15 out of 141

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  1. bancandrei
    May 16, 2020
    5
    Utterly forgettable, I am a fan of the genre but I had forgotten I even played this until I saw some screenshots. However, it is pretty.
    There is a sequel. That one is better
  2. RagingPoet
    Jul 30, 2018
    7
    Chains of Satinav is a solid adventure but nothing beyond that.
    Visuals are very good in static, but in motion animations look quite ugly. Gameplay is the usual stuff of point-and-click adventures with addition of nice break/repair mechanics that felt a bit underused. Some of the puzzles and item interaction lacked logic, which is fine in a comedy game like Deponia, but here seemed out of    Chains of Satinav is a solid adventure but nothing beyond that.
    Visuals are very good in static, but in motion animations look quite ugly. Gameplay is the usual stuff of point-and-click adventures with addition of nice break/repair mechanics that felt a bit underused. Some of the puzzles and item interaction lacked logic, which is fine in a comedy game like Deponia, but here seemed out of place. Plot was ok, although twists were very predictable.

    Overall I would recommend Chains of Satinav, but only to point-and-click adventure fans.    … Expand
  3. Allthat
    Jun 22, 2016
    8
    I love adventure games, I think they tell the best stories and this game just proves my point. The story is this game's most positive point. It is a very well told if not well written fantasy story that gives you that incentive to keep on playing just to find out what happens next. The art style is amazing and some of the locations that you visit throughout the game are really wellI love adventure games, I think they tell the best stories and this game just proves my point. The story is this game's most positive point. It is a very well told if not well written fantasy story that gives you that incentive to keep on playing just to find out what happens next. The art style is amazing and some of the locations that you visit throughout the game are really well created. The puzzles of this game aren't hardcore and relatively easy compared to other point and click adventures, and this is a good thing because it just makes the game more accessible.

    It really is a wonderful experience, one that I personally enjoyed quite a bit despite a few bugs and crashes. If you like adventure games or even if you're just a fan of good stories as a whole the check this game out.    … Expand
  4. darkwings13
    Jan 8, 2016
    8
    After spending twelve hours, I finally managed to finish this wonderful game and can finally write a review for it!

    Story: It's a very charming story and although the ending was bittersweet, it made the whole thing seemed even more beautiful in a sad way. There's always been an air of apprehensiveness and fear of wondering if Geron and Nuri would end up together or be forced to part.    After spending twelve hours, I finally managed to finish this wonderful game and can finally write a review for it!

    Story: It's a very charming story and although the ending was bittersweet, it made the whole thing seemed even more beautiful in a sad way. There's always been an air of apprehensiveness and fear of wondering if Geron and Nuri would end up together or be forced to part. The ending was something not completely unexpected but it was still surprising. Anyways, the pace wasn't too fast or too slow. It was done well enough for one to get to be fond of the characters and sympathize with that they were going through. The story here, was probably the best feature of the game. I loved it and thought it was very well written. You were always on the edge of your seat, wondering about what would happen next or what was Nuri's reason for not wanting to return home to fairyland.

    Characters: The characters here were diverse and Geron and Nuri in particular, were very detailed and in depth. There was a vibrance with their interaction with each other, and it highlighted their differences which somehow ended up complimenting each other. Geron is a sarcastic, grouchy, slightly pessimistic but good man. Nuri was a sweet, nice and understanding fairy. She was kind of naive but there was a doting innocence about her that made her very endearing.

    Art: What can I say, the landscape is gorgeous. Plenty of colors and details. My favorite was the inside of the caravan actually. The lighting and arrangement on the inside was lovely. Kinda wish we could have seen the same amount of details with the character models but it's good enough.

    Voice: Convincing performance here. The voice actors did their job well enough. Too bad the lips don't synchronize so it looks choppy at times. Oh, and I liked everyone's voice actors except for the seer. It sounded like the voice actor was totally disinterested and just couldn't put his heart into it.

    Puzzle: If you're new to point and click adventure game, you might be put off since the puzzles are quite complicated at times. If you're familiar with these kind of games, these will be hard enough to keep you occupied, but not too mind blowing hard that would make you want to cheat or quit the game. I found that as long as you noticed absolutely everything, you should be fine. Otherwise, you'll wander around an area all confused and it's because you didn't see a mirror or something.

    Music: I adored the music in this game. It matched with the settings and story well and overall, the entire ost was very good.

    Animation: Sometimes the animation freezes or Geron ends up walking kind of laggy manner. But it's not game breaking or anything. Just something that might make you sigh every once in awhile.

    Conclusion: This is a game that I would totally recommend. But buy it when it's on sale. There's not much replayability and it is quite short. But it is totally a 'short and sweet' game. From the story to characters to the music and to the art, it ranks very high with me and I know I'll remember this game for some time to come. I'm already eagerly playing its sequel.    … Expand
  5. Voyou
    Dec 20, 2015
    4
    Another game that is great to look at, yet quickly forgotten due to its bland story and unremarkable characters.

    The good:
    - Superb backgrounds.

    The bad:
    - Animations
    - Lack of atmospheric sounds. In fact, just a lack of atmosphere.
    - Rhythm and clarity of the storytelling.
    - English translation and acting.
  6. MicoSelva
    Sep 24, 2015
    7
    A decent point & click adventure in a fantasy setting. The protagonist could be a little more likable, but overall it is a good-looking, good-sounding adventure with decent plot and logical puzzles.
  7. Umair_Khan
    Sep 23, 2015
    9
    Score: 9/10

    Story: It's hard to discuss story of Chains of Satinav without spoiling it, so I'll keep it brief. You play as Geron of Andergast, a bird catcher. People of Andergast believe that he brings bad luck wherever he goes. Every Andergastian worships one of 12 gods, and 13th one "Satinav" also known as "The Keeper of Time" is said to be in prison as a punishment for "bad deeds".    Score: 9/10

    Story:
    It's hard to discuss story of Chains of Satinav without spoiling it, so I'll keep it brief. You play as Geron of Andergast, a bird catcher. People of Andergast believe that he brings bad luck wherever he goes. Every Andergastian worships one of 12 gods, and 13th one "Satinav" also known as "The Keeper of Time" is said to be in prison as a punishment for "bad deeds".

    One day, the common bird catcher's life changes when he meets Nuri, a fairy from another world. He tries to help her and soon becomes center of something much bigger. The great evil is about to return and it's up to you (Geron) to stop it. The story becomes more interesting as you progress and meet interesting characters with their own background stories that add more to the plot. The story is great and has satisfying ending.

    Design:
    Chains of Satinav can easily last over 10 hours. It's a complete 2D game. From backgrounds to characters, everything makes you feel like you're looking at a beautiful painting which is a bit different art style compared to Daedalic's previous 2D adventure games. Even characters are animated in a way that it makes you feel like you are looking at talking pictures or cards.

    When you first launch the game, you are given two options. One of them is for new comers to the adventure genre and the other one is for those who are looking for challenge and want no hint or hand-holding in the game. Rest assured that even on easy setting, you will still be in for series of challenges and some puzzles will take a lot of time to solve, so pay attention. The game tells its story through Conversations, Background Narratives, Real Time Events and beautiful Cutscenes.

    Gameplay:
    It plays like any other Point and Click Adventure Game. You look for important items and pick them up with LMB and observe them with RMB. Then you use these items on different objects by dragging and dropping them on those objects. Not all items in your inventory (that you picked) are usable and such items remain in your inventory of quite some time and then disappear when you move to a new area. Sometimes, the game also requires you to combine multiple items to create something special for the use. For example, by dragging and dropping stick on meat inside your inventory will attach meat on top of the stick and then you can use it lure crows. You can also select different items by simply using your Mouse Wheel and won't have to open your inventory over and over again. However, you'll have to open it when combining different items inside your inventory.

    On easier settings when an item is usable on an object you want it to be used on, it starts to glow, telling you that this item is usable on this object. On hard setting, there is no such thing and you are on your own. But as mentioned above even on easy setting, you are in for some challenging puzzles, especially towards the end of the game. You also engage in conversation with characters and when you do so, Mass Effect style dialogue wheel appears. You can select different dialogues to learn more about characters and story or just exchange different items with them. So, it's always a good idea to interact with characters.

    Also keep in mind that, apart from simple drag and drop mechanic, which is present in every adventure game, Geron also has two magic abilities. One of them can be used to break objects made of clay or glass, the other one can be used to repair any object, as long as you have every part of that broken object. For example, in one of the missions, I was searching for pieces of bow and once I found all of them, I used repair ability to attach them together and got a fully functional bow in return. Overall, puzzles in the game are well designed and nothing feels over the top.

    Presentation:
    Daedalic has made one of the most beautiful adventure games ever made. Variety of different locations and hand-crafted 2D backgrounds look amazing and character models look like part of a beautiful painting. The game's user interface is stylish and responsive. You can also change Graphics Settings (Low, Medium, High) from Options. Voice acting and soundtracks are also great. The only thing that looked a bit awkward in the beginning were facial animations but judging by Daedalic's previous games, it seemed like an artistic choice, and not a compromise.

    However, I got used to it pretty quickly, and it didn't bother me later at all. Another minor issue that I had with the game were some missing animations. For Example, when you are giving or taking items from different characters during conversation, the action is never shown visually. But these are small issues and do not take away much from the presentation, which is solid overall.

    Verdict:
    Chains of Satinav is an excellent Point and Click Adventure Game with a great story. It is also very polished and I didn't experience any bug or crash throughout the game. It is a must buy for every fan of the genre.    … Expand
  8. Tibodhsara
    Sep 13, 2015
    10
    It was the best game i have ever played! I am a man but it literally made me cry in the end. I have never experienced such a beautiful story that i have felt to be a part of the whole time throughout the story.
    I have played a lot of point and click games but this game takes the crown. Extremely pleased with it.
    Simply a masterpiece!
  9. dajhorn
    Sep 16, 2014
    2
    The Dark Eye is a picture book that the player clicks through, and not much of a game. Sometimes this can be okay, but all of the Daedalic titles seem to have bland stories and bad writing. Maybe this studio is targeting some kind of European audience, but I lost interest after a half hour of nothing happening.
  10. Pampalini
    May 27, 2014
    9
    This is old school point and click adventure with nice story from The Dark Eye universum. I really liked art work which is beautiful. But animation could be little bit smoother. Story is little bit more fairy tale then dark fantasy as we are used in The Dark Eye.
  11. hfffoman
    Apr 13, 2014
    1
    How did this get so many good reviews? I gave it half an hour before deciding not to waste my time as well as my money. I have enjoyed dozens of adventure games including plenty that were made 10+ years before this and are still vasty superior to its cheap 2d images and laggy menus. Avoid
  12. procyon4
    Jan 26, 2014
    8
    This one is at the top of the pint and click games I ever played. Superb hand painted 2D graphics with some 3D perspective. A very compelling story with believable characters. Simple interface and reasonably identifiable quest objects. On the minus side, the puzzles, mostly reasonably challenging, are sometime simplistic and then, in two cases totally obtuse and, for sure, require the useThis one is at the top of the pint and click games I ever played. Superb hand painted 2D graphics with some 3D perspective. A very compelling story with believable characters. Simple interface and reasonably identifiable quest objects. On the minus side, the puzzles, mostly reasonably challenging, are sometime simplistic and then, in two cases totally obtuse and, for sure, require the use of a walkthrough. I also found the ending somewhat disappointing. Regardless, this is one game you can't do without if you're a point and click fan.… Expand
  13. gbuster
    Nov 23, 2013
    8
    The game is pretty enjoyable. The riddles are pretty challenging sometimes and the scenery is beautiful, as well as the story. The downsides are the performance problems and a bug that made it impossible to proceed near the end of the game.
  14. Ume
    Nov 21, 2013
    9
    One of Daedalic's best works; gorgeous art and interesting story. The characters are well developed and likable. Most puzzles are straightforward, and a couple are really amusing. Every fan of P/C Adventures should give this a try and also a good game to get into the genre.
  15. Mudpuppyuk
    Nov 17, 2013
    10
    As point & click adventure games go this is one of the best! The puzzles are fairly straght forward and locical which means the game and story flows!!
  16. fffred
    Oct 26, 2013
    7
    For lovers of point-and-click. The tone is moving and the story, although a bit obvious sometimes, is catchy. Graphics and music are beautiful. The story lacks a little bit of depth, for which you have to wait until the last part of the game, probably the best. The locations are a bit repetitive and I wish there was more of them, more beautiful art.

    Bad: some glitches, hard puzzles are rare.
  17. j0k4
    Aug 12, 2013
    10
    I love that game! great backrounds, great story and a very great puplisher! A must have for all Point and Click Adventurefans. And with the Dark eye setting it is perfekt!
  18. Representer
    Aug 7, 2013
    9
    In general I am not a huge fan of point and click adventures. I tried a lot of them but mostly I got bored pretty fast, or I was annoyed by unlogical puzzles, or the story didn't work for me.

    Chains of Satinav is different. Right from the start the game world sucked me into it. The graphics are very well painted, I'd say it offers the best 2D background graphics I have seen in a long    In general I am not a huge fan of point and click adventures. I tried a lot of them but mostly I got bored pretty fast, or I was annoyed by unlogical puzzles, or the story didn't work for me.

    Chains of Satinav is different. Right from the start the game world sucked me into it. The graphics are very well painted, I'd say it offers the best 2D background graphics I have seen in a long time. The only things that need improvement are the animations of the characters and more background animations. But again, the 2D backgrounds work so well, during my playthrough sometimes I was just sitting in front of the screen admiring the paintings. For me this is art. It perfectly fits to the medieval The Dark Eye setting.

    The game itself doesn't disappoint. The story is very well told, it is dynamic and you are not forced to stay in a place for too long. It's a journey not only in a physical way, but also in the sense of how the character of the main protagonist evolves. At first the mood of the game is light-hearted, but it gets darker and more dangerous with every step and you start caring for the characters.

    The puzzles are challenging sometimes, but in a logical way and even if you are not good at puzzle solving, you can activate some helpful options which make the game easier. I think this is a good compromise, because I am not the kind of person who likes walkthroughs.

    The music is charming and fitting it doesn't push itself forward, stays in the background and merges with the whole experience, making it whole.

    Conclusion: Whoever is a fan of adventure games or The Dark Eye, buy this game. You will not be disappointed. Yes, it is a traditional adventure, but this game shows how traditional game mechanics can be very appealing and exciting if done right. It's a lot about the game world, the lovely characters, the interesting story and setting.    … Collapse
  19. Crescendo
    Jan 5, 2013
    9
    Wonderful, wonderful art, a well-told story, challenging, (mostly) logical puzzles and likeable characters. I confess I had to use a walkthrough a few times, but only because a few objects (like the crack in the statue of the ork-god) are easy to miss. I really love adventure games, and this is an especially good one - I am a sucker for well-told stories. I also feel like I should mentionWonderful, wonderful art, a well-told story, challenging, (mostly) logical puzzles and likeable characters. I confess I had to use a walkthrough a few times, but only because a few objects (like the crack in the statue of the ork-god) are easy to miss. I really love adventure games, and this is an especially good one - I am a sucker for well-told stories. I also feel like I should mention that I really liked the ending, which is where many other Adventure games failed. All in all I'd say this is something you should certainly check out if you like point & click games. I really am glad they are experiencing some kind of small revival.… Expand
  20. Drascoll
    Jul 1, 2012
    10
    If you enjoy point and click Adventure games then you will love this game. The story is well told. The puzzles are chalenging without being conviluted. The hand Painted art work is beautiful. It took me about 10 hours to finish the game and I only had to look up a walk-though in two occasions when I overlooked a peace of a puzzle. There are not many Adventure games these days and this oneIf you enjoy point and click Adventure games then you will love this game. The story is well told. The puzzles are chalenging without being conviluted. The hand Painted art work is beautiful. It took me about 10 hours to finish the game and I only had to look up a walk-though in two occasions when I overlooked a peace of a puzzle. There are not many Adventure games these days and this one is just as good as any of the classics. I say if you care about this genre of game at all then you should pick this one up just out of principle. I only wish Adventure games had more replay value. This game was better then anything from Telltale games and Amanita Design. Maybe not quite as good as a Classic Lucus Art game but close. Defently better then anything Sierra ever made, with the exception of maybe the Quest for Glory seriese. Some of the storry is kind of lost in translation because the game was orginaly made by an indee team from Sweeden but it has enought charm to be enduring. None the less I liked it.… Expand
  21. Representer
    Aug 7, 2013
    9
    In general I am not a huge fan of point and click adventures. I tried a lot of them but mostly I got bored pretty fast, or I was annoyed by unlogical puzzles, or the story didn't work for me.

    Chains of Satinav is different. Right from the start the game world sucked me into it. The graphics are very well painted, I'd say it offers the best 2D background graphics I have seen in a long    In general I am not a huge fan of point and click adventures. I tried a lot of them but mostly I got bored pretty fast, or I was annoyed by unlogical puzzles, or the story didn't work for me.

    Chains of Satinav is different. Right from the start the game world sucked me into it. The graphics are very well painted, I'd say it offers the best 2D background graphics I have seen in a long time. The only things that need improvement are the animations of the characters and more background animations. But again, the 2D backgrounds work so well, during my playthrough sometimes I was just sitting in front of the screen admiring the paintings. For me this is art. It perfectly fits to the medieval The Dark Eye setting.

    The game itself doesn't disappoint. The story is very well told, it is dynamic and you are not forced to stay in a place for too long. It's a journey not only in a physical way, but also in the sense of how the character of the main protagonist evolves. At first the mood of the game is light-hearted, but it gets darker and more dangerous with every step and you start caring for the characters.

    The puzzles are challenging sometimes, but in a logical way and even if you are not good at puzzle solving, you can activate some helpful options which make the game easier. I think this is a good compromise, because I am not the kind of person who likes walkthroughs.

    The music is charming and fitting it doesn't push itself forward, stays in the background and merges with the whole experience, making it whole.

    Conclusion: Whoever is a fan of adventure games or The Dark Eye, buy this game. You will not be disappointed. Yes, it is a traditional adventure, but this game shows how traditional game mechanics can be very appealing and exciting if done right. It's a lot about the game world, the lovely characters, the interesting story and setting.    … Collapse

Awards & Rankings

91
#91 Best PC Game of 2012

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
75

Generally favorable reviews - based on 24 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 18 out of 24
  2. Mixed: 6 out of 24
  3. Negative: 0 out of 24
  1. Pelit (Finland)
    Oct 14, 2012
    81
    Chains of Satinav is a perfect substitute for a storybook. Absolutely beautiful hand-drawn art is combined with a predictable story and some clumsy dialogue, but the overall melancholic feel of a imaginary kingdom on the brink of it's demise make up for these angularities. It's hard to get any closer of an fairytale. Some puzzles are genius, but there are loads of boring logistic tasks too. [Sept 2012]
  2. PC PowerPlay
    Sep 16, 2012
    60
    Slow and meandering but gently enjoyable. [Sept 2012, p.54]
  3. GameOver.gr
    Sep 6, 2012
    80
    A breathtakingly beautiful and inspiring adventure that no matter its faults, offers a wonderful experience to the fans of adventure games.
    Read full review
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