World of Turmoil
As Neptune's Secret opens, ominous music kicks in and a narrator begins to explain what is actually a pretty enjoyable story. He explains that long, an ancient race of gods and monster ruled the Earth, which was pretty chaotic at the time. That was until the big guy himself, Zeus, righted the wrongs and made the planet a safe place.
However, while life was good for most people, the other gods didn't like this one bit. Neptune, specifically, wasn't too happy with his lack of power and wanted to flood the entire planet, wiping out civilization. Luckily for us, Zeus stopped him in time. Not wanting to take chances, he stole Neptune's powers and locked them into a stone, which he then placed into an amulet and gave to a young priestess named Callisto. Neptune, always the sore loser, performed one last dastardly act upon returning to the sea: he took Atlantis with him.
The amulet was passed on through the ages, until it fell into the hands of a baby named Hannah, who eventually grew up to become one of the world's top archaeologists.
After receiving a great tip, Hannah is off on the adventure of a lifetime: the quest to find Atlantis.
I Spy Fun!
The actual game portion of Neptune's Secret opens with Hannah at a scuba shop, getting everthing that she needs for her amazing journey. This is a great tutorial level and a fantastic way to tie the opening of the game in with the story. The game is, at heart, what I like to call a "seek and find" game. You have a list of items on the right hand of the screen that you must hunt down and find in each level. Unlike other games, which list the items by name, here you will see a silhouette of the item, which at times can make it easier, but can also make it a little more challenging.
Aside from the items, there's also a special jewel (or two) hidden in each level that will give you bonus points if you can find it. I must warn you, though, this is no walk in the park! I play a lot of these types of game and consider myself pretty experienced, but even I was stumped just trying to find the jewel in the very first level!
For those that haven't played these games before, it's incredibly simple. Like I said, you're job is to find hidden items. When you spot one, simply click on it with your mouse in order to collect it. This will remove it from the list and bring you one step closer to finish the level.
Keep in mind that wrong clicks will eventually count against you. There's a meter at the top that fills up as you make incorrect clicks and if it fills up the lights will go out momentarily, making it impossible to find things. The meter will slowly go down if you stop clicking, so if it gets too high, just cool your jets for a minute.
Fun Time in Atlantis
Neptune's Secret is a very enjoyable game with a rare story that is both well told and well written. If you're looking for an entertaining way to kill some time, look no further!
