Behind the Beyond

Although most myths and legends talk about heroes who took it upon themselves to save the world from evil, there are also those who were forced to deal with evil. There are many tales out there about youngsters who get dragged into one conflict or the other, and it doesn’t always end very well for them. On the other hand, the purpose of a story is for the readers to learn something.

Behind the Beyond is a point & click adventure game inspired by Hungarian folklore, which presents the tale of a young man sent on a quest by his father. The game features simple graphics and an even simpler interface, but the puzzles are actually quite demanding, especially if you are relatively new to the genre. However, the story is not as intricate as you might hope.

Speaking of which, your character is actually the youngest son out of three brothers, and they are all sent on some kind of mission by their father. Thus, you have to help people you meet along the way and make a name for yourself, plus a bit of gold if you get the chance. It’s by no means a memorable story, but it’s fun enough to keep you occupied for a while.

If you are a fan of point & click adventure game, this one should come naturally as well. Your goal is to scour the environment for useful objects and pick up some in your inventory. Naturally, some can be combined or disassembled, while others are just there to help you with a specific task. There’s quite a bit of interaction involved in each puzzle, and some of them are quite clever.

As for the graphics, the artwork is as basic as it can get, but it still has a unique look and feel to it. While the character design and the backgrounds appear to be closer to sketches than to actual drawings, the overall visual style is quite pleasant in the long run. There’s even a bit of voice acting to keep you entertained, but it’s not a lot, and it’s certainly not flawless.

All things considered, Behind the Beyond may not impress hardcore fans of the genre, but it’s entertaining enough to be a decent distraction when you have nothing better to do. The story is quite engaging, at least if you like classic fantasy tropes.