underwriter's Profile
Stat Summary
- Average Rating:4.2
- Helpful Votes:206
- Reviews Submitted:19
- First Review:March 1, 2012
- Most Recent Review:February 28, 2018
- Featured reviews0
When a Myth Seekers agent goes missing, you're called in to discover the truth in this hidden object adventure!
Overall rating
5
/
5
32 of 34 found this review helpful
Seeking Myths
PostedFebruary 28, 2018
underwriter
fromColorado Springs, CO
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Hidden Object, Match 3
Fun Factor
5
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
4
/
5
Storyline
5
/
5
I was lucky enough to have beta-tested this, and have been waiting for it to come out. I'm not much for fancy touches - I would rather not be distracted from a good story - so I waited for the SE.
Set in 1929 in Mussolini's Italy, you are an agent searching for the Hammer of Vulcan. The Hitler regime in Germany is known to have been superstitious (remember those games about the spear?), so it makes sense that Mussolini's regime would be also. And - what if? What if it were all true?
Throw in a few more gods and goddesses, some weather events, a dash of treachery, all with lovely art, and you have an adventure which is just right for me. Some of the mini-games will be a bit too easy for cleverer players than I, but there is room for all of in the pond.
I recommend this game!
Solve mysterious crimes and expose insidious criminals in this exciting, multilevel hidden object game.
Overall rating
3
/
5
6 of 8 found this review helpful
What a coincidence!
PostedDecember 26, 2016
underwriter
fromColorado Springs, CO
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Card & Board, Hidden Object, Match 3
Fun Factor
2
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
3
/
5
Level of Challenge
2
/
5
Storyline
2
/
5
The first reviewer here played for ten minutes - and so did I. But I will be a little kinder.
The hidden object scenes are pretty fair (in the sense of giving one a chance), the objects are of reasonable sizes and not all that difficult to see, and mostly not in the shadows. The objects you "keep" from the scenes are not related to the story in the way that they are in most games today; you don't keep them to use later, they just lead to the next scene. For instance, a roll of money you keep from the limousine leads the mayor to tell you someone is trying to bribe him (and then it's gone). His diary has an appointment which leads you to his car so he can get to it (and then the diary is gone). That scene will have a spare tire; he mentions before you start looking that a tire is flat so you will need a spare. That to me is not nearly as fun as figuring out where to go (here, the game sends you to the next scene) and what to do (here, nothing but listen/read dialog).
I also personally do not like timed HOPs. I do, however like the security of having more hints than you will need. The HOPs are timed here, and the hint system is unusual - not bad in itself, but you only have so many of three different kinds, and there doesn't appear to be any way to replenish them.
The graphics are very well done; they are static, but that is not a problem, because they fit the way one moves in the game. Anyone who really loves pure HOPs, doesn't mind if they are timed, and doesn't want to get into the story (I play mostly for the story, and like to do a lot of second-guessing as to where it is going) will like this game. And it does have a lot of levels, so it won't be "too short" for most people. However, that player is not me.
If you think you might like it, by all means try it out. You have a fighting chance of getting through the first story in the trial period. Decide for yourself. Whether you try it or not, happy playing.
I don't recommend this game.
Stop a strange phenomenon that could threaten the entire world!
Overall rating
4
/
5
31 of 36 found this review helpful
enigmatis
PostedNovember 16, 2016
underwriter
fromColorado Springs, CO
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Hidden Object, Mahjong, Match 3
Fun Factor
4
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
4
/
5
Level of Challenge
4
/
5
Let me start by saying I really like this developer's games. There are not a whole lot of them (you can elect to review then from the menu page), but every one is first rate. That said, opening the game with a scene that is a song is a bad, bad idea. I am very tolerant myself of developers who are marketing games not in their first language and have often defended them in the forums, but that is in spelling and in speech. Bad rhymes and mispronounced words in a song, moreover a song you can't really skip, at least the first time, without missing the backstory - that I'm not tolerant of.
I will buy the game and am confident I will enjoy it because they are a fine developer and I have enjoyed what they have done previously - but I hope they never do a singing telegram opening (or anywhere in a game) again, and I really hope no other developer picks up on it.
I recommend this game!
Crime Secrets: Crimson Lily is a captivating blend of hidden object challenges, puzzle solving and daring detective work.
Overall rating
4
/
5
3 of 7 found this review helpful
Mystery story with revenge theme
PostedOctober 12, 2016
underwriter
fromColorado Springs, CO
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Hidden Object, Match 3
Fun Factor
4
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
4
/
5
Level of Challenge
4
/
5
Storyline
4
/
5
My review is based on the beta, which was some time ago, but I quickly replayed it. I do recognize the screens in the preview, so I assume (and hope) it has not changed out fo recognition.
In the beta I played three HOPs, but two were in the "Nine Clues" format, where you don't know what you are looking for until you find it - and when you've found everything you have to put it in order and analyze it. The third was a normal HOP, find named objects, two in a different color required putting items together. I found all three enjoyable. Some may find them too easy. A few mini-games - restoring electricity, opening boxes/cabinets, opening a safe after you find the combination - not terribly difficult, and I am sure some will say too easy.
The story is what I really play the games for. It appears to be a "revenge tragedy" but there will be many questions to answer. Who is the mysterious man? What is his bizarre murder method? How many people are involved in this? What side is each person on? Are they even who they say they are? This is stuff that I just eat up.
Let me just digress a little here; it's not completely off topic, because it goes to demonstrate my interest in story above all - for the current favorite, it is not possible to select a series or trilogy. My current favorite is the Enigmatis trilogy. I'll pick one, but it's really the whole trilogy for me.
I recommend this game!
Uncover the secrets buried under Karkhala Peak.
Overall rating
5
/
5
2 of 3 found this review helpful
Now THIS is how to construct a series!
PostedAugust 30, 2016
underwriter
fromColorado Springs, CO
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Hidden Object
Fun Factor
5
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
5
/
5
Storyline
5
/
5
I have been uncomfortable lately with many developers of series games departing from their roots, a few returning, but most not. Here is a game that never had to return to its roots because it never left them. ONE premise (a VERY complex one) which you do not learn until almost the end of the second game - but once you learn it you realize it has been there all along. THREE recurring characters - and what characters! All show some development throughout the trilogy, yet all hang on to their basic stances and principles. I am so impressed by the consistency I hope I am not making it sound boring. There are plenty of surprises though the entire trilogy. Yet everything is consistent (including, as one other reviewer said, that the Latin is real Latin.)
This game - and I bought the standard edition, though I am reviewing it here under the Collector's edition because there are no reviews there and I am glad I did - but this third game of the three is so solid that it sent me back to play the first two again (well, it has been three years) to wrap my head around the whole story. The graphics have improved - they improved from the first game to the second, and even more in the third. The plot/story line - I'm not sure quite how to say this, but it keeps growing. Since each growth step transcends and includes all the plot that has gone before, I suppose you could say it improves, but that feels like a disservice to the earlier levels.
I am deliberately being vague on the details of the play because I don't want to spoil anything - and also because the sheer size of the concept is what stays in my mind rather than the details.
There was one scene when I first opened the game which played before the menu that I have not been able to get back again, and I would like to, because I didn't know what I was seeing and therefore didn't pay enough attention. But that may be the worst thing I can say about it
Of course not everyone will like it. I doubt if there is any such thing as a game that everyone likes. But, dear developer, you can take over my world any time if you are going to do it like this. If I could make the three-game series my favorite game below, I certainly would.
I recommend this game!
Explore the haunted history of a ballet school while guided by spirits from another dimension! Can you help guide these poor souls home?
Overall rating
4
/
5
4 of 5 found this review helpful
So Beautiful
PostedMay 15, 2016
underwriter
fromColorado Springs, CO
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Hidden Object, Adventure, Match 3
Fun Factor
4
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
4
/
5
Storyline
5
/
5
OK, I haven't finished the game yet, but I wanted to weigh in before too much time goes by. I am enchanted by the graphics, particularly of inanimate objects (the people are a little different) and will finish this game, even if it makes me completely crazy with glitches (but there have been none as yet) and being picky about cursor placement (I have had some of that) and games with no instructions (at least I couldn't find any, and that's the only reason for any fours instead of fives).
The graphics are reminding me of the graphics in the first two Haunted Manor and the first Witch Hunters, which I loved so much, I think I cried when the dev decided to go more mainstream. There is also a resemblance to the Dream Chronicles series graphics. So if you are loving the graphics and want more, those are places to look if you haven't already.
I am not a big fan of morphing objects, but in HOPs I don't mind them, and I think these are well done. If there are two HOPs of the same scene, the second is silhouettes/find and use; if you see an object that is silhouetted and you aren't able to use it yet, you probably won't be able to pick it up until you have whatever-it-is you need to pick it up with.
I'm not going to be any more specific; I think those who have, have done a good job. Besides, I want to get back to playing it rather than talking about it.
I recommend this game!
Help Brad save Janet, his fiancée, from Frankenstein’s crazy experiments in Frankenstein: The Dismembered Bride!
Overall rating
4
/
5
2 of 2 found this review helpful
"Let's do the Time Warp again!"
PostedApril 8, 2016
underwriter
fromColorado Springs, CO
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Hidden Object, Adventure, Match 3, Card & Board
Fun Factor
4
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
4
/
5
Level of Challenge
4
/
5
Storyline
4
/
5
I'm not sure why anyone who looks at the bare bones description of a game whose two main characters are named Brad and Janet and expect anything other than a mixture of horror and humor - you might call it Rocky Horror.
I am cool with the HDO format personally. Yes, it is dark #which the developer knows - they recommend you set your computer as bright as you can#, and yes, the objects are small, many of them, But you know where you are with the format. You have clear consistent instructions. The only thing I might miss is the ability to use a hint to find out where to go next - but you don't really need that, because you just need to check all locations till you find one that has instructions at the bottom, and that's the one. And sometimes the dialogue will give you a clue.
The mini games are not complex, but there is a real incentive to do them - especially as you get farther into the game and the stars to add to your hint supply stop showing up as fast.
I actually thought it was restful, and I needed that today, so it was a good match for me.
I recommend this game!
In Wishville, all dreams come true, for a price.
Overall rating
5
/
5
27 of 28 found this review helpful
"Do all the snakes wear crowns here?"
PostedApril 6, 2016
underwriter
fromColorado Springs, CO
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Hidden Object, Adventure, Match 3
Fun Factor
5
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
4
/
5
Level of Challenge
4
/
5
Storyline
5
/
5
Unlike so many here, I am interested in games primarily for the story, for figuring out what to do next, and sometimes for second guessing the denouement, although I am probably equally happy to have figured it out in advance and to be completely surprised. This game let me guess the ending between a half and two thirds through - but still had many surprises for me #and for the protagonist# in the process.
The game almost seamlessly weaves two traditional fairy tales with twists of its own. One tale is the Sleeping Beauty, and the other would be a spoiler if I gave the title, so I won't. I was charmed with it.
The HOPs, which I do like because they contribute to the story, giving you tools you wouldn't otherwise get, were IMO well balanced between big and lighted enough on the one hand, and cleverly concealing some items but not all on the other. Clues were verbal and silhouettes. Minigames - I like some kinds, don't like others, and will cheerfully skip ones I just hate.
If I remember correctly, roses have been a connecting link between the games in this series, and the way these were used contributed to the story in multiple ways.
As an agent of the Alliance, you’ve been given a mission to destroy an ancient artifact known as the Spear of Destiny. In the wrong hands, it could help conquer the world.
Overall rating
5
/
5
7 of 11 found this review helpful
World War II Adventure
PostedJanuary 31, 2016
underwriter
fromColorado Springs, CO
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Hidden Object, Adventure, Match 3, Mahjong, Card & Board
Fun Factor
4
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
4
/
5
Storyline
4
/
5
I didn't play the whole trial, but I like the developer and it works smoothly, so it will be a buy for me.
The story was previously used in one other game that I know of, except that that developer called it a "Lance" rather than a "Spear," and of course there are plenty of differences in detail so it is definitely not the same game, just the same story (and, for instance, how many "Cinderella"s and "Beauty and the Beast"s have we played and enjoyed them all?)
The one HO I got to was the kind where behind every object there is another item, all of which need to be put together to make a panel which reveals something. I like those, and they generally are not the only kind in a game, and I also like variety in HOs
I recommend this game!
Prepare yourself for a perilous journey across the world in order to save your niece from imminent danger.
Overall rating
4
/
5
7 of 8 found this review helpful
Story and mechanics work well for me
PostedJuly 4, 2015
underwriter
fromColorado Springs, CO
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Hidden Object, Adventure, Match 3
Fun Factor
4
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
4
/
5
Level of Challenge
4
/
5
Storyline
4
/
5
I am slower than many of you - I like to take my time - so I didn't get as far as bubblegumbandit though I played longer. I did get as far as the wind-up mouse, but didn't get the comment quoted, which would have made me chuckle. The verbiage I did read seemed fine to me.
I have no problem with the graphics. I don't see the point of having state-of-the-art graphics if they are not supported on one's computer and one gets black screens, for instance. Also, I liked Demon Hunter and Queen's Quest, and the fact that the villains in those were fairly obvious to me simply (probably incorrectly) made me feel clever.
Another idiosyncrasy, to me the bells and whistles of Collectors Editions merely get in the way of the story. Morphing objects are best in HOSs, as they are used here, rather than in the game scenes where they are a real distraction. I am sure to get this one but will wait for the standard edition.
I recommend this game!