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Jacob Jones and the Bigfoot Mystery: Episode 2

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Jacob Jones and the Bigfoot Mystery: Episode 2

The second episode of riddle-filled adventure Jacob Jones ends before it ever really begins.

This sequel follows pint size Professor Layton-alike Jacob Jones on a school field trip to Firebreak Glen. While he's there, he decides to sneak off with his Bigfoot pal Biggie and explore the nearby Crackskull Mountain.

After a few puzzles, a couple of fetch quests, and a quick detour to reunite a man with his dead wife, you find yourself at the base the mountain. You start to climb and… then it ends. Thanks for playing, look out for part three!

It is an astonishingly short game. You'll finish the main quest in under an hour, and it won't take long to solve every extracurricular puzzle after that.

The whole thing comes across as wholly insubstantial and ephemeral, which is a shame, because what is there is amusing, creative, and enjoyable.

Biggie small

You get to explore the forest, which is crafted out of paper and corrugated cardboard. But there are only about four distinct locations. You get talk to characters, who are funny and bizarre, but there aren't many of them.

The puzzles are pretty predictable. You'll be pushing a block around a room without getting stuck in a corner, trying to put photos into chronological order, and rearranging objects to satisfy a list of demands.

They're good, if not particularly original. And a lot of time has clearly gone into each puzzle - they're beautifully drawn, and there are even gags hidden in the hint menu where you can either ask for help on a faux-Facebook or call your uncle or brother for advice.

But there are only 14 challenges - about half the number of headscratchers in the original, and a fraction of the puzzles in a game like The Curse or Puzzle Agent.

Forest slump

And the small amount of content there is isn't exactly polished. There are performance issues, a wonky camera that makes it hard to find your way around, and some typographical errors here and there too.

Jacob Jones is a nice game. It's warm, gently amusing, and filled with silly characters and fun puzzles. But there just isn't much of it.

It's not so much about value for money (it's only a buck), but the brevity hurts the game.

Jacob Jones 2 feels less like an epic adventure and more like a trip around the block. And because it doesn't advance the story or characters one iota, it feels like a pointless stop gap.

Jacob Jones and the Bigfoot Mystery: Episode 2

Jacob Jones 2 offers a rich world, and a handful of fun puzzles. But a brazen lack of content and no advancement in story turns this into a throwaway app
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Mark Brown
Mark Brown
Mark Brown is editor at large of Pocket Gamer