timothya's Profile
Stat Summary
- Average Rating:4.3
- Helpful Votes:1,143
- Reviews Submitted:192
- First Review:June 24, 2012
- Most Recent Review:December 27, 2024
- Featured reviews0
Status:
Is the notorious Axiom Butcher back from the grave?
Overall rating
5
/
5
1 of 2 found this review helpful
Gory Fun
PostedMay 18, 2016
timothya
fromSandpoint, Idaho
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Puzzle, Hidden Object, Adventure
Fun Factor
5
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
5
/
5
Storyline
5
/
5
A real mystery game for a change, and a lot of gory fun! A couple of obvious plot twists, a couple not so obvious, and a generous Bonus chapter to round the thing out. More of this, please!
Pros: beautiful graphics, spooky, atmospheric music, excellent voice acting. Male POV - hurrah! - but not obtrusively so. Smooth game mechanics. Nicely dispersed cut scenes.
Cons: not much. In fact, can't think of a thing.
Full disclosure: I beta'd this and hoped that the developers could keep up the terrific production, which they did in full. Bought the CE the minute it appeared and don't regret it one moment.
I recommend this game!
A fire at the local asylum takes on a supernatural life of its own!
Overall rating
5
/
5
3 of 4 found this review helpful
Stunning Graphics
PostedApril 6, 2016
timothya
fromSandpoint, Idaho
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Puzzle, Hidden Object, Adventure
Fun Factor
5
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
4
/
5
Storyline
5
/
5
An absolutely brilliant sensory experience, both visual and musically. One of the most beautiful games I've played in a long time, and it shows that there's life in the "creepy asylum" genre yet. The plot is, in places, very dark, and it is a little unclear precisely how The Detective puts it all right, but she - the game is not quite gender-neutral but it doesn't matter a bit - the Detective somehow manages it. Bonus chapter is a player POV that I haven't seen in awhile. Very entertaining!
PROS: The art, good heavens, yes, the art. Animated scenes leap off the screen. The music is spooky and instead of muting it I found myself turning it up and darkening the room. Conventional plot with sympathetic characters (for a change) - quite well written and the resolution is a happy one if a bit opaque. Adequate-to-excellent voice acting. Great puzzles, some quite original, some with that delightful MCF "what do I do now?" flavor to them.
CONS: virtually nothing. Some of the puzzles were maybe a bit too easy?
Overall, truly an A-list game, perhaps the best of the year so far. Full marks to the devs and I'll be watching for more from this team!
I recommend this game!
You receive a distress signal from a scientist who went missing a thousand years ago. Is this someone's joke or does he really need your help?
Overall rating
5
/
5
7 of 8 found this review helpful
Some Warts, But A Wonderful Game!
PostedMarch 3, 2016
timothya
fromSandpoint, Idaho
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Puzzle, Hidden Object, Adventure
Fun Factor
5
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
4
/
5
Level of Challenge
5
/
5
Storyline
5
/
5
Quirky, frustrating, challenging, occasionally brilliant game, but definitely not for everyone. Puzzles only in this one, but oh, what puzzles! The player had better use the tutorial, to start out with, and is in a constant state of "what do I do now?" despite the objectives clearly being defined on the PDA. Better have a high tolerance for ambiguity and a high degree of patience.
Pros: Wonderful atmosphere, amusing characters, straightforward plot. Smooth game play, useful map. Great humor. Gorgeous cut scenes. Puzzles galore, several quite challenging. I actually skipped one and I HATE doing that. Music selection superb.
Cons: A couple of points were a little too obscure: the mechanical bird, for one. The frequently-used help function was occasionally not terribly helpful, within the greenhouse, for example. There were language challenges - a professional translator might be an improvement.
Overall, pure fun for an audience with a sense of humor as odd as the developers'. Thanks, guys, for a lot of enjoyment!
I recommend this game!
Your own mind can be your worst enemy.
Overall rating
5
/
5
8 of 8 found this review helpful
A Real Mystery Story!
PostedFebruary 18, 2016
timothya
fromSandpoint, Idaho
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Puzzle, Hidden Object, Adventure
Fun Factor
5
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
4
/
5
Storyline
5
/
5
An unreserved five stars for this entry. Great writing, beautiful graphics, smooth game play, simply a very solid entry on all accounts.
Pros: Art is detailed and gorgeous, music is atmospheric and not overly intrusive (could have used a little real ballet music, though), voice acting adequate to very good, and an actual plot that had twists and turns and held together beautifully. Full marks to the writers and the rest of the narrative crew! HOPs were interactive, progressive, and not boring for a change. This was one of those where the player can just wander around looking at the art. Well done!
Cons: Hard to find any. Some of the puzzles were perhaps a bit too easy. Some of the HO scenes, a bit too cluttered. That sure isn't much of a gripe.
I will confess that I am probably the world's worst finder of hand bells. Notable by their absence are the pestilent cutesy assistants that appear to have permeated the genre, thank God. POV is female but so well done it doesn't put off the guys. I was very pleased with this one and will be watching these devs.
I recommend this game!
PuppetShow: The Face of Humanity Collector's Edition
The mayor's daughter is missing and you must find her!
Overall rating
4
/
5
5 of 7 found this review helpful
Beautiful But Truncated
PostedJanuary 31, 2016
timothya
fromSandpoint, Idaho
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Puzzle, Hidden Object, Adventure
Fun Factor
5
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
4
/
5
Storyline
3
/
5
This one had five stars written all over it until it...just...stopped. I thought perhaps the bonus game would clear things up, but no.
Pros: beautiful art, colorful, detailed without being cluttered. HO scenes varied and of excellent quality. Mini-puzzles on the easy side but some fairly original. Music atmospheric, voice acting better than average to excellent. Game mechanics sound. Cut scenes smooth and not so many as to be distracting. Overall, very enjoyable.
Cons: it just stopped. The writers had developed interesting characters with what was apparently a story arc quite up to the franchise, which is saying something. Suddenly the overall game objective became the procurement of a soul and not one single character in the whole thing was resolved! We left the Mayor bleeding, his daughter, well, I'm not sure what she was doing exactly, two other main characters simply exited stage left, never to return. The writing was not bad, it was actually rather engaging, but for some reason known only to the developer, it just stopped. Given that the game was rather short, one has to wonder just what ended up on the cutting room floor.
I'm still recommending the game: it's a game, after all, not a work of literature. But it will leave you just a little unsatisfied if you like things to be tied up neatly at the end.
I recommend this game!
Hidden Expedition: The Fountain of Youth Collector's Edition
There’s more to this restoration project than meets the eye.
Overall rating
5
/
5
44 of 61 found this review helpful
Lovely Game - Succeeds on Many Levels
PostedJanuary 14, 2016
timothya
fromSandpoint, Idaho
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Puzzle, Hidden Object, Adventure
Fun Factor
5
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
4
/
5
Storyline
5
/
5
A really fine entry in this series, and lots of things that almost worked in its predecessors succeed well here. Thoroughly enjoyed this one. I don't mind that the historical Magellan wasn't really interested in the Fountain of Youth. And Sam is the Deus ex Machina that ties the thing together.
Pros: Beautiful art, exotic locations, excellent music, EXCELLENT voice acting. Smooth game play, plenty of HO scenes with good variation, the usual mix of puzzles with a couple of MCF-esque puzzles that were a wonderful break. Writing solid and coherent. Player character is female but well done enough not to keep the guys from enjoying a little immersion. More of this, please!
Cons: Very few. I wish the history, which is beautifully detailed in the fact cards, could have been worked into the plot a little more and the heck with Ponce de Leon. If that's the only quibble, you know the game is solid.
Well done, Devs. This one's a keeper.
I recommend this game!
Sable Maze: Soul Catcher Collector's Edition
After 20 years, you're ready to make peace with your brother's disappearance. But the spirit world has other plans for you... Welcome to the other side!
Overall rating
5
/
5
21 of 28 found this review helpful
Mini-Gamer's Game
PostedJanuary 7, 2016
timothya
fromSandpoint, Idaho
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Puzzle, Hidden Object, Adventure, Match 3
Fun Factor
5
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
4
/
5
Storyline
4
/
5
I really did enjoy this one because I like games with plenty of mini-puzzles and this one delivered. Some are old, some new, most fairly easy but not so easy as to be boring. A couple were quite challenging.
The player is a young man (for a change) who, while memorializing a lost brother, is sucked into the same maze world his brother was 20 years ago and off to the rescue. This involves a creepy summer camp, druids, and a masked, robed character whose mystery lasts about 30 seconds. Some notes on the writing below.
Pros: excellent art, very colorful and imaginative. I wanted to explore the other tree houses sooo bad... Music neither too cloying nor too abrasive, I left it on the whole time. Voice acting better than usual (it's sort of a low bar). Game play crisp and with one exception well-coordinated with the pointing device. LOADs of mini-puzzles, hurrah! HO scenes vary and do not bring the pace of the game to a sudden halt.
Cons: the 3D amulet scenes, while innovative, were not very well coordinated with the mouse and it was a bit of a slog to hope to get close enough to lock in. Certain of the achievements were mutually exclusive. And then there's the writing. Once again, one really needed to complete the bonus game to figure out what the whole thing was really about, and the difference between the souls you're trying to free and everyone else. The Druid may be the wimpiest Druid in all of gamedom. And the ending...well, perhaps a bit Slavic in its darkness. Could the Devs hire a few writers who weren't brought up on Dostoevsky? It would help.
But overall, just plain fun! It isn't groundbreaking but it's solid and well-constructed. Five stars for the pure pleasure to play.
I recommend this game!
Someone's out for revenge, and she'll stop at nothing to get it.
Overall rating
3
/
5
1 of 3 found this review helpful
A Little Disappointing But Playable
PostedDecember 30, 2015
timothya
fromSandpoint, Idaho
Favorite Genre(s):Puzzle, Hidden Object, Adventure
Fun Factor
4
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
4
/
5
Level of Challenge
3
/
5
Storyline
3
/
5
Not the best entry in the series, to be sure, but very adequate for someone looking for plenty of puzzles and a fairly conventional gaming experience. HO scenes mostly junkpile and not overly difficult, although with enough variety to keep from getting boring. Music neither detracted nor contributed to the game's not overly immersive atmosphere. Voice acting uneven - the cop's accent was atrocious but I actually found him sort of good-natured and amusing, which was nice, because he was the only sympathetic adult male in the plot, which was quite dark and a little weird. For that and a couple of other reasons male players might feel a little left out here and it hurts the immersion experience: female protagonist, female antagonist, female victim, damsel in distress, and naturally the entire thing was the guys' fault. Come on, developers, you can do better than that. And worst, what made this a CE was that you never really found out what was behind the curse until you completed the bonus game. Wherein we encounter the origin of the curse, a faithless, abusive male spouse. Sheesh.
I don't recommend this game.
Who is trying to destroy the Kingdom of Barsia?
Overall rating
3
/
5
2 of 4 found this review helpful
What In The World Was This All About?
PostedDecember 6, 2015
timothya
fromSandpoint, Idaho
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Puzzle, Hidden Object, Adventure
Fun Factor
4
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
3
/
5
Level of Challenge
3
/
5
Storyline
1
/
5
The game had a certain charm to it, which is why the three stars, but it is, in summation, the single most incoherent plot I've come across in years. There is, of course, a young woman with golden hair and there are bears. It may be a late teaming between developers that resulted in this muddle, or perhaps it was always like that. If the former, the teaming of the writers wasn't a happy one; if the latter, the player's best hope is to get hold of a bottle of whatever the author was drinking and hope for the best.
The good: LOTS of game play, hurrah! for a change. Brilliant scenes, fun mini-games. A map that was the rational player's only hope of finishing the thing.
The less than good: the plot, or plots, or whatever this was supposed to be. We have Goldilocks herself, a singularly unsympathetic character redeemed by a hug given to a little boy whose name we do not know and who does not figure in the game aside from being turned into a golden statue and mysteriously resurrected at the end. Jack, who pops in from his beanstalk and out again, and then in and out, golden himself for a time and altogether baffling as to his presence at all. An evil automaton queen, an inventor with no discernible purpose except to hold this mess of a plot together, magical, weirdly-shaped pieces impossible to locate in the junk-pile HOS's, and a main character whose motivation to remain in this fantasy madhouse is entirely inexplicable except for the fact that she, and the player, are riding this hideous beast to oblivion. There is a horrible fascination here: you can't stop playing because it's just so bizarre that it has a certain dark beauty to it.
If, however, you're the sort of player so jaded by cliche that you can depend on the map to tell you what in the world you're supposed to do next without complaint, then the novelty of certain of the puzzles will attract you and the monotony of the hidden object scenes won't repel you too much. The music is repetitive and not particularly atmospheric. The voice acting is not to be blamed for the sheer grating awfulness of the lines the actors are compelled to recite.
And yet I'm recommending the game. Why? Because it was fun. Not, perhaps, for the right reasons, but the truth is I enjoyed playing it just to see what weird plot developments were going to happen next.
I recommend this game!
Can you find the key to Ravenhearst's resurrection?
Overall rating
4
/
5
4 of 8 found this review helpful
Almost There
PostedNovember 4, 2015
timothya
fromSandpoint, Idaho
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Puzzle, Hidden Object, Adventure
Fun Factor
4
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
4
/
5
Storyline
4
/
5
The MCF franchise has helped build the genre and has seen some highs - Madam Fate, Dire Grove, and Return to Ravenhearst, still the reigning champ - and some lows - the grotesque Escape from Ravenhearst, the stupifyingly boring Thirteenth Skull, and the sad Dire Grove, Sacred Grove, whose recycling of the Dire Grove scenes served only to remind us of how short the successors fell of the earlier brilliance. This one falls somewhere in between but is a high effort that shows that the new developer at least appreciates what made the gems unique.
The Pros: brilliant graphics as good as anything in the series. Cut scenes spectacular. Art worth enjoying just for art's sake. Music atmospheric and not overwhelming. Puzzles quite in keeping with the originals and if a little easier, also a little more logical and straightforward. Replayable in the extras, hurrah! And a small thing: the creepy typewriter is back! I love the creepy typewriter.
The Cons: It's a little short, the voice acting only adequate, and the writing somewhat disjointed if constrained by the excesses of the story line developed in the predecessors. The ending is abrupt and confusing - what really did happen to the lead male protagonist, after all? It wouldn't be answered in the bonus game, which was frankly disrespectful to the genuinely mentally disturbed and a bit of a downer in resolution.
Overall, a better effort than some, but not up to the well-deserved five stars of the others. This story line may not be played out, but it's limping pretty badly, and the current writers need to recover that playful mockery that made RTR such a delight.
I recommend this game!