Kaptain Brawe: A Brawe New World iPad Game Review

Gear Diary is independently owned and operated. We receive compensation through advertising and from the companies whose products we review, usually in the form of the reviewed product. We test the products supplied to us, and the opinions expressed are our own.

Gear Diary is also reader-supported. When you buy through links posted on our site, we may earn a commission at no cost to you. You can learn more by clicking here.

From the moment I started playing Kaptain Brawe I felt as though I was transported back in time to the days of the classic LucasArts adventures such as Sam & Max and Grim Fandango … but with excellent graphics and great touch controls! Let’s take a look!

The Hype:
Step into this whimsical point-and-click interstellar adventure and see what it takes to be a real Space Police officer! In this alternate reality, get ready to embark on a journey filled with quests, conspiracies and general chaos. You will have to step into the shoes of the brave Kaptain Brawe and follow the trail of two kidnapped alien scientists. Explore four colorful and mysterious planets while meeting intriguing and unique characters. Become a part of this hilarious story and reveal the great Space Age conspiracy in Kaptain Brawe: A Brawe New World.
? 4 Colorful settings
? Over 40 exciting locations
? 3 Different characters: Brawe, Luna and Danny
? 2 Game-play modes: Hard-Core and Casual
? Meet the space pirates, Interstellar government, secret agents and more
? Game Center Support
? iPhone 4 Retina Display support
? iOS 4+ multitasking support

The Reality:
One thing that made those classic adventures so beloved was not that they had a great sense of humor, but that they had great humor in service of excellent stories and well thought out gameplay. TellTale games has done a great job of bringing much of that feeling to their recent games in the adventure genre (if you haven’t played the Monkey Island or Back to the Future games on the iPad you should).

And it is the way that Kaptain Brawe takes this same approach – build a great interactive story, make sure the characters, controls and gameplay are solid, and THEN work through all of the humorous quips – that makes it so enjoyable.

The title character plays the key role in the game, and you quickly learn that in spite of being the ‘Kaptain’, he isn’t the smartest guy around. In fact, his first officer says they could use a ‘Captain with a C’ on board the ship. The ship serves as an introductory area, which is a great way to get you involved in the story and familiar with the gameplay and puzzles without feeling like a tutorial.

Once you finally get the ship moving and land, things really start to open up! You begin fumbling your way around, but seen enough Brawe is involved in a interstellar conspiracy that will take you to tons of different places, with different characteristics, people to meet with puzzles to solve and silliness abounding!

Although Brawe is the central character, as you proceed you will discover companions you can switch to, including RowBoat a robot you reactivate early on. You get to see Luna, another companion, in pictures on the ship before meeting the enigmatic character.

Every new area is loaded up with puzzles, and this is the one caveat I would make: some of the puzzles are more challenging tha you would be used to in a current casual adventure. Here is an example: you discover RowBoat, but need a manual to figure out how to reactivate him. Once you find the manual, you discover it is in French. Fortunately there is an on-board translator – but you rewired the power to get a hot shower. So you need to restore power to the translator … but even then you need a special language disk to get the system to work.

There are even a few more steps before you are finally ready to reactivate RowBoat … and that is a fairly standard puzzle for the game! My point is that if you loved the challenge of older adventure games, you will definitely enjoy this one!

In terms of graphics and sound, Kaptain Brawe is very well done – it looks thouroughly modern yet evokes the classics at the same time. I never had an issue with being able to figure out what something was (definitely a problem with some of the low-res classics), and the music went along perfectly with the game.

But even if you are unsure, the great thing is that the game is a free download with in-app purchase. This allows you the chance to check it out before buying. Though honestly at the prices for the iPhone and iPad games this is a great deal!

I expected Kaptain Brawe to be a fun little adventure – but I was surprised that it was such a truly great game that took cues from classic adventures yet didn’t just replicate those games, instead heading in its own direction and thereby feeling current. It is one of the better games I have played lately – and I have been thrilled with the quality of recent releases!

Here is the trailer for Kaptain Brawe: A Brawe New World:

Review: Kaptain Brawe: A Brawe New World

Where to Buy: iTunes App Store for the iPhone and iPad

Price: Free with full-game unlock via in-app purchase: $4.99 iPhone / $6.99 iPad

What I Like: Loads of humor; challenging puzzles; solid graphics; plenty of locations to explore

What Needs Improvement: Even ‘casual’ mode is harder than most current adventure games!

Source: Publisher provided review code

As an Amazon Associate, we earn from qualifying purchases. Thanks for your support!

About the Author

Michael Anderson
I have loved technology for as long as I can remember - and have been a computer gamer since the PDP-10! Mobile Technology has played a major role in my life - I have used an electronic companion since the HP95LX more than 20 years ago, and have been a 'Laptop First' person since my Compaq LTE Lite 3/20 and Powerbook 170 back in 1991! As an avid gamer and gadget-junkie I was constantly asked for my opinions on new technology, which led to writing small blurbs ... and eventually becoming a reviewer many years ago. My family is my biggest priority in life, and they alternate between loving and tolerating my gaming and gadget hobbies ... but ultimately benefits from the addition of technology to our lives!