I've played a lot of hidden object games, and Dorian Gray Syndrome is one of the better examples of the genre. The story starts us with a young journalist, Sam Wilde, hot off an article detailing the disappearances of numerous "beautiful" people in the area. Heading out to meet his lady love for a date, he arrives at the rendezvous only to discover a note beckoning him to the home of the man behind the kidnappings. If if he wishes to see his beloved Anna again he is to come alone. Sam must now travel to Goldvale Manor to confront the demented and insane Oscar and rescue his love. Ok, so the story is pretty cliché and hokey, but I have played many a game with worse premises than this. Where Dorian Gray excels is in the gorgeously detailed artwork and locations, great atmosphere and enjoyable "adventure-lite" game play.

I must reiterate how beautiful and imaginative the artwork is in this game. Each hand-drawn area features intricate detail that in a way feels almost life-like. Even the character models are nicely rendered and don't come off as stiff and awkward as they do in other games. A toggleable film grain filter finishes everything off with a gritty look. Discovering the many locations and enjoying the art is reason enough to play the game.

Adventure-lite is the best way to explain the game play. Most of the objectives and puzzles aren't too difficult to figure out, but a few may have you backtracking and running in circles for a bit. A large number of items will find their way into your inventory, many of which may not have an obvious use or be used for quite awhile; this is something I quite enjoy in standard adventure games and don't see too often in these.

Of course, there are a handful of hidden object scenes sprinkled throughout the mansion, all nicely drawn without much clutter. The items make sense for the location and time period, something so many games fail to do. There aren't too many, but the ones present are neither frustrating nor too easy, just a pleasant diversion (if you don't mind them) as you make your way through the game.

Unlike similar HOG's, I spent a good 8 hours playing through the entire story, including bonus chapter. Part of that may have been me taking time to enjoy the art and atmosphere. Playing on Expert with no hints and minimal strategy guide usage helped extend my play time as well. But the scope of the game itself feels much bigger than most and I feel like I really got my money's worth, especially since I'll be playing this one time and again.

A few things that bothered me included puzzles that are far too easy, many of which require very little thought and are often repetitive tasks once you figure out the method. The voice acting can be a tad melodramatic, but is admittedly better than other casual games. And Oscar tends to show up/be heard a bit too much which often pulled me out of my "adventure gamer" mode, but this is a personal gripe and others may have no problem with it. Other than those few complaints, the game shines.

Brink of Consciousness: Dorian Gray Syndrome may not be the perfect HOG, but what it does right it does really right. If you are a HOG aficionado, make sure to pick this one up. As a rule, I generally don't recommend these games at anything above the $7-$8 price range, but even if you shell out the full $10, I feel you'll get your money's worth considering game length, bonus chapter and extras (soundtrack, concept art, etc.).

A psychological thriller about a mysterious disappearing of young people. A journalist named Same Wilde wrote about this case and discovered that the person who's been kidnapping those people only targeting the beautiful young ones. This article irritated the maniac who in result kidnapped the journalist fiance. Sam then realized his biggest mistake is using his real name when he wrote the article, this made it very easy for the kidnapper to target him. Coming to Goldvale Manor was the instruction the kidnapper left for Sam along with the engagement ring of his Fiance Anna, and if he reports to authorities she'll be the next dead person. Sam will do everything to save his soon-to-be-wife, he discovered many dark secrets as well as the main motivation behind the man's kidnapping, but will this make everyone forgives him for killing innocent people?
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1835394582

I liked how realistic the main character is. You can hear him panting in anger, coughing and breathing heavily under the rain. His reactions are real. Not all the lines are voiced, but the voice actors did an amazing job. Usually, the main characters of Hidden objects games are females, I enjoyed having a perspective of a male character who is trying his best to save his beloved one.

The artwork of the game is beautifully detailed, a creepy Victorian-style manor with lost of.. dead people. The puzzles are amazing and original, and what makes it more fun is the comment the kidnapper says to you after you finish them, he is watching every step you take and speaks with you through speakers. To know that you are being watched made Sam quite jumpy at the beginning of the game, I liked this small detail.
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1835414742

The hidden object scenes are the regular well-known list of items, you'll visit the same area twice and sadly the items you picked before will not disappear in the next visit. But they are well-drawn. The journal is amazing, it keeps track of the story, giving you extra information and even save all the voice messages you heard from the kidnapper in a recorder which you can access any time you want during the gameplay. The map is huge but sadly there is no fast traveling function.
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1835458301

Pros:
+Beautiful visuals and locations design.
+Good music.
+Well drawn hidden objects scenes.
+Beautiful and useful journal keeps track of the story.
+Well-done voice-overs and characters emotions/reactions.
+Variety of original puzzles.

Cons
-No fast traveling map.
-No steam achievements.

Sometimes I wish the game doesn't have a bonus chapter, and in this case, I wished they didn't add the bonus chapter, the ending ruined it for me. The main game has a better ending. Still, the game is amazing for adventure and hidden objects lovers.

Other Reviews from the same series:
Brink of Consciousness: The Lonely Hearts Murders

𝐹𝑜𝑟 𝑚𝑜𝑟𝑒 𝑟𝑒𝑣𝑖𝑒𝑤𝑠 𝑐𝘩𝑒𝑐𝑘 𝑚𝑦 𝑐𝑢𝑟𝑎𝑡𝑜𝑟 𝑝𝑎𝑔𝑒 𝐹𝑒𝑒𝑛𝑎'𝑠 𝐶𝘩𝑜𝑖𝑐𝑒

This is one of the better examples of a hidden object game, with lots of clever puzzles, high quality art and fun/fair object scenes, though it also suffers from several flaws that hold it back from becoming an unconditional classic.

Once again, you'll find yourself playing as a protagonist out to rescue a loved one from the clutches of an evil mad man as you rummage through his personal space in a vast, unsettling mansion. But while the player character is something of a smug, charmless git, the real staring centrepiece here is the villain, easily being the most exceptional and interesting I've seen in one of these games, and even compared to a lot of other types of games, too. The voice acting is still a little hammy, and the writing flirts with the overdramatic on plenty of occasions, but overall I really liked the story and thought it was a far more thoughtful, engaging narrative that's typically sorely lacking from others of the genre.

I'd probably argue that the standard of puzzles is higher than usual - and a fair bit harder too, I'd say - but more noticeably, they far outweigh the volume of actual hidden object scenes that you'll find throughout the four or so hours of the experience. As a result, I wouldn't instantly recommend this for newcomers to the now expansive pantheon of hidden object games. Though, that said, there is a complete walkthrough included in-game, and the option to skip puzzles should the need arise.

For all that I enjoyed about the game, its most glaring shortcoming is in its backtracking. Its not uncommon to have to revisit previous areas in these types of games and use newly acquired items to access new sections and pick-ups, but in those at least, they'll usually allow you to fast-travel to any location through your map with only a couple of clicks. Here, however, you have to manually click your way back room after room until you reach your destination, complete your task, then go all the way back again, and given how numerous and sprawling the play areas are, that can become an increasingly exasperating inconvenience.

For a five-year-old game you can probably find in any number of relatively inexpensive bundles, the price does seem a little bit steep, and I'd sooner suggest getting it either that way or during a sale. But if you're looking for a slightly darker, more ghoulish hidden object game with taxing puzzles and superb art, then this is definitely the place to find it.

Excellent hidden object puzzle game. Highly recommended for HOG and adventure game fans.

+ The premise -- you're trapped in a mansion with a serial killer who's left puzzles and clues to toy with you -- justifies the "why does everything have an arbitrary puzzle lock" problem that plagues most HOGs.
+ Beautiful art with many different settings.
+ Great soundtrack to set the mood.
+ Well-designed hidden object scenes.
+ Voice acting that really brings the villain to life. He's sometimes a little over the top, but in a way that feels intentional and self-aware, and he never becomes too comedic to feel threatening.
+ Nice twist in the bonus chapter.

- The mini-games can be annoying, either with too much trial and error instead of intelligent strategy, or by making you perform the same task too many times over.
- Frequently crashes upon entering the first underground tunnel area. (Thankfully I didn't lose any save data.)
- The lack of fast travel or a decent hint system to help find the one of 9000 rooms where you forgot to pick up a puzzle piece makes the endgame feel tedious rather than suspenseful.

A lightweight psychological thriller– with a good story and good antagonist– that takes the form of a decent hidden object puzzle game.

Brink of Consciousness: Dorian Gray Syndrome follows the story of an investigative journalist trying to save his girlfriend, as he slowly progresses through the mansion of a narcissistic serial killer, solving puzzles and collecting items along the way. During his trials he is often contacted by the antagonist: an excellently written character, who constantly balances on the brink of being comically over the top, but manages to stay threatening throughout the story– including one of the best bonus chapters (with an incredibly clever twist) in hidden object game history.

Although most of the game is spent by running around in the mansion, the monotony is often broken by some easy puzzles and a few very good hidden object scenes. And the best thing is that most of them have an actual reason within the storyline to be there, creating a more immersive atmosphere.

If you like thrillers, Dorian Gray Syndrome is definitely a good choice for you, casual genre or not. The great writing and level design make it one of the most enjoyable games of its kind.

Though not quite as creepy as I hoped it would be, this hidden object game features gorgeous art, good music, moderately challenging mechanical puzzles and some above-average voice acting. It served as a soothing complement to my afternoon tea for a whole week. Very nice to take a break from the brain-busters and controller-smashers I usually play!

This was my first hidden object game. If there are others at least as pretty and soothing as this one, I can see the much-maligned HOG becoming a staple of my increasingly omnivorous gaming diet.

This is, by far the best hidden object game that I've played around here so far. Actually, it would be demeaning to call it only a hidden object game. In-depth psychosis depicted with great atmosphere and a neatly arranged storyline. Our serial killer 'Oscar' - nice reference to Oscar Wilde, creator of Dorian Gray - is worth meeting. The methods and artistic demeanor of our host/psychopath makes him a character to remember. I'd like to add that the art work is well above the ordinary expected from the HOG genre. Besides being a well arranged adventure, including some well thought puzzles and a wide range of areas to explore, a bonus chapter awaits at the end, for an epilogue. I warn you though; there is no happy ending in Oscar's domain!

The graphics are good, however the gameplay is not. The plot is extremely stupid. Item usage is boring and repetitive (most of the time it's just "find a missing piece"), illogical and random. Also it involves a lot (and I mean A LOT) of backtracking.
There are way better hidden object adventures than this one. Check "9 Clues" series.

Utterly bad Hidden Object game.

The main issue is that the map system tells you that in this or that room is a point of interest or that there is something unsolved. That doesn't mean that there is something to do there yet though.
On top of that it has no fast travel which makes you run around in circles.

The puzzles are crap as well.
For instance a "mirror this image" which consists of 60 small parts or so. Boring.
Or a picture puzzle with 10x10 tiles that are pretty small so it's hard to make out anything.

The story itself wouldn't be so bad but the gameplay is just fubar.

English version
(wersja polska niżej)

This game is the very definition of why I think Steam needs the ‘neutral’ button between the recommend and not recommend option. In my opinion, it is so perfectly mediocre that I don’t really feel that great with recommending it while there are so many other more appealing representatives of the hidden object genre. On the other hand, this game does nearly nothing bad enough to deserve not being recommended.

The premise of the game can be liked. While the norm for the hidden object games is to take place in a fantasy or a supernatural reality, Brink of Consciousness has an ambition to be a psychological thriller with a visible inspiration in Saw or The Silence of the Lambs. However, what initially seems to be its advantage, quickly proves to be a serious problem for me. While in fantasy games it can be at least partially explained (or at least the setting helps in suspending the disbelief), the hidden object mechanics do not mix particularly well with the thriller setting: a psychopathic murderer holds the protagonist’s sweetheart captive and what does our hero decide to do? Search for a celery, a rather tremendous number of clothespins and a set of false teeth (that for some strange reason have to be cleaned first). Furthermore, it really doesn’t help that the antagonist is perhaps one of the most uninspired and tedious villains in computer games I have played (even for the hidden object game standards of character complexity).

The graphics are where this game shines. While there surely are some hidden object games looking better, Dorian Gray Syndrome certainly has moments when it pleasant to look at. Still, I would like to make an argument here that the game’s setting limits the palette do the darker colors, mainly greys and browns, while other hidden object games are free to exercise a whole range of wild, vivid, acid trip colors, which is one of my favorite component of hidden object genre. Also, music is rather forgettable for the most of time.

Finally, the mechanics. The puzzles are mostly good, with maybe a few exceptions. The map shows the area of interest, but there is no quick travel available, and the hint system seems weaker than in other games of this genre: instead of showing the direction where to go, it just tells that there is nothing to do in this particular location.

In the end, I can recommend this game to the people who are tired of the fantasy settings of most of the hidden object games. Keep in mind though that, at least to me, this game quickly got boring and completing the bonus chapter was a chore – which is not a particularly great result when it takes around 4 hours to complete the game.

Wersja polska

Ta gra jest jednym z lepszych powodów dla których uważam że Steam, poza opcją rekomendacji bądź odradzenia konkretnej gry, potrzebuje guzika „neutralny”. Syndrom Doriana Gray’a jest idealnie przeciętny i miałbym pewne problemy z polecaniem go innym z czystym sercem, szczególnie wiedząc że na Steamie dostępnych jest wiele ciekawszych gier z tego gatunku. Z drugiej strony Brink of Consciousness nie robi nic na tyle źle, żeby zasłużyć sobie na negatywną ocenę pod moją recenzją.

To co odróżnia „Doriana” od innych gier tego gatunku to świat w którym osadzone są wydarzenia gry. Podczas gdy tłem dla większości Hidden Object’ów zazwyczaj są światy fantasy, twórcy Brink of Consciousness wyraźnie wzorują się thrillerami takimi jak Piła czy Milczenie Owiec. W mojej opinii wychodzi to jednak odrobinę (eufemizm) nieudolnie. Jednym z powodów takiego stanu rzeczy jest fakt że psychologiczny thriller nie miesza się najlepiej z grą typu Hidden Object. W przypadku fantastyki można jeszcze tłumaczyć konieczność odnalezienia kilkunastu różnych przedmiotów odmiennością świata przedstawionego, jednak kiedy psychopatyczny morderca więzi ukochaną głównego bohatera a ten, zamiast popędzić jej na ratunek szuka w jednej z szaf selera, kilku spinaczy do bielizny i czaszki ( a dodać należy, że z bliżej niewytłumaczalnych przyczyn nie zadowoli się tą czaszką jeżeli wcześniej nie wyszczotkuje jej zębów), można odnieść wrażenie że sterowany przez gracza bohater ma jeszcze bardziej pomieszane pod sufitem niż psychopata z którym przychodzi mu się zmierzyć. Nie pomaga też, że wspomniany już antagonista jest irytujący i nudny jak flaki z olejem – nawet jak na standardy postaci w grach hidden object.

Grafika jest tu mocną stroną. Oczywiście jest sporo gier z tego gatunku które wyglądają lepiej, jednak „Dorian” zdecydowanie ma swoje momenty. Szkoda tylko że konwencja gry ogranicza kolory do ciemniejszych odcieni, brązów i szarości – jedną z tych rzeczy które absolutnie uwielbiam w hidden objectach są dzikie, szalone, kwasowo – odjechane palety barw. O muzyce nie można raczej powiedzieć nic szczególnego, przez większość czasu nie zwraca na siebie uwagi, a jeżeli już, to szybko się ją zapomina.

Można się też odrobinę przyczepić do mechaniki gry. Większość puzzli jest ok, mapa pokazuje co jeszcze zostało do zrobienia ale nie pozwala na szybkie poruszanie się między lokacjami, a system podpowiedzi jest zdecydowanie gorszy niż w innych grach: zamiast wskazać kierunek w którym powinniśmy się udać, gra mówi zwyczajnie „w tym pokoju nie ma już nic do zrobienia”. Dzięki, nie wiedziałem.

Podsumowując: polecam tylko tym którzy przekatowali już każdą możliwą pozycję studia Artifex Mundi. A nawet wtedy, może lepiej poszukać czegoś innego? Końcówka gry była dla mnie straszliwie nudna, co nie świadczy o „Syndromie Doriana Graya” najlepiej, biorąc pod uwagę, że grę można skończyć w ok. 4 godziny.