There are many students at Iris Academy and they are all divided up into Magical Halls; for the girls there are the Horse Hall, the Butterfly H.Read Moreall, and the Snake Hall. The boys are divided in the Wolf Hall, the Falcon Hall, and the Toad Hall.
In from and Spiky Caterpillar, you take on the role of a teenage girl who discovers she isn't as ordinary as she thinks. Your life changes seemingly in an instant when you are invited to enroll in Iris Academy, a secret school for young witches and wizards. There, you find yourself sorted into Horse Hall, where the more adventurous students are said to reside. Sound familiar? While this // may take a lot of structural cues from the Boy Who Lived, passing it off as a shameless clone will only do it a disservice and have you missing out on an extremely enjoyable adventure. Make friends and enemies, join a secret society or find romance, or just concentrate on your studies and expand your repertoire of spells.
Trust me; when exams roll around, you're going to need them.The game encompasses one year in your new life at the school, and gameplay is made up of classes, exams, and social interactions. At the start of each week, you'll have to choose your classes or activities for each day; there are five different magic classes to choose from, each of which focuses on a different colour, or you can choose to study, sleep to remove stress, or even go to the gym to work out. Different classes grant you different spells the more time you spend with them, so you'll definitely want to apply yourself more often than not.
You can save your game at any time, and the game offers so many slots you'll really want to take advantage of it to revisit choices you might wish had gone differently, or challenges you failed.Throughout the year, you'll have to take a number of exams, which are less pen and paper and more 'stick you in a dangerous place and wait for you to think/magic your way out'. Closely resembling in their structure, each exam is different, but usually has the same basic structure; your goal is to find your way out, dealing with the various objects in your path in whatever way you see fit. Which, depending on how you've spent your time studying the different colours of magic, can be very different for each player. Just keep an eye on your health and mana; if the former runs out you'll fail the exam, and if the latter runs out you might find yourself stuck. If you can't figure out how to escape, you can click the button to give up and the game will still proceed, but you'll find you've failed for doing so.Analysis: Where Magical Diary succeeds where other games in the genre fail is by bringing a lot of the story events to you; rather than relying on luck to be in the right place at the right time to trigger a story scene, most happen on their own either after or before class so that you never feel like you're missing anything. Stress, a statistic common in these games, is also a breeze to manage and usually only needs a nap every other week to keep in check. It's such a streamlined experience that it's a snap to jump into and find yourself engrossed before you know it.
The writing is actually really good, and the characters pretty darn likable and interesting across the board. The soundtrack can be a little strange at times, with oddly inappropriate tunes chosen for specific characters (Professor Grabiner is a flamenco dancer?), and the character design as a whole tends to be more than a little androgynous, but on the whole it's a very cheery, bright game with a lot of visual appeal.If there's one area that Magical Diary falters a little, it's in not having any real over-arching narrative or plot apart from your relationships with other students. Granted, most romances (more on this later) tend to have significant drama and intrigue that they might feel crowded by some big epic adventure happening at the same time, but if you're not interested in cozying up to anyone, you don't really get much of a plot beyond 'you are at magic school, and occasionally some things happen'. Yeah, okay, I admit it; I was hoping for a chance to save the world (or at least the school) from some Big Bad I would ultimately triumph over after learning the power of friendship and explosions. Fortunately, the little subdramas that happen with your fellow students can be pretty interesting and tends to flesh them out substantially as the game progresses. It's extremely refreshing to see whenever a popular character archetype turns into an actual person as you get to know them, and Magical Diary pulls this off with ease multiple times.The exams actually wind up being a big part of the game's attraction, largely due in part to how many varied approaches you can take to each one. It makes you wish there were more of them, or that they were longer, since not only are they surprisingly fun, they're also essentially the only place you really get to use all the spells you learn.
Oh, you'll get the odd chance to fire off a specific spell if you've learned it during a story event, but by and large magic only makes an appearance when you're being tested, and as a result, doesn't get the time in the spotlight it feels like it deserves. With the word 'magic' right there in the title, you'd kind of expect it to have a bigger focus in the actual gameplay.The romances fair a bit better than your magical talent in that if you decide to pursue one, they almost feel like they become the main focus of the narrative.
There are five options, three males and two females, and while figuring out how to 'start' a few of them can be tricky, once they have been triggered they're surprisingly complex. It helps significantly that the people you have the potential for muchas smooches with are pretty varied in personality, with even more depth as you spend time with them, so chances are good you'll find someone who appeals to you and get a nice long, well-written relationship arc in the process. (Some of which are healthier than others, I might argue, but I digress. )One complaint about all this I do have is that as a player, when it comes to characterising your Sue, it feels like your choices are severely limited. You don't really get to decide how she reacts to most things; there's no dialogue wheel with options for being nice, a jerk, or anything in between. You just get presented with a problem, choose how you want to deal with it, and your Sue carries on.
For a lot of people, this won't be a big issue, but for people hoping to role play a specific type of character, or someone they've created themselves, the Sue's stock, pleasant but somewhat weepy personality is a bit of a downer. I would personally have adopted a more 'HOLY JUICES YOU GUYS I AM DOING MAGIC HOW RAD AM I' approach, but not everyone can craft such subtleties into their narrative, I understand.Despite a few hiccups and quibbles, Magical Diary: Horse Hall is probably the best visual novel/life simulation out there in its fantasy genre right now. It really feels like it could be the start of something big; through conversations with people and lessons during class, you get peeks at something that could expand into a remarkably big and well developed fantasy universe, and it seems we've only just dipped our toe into it. It's absolutely addicting and engrossing, but definitely leaves you wanting more; the game ends after the first year, and you may want to cross your fingers and hope for a 'Year 2' expansion. (Currently, only a version for boys has been announced.) Still, the game has a remarkable amount of replay value, with what you thought were simple little scenes in one playthrough expanding into whole subplots on another depending on the choices you make. While it may cost a bit more than your average indie title, Magical Diary is a game I was more than happy to spend my money on, and my time with.
Give the demo and try and see if there isn't a spot left open at Iris Academy just for you.Windows:Download theGet theMac OS X:Download theGet theLinux:Download theGet the.Whether you fail or earn 1, 2, or 3 points in magic classes is randomly generated. You can game the system.
However you like to look at it. By quickly saving between classes and reloading until you get a result you're happy with. In this way, you can get 3 points per class every time. Gym and studying is either pass or fail.Stress ends up being pretty much a joke.
Whenever there's a holiday, you wipe all your stress, and various other things wipe stress too. Don't bother doing anything about stress at any time unless it gets to 50 and you're far away from stress relieving events.
The stress relievers that cost money at the mall are really not worth the cash (cash is very hard to come by, especially early). Sleep a day if you need stress relief that badly.One of the most useful spells you can learn is the white magic spell 'Tap the Flow'.
It gives you mana. But you must change rooms in between castings. You can't just cast it over and over otherwise. Cast it frequently in the dungeons so you'll be able to use your higher cost spells.The five romantic options are Ellen, Virginia, Donald, Damien, and Professor Grabiner. For Ellen, Virginia, and Damien, pretty much just don't be a jerk to them and they'll like you.
For Donald, go to detention often and talk to him. For Professor Grabiner, you must be elected treasurer. You can check your ability to gain their ending at Christmas by thinking about them.
If they're thinking of you, you can get their ending.Spells are generally learned at 5-marks (at 25, or 40, or whatever) but not every increment of 5 has a new spell. Some spells require ability in two disciplines.There are actually more pages of save slots after 8. Just hit 'next' to get more slots.
Now you have no excuse not to save, save, save, save!Posted by: July 24, 2011 10:37 PM.Whether you fail or earn 1, 2, or 3 points in magic classes is randomly generated. You can game the system. However you like to look at it. By quickly saving between classes and reloading until you get a result you're happy with. In this way, you can get 3 points per class every time.
Gym and studying is either pass or fail.Stress ends up being pretty much a joke. Whenever there's a holiday, you wipe all your stress, and various other things wipe stress too. Don't bother doing anything about stress at any time unless it gets to 50 and you're far away from stress relieving events. The stress relievers that cost money at the mall are really not worth the cash (cash is very hard to come by, especially early).
Sleep a day if you need stress relief that badly.One of the most useful spells you can learn is the white magic spell 'Tap the Flow'. It gives you mana. But you must change rooms in between castings. You can't just cast it over and over otherwise. Cast it frequently in the dungeons so you'll be able to use your higher cost spells.The five romantic options are Ellen, Virginia, Donald, Damien, and Professor Grabiner. For Ellen, Virginia, and Damien, pretty much just don't be a jerk to them and they'll like you.
For Donald, go to detention often and talk to him. For Professor Grabiner, you must be elected treasurer. You can check your ability to gain their ending at Christmas by thinking about them. If they're thinking of you, you can get their ending.Spells are generally learned at 5-marks (at 25, or 40, or whatever) but not every increment of 5 has a new spell. Some spells require ability in two disciplines.There are actually more pages of save slots after 8. Just hit 'next' to get more slots. Now you have no excuse not to save, save, save, save!
There's a fair bit of violence in a few of the plots, one girl is in an emotionally and physically abusive relationship, there is the opportunity to get involved in a romance with a much older character, some of the scenes with Damien can be a little intense. There's also a scene where you hug someone who apparently moves their hips in a suggestive manner when you do so.All in all, ultimately I'd say that whether its suitable for your daughter depends on how frank you've been with her (or are prepared to be) about a few aspects of life. Again, there's nothing about it that's explicit, sexually or otherwise, but if you're asking for my honest opinion, it's probably better suited to teen girls. However, you DID say your daughter is grossed out by smoochy stuff (the culmination of all romance in the game is an onscreen kiss) so it's entirely possible she'll just ignore the romantic options and enjoy the game as it is.:) I'd say that it's up to your discretion as a parent. Thanks for asking, and let me know if you need anything else. Please consider creating a Casual Gameplay account if you're a regular visitor here, as it will allow us to create an even better experience for you.
You may use limited for style:(a href, b, br/, strong, em, ul, ol, li, code, spoiler)HTML tags begin with a less-than sign:. No exceptions. To post spoilers, please use spoiler tags: example If you need help understanding spoiler tags,. Please Preview your comment before posting, especially when using spoilers! To see and use spoilers YOU MUST HAVE JAVASCRIPT ENABLED IN YOUR BROWSER. No link dropping, no domains as names; do not spam, and do not advertise!
(rel='nofollow' in use). JayIsGames offers a free online experience with the best free online games. You can read our daily honest reviews and walkthroughs, play games, discuss about them. JayIsGames.com is a leading Flash and Online game review site. Since 2003, we review every day only the best, including casual games, flash games, arcade games, indie games, download games, shooting games, escape games, RPG games, puzzle games, mobile games and much more.Submit a Game: Don't just read reviews or play games on JayIsGames.com, submit them! Submit your game now and we might release it in homepage.
Use our.Check us back often! We add new games every day and only the best games! © Copyright 2018 JayIsGames.com.
An easy way to boost your merits is, of course, to do work around the school in exchange. There are 3 ways to do this – however, you can only do 2 in one playthrough. Gardening with Donald – william will tell you about this opportunity in exchange for your agreement to help him with ellen. You may need to have the “scheming” personality in order for him to do so, as i have yet to play a game without it. Alternatively, telling potsdam youre interested when she asks may lead to the same result. Sorting Rocks – if you still have demerits when you speak to minnie in the library the saturday after the exam, when she offers you help, she can give you this task herself.
Making Candles with Donald and Luke – later in the year; if you see donald in the library, ask him what hes doing and he will tell you about this task. Just remember to say yes when he comes around later to invite you to some mysterious activity! If you miss him in the library, he may invite you anyway.
Just to overcomplicate things even more — it is possible to finish an exam without gaining or losing any merits. If you go about it this way, youd need to fail 4 exams and then complete 3 without merits.the way you do this is by completing the dungeon without casting a single spell. You can do this for almost every exam, and itll also get you the “You’re Doing it Wrong” achievement. So, if you want to knock out two birds with one stone, you might as well give it a shot.Dungeons you can beat without magic:. exam 2: poison gas. All you need to do is have 41 or higher strength, and you can walk right through.
exam 4: bladen beast. Youll need a fair bit of luck for this one, and its a good idea to go in with high strength as youll be taking a few hits. All you need to do is lure the beast away from the exit and then book it to the stairs. However, youll need to pass the darkness tile, which may take a few tries. If the beast catches up, switch darkness tiles to throw him off until you get it right. exam 5: lava floor. Youll need at least 61 strength to tank the damage and 30 smart to prevent the dog from attacking you, but if you go all in on strength you can still get through if youre not smart enough.
Just walk directly to your prize and back. exam 6: frog race.
This is by far the easiest one. All you have to do is find the chalice before he does. If you get to the gate, wait for him to unlock it and just head on in. It does take a bit of luck to get through a random maze, however, so you might want to save first.
the 1st exam. Theres no way out without magic. HOWEVER: you can still fail this one without losing any merits. Just select “detention” when grabiner asks you why you gave up.
Hell give you one, and no demerits. the 3rd exam. Youd need to either get over the pits with teleport/long jump, or find and activate the teleport circle with trigger/spirit echoes.
Then youll still need to find the exit using breeze/inspect/truesight. Just fail this one.unless youre ellenthere is one special case:the 7th exam, with the mothmen and the monkeys, can be beaten without magic provided you have high enough strength and get lucky enough for the mothmen to chase you instead of the monkey. However, even if you do this, you will still get merits for some reason. I guess walking through the mana zapper counts as “casting a spell”?if youre going for the “fail 4 exams, cheese through the other 3” method, my recommendation is:-1st exam: just fail and then take the detention-2nd exam: no luck involved, all you need to do is get your strength to a reasonable level-6th exam: definitely the easiest to get through this way.