In the mood for more beach-themed Virtual Villagers-style simulation gaming? Escape from Paradise 2: A Kingdom's Quest is now available, and it delivers exactly what its predecessor did and quite a bit more. Instead of straightforward village management, Escape from Paradise 2 blends in mini-games to break up the action, and combined with a little hidden object finding and character stat upgrading, you have a game that will quickly sink its hooks in you.
Being shipwrecked isn't an easy life, even when you're on an island named Paradise. The first game was all about earning your freedom and sailing off into the sunset. As the second game reveals, however, the hero of Escape from Paradise wasn't so keen on leaving and decided to make this place his home. But the Great Chief of the local people was a suspicious and jealous man, and he banished our hero to the outskirts of the kingdom.
Depending on your character's chosen gender, you are immediately joined by Prince or Princess Perusah on the island. Their advice is to rise to the level of chieftain by helping the local tiki tribe build huts, wells, and other structures. As you fix up parts of the island, you earn the loyalty of more and more natives, slowly building your following as you go. The game plays out in a linear manner with challenges opening up each time you complete certain tasks. Sometimes all you need to do is build a few huts to gain access to a new part of the island. Other times you'll have a multi-step puzzle to solve. An inventory bar allows you to grab, store, combine and use certain items you find laying on the sand.
Escape from Paradise 2 is more than hut building, of course. Each member of your tribe has four stats you must tend to: thirst, hunger, social, and sleep. It's easy to drop a worker off by the well for a drink to raise the water meter, even though you won't want to take him or her off the job. You also have stats you can upgrade which, in turn, increase each character's speed at three basic tasks: cutting wood, gathering food, and building.
Mini-games play an important role in your success in Escape from Paradise 2. You earn food, wood and skill points by playing them, and they range from simple matching games to card games and more. There's also a strong hidden object theme in the main part of the game, as you'll catch a glimpse of several items while surveying the island. Click on them and see what happens!
Analysis: Escape from Paradise 2 takes another great stride away from Virtual Villagers convention, setting itself apart from the best-known casual village sim even more than the original Escape from Paradise. In doing so, it edges closer to Totem Tribe and its mixed-genre structure, which certainly isn't a bad thing.
Unlocking new challenges was my favorite part of the game, and each time something new became available my eyes lit up with excitement. The little mysteries scattered throughout the island — cracked stones, birds, gems, bumps in the ground, etc. — slowly become useful. I love that kind of progression in a game, and Escape from Paradise 2 handles it well.
One fault that continued to bother me while playing Escape from Paradise 2 was a lack of background tasking. The game requires a lot of waiting, such as waiting for wood to be gathered, waiting for huts to be built, waiting for characters to sleep so they'll work again, etc. You can disable auto-pause under the options menu, allowing the game to run in the background, but when you come back, the map will have moved because the game still tracks your mouse movement, even when minimized. The only aural clue you receive is a beep when you run out of food or wood, so if you don't check back frequently, you might return to see villagers dawdling or almost starving to death. You can always hunt the sands for hidden items or play mini-games with the monkey while everyone gets their chores done, but sometimes I'm more task-oriented and want to be productive!
More than just a village sim, Escape from Paradise 2: A Kingdom's Quest is a complete casual gaming package. It's got object finding, it's got puzzles, it's got over a dozen mini-games, and, oh yeah, there's some simulation stuff in there, too. Everything is balanced to keenly that no one aspect drowns out the other, leaving you free to enjoy every minute of game time.
Windows:
Download the demo
Get the full version
Mac OS X:
Download the demo
Get the full version
Walkthrough Guide
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Escape From Paradise 2: A Kingdom's Quest Walkthrough
General Information
The walkthrough is broken down into four sections representing the 4 main areas of the game: Shipwreck Island (the beginning), West Main Island, East Main Island, and Mist Island. Each section will have three parts: Tasks to be completed, objects to find, and minigames.
Each task will be given to you by a person who has an exclamation point (!) above their head. If they are not in your immediate vicinity a circle with an exclamation point will appear on the screen with an arrow pointing you in the correct direction. Find the person and talk to them. There are 22 main tasks in the game.
Keep the monkey with you at all times as you move about the screen. Almost all of the objects you are looking for are invisible until Taz the monkey is standing nearby. Taz is also the only one who can catch the birds and the fish needed to complete the game.
Search any new area with Taz before moving your population in. It's easier to find the objects without the clutter of people, huts, storage areas, etc.
Play the mini-games after you have set your people to the current task. Time passes in the game while you are playing the mini-game, so don't let your people sit around idle.
Two of the mini-games, the match 3 game on Shipwreck Island and the garden game on West Main Island are very long. They consist of three levels, each level having ten games. Make sure you check on your people after every two or three games to make sure they are staying on task, have enough food, water, etc.
Tikis and jewels do not remain in your inventory; they immediately get placed in a temple structure on Shipwreck Island.
Advice on catching birds: the birds fly in a triangular pattern, two unreachable places and one place where they can be caught. When you see a bird flying by follow its path to see where it lands on the ground, it will repeat the cycle over and over. Once you know where its landing place is you can place Taz there and wait for the bird to capture it. You will not be able to complete the bird collection until you have made it to East Main Island and solved a puzzle there.
Advice on catching fish: watch the water closely; you will see the fish swimming in the same spots. Once you have established where the spot is wait with Taz for the fish to appear.
Advice on collecting fossils: fossils are buried in the "cracks" in the earth that appear in West Main Island, East Main Island, and Mist Island. They cannot be dug up until the Museum is completed. You will find eight "cracks" on West Main Island, seven "cracks" on East Main Island, and three "cracks" on Mist Island to complete the collection.
All other items: look closely in the water, behind trees and huts, and in the tops of trees. Some items are very hard to spot.
Moving people: you can click, hold, and drag a person to the place or task you wish them to perform. You can also click on the person and then right click on their destination, which is easier. A symbol will appear to show what task they will perform when they arrive. A nice feature is the ability to select multiple people at once. Click on the screen and drag a square around the group of people you would like to move. Once they are all selected, right click on their destination. Once your population gets larger this will make it easier to move large groups to new tasks/destinations.
Skill levels: you can tell a person's skill level by hovering the mouse pointer over them; it will show their skill levels on all three subjects, carpentry, wood cutting, and food gathering. However all masked islanders earn feathers in their masks for each level they go up, green for wood chopping, red for carpentry, and blue for food gathering. Just looking at their mask can tell you what skill level they are on.
Skill levels: you earn skill points in all of the mini-games, and earn an additional 250 skill points upon the completion of each task. Use the points wisely, you will need at least four people who are maxed out on all three levels to get to your final destination, Mist Island.
Here is a list of multiple items you will be searching for:
Jewels (20)
Tikis (10)
Skulls (10)
Birds (10)
Fish (12)
Fossils (18)
Coins (10)
Playing cards (4)
Wooden boards (3)
Stone Symbols (3)
Rocks (2)
Ink (3 different colors)
Here is a list of single items you will be searching for:
Pick handle
Pick blade
TNT
Cauldron
Mushroom
Scythe handle
Scythe blade
Part I Shipwreck Island
Tasks
Task 1: Chop 10 pieces of wood. Simply select your characters and drag them to the nearest tree (not the banana tree) and they will start chopping. Reward: hammer (carpentry skill).
Task 2: Check out the crate. Opens a quick 5 level mini-game. Reward: Taz the monkey. Immediately search with Taz to find invisible objects on the island.
Task 3: Finish building monkey hut. Select one character to work on the monkey hut and one to collect wood. Reward: shovel (ability to dig). Immediately move to the faint X between the banana tree and the palm tree at the bottom of the island and start digging.
Task 4: Build a well. Don't forget to have one character collecting wood while the other builds. Reward: snorkel (allows access to the shipwreck Hidden Object mini-game). Upon the completion of this task a mysterious sandstorm will sweep up and partially uncover an enormous temple on the East side of the island.
Task 5: Get to the other island. Assemble the pick from the pieces you picked up and use it on one of the boulders. If it is the correct boulder a rainbow circle will show up. Taz will also point at the correct boulders. Once the boulder is broken pick up the piece of rock. Use the TNT on another boulder and pick up the resulting rock fragment. Place the rock fragments onto the sunken rocks just to the left of the Match 3 mini-game. Walk your people (and Taz) over to West Main Island to find your next task. Reward: unlocks round 2 of the Match 3 mini-game.
Items
Pick handle - just to the right of the Match 3 mini-game. To the left of the game is one of the two boulders you will later break. screenshot
Pick head - between the sunken ship and the palm tree just above it. screenshot
Jewel - at the base of the palm tree closest to the Tiki/jewel collection platform on the bottom right of the island. This is also where you will find the second boulder to be broken and the X to dig for the TNT. screenshot
Mini-games
To open the crate there is a simple game of "stop the ball" with five levels.
Tiki Match is a match 3 game at the north of the island with three levels of ten games each level. In the beginning only level one will be open to play. Completing levels one and two will get you skill points as well as extra wood and food. Level three will get you a tiki.
The Sunken Ship is one of five Hidden Object mini-games. All Hidden Object mini-games have two levels, level one with three games and level two with two games. Only level one will be open to play in the beginning. The reward for completing Hidden Object mini-games is skill points. Once all five games are completed on all levels you will receive a tiki.
Part II West Main Island
Tasks
Task 6: Expand to five huts. Set two people to collecting wood and one person to building, and keep building huts until you have a total of five (including the one back on Shipwreck Island). This can take a while so either explore the island with Taz or go back and play mini-games. By this point you should also detail someone to collect food so your people don't starve. Reward: Monkey net. Taz can now collect birds that are on the ground.
Task 7: Complete the Plant Store. Just drag a carpenter over to the store to work on it and don't forget to have at least one person chopping wood. Reward: Five free plants.
Task 8: Complete the Aquarium. Just drag a carpenter or two over to the Aquarium to finish building it. Reward: Fishing pole. This allows your food gatherers to fish and allows Taz to collect fish for the Aquarium.
Task 9: Expand to eight huts. Build three more huts. Reward: Food Storage. This allows you to store a larger amount of food.
Task 10: Build a food storage hut. Once you've built the hut remember to have people collect enough food to fill it. Reward: Opens round 2 for all Hidden Object games.
Task 11: Expand to twelve huts. Build four more huts. Reward: Wood Storage. This allows you to store a larger amount of wood.
Task 12: Build a wood storage hut. Once you've built the hut remember to have people collect enough wood to fill it. Reward: A tiki.
Task 13: Complete the Museum. Reward: Opens round two of the Garden mini-game.
Task 14: Expand to fifteen huts. Build three more huts. Reward: Skull.
Task 15: Return the skulls to their rightful places. By this time you should have collected all ten skulls and three different colored inks. At the north end of the island close to the giant statue and waterfall that divides it you will see a large skull carved in the cliff. Each eye-socket has a place for five skulls. Place five skulls in the left eye-socket. In the right eye-socket you need two plain skulls and one each of red, green, and blue. Dye three of the skulls in your inventory using the colored inks. Once all skulls are properly placed one of the statue feet will raise and allow you access to East Main Island. Also, the partially covered temple will be completely uncovered. Reward: 2500 skill points.
Items
Just as you cross to the island next to the aviary (a plaza with a stylized bird carved in it) you will find a jewel, a skull, and a playing card. screenshot
Just north of the aviary you will find the cauldron, a skull, and another of the Hidden object mini-games. screenshot
Further east of the aviary, just above a man in a strange smiling mask there is a group of three palm trees. You will find the blue ink below the palm tree furthest to the right. screenshot
Below the man in the smiling mask you will find a skull in the water. screenshot
East just past the palm trees is a horsehoe-shaped alcove of palm trees with a stone tiki and an unfinished building. There you will find a playing card, a jewel (in the mouth of the tiki), and a skull. This tiki is also the site of another Hidden Object Game. screenshot
North of the horsehoe palm tree formation is another unfinished building. There you will find two skulls and a playing card. screenshot
Just north of the building hidden by a boulder you will find a tiki and a scythe handle. In the screenshot, the skull is the same one shown in the previous screenshot. screenshot
Just north of the aviary and the mini-game you will find the red ink and two more jewels, one in the water. screenshot
Travelling further north from the aviary you will find the scythe blade and a jewel. The dark brown patch of ground is the Garden mini-game. screenshot
As far north as you can go you will find the skull carving in the cliff. In that area there is a tiki on one of the tree trunks, a jewel just below the hut, and a jewel in the nose of the giant skull. Note the fire between the hut and the statue foot. That is where you will place the mushroom soup to get another skull. screenshot screenshot
Just east of the giant skull, between the giant feet you will find a skull and a mushroom at the base of the waterfall, and the green ink in the waterfall about halfway up. screenshot
If you move Taz as close as he can go to the giant foot on the right, you will find a jewel in the cliff. screenshot
North and east of the two unfinished buildings is a third unfinished building and a palm tree with a grassy area underneath. Assemble the scythe handle and blade and use the finished scythe to cut the grass. There is a skull hidden by the grass. screenshot
Don't forget to dig up the fossils, which can be found in the "cracks" in the land. There are eight fossils in this section.
Mini-Games
Tree Root Hidden Object mini-game.
Tiki Mouth Hidden Object mini-game.
Garden mini-game. This is a time-management game consisting of three levels, ten games each level. The object is to grow fruits and vegetables to sell while keeping the plants watered and bugs from eating them. Finishing each level will gain you skill points and extra food. Finishing level three will get you a tiki.
Card mini-game. The man in the smiling mask standing next to a strange symbol in the sand has lost his cards. Give him the four cards you have collected and you will unlock this solitaire-style mini-game with six levels. When you complete all six levels you will receive a jewel.
Part III East Main Island
Tasks
Before you begin your tasks notice the three strange symbols in the sand as you cross over to East Main Island. There is a hammer, an axe, and a fish. Place a villager who is level three in the particular skill represented by the symbol and it will glow blue. Each symbol will give you one jewel if you place the correctly skilled villager on it. screenshot
Task 16: Plant ten flowers. Go to the completed flower store on West Main Island and buy 10 flowers to plant. The first five flowers are free, the rest will cost you 50 pieces of wood for each flower. You can plant the flowers anywhere. Reward: Opens round three of the Match 3 mini-game.
Task 17: Accumulate 2500 wood reserve. Build several more wood storage huts and fill them up until you reach 2500. Reward: Opens round three of the Garden mini-game.
Task 18: Accumulate 2500 food reserve. Build several more food storage huts and fill them until you reach 2500. Reward: You receive a jewel.
Task 19: Expand to 25 huts. Build enough huts to bring your total to 25. Reward: 5000 skill points. At the end of the task you will also be given advice on how to clear the fog. Locate the four strange symbols in the sand. One is north by the Tiki in the water, one is behind and south of the temple, the other two are at the southern end of the island near the mist. Move someone who has maxed out at level three on all skills to each symbol. The symbol will glow blue. When all four symbols are occupied the mist will clear and you can move on to Mist Island.
Objects
Just to the right of the giant foot, near the water, you will find a coin and a jewel. screenshot
Traveling south, across the narrow stream from the museum, you will find a coin in the top of a palm tree. screenshot
Traveling further south, near one of the four mysterious sand symbols, you will find a coin in the sand and a stone symbol near a palm tree. screenshot
South at the mist barrier near another sand symbol you will find a jewel at the base of a palm tree. screenshot
North of the temple you will see a bridge leading to a tiki in the water. There you will find a coin at the base of the bridge and the Sudoku mini-puzzle. screenshot
South of the temple near one of the sand symbols you will find a coin in the undergrowth and one at the base of a palm tree. screenshot screenshot
Further south of the temple where the water narrows you will find a board (on the west side) and a jewel (on the east side), both at the base of palm trees. screenshot
There are seven "cracks" to dig for fossils.
Mini-Games
Sudoku. Located east of the Tiki in the water, this mini-game has one level. The reward is skill points.
Part IV Mist Island
Tasks
Task 20: Build two huts and a well on the island. Reward: A tiki.
Task 21: Expand your village to 30 huts. Reward: A jewel.
Task 22: Find remaining tikis and jewels. To accomplish this you must complete all mini-games and all collections. There is a stone tiki with an open mouth on the east side of Mist Island. Feed the tiki all ten coins you have collected to receive a jewel. Take the three wood planks north to the tiki in the water and use them to complete the bridge. This is necessary to catch one elusive bird for the collection who only rests out on the tiki. When all ten birds have been collected you will receive a tiki. When all twelve fish have been collected you will receive a tiki. Dig in the three "cracks" on Mist Island to get the last three fossils. When the fossil collection is complete you will receive a tiki. Once all 10 tikis and all 20 jewels are in place, the end will play.
Objects
Just above the coin tiki you will find a plank under a palm tree and a jewel in the water. screenshot
Just to the left of the old man you will find a coin in the top of a palm tree and a stone symbol at the base of another. screenshot
To the right of the old man you will find a coin and a plank at the base of a palm tree and a coin in the water. screenshot
Below the coin tiki you will find a coin at the base of one palm tree and a stone symbol at the base of another. screenshot
There are three "cracks" to dig for fossils. This should complete your fossil collection.
Mini-Games
There are no mini-games on Mist Island, but you cannot unlock the last two games until you have visited the island. Go back to East Main Island to the temple. To the right of the temple stairs you will see a symbol carved into the stone that appears to be missing pieces. Place the three stone symbol pieces you have picked up into the symbol. This unlocks a mini-game right below the symbol and another on the steps of the Temple. Both are Hidden Object mini-games. screenshot
Posted by: grinnyp | June 16, 2009 12:20 AM