Crown and Pawns: Kingdom of Deceit Demo: Hardcore Pawn

Crown and Pawns: Kingdom of Deceit’s banners are more of a familiar face to me than my own estranged family. Not the ones I live with – I remember their names now. The protagonist, Milda, has been burned into my retinas, having followed this adventure for a while now. 

Thanks to Hitcents’ recent festival, The Big Adventure Event, a playable demo has been on offer.

Milda is from Chicago. She’s just found out from her Lithuanian grandfather that she’s the last guardian of a mysterious family secret. So she heads to Europe to find out what that secret is. That’s a continent, not a country. Each country is, surprisingly, very different.

Crown and Pawns: Kingdom of Deceit is the setup for just about every simulator out there, but for once, this is a point and click adventure and one that I’ve had my beady little eye on for some time.

The demo was a bit unusual (needy) in its approach. First of all, there was a disclaimer that this is only a demo and that you may not see everything here. That statement’s probably needed. Gamers are so demanding. Second, there’s a prominent wishlist link and subscribe button on the screen for the duration. Could we at least wait until the end, along with the usual ‘come chat to us on Discord’?

It’s a minor shame as I’d like to have spent the bulk of my time eyeballing the awesome visuals. The scenery is digitally painted, and Milda is 3D but doesn’t stand out like many of these games often do – almost as if they don’t belong. Well, it’s peachy here. Really, really nice.

Despite only just finding out that she’s the family guardian, Milda has some balls on her. So to speak. She gets her hands dirty by fiddling with the fuse box on the cottage she’s inherited, only to find out that the place has been raided. Does this place hold something holy, sacred – possibly even dirty magazines?

A phone call – well, walkie talkie moment, and it’s clear that some unsavoury types are pursuing her. Crown and Pawns: Kingdom of Deceit has the vibes of the Broken Sword series, and that really is a compliment. Though somewhat brief (it’s a demo!!), there was just enough to tease you with a cheeky little ‘add to wishlist’ action, regardless of how many times the reminder is there.

What I will say is Crown and Pawns: Kingdom of Deceit is on the easy side. A hotkey that highlights all interactive points is the norm now and entirely optional, but that’s not my beef. Anything worth engaging with has a slightly different icon to it. If it weren’t for the fact that I click on everything (including an apple that has no apparent use in the demo), I’d say it’s pretty straightforward what you have to do. But again: demo.

This is a good one, and I’d suggest checking it out if the demo is still up. At the very least, add it to your wishlist if you’re an adventure fan. Well, you’re reading this, so you must be. Unless you’re the devs, Tag of Joy, or publisher Thunderful and curious what the punters think. I love you guys. You don’t have to reciprocate.

Consider Crown and Pawns: Kingdom of Deceit for your next point and click journey. That is, when it’s out. There’s no firm release date just yet, though it does say ‘2022’.