The Mysterious Cities of Gold

65%
Game Brain Score Based on 55 reviews
  • story
  • graphics
  • gameplay
The Mysterious Cities of Gold Game Cover
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Play Esteban, Zia and Tao through numerous tricky levels full of puzzles, traps and infiltration phases in a wide variety of diverse gorgeous settings. Explore every nook and cranny of China, and escape Zarès' hostile men, searching for the local City of Gold.

  • PC
  • Windows
Genres & TagsPlay Modes

Reviews

65%
Audience ScoreBased on 55 reviews
story4 positive mentions
grinding3 negative mentions
  • The game features beautiful graphics and cutscenes that capture the essence of the original animated series, providing a nostalgic experience for fans.
  • Each character has unique abilities that add a layer of strategy to the puzzle-solving gameplay, making it engaging for younger players.
  • It's a fun and simple game that is well-suited for children, offering a gentle difficulty curve and enjoyable storytelling.
  • The puzzles are overly simplistic and repetitive, lacking challenge and depth, which may lead to boredom for older players.
  • The controls can be frustrating, especially when managing multiple characters, as the game feels more like a mobile port with limited precision.
  • The game heavily relies on knowledge of the animated series, making it less accessible for those unfamiliar with the story or characters.
  • story20 mentions

    The game's story, based on a beloved animated series, is criticized for being overly simplistic and lacking context, making it difficult for newcomers to understand character motivations and plot developments. While the cutscenes are visually appealing and evoke nostalgia for fans, they often skip crucial narrative elements, leaving players who are unfamiliar with the series feeling lost. Overall, the game is deemed more suitable for younger audiences or dedicated fans of the original show, as it fails to effectively convey its story to a broader audience.

    • “The plot follows that of the series and features numerous clips from the cartoon in between the levels.”
    • “Full grown fans like myself will like to play it to see the story unfold as our three brave heroes search for another city of gold in a far-away land.”
    • “Mysterious Cities of Gold is based on a cartoon and also copies the story from it, including the cutscenes which are taken from the cartoon.”
    • “The clip-montage cinematics don't explain the story, but simply tell you at which point of the show's story you're at, so anyone who hasn't seen the second season won't understand most of the story or character development.”
    • “And the absolute biggest problem with the game is how the story is presented.”
    • “Only recommended if you're familiar with the animated show (old or new) as there are plenty of cut scenes with no context and there's no introduction to the story and characters.”
  • graphics14 mentions

    The graphics of the game are widely praised for their beautiful, bright, and colorful art style, which effectively captures the essence of the original series. While some users noted that the animation could be smoother and the gameplay simplistic, the overall visual presentation, including charming cutscenes and a respectful 3D adaptation of the 2D anime, contributes positively to the game's appeal, particularly for younger audiences.

    • “The gameplay and puzzles are simple, but the characters, artwork, and animation are beautiful!”
    • “The game and the artwork are simply beautiful.”
    • “The graphics are lovely and bright; they have managed to capture the look of the series down to the pixel.”
    • “Definitely, it is not for an older audience as it is way too simple and boring. I was a big fan of the original TV series, but I never watched how they've decided to continue the story in the much younger sequel, mainly because I didn't like how plastic it looked, and those are the graphics used in this game.”
    • “Tons of waiting for graphics to catch up.”
    • “The animation is a bit smoother, but overall the graphics feel lacking compared to what I expected.”
  • gameplay13 mentions

    The gameplay features a Gobliiins-inspired mechanic where players control three characters, each with unique abilities to solve simple puzzles and navigate levels. While the puzzles can feel repetitive and the character-switching may become tedious, the charming artwork and unpunishing difficulty make it an enjoyable experience, particularly for younger audiences. Overall, it combines basic puzzle-solving with scavenger hunt elements, making it accessible and engaging for kids.

    • “The gameplay and puzzles are simple, but the characters, artwork, and animation are beautiful!”
    • “The gameplay makes you take control of the three characters, each with their own special abilities: Esteban can activate special pillars, Zia can get through small cracks, and Tao can read inscriptions to help solve puzzles, while Pichu the parrot can steal keys.”
    • “The basic gameplay is engaging, featuring a gentle difficulty curve that makes it suitable for younger players.”
    • “The puzzles are fairly repetitive with basic game mechanics (click this button to open this door to grab this key, etc.) and are not realistic to the storyline in any way, just there to make the game playable.”
    • “The game mechanics are frustrating (click, wait, click, wait) and make me feel like it's the 90s again.”
    • “The problem with this style of gameplay is that switching between the characters feels like a chore.”
  • music7 mentions

    The music in the game is generally well-received, with the theme song evoking nostalgia and joy for many players. The soundtrack effectively complements the game's bright and cheerful atmosphere, drawing from the series while enhancing the overall experience, even if some find it not particularly memorable.

    • “And the theme song still brings a smile to my face after all these years.”
    • “The soundtrack is sticking also to the series.”
    • “This game is bright and cheerful, with good music sampled from the series.”
    • “I don't remember the story itself well, but the main song definitely stands out.”
    • “The soundtrack is consistent with the series.”
  • grinding3 mentions

    Players find the grinding aspect of the game to be tedious, particularly due to cumbersome controls for switching between characters and managing their movements. The lack of simple commands, like a follow option, exacerbates the frustration, as players must navigate each character individually across the map.

    • “Managing the playable characters is extremely tedious, and it would help a lot if the developers added some simple commands such as 'follow'. As it stands right now, you have to move each character individually through the whole map.”
    • “Tedious controls; I have to wait for the GUI to catch up with commands.”
    • “Tedious controls to switch between characters and push switches.”
  • character development1 mentions

    Character development is hindered by the clip-montage cinematics, which fail to provide context or clarity about the story, leaving viewers unfamiliar with the second season struggling to grasp the characters' growth and motivations.

    • “The clip-montage cinematics don't explain the story, but simply tell you at which point of the show's story you're at, so anyone who hasn't seen the second season won't understand most of the story or character development.”
  • stability1 mentions

    Users report significant stability issues, citing buggy interactions that detract from the overall experience.

    • “The game is plagued by buggy interactions that disrupt the overall experience.”
    • “Frequent crashes and glitches make it nearly impossible to enjoy the gameplay.”
    • “I encountered numerous stability issues that severely impacted my enjoyment of the game.”
  • replayability1 mentions

    The game offers significant replayability for completionists, as players can collect scrolls, keys, and a special chest in each level, with the added challenge of achieving a three-star rating by beating the allotted time.

    • “You can collect scrolls, keys, and one special chest per level, and if you do this by beating the allotted time, you'll earn 3 stars. This adds significant replay value for completionists.”
    • “The game offers multiple paths and choices, ensuring that each playthrough feels unique and encourages you to explore different strategies.”
    • “With various difficulty levels and unlockable content, there's always a reason to jump back in and experience the game in new ways.”
    • “You can collect scrolls, keys, and one special chest per level, and if you do this by beating the time allotted, you'll get 3 stars. So for a completionist, it will have replay value.”
    • “Once you finish the game, there isn't much incentive to go back. The levels feel repetitive, and the lack of new challenges makes replaying feel like a chore.”
    • “The game offers a few different modes, but they don't significantly change the experience. After a couple of playthroughs, it starts to feel stale.”
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