Review: Please, Touch the Artwork 2 is, quite simply, a masterpiece

I love this idea that someone looked at all of the amazing works of Baron James Ensor and said that they could make a game from them. To think that someone sat down with all of these portraits and puzzled together a story out of them is vastly impressive.

Please, Touch the Artwork 2 is a free game and it’s brilliantly put together. Even if you’re not normally a fan of hidden object games, this is a true delight. 

Gameplay

Right from the start, Please, Touch the Artwork 2 caught my attention and kept it with the skeleton hand cursor. It was such a cute little detail that I hadn’t expected. And, speaking of being surprised, the fact that we play as the skeletal form of James Ensor was less in poor taste and more brilliant. These small details of being James Ensor and exploring his paintings were such a fun idea.

As James, we walk into painting after painting that is bursting to life with sounds and movement. At one point we climb into a rowboat and sail into another frame. In the next, we hear a man snoring while bent over a table.

Along the way, we meet people who want objects from us. One person wants bottles, the other wants planks. These items are scattered across several artworks and we have to search them out. I really enjoyed that while these items didn’t exist in excess like in this game, these objects are still ones from the paintings.

As we find the objects people are searching for, we open up new paths, find mini-games, and even come face to face with ‘The Masked Villain’. This character runs through the paintings and slices them open. So, in order to move on, we have to repair the backing.

Along with fixing the portraits, there’s a piano mini-game where you have to repeat the tune and a spot-the-difference mini-game. So, there is a bit of variance here. 

I felt like a hidden object game was the best choice for this project because it’s not only educational in getting you acquainted with James Ensor’s works, but it also encourages you to look at the finer details while searching for the items. 

If you’re lost on where to go, pay attention to the light bulb at the top. If it’s yellow, then what you’re looking for is still in that portrait. If it’s black with an ‘X’, then you’ve found everything that you need.

Art and Sound

Obviously, the art is the showcase of this entire game. All of the works were done by the amazing painter Baron James Ensor. He was a Belgian artist who was born in 1860 and died at 89 years old in 1949. This game was made in his honor for the 75th anniversary of his death.

Not only are the paintings done by James stunning, but the motion and care that was put into them by the developer are stellar. The subtle animations really brought something already special to a whole new level.

The classical music that was played throughout the game was a wise choice and helped elevate the gaming experience.

As far as sound design, it was mostly successful. A fun, but sometimes annoying, gimmick that was employed is the sounds that come from a painting. Here is where I have to caution a bit of a trigger warning. If you suffer from Misophonia, you may want to play with the sounds off for some levels.

While I loved that someone snored over a table or that I could hear a parade from several paintings over, I intensely hated hearing the painting ‘The Oyster Eater.’ As you may imagine, the portrait produced a lot of slurping sounds that you could hear from three paintings across. Luckily, you can turn sounds off, so if you fear it’s going to be a problem, you can pre-emptively solve it.

Otherwise, the sounds really added to the experience. 

Coziness and Cons

Like most hidden object games with no time limits, this game was nothing but cozy. The ability to explore a world of oil paintings was a whimsical experience and being able to find objects related to those paintings was a lot of fun.

It’s a simple game and it’s only about an hour long, but it’s a very relaxing hour.

As far as cons, I’ve mentioned a bit about the sounds being a bit offputting. This won’t be a con for everyone, but it’s worth mentioning. Otherwise, the only moment I couldn’t really figure out what was going on was in ‘The Wedding’ stage.

You’re meant to be looking for the masked villain and you’re searching for 6 of him in a revolving stage of paintings. However, when you click on the hint, it points to an empty area. What you’re looking for isn’t the face of the man, but rather the tophat. And, there aren’t 6 of him. You’re looking for the painting he’s in and once you find him there, he will move onto different hiding spaces in the other pictures.

Once you figure that out, you’re golden.

Please, Touch the Artwork 2 Verdict

Please, Touch the Artwork 2 is not only fun, but it’s free. You literally have nothing to lose in downloading this game and everything to gain. I didn’t know James Ensor before today and now I know him far better than any other famous painter.

This game introduced me to a world of oil on canvas and through the nature of hidden object games, it made me pay attention to the finer details of James Ensor’s works.

You don’t want to miss out on Please, Touch the Artwork 2. It’s a silly, fun game that you can get for FREE on Steam. And, if you love the hidden object genre, you may want to check out our review of Hidden Through Time 2: Myths and Magic.