Were I a young girl, playing a detective game starring Barbie might sound like fun, but unfortunately there are no real clues to fit together or mysteries to solve. Rather than control Barbie directly or click to a certain point to move her, you instead use the mouse to steer her directionally, which is simultaneously unintuitive and unwieldy. Immediately, the game suffers visually from an incredibly garish color palette that lacks any proper shading and results in one of the ugliest games I've played. Ken and some charity money have gone missing during a magic show, and it's up to Barbie to explore a carnival to find both them and the culprit. Once you get to the game itself, though, woof. Granted, most of the names seem procedurally generated, and I'm also not sure why you can't just enter your own name, but hey, browsing through these is amusing. But what a name selection screen! The first game in the Detective Barbie trilogy claims there are more than 50,000 voiced names for the player to select from, and I believe it. When the most entertaining part of a game is its name selection screen, you know you're in for it. Runaway isn't a game I can in any way recommend even as it sold well enough to spawn two sequels. The game was also highly praised at the time for its cinematic animation and cut scenes, though I found the art style of these to be inconsistent at best. To the game's credit, it does feature appealing background art and good music. The final chapter is rushed and terrifically unsatisfying, with the player largely playing a passive, inactive role. There's also ridiculous pixel hunting with dark objects blended in with dim backgrounds. This often leads to an overwhelming sense of frustration and wasted hours. You may know you need the item to solve a puzzle in the next room, but if Brian doesn't realize it himself, he won't pick it up. Brian sometimes refuses to pick up items unless he very specifically says he needs it. ![]() Runaway is also incredibly poorly designed. Brian is as unlikable and smug a protagonist as you'll find, Gina is an empty character who exists merely to be repeatedly rescued, the supporting characters are obnoxious and unfunny, and the voice acting is subpar. Seemingly inspired by the Broken Sword games, the game fails to capture that series' globe-trotting intrigue. Turns out she's on the run from the mafia and so begins a cross-country odyssey in which you must stay ahead of the mob. Student Brian Basco runs over a nightclub singer. ![]() Adventure gamers were starved for anything professional, so the game's reputation was almost certainly bolstered significantly by the pent-up demand. Released in Spain in 2001 and internationally in 2003, the game came out during the absolute nadir of the genre. Runaway: A Road Adventure is far from the worst game of the Adventure Quest, but it might be one of the most disappointing due to its strange placement on several "best-ever" lists.
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