Broken Sword 5 - the Serpent's Curse: Episode 1

Critic reviews

• TATouch Arcade

  Shaun Musgrave · Feb 24, 2014

  8.0

  The pacing is pretty horrible, though, with the first half of the chapter being far too heavily steeped in dialogue and simple puzzles, and that is something that can't really be fixed even if the concluding chapter is brilliant. This chapter stands alone very poorly, with absolutely no resolution to be found in the ending, if you can call it that. It also lacks the thrill of traveling to a variety of places around the world, which is one of the things I loved about the previous games.

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• ASArcade Sushi

  John Llewellyn Martin · Feb 18, 2014

  9.0

  We hope you’re in it for the long haul, because Episode 1 can take a very long time to complete, depending on how adept you are at solving puzzles in adventure games. Suffice it to say that you’ll be getting every dollar’s worth and more with this installment of The Serpent’s Curse. If you’re really invested, you can try to get through everything within a day, which just might happen because of how gripping and interesting the story is. The only thing you’ll have to get past is the modern, yet still somehow archaic control scheme.

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• 1148Apps

  Jennifer Allen · Feb 10, 2014

  7.0

  It’s frustrating that Broken Sword 5: The Serpent’s Curse – Episode 1 doesn’t offer that same spark as the earlier titles. It’s fun to catch up with George and Nico, but neither feel as witty or as charming as they have previously. Looking somewhat improved visually and with some solid roots, it veers so close to being something special yet ultimately fails. It’s not so much that Broken Sword 5: The Serpent’s Curse – Episode 1 isn’t an appealing point and click adventure, just that it’s one that could have been so much more.

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• PSPush Square

  Ben Tarrant · Jan 31, 2014

  6.0

  There’s clearly been a lot of love invested into Broken Sword 5: The Serpent’s Curse – Episode 1, and it will take franchise fans on a trip down memory lane as a result. Sadly, the disjointed structure and slow pace will leave you with a sense of deflation and sore fingers as you shuffle towards the point-and-click escapade’s abrupt end.

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• PUPlayStation Universe

  Steven Williamson · Jan 20, 2014

  6.5

  While it’s always nice to remember the ‘good old days’ and games like Broken Sword, Revolution Software’s attempt to capture some of Broken Sword’s past success feels a little out of place on PlayStation Vita, particularly when we’ve seen such an evolution in this genre by Telltale Games and The Walking Dead series. Nevertheless, fans will know what to expect and will probably still get a kick out of traversing some gorgeous locations while enjoying the humour that we've come to expect from Stobbart & Co. However, I can’t imagine that many will be gripped by its plodding tale.

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• TTheSixthAxis

  Stefan L · Jan 07, 2014

  7.0

  Aside from a handful of minor issues, the main problem is that this is just the first half of a full game. Everything leads to that second half, leaving this first episode with a distinctly unfinished feeling. You would ideally wait until the second episode is released, but it’s still a simple joy to be playing a new Broken Sword game that recaptures a lot of what has kept the originals held in such high regard.

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