Point-and-click puzzles are some of the most popular games featured here at JIG, and nobody does these types of games better than Tom Vencel for NinjaDoodle. Now he's back with the third installment of the popular ClickPLAY series, imaginatively titled... ClickPLAY 3. Like before, in each level, all you must do is click the Play button. And again, like before, that triangular button will be quite hidden, and uncovering it requires a hugely entertaining number of clicks.
The game is controlled entirely with the mouse. As said above, your goal is to discover the Play button and click it to move through each of twenty four levels. To do this, you must solve a little puzzle, explore a little environment, manipulate an environment a little, or just do a little clicking. Each level has an internal logic to itself that requires a quite satisfying "Eureka!" moment to beat. Some of them are straight puzzles, some require a little more physics action, and some just require fast mouse fingers. Your score is judged by how many times you click the mouse, but really, it's fun just to click and play.
The highlights of the previous installments of ClickPLAY series have been the jazzy music, the interesting monochromatic aesthetics and the cleverness of the puzzle. ClickPLAY 3 continues that trend on all counts. The piano-heavy background song might be my favorite accompaniment in the series so far. It's extremely bouncy and drips with cool. The fast-paced tune might not be quite appropriate for all of the screens (such as the patience-requiring fishing level), but who cares when it sounds so good? The visuals do feel a little darker this time around, or, at the very least, have a starker contrast in its use of black of white. I think it's a change for the better, like removing the grain from a remastered silent film.
Play all the ClickPLAY games:
Of course, the puzzles are the main focus and remain varied and high-quality, with only one or two real head-scratchers. Some of them do have a little cruder content than in the games that came before, and while far from offensive, it does feel a little incongruent with the tone the series has set so far. Also the physics-based levels feel a little wonky in the controls, especially the last level "Fling it!". It's nothing terrible, but it did force me to waste a lot of clicks on comparatively few levels. This made me think it might have been better for the game to judge performance by a timer instead.
That said, if you're not one to obsess with achieving a perfect, ClickPlay 3 is a short but sweet experience. It may only be long enough for a coffee break, but I promise you: that break will be a happy one.
Walkthrough Guide
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Click Play 3 Walkthrough
Scene 1 (Oh Mona)
Just click on the picture and it will fall, revealing the play arrow. Then click on the play arrow to proceed. (2 clicks)
Scene 2 (Drink Up)
Click on the straw and hold until the liquid drops, revealing the arrow. (2 clicks)
Scene 3 (Balloon Party)
Click on the tack holding the note to the wall. The tack will fall down.
Click on the fallen tack and hold, then drag to the balloons and pop them.
Click on the revealed play arrow. (3 clicks)
Scene 4 (Party Pooper)
Click on the cereal and drag it to the monster's mouth. He will eat it.
Click on the milk and drag it to the monster's mouth. He will drink it.
The monster will...expel the play arrow.
Click on the monster and drag him to the left to reveal the arrow.
Click on the arrow. (4 clicks)
Scene 5 (Round N')
Click and drag each windmill's vane in a clockwise direction to set them spinning (all three, even the one in the background).
When all three are spinning a light will go on in the house.
Click on the roof of the house and drag upwards to reveal the arrow.
Click on the arrow. (5 clicks)
Scene 6 (Screwed Up)
Click on the bulb in the ceiling fixture and hold as it unscrews. Keep holding until it drops out of the picture.
Click on the happy bulb and drag it to the fixture.
Click on the arrow. (3 clicks)
Scene 7 (Sunny Day)
Click on each white petal of the flower until they are all gone.
Click on the revealed arrow. (17 clicks)
Scene 8 (Mazed In)
The object is to get the ball out of the maze.
Click and drag the maze around by the corners, turning until the ball travels the path out of the maze. This will require you turning the maze around a few times.
Grab the maze by the lower left corner and DON'T LET GO. You should be able to manipulate the maze without having to click a second time.
When the ball falls out it becomes the arrow.
Click on the arrow. (2 clicks, but your mileage may vary)
Scene 9 (Hole in The)
Watch closely, the holes around the center will be numbered when you first enter the scene, but they will fade fast.
You need to click the holes in the number order, from 1 to 6.
If you mess up, new numbers will appear in a new sequence and you can try again.
When they are clicked in the correct order the arrow will appear in the center.
Click on the arrow. (7 clicks if you have a good memory)
Scene 10 (Paint Ball)
There are 11 balloons filled with paint on the circle, with a gun sight circling around the outer rim.
Click when the sight is on a balloon and it will burst and spread white paint.
When the 8 outer balloons are popped the sight will travel to the center 3 balloons.
Again click when it hits a balloon and the paint will form the arrow.
Click on the arrow. (12 clicks if you have good reflexes)
Scene 11 (Voodoo)
Along the top of the screen are four symbols that you will find on the voodoo doll.
Click and drag the pins to the places on the doll, then release when an X marks the spot.
The four places are the heart, the two eyes, and the body.
The head of the doll will fall off and the arrow will then appear. Click on it. (5 clicks)
Scene 12 (In the Bin)
The arrow is in four pieces on either side of a metal bar.
You need to click and drag each piece into place, making sure that they are rotated correctly, to form the arrow.
The easiest way to manipulate them is to pick them up either by the very top or bottom,
Once the arrow forms click on it. (5 clicks if you have good coordination)
Screenshot.
Scene 13 (Magic Touch)
Click and drag each star into the top hat.
Click on the wand to make it move.
When the rabbit ears appear in the hat, click and drag them upwards to reveal the arrow.
Click on the arrow. (6 clicks)
Scene 14 (Balls Away)
The object is to click on pairs of identical balls, making them disappear.
Look closely at the placement of the eyes and the smiles and make sure that the balls are identical, mis-clicks will put you back at the beginning.
When all of the balls are gone the arrow will appear.
Click on the arrow. (13 clicks presuming no mistakes)
Scene 15 (Breedathon)
Click on one of the balls and hold it, moving it over to hit the other.
Each time they hit a small ball will appear.
Keep hitting until the floor is covered with the small balls. One of the balls after that will be the arrow.
Click on the arrow. (2 clicks, presuming you have a good hold on the first ball and don't drop it)
Scene 16 (Stack Em)
Click on the top left of the pipe and a bunch of squares will fall down.
The object is to stack them in the right side of the pipe until enough have fallen down to reveal the arrow.
The easiest way is to drag the first square all the way to the right.
Grab a second square and drag it to the right. Grab the first one and toss it upwards, then drag the second one underneath.
Keep stacking until they reach the top of the right pipe. Keep grabbing and dragging squares to the right until the arrow appears.
Click the arrow. (22 clicks, your mileage may vary widely)
Scene 17 (Arrow)
This is an arrow maze. Arrows with a single line mean to move in that direction once. Arrows with double lines mean to move in that direction twice.
Figure out the first arrow, then click on it. Move to the next arrow in the sequence, then click on that.
Eventually you will get to the question mark arrow in the center, which will become the play arrow.
The solution to this is different each time you play! The screenshot shown here is just an example so you can see how it is done.
Click the arrow. (16 clicks if you start in the right place)
Screenshot.
Scene 18 (Who Nose?)
The object is to make the nose of each central figure a shade between the two figures behind it.
Upper left click on the nose once.
Lower left click on the nose three times.
Upper right click on the nose twice.
Lower right click on the nose four times.
When you get the shades correct, the arrow will appear.
Click on the arrow. (11 clicks)
Scene 19 (In the Dark)
You can only see a bit of the scene at a time, highlighted by the circle controlled by your cursor.
Sweep the area and you will find four buttons, upper left, lower left, upper right, and lower right.
To the right and above the button on the upper right you will see a drawing of a rectangle with a white dot in the lower left.
There are four rectangles around the outsides of the buttons. Each one shows what a button should be set at.
The buttons should be set as follows: upper left vertical line (up and down line, three clicks); upper right black (two clicks); lower right horizontal line (side to side line, it should already be on that setting); and lower left white (one click).
When the buttons are set correctly the question mark in the center becomes the arrow.
Click on the arrow. (7 clicks)
Scene 20 (Good Luck)
The object is to move the truck to the right of the scene without dropping any of the boxes.
However, there is a countdown, you only have 7 seconds.
Click and hold to make the truck move, but if it moves too fast the boxes will drop off and you will have to restart.
Click and release a couple of times to get the truck all the way to the right and out of the scene.
The truck will come back with the arrow. Click on the arrow. (mileage may vary widely, I managed it in 4 or 5 clicks)
Scene 21 (Gnomies)
Thanks to JiG reader Slanzinger for the tip!
Mouse over each gnome in turn.
The gnome will blink between 1 and 7 times - note down how many times each blinks.
Click on the gnomes in order of increasing numbers of blinks.
The gnomes will disappear as you click them; once all gnomes are gone the play arrow will appear.
Click on the arrow.
7 clicks if you pick out the sequence correctly.
Scene 22 (Alpha Doors)
There are four doors here, each with a series of pictures behind them.
The pictures are a pear, an apple, a ladder, and a ying-yang symbol.
The object is to make the pictures spell out "play" with their first letters.
Click to open a door and a symbol will appear. Click to close the door. Click to open the door and another symbol will appear.
The first door should be a pear (7 clicks until a pear appears in the open door).
The second door should be a ladder (3 clicks).
The third door should be an apple (1 click).
The fourth door should be a ying-yang symbol (5 clicks).
Once "play" is spelled out you will automatically go to the next scene. (16 clicks in all).
Scene 23 (Big Bite)
The little guy is fishing.
Watch his rod. It will dip a little as he gets a nibble.
Wait until it dips deeply (about the third time in the sequence) then click and he will bring up the arrow.
Click on the arrow quickly. (2 clicks if you have good reflexes)
Scene 24 (Fling It!)
The object is to get rid of all of the boxes at the right of the screen.
The pipe on the left will dispense bombs, but they will explode the minute they hit the floor.
The platform below the pipe is a lever, you can click and drag it at either end.
Click on the pipe to drop a bomb and quickly click and drag the right side of the lever to toss the bomb to the right.
When all of the boxes are gone the arrow will appear.
Click on the arrow. (Around 30 to 50 clicks depending on your coordination).
Posted by: grinnyp
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January 14, 2011 1:47 AM