Know what I miss? The point and click adventures of old. I’m talking about the magic of the classic LucasArts titles, the ones where you got drawn into silly, but still remarkable, worlds, with characters you actually cared about.
Fortunately, some indie developers remember these good ol’ days as well. That includes HappyJuice Games, the creators of Lost In Play. What looks like a deceptively simple kids’ game is, in fact, a really entertaining point-and-click adventure with just the right amount of character and puzzles to solve. Given its affordable $20 price tag, it’s more than worth the investment if this game is your sort of thing.

Siblings On a Journey
The game follows a brother and sister duo as they visit a magical world, one filled with interesting creatures. But they can’t stay lost for too long, as they eventually need to find their way out in an effort to save what’s left of their imagination.
The situation sounds dire; but the fact of the matter is Lost In Play is absolutely charming to play. It’s an ideal game for all ages, with just the right amount of character interaction, storytelling and unique puzzles that are good for a challenge, but never to the point of being mind-numbing. HappyJuice strikes a balance here that’s absolutely astounding at times.
Instead of controlling a cursor on the screen, you instead control characters as they get around the world, interacting with items and others to get through a certain area. Then the next one comes along, with smooth interactivity that never disappoints. The puzzles are well designed too, and the hint system offers some assistance, but doesn’t give everything away like other games would.
In other words, it actually feels like something LucasArts might green-light of they still had a full-running studio. It fits right in with their charming mindset, and will keep fans of the point- click adventure genre grinning from ear to ear.

A Swell Looking and Sounding Game
Not to be outdone by its imaginative theme, Lost In Play also rewards players with some terrific visuals. The hand-drawn animations are a nice touch, and there’s a large variety of them to find, both with your main characters and secondary ones. The settings are cute and enjoyable too, with just the right amount of humor and not going overboard. This is a swell-looking game, no matter which format you want to play it on.
Likewise, there’s something about the audio that’s good fun too. It’s gibberish, probably along the lines of the Rayman games, but the right kind of gibberish, with good tones for each character. The music’s all right too, though I would’ve liked a few more epic scores. Ah well.
Finally, the game’s length is pretty good. It’ll take you a good five to six hours to get through the main quest, and then you can play through again to see what you missed. That’s a good, proper length for a game of this type, and you definitely get your money’s worth. That said, when (hopefully, not if) HappyJuice green-lights a sequel, we’ll see an adventure that’s a little bit longer.

Lost In a Happy Place
While Lost In Play may look a little kid-like for some, the journey it packs is a wallop. The gameplay is refreshing and fun to play, no matter what your skill set is; and the presentation is excellent for an indie title. I just hope we haven’t seen the last of this brother and sister duo, because they do the point-click genre proud. Even LucasArts vets are likely to have a field day with this one.