Short Verdict: Blackwell Unbound is the second installment in my favorite point-and-click adventure series in this century. The Blackwell series definitely has a special place in my heart. BU tells the story of Lauren Blackwell, a medium, and Joey, a spirit stuck with the Blackwell family, and they both go about solving mysteries in the 70's, if I'm not mistaken, and investigating cases related to ghosts who have problems moving on to the afterlife. It's definitely better than The Blackwell Legacy, but the sequels are even better. It's really fun and brings you back to old-school adventure games, while still bringing fresh elements to the table. If you're into classic point-and-click games, you most definitely have to try it! I had played it a few years ago and it was still fun to replay it now. Don't forget to play The Blackwell Legacy first! While you could play BU as a standalone game, you'll miss a little bit if you haven't played TBL.

Pros:

• Despite having ghosts and all, characters are very realistic, well-developed, deep, interesting, funny, and loveable
  
• The story is interesting and solving the mysteries is really fun
  
• The puzzles are kept to a sober level of difficulty, but there's no handholding, either
  
• The dialogues and the voice acting are really outstanding, I can't stress it enough. And this game has no problems with different volumes like its prequel.
  
• Has a very interesting mechanic in which you combine clues instead of items to solve puzzles, and that works really well with the investigation theme
  
• This time you get to control both Lauren and Joey, adding a lot to the puzzles
  
• Beautiful retro graphics
  
• BGM is awesome, way better than the already good tunes from TBL

Cons:

• Sometimes the audio played doesn't match the text written
  
• The low resolution annoys me a bit (you can set it to 1280x960, though, but that option is hard to find)
  
• While the game itself is a lot more polished than its prequel, they didn't take the time to properly proofread the dialogues, especially the ones with a character named C.

Bought on: PC and Android Bundle 11 by Humble Bundle for an average of US$ 0.55 (roughly R$ 1,46). It's also totally worth its full price, which isn't high at all!

This one touched me more than first one. Beautiful game, great story.

Blackwell Unbound is the second game in the Blackwell series, and it’s a very considerable improvement over its predecessor. It takes all the concepts introduced in the first game and explores them far more thoroughly, creating a perfect blend of gameplay, story, and puzzle difficulty. While still great, Blackwell Legacy was at times too linear and straight-forward, as well as ruled over by its exposition.

Now, Blackwell Unbound takes a step forward and balances all its elements very well. The writing and characters are absolutely wonderful, and the jazz-noir atmosphere is thoroughly soothing. And the puzzles, as mentioned, are a bunch of fun to solve. After playing it, it's suitably become one of my favorites in the genre.

Second game of the Blackwell saga, and actually a prequel to The Blackwell Legacy, The Blackwell Unbound is one charming point and click adventure. Featuring Lauren Blackwell, Rosa's aunt, the game is full of little details that will help us understand that part of Lauren's past we just had a glimpse of in the first game, and her connection with Joey. New York in the seventies is so freaking cool in this game, and so are the strange and funny characters (and ghosts) that Lauren and Joey will find on their journey.

As always with the Balckwell games we're not talking about a game hard to beat, the puzzles are pretty easy, but even if I don't like it very much I'm inclined to think that it is a specific design choice to make the story flow freely at any time. The narrative aspect of the Blackwell games is prominent, the story is very well written and it always feels that the player can identify with the characters and some of their problems, and choices. Plus, Joey. Joey's awesome. So, essentially, the Blackwell Unbound is a good game "per se", a very cool second chapter of the saga, and a great prequel.

Blackwell Unbound is far superior to the original Blackwell Legacy game in terms of user interface and gameplay. It actually felt like the designer put a good amount of effort into fixing many of the deficiencies with the first game. Although this one goes backward in time and is a prequel to the first game. It is possible to play Unbound stand-alone without getting lost from missing out on the first story. Unlike the first game there is actually a sense of closure with the ending.

The second in the Blackwell series of point-and-click supernatural adventures, prequel to the Blackwell Legacy, where you get to control Lauren and Joey.

Unlike some other adventure games the mysteries are largely solved by gathering clues and combining pieces of information, so it's less puzzle-based and more like detective work, with a methodical process and moments of insight, which grounds the experience - yes, one of the main characters is a ghost, but the problem-solving is built on real-world logic, not magic.

Another thing I love about the series is the way the relationship between the two main characters develops and matures, and the characters get fleshed out as we learn more about them and their backstories. You can also see the art style and character design mature with each installment.

Blackwell Unbound is a prequel to The Blackwell Legacy. It is a point and click adventure, and sticks to the usual control scheme and playstyle of the genre.

In Blackwell Unbound, you play the aunt of the protagonist of Blackwell Legacy. Since this game sort of jumps in to the middle of a relationship between a medium and spirit guide, it is helpful to play the original game first to get some explanation on what is going on. With the help of Joey Malone, a ghost from the 1940's, you must solve mysteries and help lost ghosts find their way to the spirit world. It is a nice shake up of the usual detective story dynamic. While you still must look for clues and interrogate witnesses, you are doing so with the help of a ghost. You can switch from time to time between Lauren and Joey, the ghost, to help you advance. Certain things can only be done by Joey, such as moving through walls or talking to other ghosts in the real world.

Blackwell Unbound runs a good bit shorter than The Blackwell Legacy. I really enjoyed the notebook functionality in the first game, but found it a little lacking in this one just due to the overall shortness of the game. This may be because while there is one overarching story, there are two distinct mysteries to solve. The first game just had one mystery that kind of led to another and so on, but the clues really built off each other and involved a lot more using the notebook to combine clues and interrogate witnesses.

The graphic style is pretty much unchanged from the first game. It is reminiscent of early 90's adventure games, which in my opinion have aged better than games from the late 90's and early 00's that begin using 3D. They look well enough, but they are really lacking in detail. It's ok to use that style, but I'd like to see it sharpened up a bit with some more detail added overall.

The voice acting is much improved, with only small complaints. The main character in particular sounds so much better. She sounds engaged in the story, while her predecessor sounded a little bored. Joey sounds the same, which is neither great nor bad. The main villain sounds pretty terrible in Blackwell Unbound. It really kind of removed me from the story. I think you will understand when you hear it.

Overall, I actually enjoyed this more than Blackwell Legacy. While it was a little shorter, and I missed using the notebook as much as the original, I found the overall improvement of the story and voice acting won out. I really like this main character more, although I'm not expecting to see much more of her. I will definitely try out the next game in the series, and recommend you give this game a look.

Grade: B+

Like the other Blackwell-Games, this is a very good low budget Point&Click-Adventure game and definitely worth buying if you like the genre! I would recommend starting with "Blackwell Legacy", as that is the first game in the series and "Blackwell Unbound" is the second one.

In contrast to the first game you won't see any major flaws in game design in this one (like huge infodumps and the infamous first rather boring puzzle with the doorman). The plot pacing is a lot faster and the puzzles are a bit more interesting. However, the game length stays about the same, depends how quick you solve all the puzzles, as does the general gameplay. You still got your notebook and puzzles are mostly solved via dialogues and said notebook and rarely with items in your inventory.

Personally, this is my favourite game of the series. I thought the relationship between Lauren and Joey was much more interesting than the one between Rosa and Joey, the dialogues were really good and fleshed out the characters really well. Besides that, I REALLY loved that voice of Lauren <3. I really wished Dave Gilbert would make another game with Lauren.

The Blackwell Series. I'm starting to like these games more and more. I gave the thumbs down to the first game Blackwell Legacy with a question mark, since it wasn't altogether that bad (see full review on my profile). I've come to realize that these games are not your typical point and click adventure. Let me explain. Most point and click adventure games (at least the ones I have played) are puzzle based. This game on the other hand is more dialog/clue based. There are a couple of puzzles in the game, but the game stays true to what it should be a murder mystery (Don't worry the game is not graphic at all, just a bunch of cartoon looking ghosts).

I still give the first game about 6/10. The main reason being too much storyline setup, a couple of really annoying puzzles (the director apologized for these), and super short game. While not the best game, it accomplished something important. It is like the introduction to a very good book. You can not only see that the director learned from some of the mistakes made in this game to make Unbound much better. It also helped in being able to jump right into this one, as characters were already set up. If you want to play this game, it is important to play Blackwell Legacy (Hey, its short! Maybe that was a good thing). You can definitely put this on the buy list. Here are my Pro's and Con's.

Pro's: Great Storyline for three different characters. Lauren Blackwell and the ghost she helps. The character interaction between Lauren and Joey is very good, you'll love these two characters and their relationship. No ridiculous puzzles in this one. Some hard one's, but nothing way out in left field. And the game is also longer too. Most of the stuff that was good or bad from the last game was improved on.

Con's: Art is still not the best, but that is the style. Although the music music in this game probably did a better job at setting the right mood, there just weren't really any toe tapping tunes that the first game had.

I'm working on Blackwell Convergance right now and it is going good thus far.

Check out my other point and click adventure reviews on my page!

A short and sweet point and click in the old school tradition.
Wel lrealized characters with decent spoken dialogue, though the two leads were top knotch.
The puzzles were not too obtuse, but some of the solutions were somewhat "buried" which was a tiny bit annoying.
A better outing than the first game, Blackwell Legacy. I liked Lauren a lot better as a Main Character.
I like seeing how these indie games improve over time.
In the end it is well worth the 2-3 hour play time just for the music alone.

if your into point and clicks adventure games you can't go wrong with the Blackwell series.
they are ghost / detective stories where you'll need to swap between the 2 to hunt for clues.
kinda of serous stories with humor based on dialog between a disheartened girl with a smoking problem and her disgruntled ghost.

this one you play as Roses aunt, Lauren.

Even if Lauren is not nearly as interesting as Rosa, Blackwell Unbound is a solid prequel to one of the most interesting adventure games in a while. 7.5/10.

its ok

Retour dans le passé pour le deuxième épisode de la série Blackwell. Le changement (temporaire dans la série) de personnage principal est à la fois original et bienvenu, permettant de transporter la série dans une époque différente tout en enrichissant considérablement l'histoire de la famille Blackwell (et de Joey). Le gameplay s'affine, le scénario s'étoffe, l'ambiance visuelle et sonore sont toujours au top. On notera cependant un changement de style graphique (ce qui deviendra une habitude dans la série) même si l'ensemble reste terriblement rétro. Mieux fini, moins amateur et plus intéressant que son prédécesseur, Undbound fera le plaisir des joueurs charmés par le premier épisode.

tres bon point n click. bien meilleur que le 1er épisode.

Mêmes défauts et mêmes points forts que The Blackwell Legacy pour ce Blackwell Unbound. Dans cette préquelle, on a toujours un scénario solide, des personnages attachants, un doublage un peu amateur mais de qualité, et un moteur affreux. C'est court mais bien.

Aussi bon que le premier : bien écrit, histoire intéressante...
Le gameplay reste classique mais efficace.

Toujours en anglais, cependant.

“BOO! Oh, look. I scared it to death. Wait. No. Hold on. It was already like that.”

Blackwell Unbound represents the second of five parts in the Blackwell series. On its own it is a prequel dealing with the past of the first game. Compared with its predecessor it has a better balance between gameplay and storytelling.

Other strong points are the mature characters and their witty dialogues. In addition the puzzles are more logical and the voice acting remains top notch. While the main story is not as strong as in Blackwell Legacy, the underlying storyline profits from this flashback.

Fun fact: The storyline of Blackwell Unbound was originally a part of Blackwell Convergence, but due to budget issues it was decided to release the game content as a stand-alone.
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My rating system consists of six categories in descending order of importance:

- Atmosphere
- Characters
- Details
- Puzzles
- Story
- Controls

Based on the performance each category will receive one of the following grading:

- S-Rank: excellent
- A-Rank: very good
- B-Rank: solid
- C-Rank: satisfactory
- D-Rank: inferior

If the S-Rank is awarded, a quote from the game or personal comment will be added as a token of my respect (in brackets).
--

Atmosphere: A-Rank

Characters: A-Rank

Details: A-Rank

Puzzles: A-Rank

Story: C-Rank (A-Rank for the underlying storyline)

Controls: B-Rank
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To conquer all achievements of The Blackwell Unbound, you will most likely spend around 4 hours. A detailed achievement guide can be found on the link below (thanks to nek♥|sorrow (｡◕‿‿◕｡)).

http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=115254920

Achievement difficulty: 2 of 10

Common:
- Singleplayer [+1]

Special:
- Trying to Cut Down [+1]
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Blackwell Epiphany (PC) – Adventure game + Point & Click
(Fantasy) – 2014
http://steamcommunity.com/profiles/76561197968514473/recommended/236930/
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Blackwell Deception (PC) – Adventure game + Point & Click
(Fantasy) – 2013
http://steamcommunity.com/profiles/76561197968514473/recommended/80360/
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Blackwell Convergence (PC) – Adventure game + Point & Click
(Fantasy) – 2009
http://steamcommunity.com/profiles/76561197968514473/recommended/80350/
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Blackwell Unbound (PC) – Adventure game + Point & Click
(Fantasy) – 2007
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The Blackwell Legacy (PC) – Adventure game + Point & Click
(Fantasy) – 2006
http://steamcommunity.com/profiles/76561197968514473/recommended/80330/

If you're a fan of point'n'click adventures: This is your game series.

+ Amazing writing/dialouges
+ Lovely animated and sophisticated characters/background stories
+ Adult humor
+ Great Story development/excitement curve
+ Awesome voice acting
+ Additional "Behind the Scenes" material and commentary
+ Convincing all-over-atmosphere
+ Fitting music

The story can get quite emotional without relying on heavy romances.
The games are still more of a detective story involving ghosts, personal
tragedies, intrigues, murder and envy.

The series is easily one of the best modern point'n'click productions and
you can really feel the commitment and engagement that was used to produce these games.

If you liked this series, you will probably also like other games from Wadjet Eye:
- Gemini Rue
- Resonance
- Primordia
- The Shivah

Not the biggest fan of the games of this series. While they are alright bite-sized adventure games I never really liked the characters very much (other then Joey). The puzzles were alright and the dialog...decent but I never got hooked on the story as a whole. Think this might be in the better half of the Blackwell games but as I cant really recommend any of the games seperatly as you should play all four as a whole you'd have to experience everything no matter what.

Has some tricky achievements that will require some extra focus (especially the smoking achievements). If you dont plan ahead during your first playthrough or use savefiles in a clever way you will need to beat the game twice. Also make sure, like all Blackwell games, to turn on the commentary track during your first playthrough.

Time to 100%: ~3-5 hours