Yule’s Christmas Quest — An A.P.P.L.E. Review

Product: Yule’s Christmas Quest.
Version : 1.1
Date : 2008/12/14
Publisher: Candlestone Productions
Website : http://www.candlestoneproductions.com
Category : Mac Intel / Game / New Release
Cost : Free

About The Program :
Candlestone Productions has released a nifty little Christmas game / adventure game which is directed primarily at kids. Yule’s Christmas Quest is a freeware package that focuses on the idea of finding all of the gifts from the twelve days of Christmas. Santa apparently forgets where he puts things and it is up to you to help Santa’s helper puppy, Yule, find the gifts so that they can be delivered. The program is available for both PPC based Macs as well as the Intel machines.

User Experience :
The game comes in a zip file and unpacks to a single file, making it easily transported around your machine. The lightweight 6.5 mb program is refreshing since most programs these days take far more drive space and accomplish far less. But then you are up and running in two minutes. Perfect instant entertainment installation.Game PlayThe controls off the game are run by moving yule around the screen collecting the different items on the screen. There are blue bears that will run into Yule and send him back to the point he started in the current screen. The timer also must be renewed with the clock icons around the game board. As each item is collected, there is a counter beside the particular item that will increase. Once all items of a particular item are found, the item becomes highlighted.

Positive Aspects :
This game is particularly attuned to children and the style it uses will be pleasing to almost anyone of any age. The fact that the game is simple enough but has just enough of a challenge with the little blue bears and the timer, means children will continue to enjoy it for many hours.I even found myself enjoying the program in the fact that it uses a scene that is setup quite like the 1990’s quest style games but with all the advancements that we have today.

Negative Aspects :
Initial versions of the game had a few minor issues such as abrupt screen changes and endings, however, the author corrected these issues in a subsequent release after reading my initial review and comments on the game.The only points that are still a sticking points are an abrupt change to the winner screen once you get the last item and the music not changing when you win or lose the game. Based on previous response of the author I am sure the author has been working on that issue as well.
Summary :

Overall, this is a game that will be around for a while. It is fun, enjoyable and definitely fits in with the true spirit of the holiday season. While it will most likely not be all that fun for adults, I am sure that the kids will enjoy it. It is a bit of fun for the family and well worth the time checking it out.

Rating : 4 OF 5 APPLES

Platform 1 : Intel Mac OS X Version
Download 1 : http://www.candlestoneproductions.com/YuleIntel.zip

Platform 2 : PPC Based Version
Download 2 : http://www.candlestoneproductions.com/YulePPC.zip

Author: Bill Martens
A.P.P.L.E. Chairman of the Board and Club president -- Bill worked for the founder, Val J. Golding and A.P.P.L.E. from 1981 to 1982. In 1999, he began archiving the materials which were distributed and sold by A.P.P.L.E.. That project led to the group that remained of A.P.P.L.E. Bill was involved in the financial industry in Tokyo and has over 20 major office infrastructure projects to his name. In March 2001, he retired to write books and to spend more time pursuing personal interests. As the president of the users group, Bill is in charge of distribution of Call-A.P.P.L.E. magazine as well as the organization of this web site. Bill currently resides in Tokyo, Japan and Shelton, Wa splitting time between the places.