Appletell reviews Sam & Max: The Devil’s Playhouse, ep. 3 for Mac OS X

Genre: Adventure
Format: Download and Special Edition Collectors DVD (available after all episodes are released)
Developer: Telltale Games
Mac Publisher: Telltale Games
System Requirements: Mac OS X v10.5 or newer, Intel Core 2 Duo processor. Not recommended for Macs with integrated graphics.
Review Computer: 2.4GHz Intel Core 2 Duo Aluminum MacBook, 2GB DDR3 memory, NVIDIA GeForce 9400M graphics
Network Feature: No
Processor Compatibility: Intel Core Duo
Price: $34.95 (for all five episodes)
ESRB Rating: E10
Availability: Out now

When you go to the bathroom, you don’t expect a lot to have changed when you get back. You certainly don’t expect to see your friend’s head sawed open and his brain noticeably no longer in residence in that head. Well, that is exactly what happens in the latest installment of Sam & Max: The Devil’s Playhouse, They Stole Max’s Brain. Sure, the plot isn’t a big shocker. After all, they made it the title of this episode, but that does not mean there are not a few things along the way that will get your attention.

The humor, for one. This installment of Sam & Max is markedly funnier then any of the others in The Devil’s Playhouse series have been. Of course, that may have a great deal to do with the fact that you have some time to tool around as a person without a brain. The best part about being Max is what one is forced to describe as “drama Turrets.” Once and a while he says something so melodramatic that it is over the top even in this distinctly noir world. These mindless mutterings will have you laughing at the strangest of moments. Sam is the opposite in this title, bordering on depressed.

The only other thing of note are the suspects. In classic detective story fashion, no one is really innocent. It’s just a matter of finding out who is guilty of the crime you are concerned with. No matter, though, because each of them is an interesting experience. Spend some quality time with the mouse in the leather jacket if you need some more sarcasm in your life.

For details on the core gameplay and more on the series as a whole, see our review of Sam & Max: The Devil’s Playhouse, ep. 1.

Appletell Rating:

Buy Sam & Max: The Devil’s Playhouse Episode 3: They Stole Max’s Brain

• Back to Sam & Max: The Devil’s Playhouse, ep. 2: The Tomb of Sammun-Mak.
• Ahead to Sam & Max: The Devil’s Playhouse, ep. 4: Beyond the Alley of the Dolls.