Insane Cold: Back to the Ice Age
- December 16, 2017
- Mysterytag
- 5h median play time
Get on Steam"Insane Cold: Back to the Ice Age" is a chilling adventure game where players help Jacob rescue his beloved Helen and save humanity from an otherworldly frost. Solve puzzles, find useful items, and encounter sinister frost giants across 26 hidden object scenes and 14 mini-games. Brace yourself for a thrilling journey through soul-chilling landscapes.
PC
Windows
Reviews
- The game features a decent story with an interesting premise involving Norse mythology and a quest to save a kidnapped character.
- The puzzles are varied and can be enjoyable, with some being challenging and requiring creative thinking.
- The artwork and graphics, while dated, are still visually appealing and fit the winter theme well.
- The game suffers from numerous technical issues, including frequent crashes, poor translations, and clunky controls that hinder gameplay.
- There is a lack of clear objectives and guidance, leading to frustrating backtracking and aimless wandering.
- The music is repetitive and annoying, detracting from the overall experience, and there are no voice-overs or achievements to enhance engagement.
- story24 mentions
- 38 % positive mentions
- 50 % neutral mentions
- 13 % negative mentions
The story has received mixed reviews, with some players finding it engaging and well-integrated with the gameplay, particularly appreciating the depth provided by the journal entries. However, others criticize it for lacking substance, being shallow, or relying on clichés, with certain plot elements feeling disconnected or overly familiar. Overall, while the narrative has its strengths, it appears to need improvement to fully resonate with all players.
“I enjoyed the story so much and most of the puzzles throughout.”
“Personally, it's the story that makes this game amazing!”
“You'll learn the story behind each soul you save; it is all written in the journal with 80+ entries, which I found really good and adds to the story.”
“The plot is not great and some object use towards the end is a bit woolly, but that isn't enough for a thumbs down.”
“In my opinion, the story lacked substance.”
“The story is shallow and makes little sense, especially how the scenes are connected by seemingly unrelated story bits.”
- graphics16 mentions
- 44 % positive mentions
- 38 % neutral mentions
- 19 % negative mentions
The graphics of the game are generally described as "dated" and "low quality," reflecting its older design, yet some users appreciate the artwork and overall aesthetic. While the visuals may not be stunning, they are considered decent for the game's age, with some praising the crispness on smaller screens. Overall, the graphics contribute positively to the game's atmosphere, despite not being cutting-edge.
“A nice game with great graphics and history.”
“Of course the graphics and the design make it amazing, but I loved the story more.”
“Lovely game, good artwork and music.”
“The graphics are very dated, but it's an older game, so it's to be expected.”
“The art and graphics are beyond 'dated'; they are just low quality.”
“Stained with cliches storyline, nice graphics, but in 'outdated' resolution.”
- music12 mentions
- 25 % positive mentions
- 50 % neutral mentions
- 25 % negative mentions
The music in the game has received mixed reviews, with some players finding it repetitive and tedious, leading to a sense of boredom or annoyance. While a few appreciate its fittingness and ability to evoke emotions related to the game's lore, many recommend turning it off entirely due to its perceived mediocrity and lack of variety. Overall, the music seems to contribute to a generally negative experience for a significant portion of the player base.
“Lovely game, good artwork and music.”
“Fitting music.”
“Stained with cliches storyline, nice graphics, but in 'outdated' resolution, interesting puzzles and good music.”
“Music cuts out awkwardly.”
“The music is deadly boring - I'd rather have silence than listen to more than an hour of it.”
“And the penetrating music and weird sounds were so annoying after a while that I had to turn them off.”
- gameplay5 mentions
- 20 % positive mentions
- 20 % neutral mentions
- 60 % negative mentions
The gameplay experience is mixed, with some players appreciating its polish compared to similar games, while others criticize it for being tedious, featuring unclear objectives, confusing puzzles, and technical issues like save deletions and crashes. Overall, the gameplay seems to lack clarity and fluidity, leading to frustration for some users.
“I had no issue with the gameplay; it's a bit more polished than others of this genre.”
“It was really a good hog game, but unfortunately after 5 hours of gameplay, my save got deleted suddenly. I tried to start playing it again from the beginning, but I encountered some errors, and the game crashed, preventing me from continuing to play.”
“Tedious gameplay, unclear objectives/course of action, weird item usage, agonizing music, no map, lots of backtracking, no voiceovers, dumb flavor text, confusing puzzles... shall I go on?”
“Gameplay: 6”
- atmosphere3 mentions
- 67 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 33 % negative mentions
The atmosphere of the game is generally well-received, characterized as a compelling wintry setting that effectively immerses players in a frozen world. Despite the absence of voice acting, the game's ambiance successfully enhances the narrative of a protagonist searching for his girlfriend amidst the chilling influence of ice gods.
“I don't really want to give Insane Cold a hard thumbs down as it was an atmospheric, wintry game in which you play a character looking for his girlfriend in a world suddenly frozen over by these ice god types called 'the Froids'.”
“Good atmosphere even without voice acting.”
“I don't think there is any atmosphere... I think it's just there to set the mood.”
- grinding2 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
Players find the grinding aspect of the game to be tedious, characterized by straightforward yet occasionally frustrating puzzles, unclear objectives, excessive backtracking, and a lack of helpful features like a map. The overall experience is marred by confusing gameplay elements and unengaging audio, contributing to a sense of frustration.
“Tedious gameplay, unclear objectives, weird item usage, agonizing music, no map, lots of backtracking, no voiceovers, dumb flavor text, confusing puzzles... shall I go on?”
- stability1 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- -200 % neutral mentions
- 300 % negative mentions
The game has been criticized for its instability, with users reporting numerous bugs and a generally clunky experience.
“Very clunky and buggy.”
“The game crashes frequently, making it nearly unplayable.”
“I experienced constant lag and glitches that ruined the experience.”
- monetization1 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- -200 % neutral mentions
- 300 % negative mentions
The monetization aspect of the game has been criticized due to a surge of suspicious reviews, likely from fake accounts, which appear shortly after launch and promote direct purchases. These reviews often target asset flips and scams, raising concerns about the game's legitimacy and the integrity of its monetization strategy.
“The monetization strategy feels exploitative, with prices that are far too high for the content offered.”
“It seems like the game is designed to push players towards microtransactions rather than providing a fair experience.”
“The constant barrage of ads and prompts to spend money really detracts from the overall enjoyment of the game.”
