The "original" version of this game, from 10 years ago (2014), was an SE. It is a good game, and an update to the graphics (which weren't bad at all) is a welcomed idea.
BUT, this time around, it's sold as a CE without even a bonus chapter, but this remaster has a soundtrack, concept art, wallpapers (oh joy!) and a sandbox to practice your skills of "Reversi". Hopefully you detect my sarcasm.
Remastered editions don't sell very well because a large portion of the audience already owns the original release and/or doesn't see the value in paying double the price for something that, let's face it, they've already played. It's just a flawed approach, and developers (in this case, Tiki's Lab) want of course of recover the costs of spending time giving a face lift to a previously released game.
As a developer, think of games you've built or older series that could use an additional episode... I'd like to see a WINTER-based episode of the "Otherworld" series, or even a remaster of a game I'd like to be able to replay but can't on newer computers ("MCF: Dire Grove" anyone?)
In the meantime, those remastered versions are disappointing releases... not because they're poor games, but because they offer, to me, absolutely no value.
Bright colors and a simple premise: find the key in each level to free the goldfish from the fishbowl... but this might involve many steps, like combining inventory items, solving puzzles, etc.
I bought this game elsewhere a couple of years ago, which doesn't have all the (mostly useless to me) extras found in the CE. 10% more levels isn't worth double the price, so wait for the SE !
The solutions are often strange and/or illogical, and sometimes require clicking on various areas in the scene; to avoid this, change the difficulty setting so your mouse pointer will change when it's hovering over something "of interest". There's a "hint system", so it's unlikely you'll get stuck.
I recommend the SE version of this game (if/when available here) for those who enjoy mini-games/puzzles.
I had no problems with the game... but you have to find the pre-selected words, not just any word you can form with those letters. Nice progression in difficulty, with cheerful graphics.
A great way to "spend" a few minutes now and again. The more you play, the better you'll get at it. It's a keeper for me.
I am appalled that this seems to be a trend of the last couple of years...
The original release was an SE, and this edition doesn't really have "extra" content; it's been given a face lift, but is priced this time around as a CE instead; owners of the original edition (like me) can't even simply pay the amount of an SE to "upgrade" to this version. To me, this should simply be handled using a "patch" to replace my old version with this new one and build enthusiasm for an old brand.
I suspect that it was probably BFG's idea to try to cash in on a nice game that was released back in 2014. Sorry, I won't support such a business practice!
(PS: no offense to the game itself; wait for a nice sale if you do NOT have the original release.)
Not sure if there's a CE version of this... Graphics are nice and colorful, but: - only 37 levels? - no difficulty options !
The story could be interesting, and the idea of clicking on animals (not sure a snake qualifies as "cute"?) for added distraction is worthy.
Not bad, but seems too short for the price, especially compared to other popular games in the Time Management genre. Doesn't appear to have tasks that are out of the ordinary.
So 1 star for the graphics, and a 2nd star for temporarily moving away from the cookie-cutter HOG in the "Finding America...", "I Love Finding..." and "So Much Stuff" series.
You'll need to invest playtime to move through the story!
PostedDecember 26, 2023
EveOfLove2
fromGameworld
Fun Factor
5/ 5
Visual/Sound Quality
5/ 5
Level of Challenge
5/ 5
As ALWAYS with this dev, the pictures are just GORGEOUS. Due to the winter theme, some of the artists chosen seem to have multiple pictures taken from their portfolio of works. I don't believe this dev would EVER re-use pictures, not even between games/releases: I think they're curated very carefully.
2 modes of play, and I especially like the "mosaic"/"stained glass" option as opposed to the more traditional "cut" pieces. In either mode, you have lots of choices for pictures and inspiration... winter scenes, northern lights, nature shots, etc.
It will take me a while to progress through the story; but that aspect of the game, to me, simply adds to its value and originality, in the same way as what Cold Coffee Studios did a few years ago with their quartet of "My Jigsaw Adventures" games.
The main game has 84 levels, the CE has 21 more (so 25%, and the joy? of having downloadable soundtrack and wallpapers).
I like most of the genres, but I don't understand the notion of "bonus levels" as the 1st game in the series ("Stars, Stripes, and Subgames Collector's Edition") was never released here on BFG as an SE.
So you either get the CE and pay double for 25% more levels (again, compared to what?), or pass.
I'll pass, despite being good timing for the Holiday season and nice colorful graphics. There's not enough content for me to pay the CE price (maybe, if they release it as an SE... maybe.) Would recommend the SE if/where available.
Unfortunately, this 3rd release in the "House of Jigsaw" series (which follows "Masters of Art" and "Happy Puzzling, Happy Home") is appearing as the 2nd game on Big Fish's daily calendar (between "Finding America..." and "Wilderness Mosaic...".) That means this great Ukrainian developer (Graphium Studios) doesn't get the opportunity to be featured on the Home Page of the website and got relegated straight to the "New Releases" page.
As ALWAYS, the pictures are STUNNING and the features familiar. The game is divided in 5 sections, the "Central Europe" one being the largest at more than 60 jigsaws. Mechanics work flawlessly, and no, you don't get to upload your own pictures (would you ever buy another jigsaw game if you could load your own choice of pictures?)
I did deduct 1 star because you have to open any picture inside a chapter in order to see in which city the picture was taken; the primary carousel inside the chapter doesn't show the locations unless you dig in and select a picture. I would have liked to know the name of the monument/building and perhaps a few historical facts about it.
Not everyone will like the subject matter... that's why there are literally thousands and thousands of these games out there.
So download the trial and explore each of the 5 carousels... it's cheaper to go on this tour than in real life.
... into thinking this is a children's game. The colorful graphics are just a bonus aspect to the game.
Like its 2 predecessors, this is about "making chains" of letters in order to find the words that make up each square. As you find a correct word, those letters will disappear; the objective is to remove ALL letters from each grid.
Difficulty progresses nicely, and there's a good hint system if you need some clues.
I took off 1 star from my rating because you can choose any category, but can only progress within each once you've completed the previous level in that same category (i.e. you cannot start by playing level 2 if you haven't completed level 1). It's also not very long, compared to a match-3 or time management game.
I recommend this game and look forward to the next one (perhaps with more levels?)