Donna: Avenger of Blood (warning! nudity! run for the hills!) - curr. ver. 1.5

[Goldmund]

An Urpney!

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I can't argue with you about it, because I agree with your points!
I don't think Romero's so one-dimensional, though, because of his love for E. It was also an idea to create an anti-couple, a mirror to Donna-Milena. At the end the two couples stand in front of each other like a mirror image and one could even imagine a game in which the other two are protagonists.

Psychologically, you raise valid points as for the motivations; it's just that I believe there are two approaches to fiction: psychological one, based on how people really behave, and mythological one, in which characters stand for symbols or tropes if you will and psychological accuracy isn't so important as long as they illustrate some thesis or just provide fun. I mean, come on, my game's protagonist is a mad doctor - how more cliche can you get.
Of course, ideally a character should work on both levels -- psychological realism and symbolic quality, and I agree that Romero's not such a great character as far as psychological realism goes, but his unreturned affection for E. and - in a twisted way - valid concerns about the modern world make him interesting, at least for me ;-)

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[mukk]

Just finished your game. I really enjoyed it. Especially the very diverse characters.

The ten years were defintely put to good use. The graphics gave a great feel to the game, the use of the internet and the code-riddles hit right up my alley and the background of the characters left nothing to wish for ...I especially loved the thought of

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the baby chatting with mr. nightly.

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+ its the first game I know of (probably the only one in excistence) that has a Burgman in it. I've traveled with mine to most parts of west Europe. I might have squealed a little by the sight of it 

One mild annoyance was the inventory which was pretty full all the time. An extra inventory for all the pictures and writings might be a nice addition.

[Goldmund]

Haha, thanks, mukk!

I'm happy to rekindle your nice memories with Milena's scooter.

I'm aware of the too-big-inventory annoyance you speak about, more items should disappear when you no longer need them, but I had so many things to do with the game before releasing it and I grew so impatient with it already that I never got around to improve the inventory issue.

[buddha]

I have just finished playing the game and what a great ride it was! Definitely worth all the work you put into it. I'm pretty sure one of the AGSawards will be yours this year.

[Goldmund]

I live by the Werner Herzog's words: awards are for dogs and horses, dear Buddha!

Thank you, I'm especially happy you've enjoyed it as you were the first person to find Donna's website long before the game went live.

[8BitFreak]

Question:  Is the goal of the game to get to the nudity parts ala LSL?

[Goldmund]

Sure. You could also try hiding in your sister's closet  if the game's too difficult.

[linus]

Wow, I recently wondered what had happened to this game. I re-listened to the sound files I downloaded oh so long ago and searched for the game in the forums for it just to find out what I had already expected - no progress report for years. "What a shame, it seemed so promising" I thought. And now this...

Congratulations on finishing it after such a long time. Considering that life has this mean habit of getting in the way of personal projects such as this, that's quite a feat! I'll comment on the game when I've finished it.

[Goldmund]

Thank you, linus!

But I don't think it's true what you say about life. It has to do with something in your head rather than outside circumstances. Where life interferred, I put the game away for 2 months, or half a year, and just returned to it later. Basically, I had a lot of fun making it -- I believe some people who make models their whole lifetime feel similar -- so there was no reason to quit something that makes me happy and doesn't kill me at the same time ;-)

[Nefarius]

I have to congratulate the creator of the game Donna: blood avenger, for his persistence with his work, it's laudable that he finished the game even when for one thing or the other (that's life!) took him ten years. Kudos to Blaze Dzikowski. I think Donna is the amateur adventure game that I like the most beside the Yathzee’s Czho Mythos saga. I didn’t finished the game yet

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Unless one can count obtaining the “happy” ending as finishing the game

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I’m close to the end (I believe), though. And I have to say that the game is superb, not only the game programming (which seems hard-working) but the setting, the atmosphere… I can only describe it as beautiful, as they say this work has soul.  I truly empathize with the three main characters, in this regard Donna is probably superior to Czho Mythos. Thinking that the silly Twilight books have movie adaptations is infuriating to me while I play Donna. A movie based on this game would revitalize the true “vampire genre” (which is not the new and plain bad “supernatural romance” genre). I'm salivating to thinking of it, and I'm beating around the bushes, too. Anyways, the game is great the only thing I didn’t like

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The sound based puzzles which were to me more like annoying cacophonies, I solved the first one by dumb luck and the second one I just skipped it with the cheat for hearing impaired people, having two functional ears I have to say that I’m not very proud of it

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Then again, this is probably just me being clumsy.
Aside from the atmosphere and the most notable soundtrack, I would like to highlight that the "calm" and blood meters are a very, very, nice touch. They serve to differentiate the character of Donna in gameplay mechanics from the protagonist of other adventure games and they give the player the sensation that she is really a vampire and therefore is not only the plot telling us that she is a vampire. Moreover the "calm" and blood meters remid me a lot of the "bloodpool" and the "Frenzy" which are mechanics from Vampire: The Masquerade which is my favorite pen and paper RPG of all time (Did you know it by chance?).

To conclude: Donna is an amazing game, and I’ll recommend it to all my gamer friends.

[Goldmund]

Nefarius --
I'm not really good at receiving such praise, so I can only say - thanks a lot!

I've played only the computer version of Vampire: The Masquerade, but as for the vampire games I think I was mostly influenced by Bloodnet, an old crpg. It wasn't the biggest gaming influence, though, certainly less than Dreamweb or I Have No Mouth And I Must Scream.

As for the puzzles you didn't like...

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Well, my interest in music is to blame
But, actually, you don't have to use the scrambler at Romero's house.
Donna is already much stronger... for some reason...

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[buddha]

I live by the Werner Herzog's words: awards are for dogs and horses, dear Buddha!

Haha, a wise approach, this actor had a similar idea, on his way home, after receiving one. 

Thank you, I'm especially happy you've enjoyed it as you were the first person to find Donna's website long before the game went live.

Yes, at the time it was great learning it was still being worked on, too often games announced that long ago die a silent death. Thankfully for us all here, that was not to be Donna's fate!

[Jim_Smitts]

So... I can't get past the very first obstacle. 

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I have a mouse and a crowbar.  I've tried everything.  I read his mind, said everything.  Tried not saying certain things.  Bit the mouse.

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[Goldmund]

Jim -

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There are other skills apart from reading mind.

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Ask for hints in the Hints forum, guys.

[Saren]

Just wondering: is this game the first of a series, or is it just a one-off?

[Goldmund]

Whoa, no,  I never wanted to make it into series. Why?

[Nefarius]

Woah! I just finished the game and I gotta say that some stupid dust got into my eyes.
People who didn't finish the game yet: don't uncover the text below!

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Part of me prefers the ending in which the story of Donna and Christian repeats again but this time the vampire is Donna and the mortal who fears death is Milena. Nevertheless, the end in which Donna wipe out all her enemies and make the ultimate sacrifice in order to defeat the eldritch abomination feels like the truer ending. It gives more closure to the story. And Mulkin foreshadows it, in a way:sometimes is better to left things unfinished. I like that a lot.

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[Shadow1000]

Ok, my remarks/review now that I finished the game:

INTRODUCTION:

DONNA: Avenger of Blood is easily one of the best point and click adventure games I've played to date. With graphics suiting the overall environment, a compelling plot and some of the most logical and solvable puzzles, this is one of those must-plays that only comes around every few years. The length of the game is long enough to be considered a full-length game (although I've only been playing since Saturday but I couldn't stop till I finished!)

WHAT I LIKED ABOUT THE GAME:

There are two main reasons I rate the game so highly. First, as I said, the puzzles are logical enough to be solved with some thinking, trial and error and persistence. Unlike games where you just shake your head thinking "how the hell was anyone supposed to guess that", the flow and direction of the game keeps moving at a pace where you actually feel progress combined with the satisfaction of having solved a good puzzle. This experience, of course, is what makes the genre of adventure game compelling. The puzzles are generally a good balance of dialogue choices with inventory items. Many are unique to this game (at least I haven't seen them before). When stuck, there are several in-game hint resources that get your brain spinning to lead you to solve the puzzle. If I had to summarize what made this so good, I found myself almost never wondering "ok, NOW what am I supposed to do? I have no objective or anything to solve now" which is what happens in poorly-designed games.

The second strong point of the game is the plot. It's complex, unpredictable and immersive enough to make you want to keep playing without having so much detail that it becomes impossible to track (or you just don't care anymore about tracking) what's going on. Despite the length of the game, it never gets repetitive or boring. The pulse-quickening unexpected ending is well-suited for the game.

Some other appealing features:

- the photographic, dark/greyscale graphics are perfect for the game.
- The worry-meter (whatever it's called!) and blood meter add to the playabilty.
- Character development was very good
- The detail of the animation and effects was not overlooked.

WEAKNESSES OF THE GAME:

- Despite the strengths of the puzzles I mentioned, (I know I have to nit-pick to complain!) there were a few points that I was completely stumped with nothing to do and no leads. The reason for this was because I missed one detail in an animated scene. Not a good idea to have the game at a dead-end because the player sneezed.
Another was similar: I missed one small point in a dialogue and ended up having no leads as a result.

- I mentioned the dialogue combinations as being a good tool in puzzles. I found that many of the dialogue options basically get you to the same place and really did not serve much purpose to advancing the game and were just a drag.

- It's clear that a lot of effort went into the graphics and it's a pleasing style found in a number of games (I'm thinking of Raindog Story) and it works most of the time. However, at times the clipped photographs put together have a certain unappealing choppiness, particularly when there is motion.

- I'm sure that some people will disagree with this point but I'll make it anyway. Although the people playing the game, myself included, are not offended by the nudity/sexuality/language, it limits the game to a smaller audience. This game is not suited for younger players or people who find those items as offensive. Of course there are ample warnings and those people don't need to play the game, but in rating the game I have to put an element that diminishes the appeal to a wider audience in the negative column.

BUGS:(you knew this was coming!)
-

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when on the balcony next to the swimming pool, if you walk toward the hanging rope, you will keep climbing. I'm sure this is not intended!

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-

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I'll be vague here so as not to ruin it. When solving the location for the video, I actually solved the name of the location based on the hint in the note. Despite typing in the correct solution, the game told me it was wrong BECAUSE I DIDN'T first look at the photograph!

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CONCLUSION:

The amount of work and attention to detail in the plot and flow of this game, combined with creativity and excellent gameplay, polish and execution makes Donna: Avenger of Blood a compelling must-play for any adventure game fan.

Bravo, Blaze! You have a lot to be proud of!

SHADOW

[Saren]

Whoa, no,  I never wanted to make it into series. Why?

Just asking!

[Goldmund]

@Saren -> well, the story's pretty much finished in both endings.
Maybe I will do something similar graphically, though, as my photo-manipulaton skills have evolved greatly during the making of D. Possibly it will be my first and last game, though. I need to concentrate on my writing.

@Nefarius -> about the endings:

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well, of course I view the train one as "the real ending", too. Maybe it's more gruesome, but rather more uplifting than the vision of uncertain future on the island.

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@Shadow -> thank you kind Sir for this in-depth review! You can't view the profanity and sexuality among the flaws, though, because they were intended and form the total effect of the game, it's not tits for tits' sake.

Also, thank you for the bugs report: I will iron them out in the next version, but please guys don't hold your breath, as there's nothing game-stopping there and I'm quite concerned with other pursuits.