A great game for being *just as good as I was told it was* which doesn't often happen. Despite minimal controls and minimalist art, this game deserves all the praise it's garnered to-date. WIsh I could play again for the first time. Oh, and the voice acting is top-notch. Amazingly, people speak in their own languages and accents.

The story is the main attraction, and it is immersive from the moment you step onto the Obra Dinn. This game is high on my list of Very Hard to Put Down. My time is high because I kept falling asleep in front of the game while trying to solve just one more puzzle.

This is a must-buy for those who enjoy puzzle-adventure-complete-list types of games. The mission in RotOD is simple, and you know what you need to do right from the start: using a notebook and a mystic pocket watch that can rewind time to when a person died, determine names and fates of each person aboard the ship (60). There's no fighting, so no combat controls to worry about, and no using items (other than the book and the watch). It's a little strange, having to be so passive--there are no items to pick up, or figure out; you can't and don't need to find keys to locked doors or chests. However, the puzzle is masterful, and while it gets harder to find clues, and keep track of who was doing what where when, it is complete. Keep your eyes open, give a lot of thought to the crew list and who does what, and keep investigating the deaths. Oh...and it really helps to use sound if you can, since the conversation transcripts only convey words.

Good luck, investigator!

Highly recommended, I had a great time playing the first (main) story and now wish I could forget everything and try again. Note that my play time listed has a lot of idle time. I'm about 2/3 done the second story (Roottreemania).

The pros: excellent story, immersive setting (as somebody who lived through the nineties as a young adult, it's weird to be back in the world of dial-up modems and limited search engines; nostalgic but also sooooo frustrating at times!). This game is brilliant--super well-crafted. Funny, bittersweet, cynical, hopeful. There are no perfect characters, but it's not all doom and gloom either. If you enjoy being at a distance from the puzzle--no personal life-threatening situation, no locked doors--it's perfect. Definitely the kind of game you can chill with.

The cons: you need either patience, or the willingness to use the Hint function; as somebody who is insanely stubborn (No Hints! No Hints!), it's been maddening at times; if you need action, videos, *something* that moves...this game is not for you. At all. Save yourself the pain and the game a poor review. I admit that at times I felt like I was in the worst of early 90s text games trying to figure the exact wording to Pick.Up.The.Damn.Sword/Rock/Apple. Kings Quest I'm looking at YOU.

Thank you devs for this gem. Now I can hear the dial-up modem scratching screeching noise whenever I want. Looking forward to your next game!

Highly recommended relaxing game with a hint of challenge.
Beautiful art and well-chosen music.
The game has casual point and click aspects, but is closer to an ever-evolving hidden object puzzle. There is no text (apart from season-specific Chinese characters, item information, and Hints). All in-game directions are given through drawings.
24 Solar Terms is easy to complete, especially with the Hint system; however, it is challenging to get all achievements. A couple of the mini-games are moderately difficult. This game is appropriate for any age with moderate problem solving skills, but is still entertaining for a game-savvy adult.
I recommend playing without a walk-through the first time, for the experience of discovery.
My one negative: some of the objects are very, very hard to find - they are too well blended into the scenery, and it adds more time than value to the game. The Zoom In function works well, though; you definitely can find them, with effort.

Overall: 10/10 (with the caveat that the game is hard on weak or tired eyes); worth full price, as long as you enjoy "soft and casual" point and click / hidden object types of games