Secret Files: Tunguska review

Match your wits against an inventory of random items to save your daddy

GamesRadar+ Verdict

Pros

  • +

    The magnifying glass tool

  • +

    Humorous puzzles

  • +

    Detailed backgrounds

Cons

  • -

    Laughably bad voice acting

  • -

    Slow pace of plot

  • -

    Disappointing climax

Why you can trust GamesRadar+ Our experts review games, movies and tech over countless hours, so you can choose the best for you. Find out more about our reviews policy.

In 1908 a gigantic blast roughly equivalent to the power of a nuclear bomb rocked the area of Tunguska in Siberia, felling trees in an area of over 800 miles. Although most scientists agree that the blast was the result of a large asteroid or comet, conspiracy theories involving extraterrestrials remain popular to this day, making Tunguska the Roswell of Russia. Although the mysterious premise of Secret Files: Tunguska involving foul play and aliens shows promise, the game itself won't make a big impact on you as you point and click your way through this by-the-book adventure.

You'll step in the shoes of Nina Kalenkov, a young motorcycle mechanic who discovers that her father - a scientist who once studied the Tunguska event - has been kidnapped. As you track down leads to your father's whereabouts, you'll learn more about what really caused the explosion at Tunguska. And no, it wasn't something as boring or logical as an asteroid or comet.

Seasoned adventurers will find themselves right at home with Tunguska's standard point and click control scheme which involves picking up as many items as possible and combining them in unlikely ways to solve unusual problems. Can't figure out how to board the military train that might be holding your father? Just combine a hose with a wall urinal and put a stalking over the valve in the sewers to retrieve the key that the conductor flushed down the toilet.

More info

GenreAdventure
DescriptionWanted: Player to help young female protagonist search for lost father. Sleuthing, pointing, clicking, and some travel required.
Platform"PC","DS","Wii"
US censor rating"Teen","Teen","Teen"
UK censor rating"12+","12+","12+"
Release date1 January 1970 (US), 1 January 1970 (UK)
More
CATEGORIES
GamesRadarTylerNagata
Latest in Adventure
Pokemon Legends: Z-A screenshot
Pokemon Legends: Z-A looks to finally bring my anime-inspired dreams of truly active combat to life
Zoomed in art of the Sudowoodo illustration rare card in Pokemon TCG Pocket.
Pokemon's literal god of the universe is almost unstoppable in TCG Pocket – the only thing that can save us is a smiley tree and a concussed dinosaur
Charizard in the Pokemon anime.
Pokemon fans prove they'll buy anything as a Cheeto shaped like a Charizard sells for almost $90k
Minecraft key art showing Steve holding a pickaxe.
Minecraft modder uses "3 hours of my life that I'll never get back" to create a new mod that gives Steve Jack Black's voice
The player character in Pokemon Legends: Z-A looks at the three starter Pokemon, Totodile, Tepig, and Chikorita.
Pokemon Legends: Z-A's starter trio proves it's time for a new type, and I know what it should be
The player character in Pokemon Legends: Z-A looks at the three starter Pokemon, Totodile, Tepig, and Chikorita.
You can let fate decide your Pokemon Legends Z-A starter with a random plushie pre-order bonus, just in case you couldn't pick between Totodile, Tepig, and Chikorita
Latest in Reviews
Doggerland player board
Doggerland review: "A delicate dance of survival and management that doesn't feel weighted toward a single strategy"
Logitech G Pro X Superlight 2 DEX gaming mouse standing upright on a wooden desk
Logitech G Pro X Superlight 2 DEX review: "a force to be reckoned with"
Daredevil: Born Again
Daredevil: Born Again season 1 review: "There have been far worse Marvel projects, but few as disappointing as this"
RTX 5070 Founders Edition and Asus Prime OC graphics card standing vertical on woodgrain desk next to plant and monitor
Nvidia GeForce RTX 5070 review: "far from a RTX 4090 rival, but I’d still call it a solid 4K GPU"
The two characters in Split Fiction dressed in fantasy gear each with a dragon on their back
Split Fiction review: "Cements Hazelight as the master of co-op games"
Acer Nitro V 14 gaming laptop on a wooden desk
Acer Nitro V 14 review: "a solid value proposition… if you can find one"