Here's a link to Azada: Azada
8.8 ultra recommended
Your big-eared friend Titus is back in a bigger, grander, more literary sequel to last year's hit game Azada. It's Azada: Ancient Magic, from Big Fish Games!
You probably thought that after rescuing Titus from the magical cursed book in the previous game that you could take a break. Sit back, relax, flip pennies into the ocean, and leave all this magical book nonsense behind you. Unfortunately, that rascal Argus has a whole library full of classics that are slowly morphing into evil cursed tomes - all because Argus got his kicks by magically transporting himself into and out of fairy tales, literature, fables, etc. (He liked taking vacations inside of books, the same way I like taking vacations inside of Hawaii.) The magic was absorbed by the living characters in the books, some of whom have evil sides. This tainted magic grew in power, trapping characters in their own stories... until the whole library was infected!
It also made the books moldy. Yuck!
Predictably, Titus called you in to do what you do best. Armed with the brainpower to solve puzzles and randomly click on things that look like they might do something, it's up to you to destroy the evil magic. To do it, you'll have to travel through the books one by one, collecting cards of the trapped characters. Using a special computer that can scan magical energies, you can feed in the collected cards and gather a list of suspects... and eventually discover who is behind this evil magic. It's like an episode of Fantasy Island turned up to eleven.
Immediately you'll notice that there's more of a welcome structure to Azada: Ancient Magic than in the previous game. Inside every book, you're able to turn pages to advance forward and backward. (Most books only have a few pages.) The first page usually introduces you to the character that needs rescued. On this and the following pages you'll find a wide variety of puzzles and "escape the room" type minigames. Gameplay involves clicking on objects to collect them into your handy leather satchel or combine them with another object or use them on some part of the scene. Luckily, the mouse pointer shoots out sparkles whenever you pass over something that can be manipulated.
Instead of some "escape the room" puzzles mixed in with a copious amount of logic, matching, and jigsaw puzzles, Azada: Ancient Magic reverses the ratio. Included are 22 books' worth of "escape the room" puzzles that themselves encompass logic, matching, and jigsaw puzzles. (And more!) And yes, if you wrote down the secret code from the end of Azada, there is a place to use it here. (Hint: click around in the library.)
I really appreciate the cleverness of some puzzles. For example, there's a moment where I wanted to use a crowbar on some boarded up windows inside Poienari Castle to let in the sun and kill Count Dracula. But the game (wrongly) assumed that I was too polite to do something so destructive in front of the Count. (He was standing nearby chatting with me.) So I couldn't use the crowbar on the windows. However, another page in the book showed me his castle from the outside, and I was able to pry away the boards on that page, flip back to the inside scene with Dracula, and watch him fly away unhappily. Take that, Count Dracula! Now we're even.
If you get stuck or need a walkthrough, Titus is always there to help or drop a hint. He is too chicken to go into the library with you after being trapped in a magic book for so long (the heartbreak of bibliophobia - I myself suffer from lutraphobia so I can't make fun of him even though I'm tempted to), but thanks to a magical amulet he's always in touch. The only problem is that if the books sense that you're "cheating" by asking Titus for hints or clicking randomly, they'll give you less time to solve their puzzles. Run out of time and the book slams shut (better pull your hands away!) and you'll have to start over from the beginning.
My biggest complaint about the original Azada was the grungy graphics. Kudos to Big Fish Games for upping the resolution on the sequel! Small items are now much clearer and the game as a whole looks much better graphically. The art is fantastic! Small touches like the turning of pages and a multitude of whizzy particle effects give the game freshness and depth. The music (a live orchestra soundtrack from Deutsche Film Orchestra) is also excellent, though quite cinematic it tends to loop a little more often than you'd like if you get stuck on a tricky puzzle.
The only problem I noticed offhand is a minor one. Until you get used to how inhand objects are attached to the mouse pointer, sometimes you accidentally click on the button to turn a page when trying to place items into a slot in your satchel.
Overall, Azada: Ancient Magic is a great casual game that expands upon the "escape the room" mechanics that made the first Azada a hit, and it will surely be a success as well. Give it a try if you're a fan of hidden object games, logic puzzles, or escaping from rooms.
Help, how do I fit in the colored pieces on the right side of the cupboard door, where you have to make them all fit. Every way I try they don’t fit I know it’s probably easy and I don’t want to use a hint!!!
Nothing wrong with using a hint. I skipped that stupid fuse puzzle completely because for the life of me I could NOT figure it out. That meant I ran out of time on the Robinson Crusoe book (took too long figuring out the shovel) but the worst that happened is that I had to do the book over. It only lost me a few seconds.
To answer your question I don’t remember the shaped puzzle pieces exactly, but anyways the upside down “L” shaped piece has to go against the very left wall, in the middle. Not at the top or bottom. Once you get that I think you can figure it out. It only goes together one way. I remember doing these kinds of puzzles as a kid.
Does anybody know how to solve the puzzle in the Creature Book? It’s the extra book you find at the end of the game.
I need help on the castaway with those mirrors HELP PLEASSE I cant get it Thanks
You need to find the crystal. For that, you have to dig in the jungle on one of the pages (the ground will shimmer when you move the mouse over it).
First make a shovel by taking the shovel head and then cutting down a branch with the machete. The branch is too loose to fit in the shovel head, so you have to use the handkerchief with the branch and then you can put them together. Then just dig and the crystal will be there! Good luck!
This is crazy but, I’m only getting one shutter in the maze (The FairyTale Book). Hence, I cannot pass the cupboard page and the garden maze and piglet page both say they are complete. So I only have one part of the ladder for Rapunzel. Is this a glitch or have I missed something?
Hey Wabbaw I had the same problem. I couldn’t find out what to do next and it was driving me crazy.
But the shutter is on the window next to Rapunzel believe it or not!!! You just have to click next to her, not on her, and you can get it.
As far as the colored pieces on the cabinet go….they were different both times I went through the board, so can’t tell you how unless I saw a screenshot of YOUR game.
I am working on the mirrow puzzle (Robinson Crusoe board) and I’ve put it on pause while I work on paper.
Hey, I’m stuck at the Hansel and Gretal book. I keep putting water in the pail and is putting it in the caldron so the witch will disappear but I can’t figure out how to keep her gone. She keeps reappearing and I don’t have any hints left…What do I do??
Once she disappears, click on the chicken and it will get you a bone to give to the boy. This will bring the witch outside.
is there a clue somewhere on placing the mirrors in the correct place?
I figured out the mirrors - 2x actually- since when i went back they were a different configuration. Now I am stuck in the Dracula board. I have a ‘page completed’ on the kitchen page . I have a crowbar, a knife and some garlic in my inventory. I have thrown it at Dracula and hejumped to the other side of the room and was shielding his face from the light after I double clicked on the clock on the mantle and the curtains on the windows opened but I don’t know how to pick up the book or the key on the table and unboard the windows. I have tried all my inventory on all the places (even tried giving the garlic to the ‘prisoner’ but he didn’t take it). I tried throwing garlic at him again but it didn’t seem to change anything. Any help?
When I just said I threw the garlic again, I meant at Dracula. He tells me to have anice cup of tea but there is no teakettle or cups available. Wondering if that was something that I needed to do in the kitchen but no it has shut me out.
Ha ha, Shawnsgrammy, read the review again because it basically answers the very question you asked about Dracula and the crowbar + boarded window.
I’m trying to figure out the cryptogram and I am completely stumped . . . help!
Im in the Atlantis book. Having trouble figuring out the page with the broken circular area. I played the stone disc on the gramophone and got four numbers, but Im stuck with what to do with them. I have the pearls from the clams and I can’t find any other hot spots to explore. I even have the character card. Now what?
the atlantis book on the first page u c the sharks moving back and forth one of them has a part you need. the page where the clams are is a split page so on the left there is a like a box u need to put the part u got from the shark in the middle of the side of that box. then like a pannel pops up and u use the numbers u have. it is like a code there are 4 shapes so u press them in what ever the order you have the numbers is.
i dont know how to do the puzzle where you have to get each row and colum to equal the ammount it has to be. i can get a few of them but not all. anyone get past it?
Here is a website that will answer most questions:
http://jayisgames.com/archives/2008/08/azada_2_ancient_magic_walkthrough.php
On the row and column numbers, I just started with one of the columns and worked from there. Maybe I was lucky but got that one done in a flash. I have found that giving ‘answers’ for those puzzles does not work because the puzzles change from game to game. I’m sure you have seen this even in your own game when you have to replay a puzzle.
How do you solve the magic cube puzzle? I have all the colors lite but nothing happend!
On the Azada Ancient Magic The Traveler book!
i am stuck on the detictive i have the cryptogram solved & know i should use the pen but on what
im stuck at the cryptogram.
anyone can tell me how to solve it please.
and how to make the tin man go thru the maze?
thank you so much.