Out on the range, such wonders of technology feel mysterious.
But Rosewater is not a mystery game, or at least not a detective game like its predecessor.
Its a straight up and down, Gods honest point-and-click adventure.
The first two hours follow Harley as she puts together a team of fortune-seekers.
Theres the smooth-talking showman, the gentle healer, all charming in an Oceans Eleven kind of way.
Mixed into the linear puzzle sequences, the crew occasionally offers competing strategies for tackling challenges.
These strategies range in viability.
There will be time.
Harley is the odd one out.
- in which capacity she becomes anything the puzzle demands.
That, and shes a vessel for the Tombstone-level putdowns that Rosewater generously lavishes upon audiences of taste.
Thats not a knock against Rosewaters excellent sense of humor, although this particular sequence isnt played for laughs.
Every area of the game struggles with answering “why?”
Why does Danny need this specifically shaped rock to build a memorial?
Why does tracking hoofprints involve clicking through a dozen identical screens, rather than two or three?
The answers, I think, are twofold.
Another stop sees Harleys crew linking up with a family of traveling merchants.
The backdrops, without fail, are stunningly gorgeous.
Phil strums the guitar and sings anoriginal compositionby Francisco Gonzalezs cousin.
Why did we stop here?
Because when its stars align, Rosewater is capable of real beauty.
Arbitrary sequences of item interactions and characters with extremely specific preferences are a part of that formula.
Why did we stop here?
Because its where the puzzles are.
My own enjoyment of Rosewater feels like a contagion in that way.
