timothya's Profile
Stat Summary
- Average Rating:4.3
- Helpful Votes:1,143
- Reviews Submitted:199
- First Review:June 24, 2012
- Most Recent Review:September 3, 2025
- Featured reviews0
Status:
Can you rescue Reflection Bay from a mysterious mind-controlling foe?
Overall rating
3
/
5
The Village Isn't The Only Thing That's Shrouded
PostedSeptember 3, 2025
timothya
fromSandpoint, Idaho
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Hidden Object, Puzzle
Fun Factor
4
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
4
/
5
Level of Challenge
3
/
5
Storyline
2
/
5
Agent Amber and Elf are back again, this time to investigate a strange village that appears to have been taken over by a powerful mentalist of some sort with some very strange objectives. Who and why lead us to a rather sad tale and...perhaps a new Mystery Trackers agent?
Pros: some really good mini-games, balanced by a nice mix of HO scenes. The feel is that of an older game, some good things about this, some not so good.
Cons: it's a short game that gives us very little reason to purchase the CE version. If you have to exit the game to get to the Strategy Guide, why not buy an SE with a walk-through? Collectibles are nothing special but you do have an Expedition room to recover a little of the CE cost.
Bonus Game: should have been included in the main game.
On the whole, a good offering with a very retro feel to it - we're back to the unlamented days when the protagonists are female, the victim is female, and the bad guy is, predictably, a bad guy. The ladies have a good cry at the end, and off we go. That got tedious a decade ago. One star off for brevity, one off for the Strategy Guide nonsense. A very borderline three, because I did have fun with it, but I can't recommend the CE. Wait for the SE.
I don't recommend this game.
Can your all-star detective team crack the case in time?
Overall rating
5
/
5
The Team Is Back
PostedAugust 10, 2025
timothya
fromSandpoint, Idaho
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Hidden Object, Puzzle
Fun Factor
5
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
4
/
5
Storyline
4
/
5
The team is back together! The whole team, that is, including Anna's Dad, and they encounter a malign force centered around the Browns' Spooky Mansion (I think they all have one) that is the scene of a vengeful spirit. It's as good a villain as any; the real action is the interplay of the protagonists. With that many player POVs the challenge is to differentiate them enough so that the real-life player can tell who he or she is supposed to be playing as. That's not a problem here!
Pros: it's a mini-game heavy experience with one multi-phase game that reminds us of MCF in its glory days. Twisty plot to keep us interested, because it turns out there's more to the villain than meets the eye. Collectibles are fairly easy to find.
Cons: decent game length but with that many POV switches it feels like nobody gets a satisfying amount of screen time. Richard Gray could have used a little more of the edge that typified his old presence, but that's a minor point.
Bonus Game: so who was that arch-villain in the main game, anyway? We find out...
Overall, a nice romp that manages to avoid feeling cluttered despite the plethora of protagonists. Four and a half stars rounded up just because the team is back!
I recommend this game!
Something awaits beneath the glistening snow.
Overall rating
5
/
5
What's In That Jar?
PostedJuly 23, 2025
timothya
fromSandpoint, Idaho
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Hidden Object, Puzzle
Fun Factor
5
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
4
/
5
Storyline
5
/
5
In this episode, Rick and the team - Rachel, Mia, and Daemon - are invited to the opening of a ski resort owned by one of Rachel's friends. Unfortunately, there's an uninvited visitor who proceeds to take over the body of said friend, leaving the crew scrambling to attempt to find out what is doing the possession and bring Rachel's friend back to sanity.
Pros: a straightforward paranormal mystery for a change, undistracted by personal drama. Rick has recovered his swagger, Rachel is slowly emerging from the Mary Sue shell the writers had crammed her into to become a real person again, and on the downside, Daemon has lost his New York accent. Great mini-games that actually fit the plot, nice variety of HO scenes.
Cons: not a lot, none serious. The villain is not much of a character, simply a malevolent spirit needing disposal, which, let's face it, is what the Paranormal team is for.
Bonus Game: we play as Rachel, called in to address a by now familiar possession resulting from a home owner who apparently does not play these games and so opens a jar better left sealed. Rachel and Rick to the rescue! Unfortunately the focus on Rachel turns Rick into a rather dictatorial NPC, not much like his usual style, but all ends well.
Overall, Paranormal Files is slowly edging back to its former brilliance, and this is a very positive step along that way.
I recommend this game!
There’s a kind of magic in discovering who we are...
Overall rating
5
/
5
Short But Sweet
PostedMay 18, 2025
timothya
fromSandpoint, Idaho
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Hidden Object, Puzzle
Fun Factor
5
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
4
/
5
Storyline
5
/
5
Our man Richard is no longer a disembodied skull but is still knee-deep in family problems, and one of them decides to pursue a little revenge - he's family so Richard can't simply crush him, and it's up to Anna to figure out what the problem is and solve it in her own inimitable way, because she's in the target zone as well.
Pros: the usual excellent graphics, some nice intermediate-level mini-games, and an assortment of HO scenes varied enough so the player doesn't get bored. A very nicely constructed plot with a couple of twists and nicely-timed reveals.
Cons: it's really short. Just when we're settling into a really toothy mystery Anna stumbles on the solution and all of sudden the credits are rolling. Richard's new voice, like his new body, is going to take some getting used to.
Bonus Game: should probably have been a part of the main game - SE buyers beware! But here we get a little more nuanced look at the motivation of the antagonist and a clue to the future direction of this series.
Overall, a short but sweet entry in a revivified series. No spoilers, but it turns out that both Richard and Anna have some things in their own lives to make right and that opens up a lot of possibilities. Serious props to creative direction on this one, because GT looked like it was dying and now, well, it isn't.
I recommend this game!
This storybook puzzle game holds innumerable secrets and stories to be told!
Overall rating
4
/
5
Nice Puzzles, No Plot
PostedMay 14, 2025
Fun Factor
5
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
5
/
5
Storyline
3
/
5
Another is what is proving to be a high-quality series. This jigsaw engine is a very good one, with one particularly nice zoom feature for those of us tired of squinting at the postage stamp sized graphics of a certain competitor.
This one makes you work quite a bit more to earn the next chapters in the narrative. Unfortunately, that is because the narrative is disappointingly short and I must say I felt a little cheated. Music is a relaxing contrast against the somewhat ominous plot. The art is vivid and original, its fantasy theme complementing the narrative well.
Four stars for the puzzles, the engine and the art. One off for the plot.
I recommend this game!
What does your future hold? The answers are in the cards…
Overall rating
5
/
5
Outstanding Game
PostedApril 7, 2025
timothya
fromSandpoint, Idaho
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Hidden Object, Puzzle
Fun Factor
5
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
5
/
5
Storyline
5
/
5
Beautiful, well-written game, as good as anything I've seen in a very long time. Set in the second decade of last century, our Detective has taken the case of a young lady who has lost her twin sister - just that, nothing more, until she turns up missing herself, and the Detective discovers that a certain fortune teller is involved, but as a villain, or as a victim himself, or both? It's a genuine mystery set in this world and a surreal Mirror World from whose escape no one's is certain.
Pros: gorgeous art, really good, and worth the price of a CE to replay in the Extras. The writing deserves its own special mention below. Pacing is excellent and production values are stellar throughout. Mini-games are pitched at an intermediate player level and the HO scenes are varied and wonderfully drawn.
Cons: not really a complaint, but the CE is a must-purchase to get the full story. There you get a closure on all of the characters that is really extraordinary and very sweet. But you have to work for it!
Writing: head and shoulders above anything I've seen for a long time. We have characters we actually care about, every one of them, and an exploration of their separate fears that are our own. One in particular, a World War One combat veteran, hit me in a way that games are not supposed to.
Overall, simply outstanding. Deserves every five-star review including mine.
I recommend this game!
Can you stop a dangerous spirit haunted by unrequited love in time?
Overall rating
5
/
5
They're All Back And We've Missed Them
PostedJanuary 20, 2025
timothya
fromSandpoint, Idaho
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Hidden Object, Puzzle
Fun Factor
5
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
4
/
5
Storyline
5
/
5
Long time fans are approaching this one tentatively - is the old Rick really back? Yes, he is. And better still so are the old, enjoyable Rachel and Daemon and Mia. The snark flows once more! Here Rick is called in to investigate a particularly aggressive ghost haunting a local college professor, a very aggressive ghost of a past would-be lover whose attentions turn to stalking once she is spurned, and from there to murder...even after she's dead. Rick has once again walked into something nasty, because the truth is even worse.
Pros: great writing that picks up the spirit of the earlier adventures without missing a beat. At one point we have Rachel and the others phoning Rick to tell him of how wonderfully their vacation is going, which would be fine except that Rick is currently being chased through the scenery by a bloodthirsty ghoul. (Don't worry, though, they'll pay for this later!) Voice acting is excellent, mini-games paced at an intermediate player level, and the HOs are varied enough to keep the interest up.
Cons: the game is a little on the short side, although the Bonus Game makes up for that.
Bonus game: ah, remember that phone call? Rachel and the crew were having a great vacation until they weren't. Duty calls in the form of a mysterious casino haunting that threatens big winners. Is it the casino owner? His competitors? His own employees? This is a well-paced mini-mystery for dessert.
Overall, it's nice to have the old cast back - Rachel rewritten was an insufferable Mary Sue and the others merely window dressing. She's back, fallible again, funny again, and so are the others. Rick is his old occasionally feckless self who somehow manages to solve the cases anyway. This is what should have happened before Rick walked into that mirror several years ago. Glad to have them all back.
I recommend this game!
Explore the worlds of eternal winter and help the boy find his family in Beyond Stories: Long Road Home .
Overall rating
5
/
5
A Winter Odyssey
PostedDecember 27, 2024
timothya
fromSandpoint, Idaho
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Hidden Object, Puzzle
Fun Factor
5
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
5
/
5
Storyline
5
/
5
Another beautiful jigsaw game from this Dev, in time for winter. Get a cup of hot chocolate ready before diving into this one!
Pros: Gorgeous art, excellent game controls, high production values throughout. It seemed a little longer than the Halloween entry, with excellent writing and a nice resolution.
Cons: The music was atmospheric, definitely wintry but not in the least with any holiday spirit: meandering, amelodic, loosely structured, and rather mournful. A single entry in a major key might have helped the bleakness, but no such luck.
Overall, a very enjoyable time at the perfect seasonal moment.
I recommend this game!
One way or another, the past always comes back.
Overall rating
4
/
5
Those Hotels Do Keep Getting Haunted
PostedNovember 4, 2024
timothya
fromSandpoint, Idaho
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Hidden Object, Puzzle
Fun Factor
5
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
3
/
5
Level of Challenge
4
/
5
Storyline
5
/
5
Yes, I miss the old Haunted Hotel series now that James Blackthorn is happily married off. And so what is this? We play as Harry, estranged son of a man who turned his beautiful manor into a hotel and ended up losing his entire family - Harry's little brother disappeared mysteriously after Harry left and the parents died in grief. Harry returns to his inheritance with understandably mixed feelings and walks into a nightmare mirror world with a very great deal to be set right. But it's more than he can handle alone, and so he enlists the aid of a fellow with a very familiar name: Blackthorn.
Pros: outstanding writing here, most of the characters finely drawn and sympathetic. Hard to imagine a satisfying resolution to this tragic premise, but they actually manage one, at least assuming that those characters brought forward into the 21st century don't go crazy from the shock.
Cons: one tick against the writing: the villain's own character is hardly explored at all and beyond being the embodiment of evil we hardly know what it is about. Blackthorn is going to have to work a little harder to become more than a "here, take this" NPC without the personality of his predecessor. And one technical issue - several character voices are very muffled and nearly inaudible at times.
Bonus Game: a prequel - here we play as Valorie, an heiress whose familial disapproval of her marriage years ago resulted in the loss of her lover to a now familiar grim spirit, but not the loss of her determination to obtain justice. In the company of her exorcist friend she does exactly that, trapping the spirit in a mirror and locking it away, never to be found...or is it?
Overall, it appears a favorite series has received a shot in the arm with a new character and a solid mystery that left me begging for more.
I recommend this game!
A literature professor is recruited to help a master of horror!
Overall rating
4
/
5
Death, Where Is Thy Sting?
PostedNovember 1, 2024
timothya
fromSandpoint, Idaho
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Hidden Object, Puzzle
Fun Factor
5
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
4
/
5
Storyline
4
/
5
A nice Halloweeny entry with some great literary references and engaging characters. Despite the spooky atmosphere it's really rather sweet. We play as Professor Newman, dragooned by none other than Death himself for a little help in settling the unresting soul of Edgar Allen Poe. It's the old Redemption Cemetery formula with three scenarios following three of Poe's stories, and the prize is sparks of inspiration that will guide Poe into the afterlife.
Pros: some clever writing from people who actually have read the source material and managed to insert our hero without damaging the continuity of the original. That sort of respect is appreciated. Great graphics, puzzles a little on the easy side but in keeping with the story (for a change).
Cons: others have noted its brevity but it's enough to make mention here. A couple of additional Poe stories could have fit this format nicely but alas, three is what we get, and not all that much of those.
Bonus Game: here we play as Death himself, harassed by a busy schedule in terms of clearing out unresolved issues with spirits bound to this world until he does so. Our client is Professor Newman himself, confused about what within his life could even have been considered incomplete enough to bind him to this world. We must find out and resolve - great length of play on this one and nowhere near enough real exposition at the end to make for a resolution, but enough hints to make it marginally satisfying.
Overall, a short but very presentable Halloween effort. One star off for brevity, and the idea that only with the CE do you get a generous amount of game play. I liked it but didn't love it.
I recommend this game!