FamilyDad1's Profile
Stat Summary
- Average Rating:3.8
- Helpful Votes:389
- Reviews Submitted:68
- First Review:April 14, 2012
- Most Recent Review:June 12, 2024
- Featured reviews1
Status:
After using your Ancestor’s Mirror to explore Castle Fairwich, you are sent back in time on a brand new quest!
Overall rating
1
/
5
4 of 5 found this review helpful
What was that?
PostedSeptember 22, 2012
Fun Factor
2
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
2
/
5
Level of Challenge
1
/
5
Storyline
2
/
5
It started out promising from the title, but the entire game took place in just a few scenes. Every time you clicked there was yet another HOS! Enough already. Plus the objects were so tiny, thank God I have great eyesight, I feel terrible for anyone who wears glasses, poor souls.
The game was totally hand holding linear. There was no Adventure object to it at all.
For being purely a HOG, it did have some cool extras and aspects such as clues & hidden rooms, but it really wasn't enough to keep my interest. From the title graphic, I was expecting a nice mysterious mansion to explore; But all I got was a few scenes.
I don't recommend this game.
Step into the shoes of detective Sarah Green and solve the mystery of Dr. Magnus' disappearance in this beautiful Hidden Object adventure game!
Overall rating
2
/
5
13 of 16 found this review helpful
Loved the Game, Hated getting Stuck!
PostedSeptember 22, 2012
Fun Factor
3
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
4
/
5
Level of Challenge
3
/
5
Storyline
3
/
5
I Loved the game itself, locations, objects, storyline, collectable extras, HOGs, even the Clues in the Journal Book.
I absolutely HATED the way you get stuck and have absolutely no clue whatsoever what to do next to get the game to advance. Hear me out... Because the game is played in Chapters, you need a certain object to move on to the next. Ok, this would be fine, except that the messy way the developers through this together means, if you miss the slightest detail, that single all important object or the fact that your cursor can turn into an arrow at the side of the screen, taking you to the next location, then you sit there for hours just clicking, re-clicking, re-tracing your steps, until you find that ONE SINGLE PIXEL that you somehow missed!
***THIS IS THE DEATH KNELL TO ADVENTURE GAMING OVERALL!!! Remember when Adventure games died for a while back in the early 2,000's? Yeah, well remember what all the reviewers were saying at the time. I do. The dreaded "PIXEL HUNT" comment!!! This is the Only thing that killed this otherwise great game for me, and if the developers don't give more direction, hints, options, then they are literally in danger of killing an entire genre for the rest of us yet again.
That and the other frustrating thing was finding so many Notes scattered everywhere. There are other ways to tell a story. God forbid you actually provide a couple of characters to speak with to help the story line move along.
Other than these 2 huge aggravations, I really would have enjoyed this otherwise seemingly great game. Loved the rest.
I don't recommend this game.
Ariel's twin sister, Belle, has been kidnapped and it's up to you to assist in her rescue!
Overall rating
4
/
5
1 of 1 found this review helpful
More good than not
PostedSeptember 18, 2012
Fun Factor
3
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
4
/
5
Level of Challenge
3
/
5
Storyline
4
/
5
I started off loving this game, then liked it.
It's got tons of scenes. And most of them have a mix of Interactive Hot-Spots, Objects and Puzzles. Some of the scenes are beautifully drawn, while others seem kind of cluttered. This also means at times you will miss vital items.
A big plus is your inventory is always chock full of items to use. Sometimes however the objects are kind of obscure, and their usage ever more strange.
I like the way you come across "collections" to trigger puzzles (books, gems, etc) The puzzle range from easy to slightly diabolical, nice mix.
One thing I absolutely LOVED was the amount of characters you come across in this game! And even better, they all talk to you complete with voice-overs, no matter how cheesy the voice effects might be at times. It gives you that feeling that you're never alone. Love it!
There was also a storyline throughout, and while it may have been good, for whatever reason, I couldn't care less about it.
The HOGs were pretty straight forward and not too difficult, but at times were definitely a bit cluttered. But never really to the point of frustration. They were also quite bright and clear.
A definite plus is the almost Unique HINT system! I say almost, because I remember this from games back in the PC era of great games, circa late 90's. Specifically, when you click on a puzzle/interactive object, the game will say something about it. If you don't figure out what to do on your own, the 2nd time you click it, the game will give a bit more info about what to do with it. And if you're still stumped, the 3rd time, it all but tells you what to do. Keep in mind this is without using the HINT button, which is still available to you in addition!
One particular frustration was how at times you had to click exactly in the right hot-spot or on a hidden object multiple times to get the game to trigger an acknowledgment.
Overall it was pretty good.
I recommend this game!
Nightmares from the Deep: The Cursed Heart Collector's Edition
Dive into an epic journey as a museum owner in pursuit of an undead pirate who has kidnapped your daughter in Nightmares from the Deep: The Cursed Heart!
Overall rating
4
/
5
Some good stuff in there...
PostedSeptember 11, 2012
Fun Factor
3
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
4
/
5
Level of Challenge
3
/
5
Storyline
5
/
5
: )
- Incredibly intricate story!
- Quality cinematic cut-scenes, including top-rate voice overs
- Tons & tons of locations
- Really nice graphics
- Map always lets you know where to go next
- Interesting puzzles
- Collect coins to continue story, adding suspense!
- Easy to find HOS, no punishment for missed clicks
- Pirate theme is really cool
- Incredibly intricate story!
- Quality cinematic cut-scenes, including top-rate voice overs
- Tons & tons of locations
- Really nice graphics
- Map always lets you know where to go next
- Interesting puzzles
- Collect coins to continue story, adding suspense!
- Easy to find HOS, no punishment for missed clicks
- Pirate theme is really cool
:.(
- While graphics are nice, again most of the scenes are muted blues & greys
- Boat scene navigation is super confusing!
- As there's almost always just ONE single objective at any given time, game has an extremely linear feeling
- There is a TON of dreaded Back-Tracking
- MAP is a great feature, but at times is somewhat confusing
- While graphics are nice, again most of the scenes are muted blues & greys
- Boat scene navigation is super confusing!
- As there's almost always just ONE single objective at any given time, game has an extremely linear feeling
- There is a TON of dreaded Back-Tracking
- MAP is a great feature, but at times is somewhat confusing
Overall a good solid pirate game with a great back-story. I just wish there were less back-tracking & more to do at times.
I recommend this game!
The Dark Piper unleashes infested rodents into the town of Hamelin! Defeat him before he leaves a trail of destruction all across Europe!
Overall rating
3
/
5
29 of 31 found this review helpful
I Just Don't Get It?
PostedAugust 26, 2012
Fun Factor
2
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
4
/
5
Level of Challenge
4
/
5
Storyline
5
/
5
The Piper was so sinister & menacing, it looked promising. The cozy medieval village also looked inviting. The fact that you could eventually enter the many storefronts & shop windows was terrific. There are some promising extras like the ability to summon the bird for example. There are characters to speak with and the cut scenes with the ever elusive evil piper is great to see. Plus the game is unbelievably long with a wonderful story line, but that's about where the fun ends & the aggravation begins...
While your inventory is constantly stocked with items, normally a huge plus, you really never know what to do with the items, or worse where to go next. There is an incredible amount of back-tracking, and The Map system is the worst I've ever seen. For example, let's say you walk Up one screen. Well for some unknown reason, you might go TWO screens Up and One to the Left on the Map! WHY???
Another peeve is how once you get past the first part of a challenge (ie: opening a door), of course there is a second challenge waiting just on the other side (ie: a locked box). Of course we enjoy multiple challenges, but this seems to be the rule here, so never really a sense of satisfaction.
Another thing is while the locations are totally cozy, and not too badly drawn, the navigation is pitiful. You can get totally lost within the village, even after playing for days. This is mainly because all of the scenes have a blue tone with a muted grey haze to them. Just look up a walk through with screen shots, then look at the scenes as you scroll down, and you'll see what I mean.
Okay so for the worst part of all: Is it meant to be interactive or not? The most hair pulling part of all has to be that once you've gotten past all the pitfalls, navigated through the confusing layout, gotten through all of the sometimes obscure challenges, you find yourself with all these objects, but you don't even know IF you can use them within a scene! This is one of the only games I've played (and I've played hundreds) where you don't know if an area is INTERACTIVE or just "talking to you". And because there are many instances of this in almost every scene, you quickly become numb to want to continue; I couldn't wait for it to end. For example, you might click on a picture and the game will say something about the subject. But then you might click on a statue, and the same thing happens. The difference is you cannot actually DO anything with the picture, but you CAN do something with the statue. This just increases the frustration factor because many times you will be walking around in circles for hours not knowing that you could have accomplished something until you turn to the walkthrough. And btw the hint system is one of those that say, "there is nothing to do here" instead of pointing you in the right direction.
Well you know what, it's right, there is nothing to do here.
I don't recommend this game.
After your sister vanishes on her wedding day no one has any idea what happened to her, so it's up to you to find the truth!
Overall rating
3
/
5
2 of 3 found this review helpful
It's Okay I guess...
PostedAugust 25, 2012
Fun Factor
3
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
4
/
5
Level of Challenge
5
/
5
Storyline
2
/
5
The Good:
- Menacing villain, evil, well drawn, sinister sounds, truly scary
- Flash-back theme works well
- Interesting & varied locations
- No punishments for missed clicks
- Can skip puzzles
- Tons of puzzles & HOS
- Game is very long
- Good graphics & sound
- Many frequent cut scenes
- Flash-back theme works well
- Interesting & varied locations
- No punishments for missed clicks
- Can skip puzzles
- Tons of puzzles & HOS
- Game is very long
- Good graphics & sound
- Many frequent cut scenes
The Bad:
- Lack of characters made for quite a lonesome experience
- Almost every accomplishment leads to yet another HOS
- Quite a bit of back tracking
- Sometimes not knowing where to go next
- Seldom more than 1 or 2 objects in inventory makes for a linear game
- All the roaming & wandering prevented you from really getting into the full experience of the game
- There was LITERALLY No Ending. You clicked for the last move & got a still frame ending. No story resolve, no wrap up, nothing more...
- Lack of characters made for quite a lonesome experience
- Almost every accomplishment leads to yet another HOS
- Quite a bit of back tracking
- Sometimes not knowing where to go next
- Seldom more than 1 or 2 objects in inventory makes for a linear game
- All the roaming & wandering prevented you from really getting into the full experience of the game
- There was LITERALLY No Ending. You clicked for the last move & got a still frame ending. No story resolve, no wrap up, nothing more...
The Bottom Line:
Sure there were a ton of good puzzles, tons of HOS, some interesting locations & some mediocre object exchange, but overall it just seemed like a bunch of puzzles thrown into an okay storyline. I wish there were more characters to talk with. I also wish there was less backtracking, perhaps by providing more objects to choose from at the same time. This probably would have prevented that one-trick pony feeling. And an ending would really have been nice.
Sure there were a ton of good puzzles, tons of HOS, some interesting locations & some mediocre object exchange, but overall it just seemed like a bunch of puzzles thrown into an okay storyline. I wish there were more characters to talk with. I also wish there was less backtracking, perhaps by providing more objects to choose from at the same time. This probably would have prevented that one-trick pony feeling. And an ending would really have been nice.
The bottom line is there are far more better games out there (please see my other reviews) with more heart. And while this certainly is far from the worst I've played, I would recommend saving it for a rainy day.
I recommend this game!
Guide Ethan Black as he attempts to rescue his bride-to-be from a terrifying menace known as the Faceless Ones!
Overall rating
5
/
5
Absolutely Top Notch Perfect 10!
PostedAugust 15, 2012
FamilyDad1
fromNew England
Skill Level:Expert
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure
Fun Factor
5
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
5
/
5
Storyline
5
/
5
Just might be the PERFECT Game!!!
Starts off on a train, you visit many multiple locations, all of them interesting, you end up visiting boats & towers. Just an absolutely magical, imaginative adventure. A joy to play from start to finish & never was there once an aggravating moment.
The cut scenes were INCREDIBLE!! Hollywood style graphics, effects & sounds. Some of it reminded me of japanese cartoons with the burn-ins & the ninja like costume's headband flowing in the breeze.
There were some intense dramatic scenes of the bad guys ascending on the train & the crash looked like it was staged & filmed in a major budget hollywood action movie. I'm not exaggerating - That's how great the graphics are!
But as we all know, great graphics alone do not make a great game. Well no worries because the game play totally delivers well above & beyond all expectations.
There were countless locations, all of them with interesting discoveries, excellent puzzles, just the right amount of clear, fair HOS, the HINT system was top notch, all of the items usage was logical, everything fit seamlessly into the game & story.
The story was like a full length movie or really good novel. Just the right balance of human and magic, but not ridiculous.
There were always plenty of characters with whom to interact so you ALWAYS had a feeling of someone being there with you. Sometimes there was just dialog & other times there were voice overs. The game was so good, you didn't really care either way. Just superb!
I'm happy to say there were even some creepy little bits here & there, but nothing ever gross or too macabre.
All said, this was probably the best game I've ever played within the world of Big Fish. It is very long & packed full of fun things to do throughout the entire game. There is no back tracking & you can't help but want to come back for more. It was absolutely not just thrown together; you can tell the development team put a ton of time, energy & thought into the game & it really shows. If you love adventure, puzzle, HOS Games, then please don't miss out, you have to get this one!
I recommend this game!
Search for a town consumed by fog! Unlock forbidden doors and uncover mysterious items!
Overall rating
5
/
5
2 of 2 found this review helpful
UnBelievable! Excellent! Perfect!
PostedAugust 12, 2012
FamilyDad1
fromNew England
Skill Level:Expert
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure
Fun Factor
5
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
5
/
5
Storyline
5
/
5
Oh my God, this game was PERFECT in every single way!
The locations were beautiful, clear, interactive, living & breathing, easily navigated, interesting, cozy & each one different from the other (Hotel, Photo Shop, Grave Yard, Train Station, etc...)
While at first some of the locations seemed like they were just background, eventually you could find a way to enter them! This was so fun & cool once you discovered the way.
The Storyline was Top Notch. Slightly familiar, but with enough of a major twist that it kept things fresh & interesting.
There were people to interact with, plus very good voice-overs. This meant you never once got that lonely, solitary feeling.
Navigation was a breeze & you almost always knew where to go next. I only needed a couple of nudges later on in the game.
There were just the right amount of HOS & all of the objects were fair, clear & easy to find. The HINT system worked just fine & recharged fairly quickly.
There were some nice creepy surprises, such as specters in the keyhole, ghosts in the mirror & codes appearing in developed photos.
Overall I give this game a Perfect score, a huge jump from the series last "Wax" title. I can't wait to see more greatness from this development team!
I recommend this game!
Become a Hunter of darkness to cope with possessed owner of theater and revived shadows. Help other people by correcting their wrong fulfilled wishes!
Overall rating
1
/
5
15 of 21 found this review helpful
Is It Over Yet?
PostedAugust 11, 2012
Fun Factor
1
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
2
/
5
Level of Challenge
3
/
5
Storyline
5
/
5
I bought based on the promise of a great game, but was quickly let down from the very beginning. Where do I start?
The graphics were cluttered & messy so you seldom knew what was background & what was interactive. In addition, there were no voice overs.
You never knew where to go or what to do next - Ever! The puzzles were so obscure, that it created two issues: You could wander around forever wondering where to find the pieces, and, once you found them, you were never really sure where or how to use them. In addition, the puzzles were too "mechanical", reminding us of the early Myst type games & all the horrible rip offs which followed. Terrible.
Others have said it but the HINT system is awful. Instead of pointing you in the right direction, it tells you "there is nothing to do here". Okay, great, thanks a lot. A HUGE setback since you need it Constantly!
Oh, and clocks, Clocks & more CLOCKS - Everywhere! Ok, we get it, the game is about *CLOCKS!!!* Too much.
On the good side, the premise of the story was EXCELLENT! Time Travel, while it's been done before, the main character is desperately trying to fulfill the wishes of his forefathers by reaching the future. It's almost heartbreaking. Great plot, not well executed.
Another good thing is there are characters to speak with, which lends some warmth to an otherwise cold game.
The few HOS games are straight forward & okay. It was nice to see less of them for a change.
And a couple of the puzzles - literally 2 or 3 of them, were kind of creative & thought-provoking, but most of them tred to be overly ambitious & resulted in obscurity. So frustrating.
Overall it's not nearly enough to save this sinker. After going in circles for so long, you just didn't care anymore enough to continue the game. I just couldn't wait for it to end.
I don't recommend this game.
Explore a haunted amusement park in Weird Park: Broken Tune! Investigate a rash of “accidental” deaths and solve the case!
Overall rating
5
/
5
2 of 2 found this review helpful
Near *PERFECT* Game!!!
PostedAugust 10, 2012
FamilyDad1
fromNew England
Skill Level:Expert
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure
Fun Factor
5
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
3
/
5
Storyline
4
/
5
Subject Matter: Clowns & abandoned amusement park. Excellent creepy FUN!
Storyline: Terrific, a sad, revenge story, but sprinkled with humor (via various newspaper clippings) Well done.
Graphics: EXCELLENT! Well done mix of Gorgeous locations, with background motions (lights flashing, flowers in the breeze, etc.), interspersed with AWESOME Surprises (evil clown in the mirror, sinister mini-jester running thru the scene, etc.) Reminds me of those fun days of the early classics, like Phantasmagoria or 7th Guest/11th Hour.
HOS: Excellent, all objects are of normal or large size, perfectly visible & reasonably named.
Hint Button: Recharges quickly & works for ALL aspects of the game (HOS, Navigation, Puzzles, etc.)
Puzzles: Sure a couple may seem familiar, but most of them are pretty imaginative, different & never too difficult. I especially liked how you found pieces of a record, then played it on an old victrola to open another dimension. Great stuff.
Gameplay: While you traverse the absolutely beautiful scenes, you never get bored. All the scenes are interesting, as are the things to do within them. There are some real creepy objects & puzzles as well. All of them are logical. You almost always know what to do once you locate an object.
Pacing & Placement: Everything in the game is well placed & well paced. For example, in one puzzle you must create a recipe, then carry it with you. Well not far from the cauldron is a clever water puzzle which yields a bottle, with which to carry the completed recipe. Challenging, but with almost no annoying backtracking or endless wandering. KUDOS!!!
Atmosphere: I love mysterious goings-on. This game over delivers on expectation. Some examples include a mysterious cassette tape, creepy video tape, interaction with broken down amusement park rides (roller coaster, ferris wheel, etc), a couple of mannequins & best of all a version of the classic Harry Potter changing staircase. INCREDIBLE!!!
Lastly, the balancing of the game was right on point. It was Always FUN. An upbeat mix of horror, fun colors & clowns. What could be better. And if I had to pick something negative, I would say while you do come in contact with one person, and it never really felt too lonely because it was so fun, I kind of wish there was at least one or two more PEOPLE to talk with in the game. For instance, they could have had you phone a friend back home via cell phone (with video chat). Or perhaps a detective could have visited you from time to time in the park.
That small enhancement aside, this game is Absolutely PERFECT!!!!!
I recommend this game!