The Adventures of Nick and Willikins (PC) Review

Ah, wait, come back! Free does not necessarily mean bad! In fact, The Adventures of Nick and Willikins easily surpasses many actual paid entries in the bustling point-and-click adventure genre. There are so many great examples, and too many shoddy efforts… but this free release shines brightly amongst them all. Pinhead Games' effort is also equal to the original audio series featuring the lead characters. Yes, digging into the history slightly, Nick and Willikins have featured in numerous escapades on The Sarcastic Voyage Podcast, but rather than just regurgitate a classic story from the past, this is fresh, maybe like crème fraiche? Nah, that is too French. T is the crème de la crème. Ah, French again. Hmm, how about Wensleydale? You know, Gromit's favourite? Oh, that is… cheese. Never mind. What were we talking about?

Aha, petulant youth and spoilt brat, Nick kicks things off by bossing Willikins around, getting him to gather ingredients for a hearty breakfast, discarding anything unwanted down the loo. It is mind-boggling what gets shoved down the bog here! Anyway, players take charge of the loyal-yet-miserable butler, collecting various items to store in his inventory - maybe his jacket is magically bottomless, like some women's handbags? - in an attempt to appease the demands of his obnoxious master. It is not long before a disaster rears its head, though, and the mission suddenly becomes to clear Nick's name by proving his innocence by gathering various pieces of information about him and handing over to the authorities. What do you mean, "Serves the little blighter right!"?

The Adventures of Nick and Willikins is par for the course when it comes to pointing and clicking where you want Willikins to head to (even down to his sleeping quarters - down in the basement, with a leaky tap and random vermin for company), and what you want him to collect (anyone for some manky toast? No? Why not? How about a juicy sausage or fat fish?). Double-clicking transports him through exits/entrances to save time, which is always a blessing in games of this ilk, and there are options to not just interact with objects, but also look at everything to squeeze as many comedic quips from the script as possible.

Now, presentation-wise, whilst the visuals are somewhat rough around the edges, for a free release on a limited budget, it actually looks remarkably impressive, again outdoing some paid releases. Also, having the entire voice talent pool from the original podcast on-board definitely helps boost its audio value. It is just a thoroughly impressive labour of love through and through - no two ways about it. Okay, there are times where it can be a bit confusing how to proceed, due to many red herring items on Willikins' person, but once getting into the mindset of older style adventures properly, where red herrings were rife, those instances only prove to be minor hurdles in this two-to-three hour romp.

Expect uncomfortable scenes with a randy granny saving images to her W.B., bum-paddle magazines, and all manner of quirky humour based about Britishishismisms…erm… jokes comparing good ol' Blighty, compared to the US (where the creators hail from), and plenty more in the comedy stakes. Basically, even if it had a price-tag, it would be highly recommended for genre lovers; for free, though, it simply cannot be overlooked.