bluesycat's Profile
Stat Summary
- Average Rating:2.9
- Helpful Votes:1,094
- Reviews Submitted:151
- First Review:July 25, 2012
- Most Recent Review:August 2, 2020
- Featured reviews0
Status:
Enter the world of Drawn. Explore the Painted Tower and unravel its mysteries on your quest to save the hope of the kingdom. Can you reach the top of the tower?
Overall rating
4
/
5
2 of 2 found this review helpful
Stunning! and Quirky
PostedMarch 11, 2015
bluesycat
fromAlbany, NY
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Hidden Object, Match 3, Puzzle
Fun Factor
4
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
4
/
5
Storyline
4
/
5
Based on the completed game. Just a fair warning: this game is really quirky, and while I generally loved it, I'll begin with what may be a non-starter for some. There is no map or jump feature and each scene takes a LONG TIME to load/reload. If you're going to get annoyed or stressed out by this, the game is not for you. But if you can live with this, Drawn is really worth playing.
First, the graphic design is exquisite. "Stunning." Beautiful, surreal, magical settings, done in a cut-out paper style of animation. The designers gave a lot of thought about how this game should look.
Second, the music is haunting and hypnotic. When figuring out what to do next, the music will keep you in the game. This is a big deal for me as I often turn the music off or way down.
The surreal settings and the music provide great support for the fairy tale story of Iris, the girl who creates paintings that come to life. It's an "old fashioned" fairy tale, not sugar coated, where lots of bad and scary things happen, as well as good and beautiful things. The story of Iris is the hero's tale and it's filled with a lot of pain and hurt as well as joy and light.
There are no HOS, just puzzles. Some of them are VERY HARD, and I had to skip several. I chose to skip rather than check the walk-through for a solution. But even the hard puzzles are interesting and a few were of a type I had never seen before.
I liked the unusual hint system, where each hint gave you a little information about the task, rather than a solution. Most of the time there was enough info to solve the puzzle. Usually, I don't like to have to think much, just play, but this game you actually had to figure out and that was fun. I had to check the walk-through 2 or 3 times in the whole game.
I highly recommend this game. I would have given it 5 stars, but for the slow load between scenes. BUT, do preview it first.
I recommend this game!
Two of your games are now available as one: solitaire and bowling! Relax with your favorite games at the resorts of your dreams!
Overall rating
1
/
5
4 of 5 found this review helpful
Awful
PostedJanuary 5, 2015
bluesycat
fromAlbany, NY
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Hidden Object, Match 3, Puzzle
Fun Factor
1
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
1
/
5
Level of Challenge
1
/
5
Based on 23 minutes of the demo. This might be the worst solitaire game ever. You can only match same to same, no building, no runs, no strategy available! Sometimes there are bonus so you can buy more things in the store, and sometimes the game makes different sounds, but none of it makes any sense. "Winning" or "losing" is by pure chance. Ugh! Not for me.
I don't recommend this game.
Department 42: The Mystery of the Nine
Help Department 42 collect nine mysterious and evil artifacts and protect the world! Stop pure evil and save the day!
Overall rating
3
/
5
1 of 1 found this review helpful
TOUGH! And interesting.
PostedJanuary 4, 2015
bluesycat
fromAlbany, NY
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Hidden Object, Match 3, Puzzle
Fun Factor
3
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
4
/
5
Level of Challenge
3
/
5
Storyline
4
/
5
Based on the completed game.
This one is tough to review. I have to agree with many others about the difficulty factor.
NEGATIVES: The game is clunky and old and moves slowly. There are two different hints: one for the HOS and one for the rest of the game. Each take about 2 minutes to recharge and only starts timing when you are in their particular arena. That can be supremely frustrating in the HOS.
HOS are meticulously drawn with tiny detail and are devilishly difficult. You will hate this game if you have poor eyesight. You must also click meticulously on the proper area of a selected object. Many HOS contain more than one of a listed object or have one searching for something like a "bow" which could have several appearances. Very difficult. And HOs can be found in any area of the scene, even to the very edges. There are no "dead" or irrelevant areas. On the plus side, these scenes are very interesting to look at. IF you want to spend the time. As I said, there is a great deal of irrelevant meticulous detail.
POSITIVES: The game seems to have been very well researched for the sections of the various arcane practices and studies. So the mysteries make sense (at least to me) who has studied some of these things. Beautiful drawing and a believable mythic story. There are 9 distinct chapters, each of which stands on its own, so like reading a book, you can complete a chapter, walk away and come back later without having to figure out where you were. No necessity to complete the game in one sitting, a big plus for me. I wish more games had this chapter structure so I could take care of necessities rather than finishing a game. LOL.
All the puzzles and most of the HOS are available to replay from the main menu, if you want to, although the puzzles I couldn't solve are of the type I can never solve, so I don't think it matters how many times I have to repeat my attempts. Most of the puzzles are very easy, although sometimes the instructions are a little bit obscure.
In spite of the very slow going, I was eager to move from one chapter to the next and see what the developers had in store. If only the HOS were a little easier - but then I might not have enjoyed the game as much. It would have been very short if the HOS were easy. So I recommend the game with the qualifications I described at the beginning.
I recommend this game!
Welcome to Holy Mountain Hotel, where all criminals are punished.
Overall rating
3
/
5
25 of 27 found this review helpful
Too short for a CE
PostedDecember 19, 2014
bluesycat
fromAlbany, NY
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Hidden Object, Match 3, Puzzle
Fun Factor
4
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
4
/
5
Level of Challenge
2
/
5
Storyline
3
/
5
Based on the completed game plus the bonus chapter. I really enjoyed this game. It has a pretty good creepy story, nice visuals and seductive sound. The problem is that it is VERY EASY and VERY SHORT. I like easy. This has customizable levels so I can make it as easy as I want, but this was REALLY EASY. The whole game plus the bonus took me less than four hours to complete and that's too short for a CE.
There are a couple of big plusses but I don't think either justifies the CE price. There are a number of interesting interactive HOS, the best of which is the last one in the main game, a very interactive sequential search and use items setup. First of its kind of seen, and it's terrific. The other being that the bonus materials contain an alternate ending. I think I would have preferred they use that one instead of the one they did.
I had not found all the collectibles in the main game - you need to play the bonus to get them all. Not sure how that will play out in the SE. And the !@#$% sparkles! There is a custom setting in which I shut off all sparkles, and I still got sparkles in the scenes. I'm strange: I don't want any sparkles, but I want very fast hint recharge and long skip recharge. If the custom setting says sparkles are off, they should be OFF!
Anyway, I recommend the game with the proviso that it's EASY and SHORT!
I recommend this game!
Stop Morgana by helping Princess Arianna find the essential elements to remove the curse from her kingdom.
Overall rating
1
/
5
3 of 3 found this review helpful
Dreadful
PostedDecember 14, 2014
bluesycat
fromAlbany, NY
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Hidden Object, Match 3, Puzzle
Fun Factor
1
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
2
/
5
Level of Challenge
1
/
5
Storyline
3
/
5
Based on the demo. Started out promising. Some HOS. Some stuff to find. But then all the important stuff to find turns into really ugly Match 3's. These matches are endless, slow, BORING, and do not advance the game. Add to this the game runs REALLY SLOWLY. Mind-killing. No fun. I think the story line was OK, but in the hour I played this dog, I advanced through a total of 3 scenes. Because of the slow, repetitive, ugly Match 3's. I mean, even the graphics for the pieces didn't change. Ugh. Don't waste your $$.
I don't recommend this game.
A mysterious force from a parallel universe wreaks havoc on a small town as a scientist fights to stop it from taking over the world!
Overall rating
4
/
5
2 of 2 found this review helpful
Old Fashioned Doesn't Have to Be Bad!
PostedDecember 12, 2014
bluesycat
fromAlbany, NY
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Hidden Object, Match 3, Puzzle
Fun Factor
3
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
3
/
5
Level of Challenge
3
/
5
Storyline
3
/
5
Based on the completed game.
This is an old style HO game, with a storyline that reminded me of 1950's science fiction movies. Actually, so did the graphics and the game design. You get to do a lot of aimless wandering around a pretty large environment of beautifully rendered scenes. There is an entertaining journal with hints and clues and THANKFULLY a jump map.
What I absolutely LOVED about this game was the soundtrack. A kind of 40's-ish piano jazz. Something you might expect to be the background of a detective radio story. I thought it added hugely to the strong retro feel of the game. Every time I thought I was bored out enough to quit, that little jingle came in an reminded me that this is an old style game, so accept it as such.
In the end the story was basically satisfying and I thought the way the monster was defeated was ingenious. With the caution that this is an OLD STYLE game, I recommend it. Do demo it first and maybe use a freebie, if you're not sure.
I recommend this game!
A new mystery leads Arizona Rose to a hidden temple and her greatest adventure yet! Solve the riddles to unravel an ancient mystery!
Overall rating
3
/
5
Pales in Comparison to "Pirates"
PostedDecember 10, 2014
bluesycat
fromAlbany, NY
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Hidden Object, Match 3, Puzzle
Fun Factor
3
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
3
/
5
Level of Challenge
2
/
5
Storyline
2
/
5
Based on the completed game. I bought this game without a preview based on "Arizona Rose and the Pirates" which I already owned. There is no comparing these games. If you like fill-in cross puzzles, get Pirates which is a great game. This one is just too easy and not very creative. It was very hard for me to get the awards because the puzzles were just too easy to need the power ups or hints. Indeed there were two awards that I just couldn't ever figure out how to get. Sorry.
I don't recommend this game.
You've been called to investigate a strange purple tide. And that's when the mermaid shows up...
Overall rating
2
/
5
16 of 16 found this review helpful
Have to agree with other low ratings
PostedNovember 25, 2014
bluesycat
fromAlbany, NY
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Hidden Object, Match 3, Puzzle
Fun Factor
2
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
3
/
5
Level of Challenge
3
/
5
Storyline
1
/
5
Based on completing the demo. Like many others, I have loved the Dark Parables series, my particular favorite being the Red Riding Hood Sisters. But this game bites.
The good stuff? Not much. Sound OK. Map good. Now for the stuff I didn't like.
First, I like story-driven games. After an hour of play, nothing has happened except that I've solved a bunch of HOS. There are plenty of games I can do that with.
Second, one of the delights of this series is the lush graphics and the rococco detail of the FROGS. These are missing from this game. The design and detail are just ok, not the lush detail that made me take the time to take in scenes just for the detail and not for the game play. Not here. And the constructed objects just don't have that glorious beauty of the previous editions.
Third, if I'm going to play a CE, I need something that makes the game more valuable than an SE. Finding crescent moons is too easy (and there is no reason why I'm looking for them) and there doesn't seem to be anything else to find. If there's anything morphing here, I didn't see it.
Fourth, just not fun to play. No logic, no reason, no fun. No recommendation.
I don't recommend this game.
Overall rating
2
/
5
1 of 1 found this review helpful
Mostly Pointless
PostedNovember 21, 2014
bluesycat
fromAlbany, NY
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Hidden Object, Match 3, Puzzle
Fun Factor
2
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
4
/
5
Level of Challenge
2
/
5
Storyline
4
/
5
I need to add my concurrence with other reviewers that for the most part, this game was pointless. I finished the game - I don't know why I bothered. It took me hours of going here, there and everywhere, trying to find the things I needed to do one simple action. Everything you had to do required several steps in settings distant from one another - back and forth, etc. There is no map, no help (except in the HOS). The setting is huge, and the whole thing is open all the time (unlike the previous game in the series where once a scene was finished you didn't go back). I never play a whole game at once, and every time I went away from this one and came back, I had to go to the walk through to remember where I was. The notebook is also no help, only adding the hints after you have solved the problem! Ugh!
Nice graphics; annoying music. No resolution in the story either. Not recommended.
I don't recommend this game.
The turkeys revolted three years ago. Will mankind ever have Thanksgiving again?
Overall rating
3
/
5
4 of 6 found this review helpful
Cute and Silly
PostedNovember 19, 2014
bluesycat
fromAlbany, NY
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Hidden Object, Match 3, Puzzle
Fun Factor
5
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
4
/
5
Level of Challenge
1
/
5
Storyline
3
/
5
Very fun and silly game. Perfect parody for those of us who just can't get enough Star Wars. But I lack the hand-eye coordination to actually PLAY the game. So I lost all my lives within the first 30 seconds a couple of times. So it's a no buy for me. But if you can manage the hand-eye stuff, this game is GREAT!
I recommend this game!