It is a beautiful day out on the open seas. The sky is
clear and the ocean is peaceful. Nelly is taking a nap
as the waves gently rock her boat. Unfortunately, she
will have to finish her siesta later. There is no time to
rest when innocent animals are in peril. The waters
start to churn and the specter of Captain Bloodbeard
appears. Bloodbeard tells Nelly that spoonbeaks
have vanished from the isle of Meeth. The
disappearance of the birds is surely an ill omen. Nelly
must immediately travel to the island and find out
what happened.
Nelly Cootalot: Spoonbeaks Ahoy! begins as the
young pirate arrives at Meeth. Nelly immediately sets
out in search of the spoonbeaks, but her task will not
be easy. She will have to face unfriendly pirates, a
primate voodoo master, and an obnoxious baron with
an almighty beard. Nelly will need all her wits and
charm to unlock the mystery of the spoonbeaks. It is
a good thing she remembered to put on her
adventuring corset this morning...
Developed by Alasdair Beckett, Nelly Cootalot is a
point-and-click adventure game that uses the
Adventure Game Studio engine. The game takes
place at the island of Meeth as players take control of
Nelly and look for the missing birds. The premise
might be simple, but with its humorous tone and
amusing puzzles, Spoonbeaks Ahoy delivers an
excellent adventure gaming experience.
For starters, Nelly is a remarkably likable lead
character. Her pink cheeks and purple dress do not
exactly invoke the image of a fearsome pirate. At
times she is a little inexperienced, maybe even
gullible. Her innocent demeanor stands out against
the callous characters she has to face during the
adventure. But that doesn't mean she is a helpless.
She is quick-witted and definitely not afraid to speak
her mind when needed. She can craft elaborate lies
and put together a masterful disguise. She has a
great mix of naiveté and resourcefulness that makes
her endearing.
The remainder of the cast is quite amusing as well.
Living up to his name, Baron Widebeard has enough
facial hair to provide shelter for a small family of
woodland creatures. Full of himself and more than a
little delusional, Widebeard makes a great antagonist.
Shopkeepers Bjorn and Olafssen are happy to go on
about their powder-monkey grooming kits or brand
new iHook. Whether you are trying to convince
Captain Rehab that you are a real pirate or
discussing the latest fashion trends with the baron's
wife, the quirky characters are consistently
entertaining.
Nelly's investigation primarily unfolds through
conversations with other characters and inventorybased
puzzles. The dialogs offer plenty of humor
while staying true to the game's pirate theme. There
were several times during the game where the
absurdity of the conversation or weirdness of the
characters brought a smile to my face. You may not
exactly fall out of your chair with laughter, but you can
expect at least a couple of chuckles thanks to the
colorful cast and great dialog in Spoonbeaks Ahoy.
The puzzles are also fairly amusing. The majority of
the challenges involve obtaining and using the correct
inventory item on the right hotspot. These puzzles are
not exceptionally difficult, but you do need to be
creative about how you use certain inventory items.
There are also a couple of hotspots that are a little
too blended into the background. You may need to
visit some locations multiple times before you find all
the interactive areas. In addition to the inventorydriven
challenges, the game features a couple of
logic puzzles. You will need to decode an encrypted
message and figure out how to correctly operate a
piece of machinery. These puzzles offer a nice break
from the regular challenges.
Nelly Cootalot is played from a third-person
perspective. If you have played a Lucas Arts
adventure game such as Full Throttle, the interface
should be very familiar. The left mouse button is used
to move Nelly around the screen. Nelly can interact
with other characters and certain objects in the
environment. When you bring the mouse over one of
these hotspots, a short description appears at the
bottom of the screen. Holding the left mouse button
while hovering on hotspots opens the 'action
compass'. The compass has three icons that can be
used to interact with objects in the environment. The
'speech bubble' is used to talk to other characters.
Clicking on the 'porthole' causes Nelly to look at the
selected object and provide some commentary. The
'hook' icon is used to perform actions. Nelly can pick
up inventory items or try to operate various devices.
The inventory is accessed with the right mouse
button. Players can combine items or try to use them
on objects in the environment. The game also
features a map that can be used to quickly travel
between the different locations.
Considering that it is a freeware adventure, Nelly
Cootalot offers plenty of play time. The island has
several locations to explore and a good number of
puzzles to solve. It should take several hours to get
through the game in your first play-through. The
game is also effective at communicating your
objectives. The conversations and Nelly's
monologues provide fairly clear instructions as to
what you should be trying to do next.
The graphics, sound effects, and music are more
than adequate as well. The character models and
backgrounds help augment the game's lighthearted
atmosphere. The oddly shaped buildings and
contraptions feel very appropriate. Mr. Beckett has
clearly put some time into designing each location.
One minor issue with the presentation is the absence
of color at certain locations. For instance, the shelves
at one of the island's stores are stacked with a large
variety of items. However, all of the items and the
shelves themselves are colored brown. It would have
been nice to see a few more vibrant colors on these
objects. Thankfully, this is not a prominent issue and
does not truly detract from the experience.
Composed by Mark Lovegrove, the music seems well
suited for the tone of the game. The cheerful themes
enhance the mood without becoming overbearing.
The only issue with the soundtrack is that it can
become a little repetitive if you spend too much time
at one location. Fortunately, since the game uses
different tracks for different portions of the island and
this is not a serious problem.
Overall, Nelly Cootalot is an excellent adventure
game. With its likable main character, witty humor,
and fun puzzles, the game is very easy to
recommend. There are a few minor issues, but they
do not significantly affect the experience. If you enjoy
pirate-themed games and like dialog-heavy
adventures, do not miss Nelly Cootalot. A free copy
can be obtained from the Adventure Game Studio
Web site.
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