Living Legends: Frozen Beauty is an awesome twist on a classic fairy tale complete with suspicious apples and tiny men in pointed hats. But make no mistake; this is not Walt’s Snow White.
The story follows two young women who lost their mother at a young age. Suddenly, Elizabeth, the younger sister, receives a summons to prove her worth as the Queen’s successor. In her excitement, Elizabeth rushes off toward the castle, begging you to join her new royal life and promptly vanishes before your eyes. Fulfilling your role as protective older sister, you set off to find her and discover what the Queen truly wants.
I am new to the Living Legends series of games and was so excited to discover the connection to the classic tale of Snow White. I’m a sucker for fairy tales even when they aren’t covered in pixie dust, and this one definitely isn’t.
The sharp graphics have an old world feel and give a dark edge along with the ominous tone. The background music and sounds fit in well and help draw you into the storyline. Minimal voice-overs bring the characters and their stories to life.
Tucked in amongst the frozen landscape of Living Legends: Frozen Beauty are hidden object scenes with the typical clutter I expect to find. The scenes are completed easily enough with most items in plain sight and a few requiring simple interaction to uncover. In casual play mode, hints are readily available and recharge quickly, though I was able to avoid using them.
In a somewhat unique twist, you may have to use collected objects to further interact with the scene. For example – find matches, which you use to light a candle and use the lit candle to melt ice to open a compartment and find more objects. The on-screen prompts simplify the process, but check out our Living Legends: Frozen Beauty Walkthrough for further step-by-step help if necessary.
I was surprised that it seemed like the mini-games/tasks in Living Legends: Frozen Beauty seemed to far outnumber the HOS, considering it’s a hidden object adventure game! I always enjoy the mini-games, often more so than the hidden object scenes, so it didn’t take away from the game for me. If you’re a hard core HOS fan expecting scene after scene, you may be disappointed at the ratio of games to hidden objects.
I enjoyed the variety of games and puzzles I came across. The themes tied in well with the storyline, which gave the games the feeling of a necessary task to advance rather than just a random puzzle.
Some reveal clues to the overall story, such as a picture of the queen, the girl’s mother, and Snow White and another featuring the dwarves (who look an awful lot like garden gnomes to me). The hints at the underlying story made me enjoy the games even more than usual.
Living Legends: Frozen Beauty offers an exciting new perspective on a beloved story, which quickly draws you into the mystery of the young innocent woman and ill-intentioned queen. I enjoyed exploring the kingdom in search of Elizabeth and look forward to playing past Living Legends games.
Whatever you do, don’t eat the apple!!