The Guardian of Imagination Review

From the team behind iPoe – an interactive way to read the tales of Edgar Allan Poe – comes a new reading app: The Guardian of Imagination. Set in a time where hopes and dreams are a thing of the past, confined to dusty old chests stocked up to the sky in a warehouse somewhere, we are invited to have a peek into the dreams of days gone by.

Each of these chests contain a sweet and child-friendly story designed to captivate and entertain through the use of interactive objects, a handful of mini-games and an accompanying soundtrack. These components bring the stories to life, creating a much more involving experience.

Users must find the key to the next dream chest by searching for it while reading, specifically during the interactive pages. They can also unlock mini-games, songs and wallpapers, for use outside of the main stories. There are distinct ethical implications running through each story – from tales of equality to the benefits of an optimistic attitude – that are a good message for younger readers in particular. However, after the third story, the rest of the dream boxes must be purchased before they opened, either individually or as a package. As far as value is concerned, I'm not sure these stories are worth the money, especially considering the length of some of them. Then again, I'm not a young child with a under-developed moral compass... or am I? (I'm not).

Although these stories are predominately aimed at a younger audience, there's no reason why audiences of any age won't find them enchanting. Sure, the coloring sections are a novelty, but the stories themselves combined with the ambient soundtracks create a unique and memorable reading experience. Unfortunately, the idea of in-app purchases has yet to be shoved into a box and tossed into a warehouse somewhere.