Crowalt: Traces of the Lost Colony

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Crowalt: Traces of the Lost Colony is a single player action game with a mystery theme. It was developed by Madcraft Studios and was released on January 6, 2022. It received mostly positive reviews from both critics and players.

In Crowalt: Traces of the Lost Colony, players join Hugh Radcliff, a young adventurer seeking to solve the mystery of the Lost Colony that disappeared in 1587. Set in 1737, Hugh explores the island of Crowalt, now inhabited by different people, and encounters classic point-and-click puzzles. Watch out for pirates who are also visiting the island, as they add an extra layer of excitement to the gameplay. This adventure game combines traditional storytelling with modern pixel art graphics.

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Play Modes

Single-Player

Crowalt: Traces of the Lost Colony screenshot

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69%

Audience ScoreBased on 51 reviews

story21 positive mentions

grinding3 negative mentions

The game features an intriguing story that keeps players engaged and curious about the fate of the Lost Colony.
The pixel art style is visually appealing and captures the essence of classic adventure games, enhancing the overall atmosphere.
The puzzles are generally enjoyable and not overly difficult, making the game accessible for newcomers to the genre.

The gameplay is marred by excessive backtracking and tedious movement, requiring constant clicking to navigate between locations.
Many characters lack depth and personality, making interactions feel flat and unengaging.
The dialogue and writing quality are subpar, which detracts from the immersive experience of the game's narrative.

story
56 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
38%
55%
7%
The story of "Crowalt: The Traces of the Lost Colony" is centered around Hugh Radcliff's quest to uncover the fate of the lost Roanoke colony, but it is marred by an overwhelming number of fetch quests that detract from the narrative experience. While the premise is intriguing and the game features a decent soundtrack and appealing pixel art, many players feel that the storytelling is inconsistent and lacks depth, with a disappointing plot twist that fails to deliver on the game's potential. Overall, despite some engaging elements, the story's execution leaves much to be desired, making it a mixed experience for fans of narrative-driven games.
- “Set in 1737, the story follows Hugh Radcliff, a young adventurer determined to uncover the fate of the lost colony of Roanoke, which vanished in 1587, leaving behind only the word 'crowalt' carved into a tree.”
- “The story is intriguing; the more you play, the more you wonder what's ahead.”
- “The plot is gripping; you really want to know what comes next.”
- “Crowalt: The Traces of the Lost Colony is just a very long, boring fetch quest until 99% of the game is done, and you finally get to know where the lost colony is, only to be hit by a lackluster plot twist.”
- “The story is probably the strongest part of the game (along with a pretty decent soundtrack), so the fact that you barely get any story and lore throughout the game, in a point-and-click adventure where story is its strongest suit, is just salt upon wounds.”
- “It's just a lot of fetch quests for one guy to give you info, and at the very end, he finally gives you said info, but it was such a letdown.”
graphics
22 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
32%
50%
18%
The graphics of "crowalt" feature a modern pixel art style that resonates with classic adventure games, though opinions are sharply divided. While some players appreciate the charming aesthetic and vibrant colors, others criticize the visuals as amateurish and lacking authenticity, describing them as a poorly executed blend of retro and low-quality art. Overall, the game's graphics evoke a sense of nostalgia for some, while leaving others disappointed by their execution.
- “Visually, Crowalt employs a modern pixel art style that captures the essence of classic adventure games while offering a fresh aesthetic.”
- “The graphics are good for pixel art and there is a blend of lively colors which makes the game pleasant to look at.”
- “It has a simple but beautiful art style that will please your eyes, catchy music and quality sound effects that will create a cozy atmosphere to relax while playing fun mini games and solving the mystery of the lost colony.”
- “The artwork here is terrible; it's a blend of old retro pixel 'art' used as a substitute for contemporary PC graphics, and some of the most amateurish MS Paint/'baby's first Wacom tablet' style drawings I've ever seen.”
- “It's unclear if this is due to a lack of budget to hire someone who can do graphics properly, or a lack of talent. Regardless, the overall visual quality of the game is extremely low as a result of these decisions.”
- “Visually, this is a ham-fisted mess, a dog's breakfast of bad visuals, and this kind of laziness and poor quality should never be foisted on gamers.”
gameplay
13 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
23%
54%
23%
The gameplay of "Crowalt: Traces of the Lost Colony" is characterized by traditional point-and-click mechanics, allowing players to collect and use items to solve puzzles. While the game avoids overly complex puzzles, it suffers from repetitive backtracking across the map, which detracts from the overall experience. Despite its engaging story and simplistic design that may appeal to younger audiences, many players feel that there are better alternatives available in the genre.
- “The gameplay centers around traditional point-and-click mechanics, where players collect, combine, and use items to solve puzzles and advance the story.”
- “In conclusion, Crowalt: Traces of the Lost Colony offers a captivating adventure that blends historical intrigue with classic gameplay mechanics.”
- “I liked it very much because it has a very chill gameplay and sweet puzzles until now.”
- “Worst of all, for its asking price of $10, you could have bought better games with more fleshed-out stories and gameplay, like Secrets of Monkey Island.”
- “Just couldn't force myself to continue playing when almost every other point-and-click game is better designed, interface/gameplay-wise.”
- “The gameplay also seems rather simplistic, seemingly designed with kids in mind or at least people who aren't all too familiar with point-and-click games.”
music
11 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
55%
18%
27%
The music in the game is widely praised for its atmospheric quality, effectively enhancing the mystery and adventure elements of the story. Reviewers highlight the soundtrack as a strong complement to the game's setting, creating a cozy and enjoyable experience that enriches gameplay. Overall, the sound design, including music and effects, is considered a significant positive aspect of the game.
- “The game's soundtrack complements its setting, featuring atmospheric music that underscores the mystery and adventure at the heart of the story.”
- “It has a simple but beautiful art style that will please your eyes, catchy music and quality sound effects that will create a cozy atmosphere to relax while playing fun mini games and solving the mystery of the lost colony.”
- “Interesting and mysterious story with stylish beautiful music.”
- “The thing is, the story is probably the strongest part of the game (along with a pretty decent soundtrack), so the fact that you barely get any story and any lore throughout the game, in a point-and-click adventure game with story being its strongest suit, is just salt upon wounds.”
- “Sound and music are decent.”
- “It has a simple but beautiful art style that will please your eyes, catchy music, and quality sound effects that will create a cozy atmosphere to relax while playing fun mini games and solving the mystery of the lost colony.”
humor
5 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The humor in the game is described as quirky and unique, often featuring a dry wit that complements the overall atmosphere of slow dread. Players appreciate the comedic elements found in NPC interactions and the protagonist's dialogue, particularly enjoying the character Hugh's humorous demeanor as a novice adventurer. While some reviewers note that there are better games available, the humor adds an enjoyable layer to the experience.
- “It has a similar feel to Distraint, another side-scrolling puzzle game, in that it has a slow dread feeling throughout the game, with some humor from NPCs and the main protagonist's dialogue.”
- “I briefly played the first act of the game, but with the parts I've experienced so far, and the humor of the game, I've been enjoying it.”
- “Hugh's demeanor is hilarious; he's a novice adventurer. I don't want to give too many spoilers.”
atmosphere
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
75%
25%
The game's atmosphere is highly praised for its beautiful pixel art, atmospheric soundtrack, and quality sound effects, which together create a cozy and immersive experience. Players appreciate how these elements enhance the mystery and adventure of the story, contributing to a relaxing yet engaging gameplay environment.
- “The game's soundtrack complements its setting, featuring atmospheric music that underscores the mystery and adventure at the heart of the story.”
- “It has a simple but beautiful art style that will please your eyes, catchy music, and quality sound effects that create a cozy atmosphere to relax while playing fun mini games and solving the mystery of the lost colony.”
- “I loved the atmosphere and calmness of the game.”
grinding
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Players find the grinding aspect of the game tedious due to slow movement mechanics that require constant clicking to navigate, with no fast travel options available. The user interface is also criticized for its small icons, contributing to the overall frustration of getting around, although some players still appreciate the game's charm despite these issues.
- “The movement is so tedious; you can't scroll, you have to keep clicking every time you want to move a maximum of 4 feet.”
- “Left click to move very slowly, twice to move somewhat faster; you can't double-click on exits to leave the area instantly, and with everything so zoomed in, there's a lot of tedious clicking just to get around. That's why an actual map would be handy.”
- “The art style is not that impressive (just not my cup of tea maybe), the UI is kind of annoying with tiny icons for the action verbs, and the movement is slow and tedious. There's no fast travel either, but despite all of that, the game has a certain charm to it.”
replayability
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
100%
The game offers a moderate level of replayability, as players can complete all achievements in a single run of approximately 4-5 hours, but can return to explore different choices and outcomes.
- “It's possible to achieve everything in one run of the game (about 4-5 hours if you read everything), but there's still replayability as you can go back and choose different options.”
- “The game offers a great deal of replayability, allowing players to explore different choices and outcomes on subsequent playthroughs.”
- “With multiple endings and choices to make, each playthrough feels fresh and engaging, making you want to dive back in for more.”
- “It's possible to get all achievements in one run of the game (about 4-5 hours, if you read everything), which limits the replayability unless you want to explore different choices.”
- “Once you've completed the game, there's not much incentive to replay it since the story doesn't change significantly with different choices.”
- “The game lacks depth in its choices, making replaying feel more like a chore than an enjoyable experience.”
emotional
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The emotional aspect of the game is highlighted by a touching storyline involving two characters, though much of the gameplay consists of repetitive fetch quests. While the game offers a relaxing and challenging experience, the emotional impact is primarily felt through the plot twist and the brief narrative moments rather than sustained engagement throughout.
- “Relaxing, challenging game that has a touching storyline.”
- “You go help a merchant get one item, then he tells you to help another guy. You spend the rest of the game doing fetch quests just to complete that one task for the other guy. There is one touching story about two people you get to see, but that's about it.”
stability
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Users report experiencing several glitches related to the game's stability, including issues with menu navigation and inconsistent hotspot indicators, which can lead to confusion and frustration during gameplay.
- “I also encountered a couple of glitches.”
- “Esc for the menu (no icon to click), space for a buggy or inconsistent hotspot indicator (people never, exits almost never, other stuff mostly, including things that can't be interacted with, and again, no icon).”

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68%Critics’ scoreBased on 1 critic reviews

An intriguing historical mystery helps to add some flavor to this adventure, but the minigames miss more than they hit
Nindiespotlight.com
68%

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Frequently Asked Questions

Crowalt: Traces of the Lost Colony is a action game with mystery theme.

Crowalt: Traces of the Lost Colony is available on Nintendo Switch, PC, Mac OS, Xbox One and others.

Crowalt: Traces of the Lost Colony was released on January 6, 2022.

Crowalt: Traces of the Lost Colony was developed by Madcraft Studios.

Crowalt: Traces of the Lost Colony has received mostly positive reviews from both players and critics. Most players liked this game for its story but disliked it for its gameplay.

Crowalt: Traces of the Lost Colony is a single player game.

Similar games include Tales of the Neon Sea, Quern: Undying Thoughts, Unforeseen Incidents, The Descendant, Black Mirror and others.

Crowalt: Traces of the Lost Colony

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An intriguing historical mystery helps to add some flavor to this adventure, but the minigames miss more than they hit

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