biscuitsmama's Profile
Stat Summary
- Average Rating:4.3
- Helpful Votes:67,036
- Reviews Submitted:1148
- First Review:July 13, 2012
- Most Recent Review:December 16, 2020
- Featured reviews0
Status:
A man has gone missing in the town of Rockshire, but the townspeople deny he was ever there. What dark secret are they hiding?
Overall rating
5
/
5
45 of 61 found this review helpful
DIG IN AND FIND GOLD IN THIS EXCELLENT NEW WHISPERED SECRETS GAME
PostedSeptember 4, 2015
biscuitsmama
fromGathering my pick axe and helmet as I mine for gold in an excellent new Whispered Secrets
Skill Level:Expert
Fun Factor
5
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
5
/
5
Storyline
5
/
5
You play the game as a detective who has been hired by a young wife to find her missing husband. Bill went off to make a living in a mining town but it seems he has been missing for days and the town authorities deny he has ever been to the town, so off you go to solve the mystery of the missing husband. What else will you dig up hidden in the depths of the town and its local mine as you play Whispered Secrets Golden Silence?
The game offers four modes of gameplay: Casual, Advanced, Hardcore, and Custom. If you choose the custom mode you can set your hint/skip buttons as long as 500 seconds if you really want to make the game challenging. On my laptop the graphics are crystal clear and I love the gorgeous scenes. The voice acting coupled with lip syncing is excellent and probably the best and most realistic that I have heard in games and it brings the characters to life.
You have a map that is present at the beginning of the game – a compass located on the lower right. Well I guess not everyone got the message about pet helpers but in this case we do have a cute red panda that is not obnoxious nor does it demand constant attention so I am quite happy to have him one tag along with me during the game. What I really like about this helper is that when he is needed he just goes about the business of getting the task completed and then goes back to his little perch in the user interface area. I actually wouldn’t mind having this type of pet helper in all my games.
The HOPS are varied in type and they are interactive but if you don’t want to search for items in the usual junk piles you can choose to play a match 3 game to complete the scene and earn your prize. Of course there are puzzles and mini-games with some of them being a bit different than those we normally encounter. None of them are too difficult and I happen to enjoy them when they pop up so that I can move forward in the game.
Many of you probably know by now that I love hidden object games and have probably played almost every one of them in recent years. Yes the games all have the same premise and I have been there done that many times before but I never seem to become blasé or bored with the genre. Whispered Secrets Golden Silence is a great game and I have found it very enjoyable and entertaining. The granny team is one of my favorites and they always know how to put together a good storyline. The gorgeous graphics, sound package, characters, story and gameplay all come together to present the kind of wonderful game that I love. Although the game was an instant buy for me, as always, I recommend that you try the demo to see if this is a game you will enjoy.
The twinkling lights in the marsh look pretty, but they hold a mysterious power. Whatever you do... do not follow them!
Overall rating
5
/
5
117 of 188 found this review helpful
IS HE REAL OR A CHILDREN’S FABLE?
PostedSeptember 3, 2015
biscuitsmama
fromMaking sure I have my lantern handy as I prepare to enter the Whispering Marsh
Skill Level:Expert
Fun Factor
5
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
5
/
5
Storyline
5
/
5
As the County Bounder you certainly have your hands full this time. Are you chasing after a fantasy or is something much worse going on in the Whispering Marsh? Your help is needed because many citizens of the town have gone missing in the forest around Whispering Marsh and now it is up to you to figure it out and to stop the disappearances. But before you even start you have an accident as you are approaching the town. Not only is your carriage disabled, your coachman has now drowned in the marsh. Not a very auspicious beginning to your investigation. Once you reach the town you find there is a curfew and the citizens are in a panic. The sheriff is now among the missing and things seem to be getting worse all the time. You learn that there is a local legend of the “Lantern Man” who whisks away those who enjoy laughter, dancing and merriment. Some say it was a bedtime story to frighten misbehaving children but maybe he isn’t a fable at all. Just beware – you mustn’t laugh or have any fun while playing or you just might go missing too.
One look at the devs name on this game and you know the graphics will be excellent. The sound package in the game is quite good with voiceovers that okay but not the best I have heard in a game. Technical Aspects of the game include four modes of gameplay: Explorer, Professor, County Bounder, and the custom mode – Swamp Dweller where you can fiddle with settings so you can play the game the way you like. In the Swamp Dweller mode the hints can be set in a range of 10 to 120 seconds and the skips from 10 to 400 seconds in the custom level you can also turn off the penalty setting for random clicking in the HOPS.
:
You have an interactive transporter type map that is found very early in the game. Yes there is a gimmick – a lantern that you acquire early in the game. You will use the lantern to drive away the swamp lights but you must charge it by playing a mini-puzzle before it is ready to be used.
:
You have an interactive transporter type map that is found very early in the game. Yes there is a gimmick – a lantern that you acquire early in the game. You will use the lantern to drive away the swamp lights but you must charge it by playing a mini-puzzle before it is ready to be used.
The HOPS included the standard interactive variety of scenes that we now see in HOPA games so there is nothing new or earth-shaking here. That being said the HOPS are very good with items that are fairly easy to spot. If you don’t want to search for items in the HOP scenes you may choose the option of playing the alternate game of Mah-jongg. In my humble opinion, some of the puzzles seem to be getting better and have a bit more challenge in recent games. I am hopeful that the trend continues in Myths of the World The Whispering Marsh but initially I didn’t encounter any that were too difficult. I know that the puzzles generally become progressively more difficult as a game progresses so I hope that is the case with The Whispering Marsh.
The CE has the usual extras that we find with this devs games and they include a Lorebook, Music, Video, Pictures, play HOPS, play Puzzles, and Mah-jongg. There are morphing objects throughout the game as well as acorns to be collected. Of course there is the strategy guide and the bonus game to play as well.
Myths of the World is one of my favorite game series and The Whispering Marsh is a game I have been eagerly awaiting. This developer knows how to formulate a great story and this one definitely captured my interest. Even though I couldn’t wait to hit that buy button, as always, I recommend that you at least try the demo to see if this is a game you will like
I recommend this game!
Explore the ruined castle once owned by the infamous Countess Dracula in this spine-chilling hidden object adventure!
Overall rating
1
/
5
92 of 123 found this review helpful
A WASTE OF TIME
PostedSeptember 2, 2015
Fun Factor
1
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
1
/
5
Storyline
1
/
5
It is not too often that a hidden object game comes along that I truly find horrible but this might be one of the first. Bathory the Bloody Countess is not a well-constructed game and it comes to us probably from someone who was sitting at home with nothing better to do so they figured they would create a hidden object game.
The blurb for the game says there are beautiful hand-drawn graphics. Well they are hand-drawn but they are flat and cartoonish. There are no voiceovers only written dialogue that obviously never met an editor.
I lasted about five minutes into the game before I had enough and uninstalled the game. BFG must be scraping the bottom of the barrel if this is all they could come up with. Obviously, I don’t like – no hated is more appropriate – this game and found it a huge waste of my time to even download the demo. If you have extra time to spare, maybe you might want to try the demo to see if this is a game you would like.
I don't recommend this game.
Persecuted by ill fate, the elven nation land on a lost island. They'll need sharp blades as well as sharp minds to survive.
Overall rating
5
/
5
126 of 160 found this review helpful
AN EXCELLENT QUEST GAME
PostedSeptember 1, 2015
biscuitsmama
fromHaving fun while learning to appreciate a new type of game
Skill Level:Expert
Fun Factor
5
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
5
/
5
Storyline
5
/
5
My hopes were really high when I opened Lost Island Eternal Storm this morning. I thought that we were getting what seemed to be a good SE HOPA game. It didn’t take long before the opening scenes melded into a builder, quest type game. In all fairness this is not my favorite genre, simply because I hate having quests laid out for me as I play a game. In order to be objective though, I am sure that this is an excellent game for those of you who revel in this genre.
The graphics are beautiful and aside from the mistiness that was present in some of the opening cutscenes, the quest graphics are quite beautiful and colorful. The sound package and voiceovers are excellent.
As you progress through the game you will acquire tools that will help you on your various quests. You will open a location or go to a specific location to open HOS. There are a couple of things that I dislike about this genre and one is that in every type of this game the items to be found are usually very small or blend so well into a background that they are extremely hard to distinguish and locate. Quite frankly I don’t personally have the patience to play through these scenes and dislike having to play a game against a clock. Yes, like the old school HO games there is a timer or clock that counts down and we are awarded stars based on how quickly we locate the items from either a list or a silhouette that is displayed at the top of your screen.
One of the things that I found very intriguing about the game is the storyline that is excellent and I really would like to learn more. As we progress through the various locations there are some tricky puzzles to be completed and then the HOS. Even though I am not a great fan of this type of game, this one has a lot going for it and is definitely worth buying. Lost Land Eternal Storm is constructed like some of the Free-to-Play (F2P) games that have been released during the past couple of years. One of the great things about this game is that there is an upfront purchase price and I haven’t encountered anything that would require real money to purchase items in order to continue with the quests. Even though some of the F2P games seemed quite interesting, I steer clear of them because they can become a major expense. All in all, Lost Island Eternal Storm seems like an excellent game and one that I will buy so that I can become more experienced with these types of games. For those of you who love the genre, I am sure you will find that this is an extremely well-crafted and wonderful game. As always, I recommend that you at least try the demo to see if this is a game you will enjoy.
Welcome to Hotel Solitaire. On each floor you will find 5 rooms, each with its own game of solitaire. Play 15 different card games across 100 levels, either against the clock or with no time limit.
Overall rating
4
/
5
26 of 34 found this review helpful
A FUN LITTLE SOLITAIRE GAME WITH VARIETY
PostedAugust 31, 2015
Fun Factor
4
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
4
/
5
Level of Challenge
4
/
5
Storyline
4
/
5
Hotel Solitaire isn’t bad as solitaire games go but the music made me crazy so it had to go. One of the nice things about this game is that there is a variety of 5 different solitaire games to play. As you progress through the floors of the hotel you will find a different game on each floor. Each floor has several rooms to choose but essentially all of the games on that floor are the same type but with different card layouts.
The music drove me nuts with its sort of carnival sound. It is very repetitive and completely annoying. Fortunately I could turn it off. The thing I like about the game is the variety it offers rather than just the one up or down type of card game. The graphics are good and the card boards are medium in size.
After you complete the various rooms in the hotel you will open up games in the casino that are a bit more challenging and you can add points based on speed.
All in all Hotel Solitaire is a rather fun little game and one I will most likely add to my collection. As always, I recommend that you try the demo to see if this is a game you will enjoy.
I recommend this game!
Mystery Tales: Alaskan Wild Collector's Edition
Call on the animal spirits to help find your sister.
Overall rating
5
/
5
98 of 180 found this review helpful
SHADES OF JACK LONDON AND MOMMY DEAREST
PostedAugust 29, 2015
biscuitsmama
fromStrapping on my snowshoes as I trek across the northern tundra of Alaska
Skill Level:Expert
Fun Factor
5
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
5
/
5
Storyline
5
/
5
It has been a while since you have seen your sister Ellie who lives in Alaska and she really wants you to come for a visit. Since you are a writer, it doesn’t take much for Ellie to convince you that your next book could be about Alaska so with that as an extra incentive you soon find yourself on a flight to Alaska for a long overdue visit. When you arrive at the airport Ellie is glowing and you learn her secret as she invites to a special dinner with her fiancé Daniel. As you and Ellie arrive for dinner at Daniel’s home you get to meet our villainess, a real mommy dearest, who is sure to be the mother-in-law from you know where. Abigail uses some powerful magic and whisks Ellie away so now you must rescue sis and finally put Abigail in her place. As you trek across the glorious wild vistas of Alaska you encounter wild wolves, huge bears, and some very interesting characters.
Just as a note, the game did not automatically open in widescreen on my laptop and I had to click the widescreen button to get the black side bars to disappear. The game offers four modes of gameplay with catchy little names: Casual Moose, Expert Wolf, Hardcore Grizzly and my favorite – Wise Owl, where you can fiddle with all sorts of settings so that you can set up the game for the way you like to play. The sound package includes lip-synced voiceovers that are generally very good and special sound effects that are awesome. One of the effects that I particularly enjoyed was the realism created by the howling winter wind as it was blowing through the trees. The graphics are amazingly beautiful and colorful despite all of the white, snowy vistas that we move through. After all the recent winter themed games it seems like BFG wants to give us something to cool the blistering hot days of summer. Of course this is fine with me since winter is my favorite time of year. In Alaska Wild we get to enjoy the beauty of the frosty northern tundra and the special delight of those wonderful Northern Lights, something I would like to experience first-hand.
In the user interface area you will find your inventory and other tools. You have a compass that when clicked opens your interactive, transporter type that will indicate areas where there are available tasks depending on your mode of gameplay. Other tools include a special amulet that you receive early in the game that allows you to animate animal totems. You also have a camera so that you can take photos of any animals you that will be stored in an album.
The HOPS are really gorgeous with a great variety but all of them are multi-level, combo type scenes. I found them quite a bit of fun and enjoyed them more than usual. During the demo there was one storybook type where we find and replace items on the page but most of the others are more traditional. If you really don’t want to complete the HOPS then you can choose play an alternate Match 3 game if you prefer. I am so excited that the game has more mini-games than HOPS with 23 mini-games to 13 HOPS. Some examples of the mini-games include: rotate tiles to complete a picture, untangle ropes to clear them, push buttons in a specific order to open a cache, get a boat to safety by completing mini-puzzles. This just lists a few of the puzzles and there are many more. Some were very easy but others are a bit more difficult. I haven’t yet found one that is just plain frustrating.
The CE version of the game includes collectibles and achievements to be earned along with the standard extras such as replay of mini-games, HOPS, Wallpapers, Cutscenes, Concept Art, Strategy Guide, Bonus Game, Wildlife Photos and a Personality Quiz. There is also a Wildlife Album where you will store photos that you take during your Wild Alaskan adventure.
Even though for some more seasoned HOPA players the game might seem fairly easy, the game is one that I truly enjoy. The developer has created a gorgeous winter masterpiece with absolutely beautiful graphics. I think the storyline is quite good even though it might make some future brides-to-be cringe and want to take a closer look at their soon to be MILs. If you don’t mind the easy gameplay, the HOPS and mini-games add a lot to the game and will most likely increase in challenge as is normally the case. Although the game is an instant buy for me, as always, I suggest you try the demo to see if this is a game you will enjoy.
I recommend this game!
Can you find and catch the notorious Sea Ripper?
Overall rating
5
/
5
60 of 76 found this review helpful
EXCELLENT FUN ON THE HIGH SEAS
PostedAugust 28, 2015
biscuitsmama
fromLooking for my life raft and parrot to accompany me for some sleuthing fun
Fun Factor
5
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
5
/
5
Storyline
5
/
5
In Sea of Lies Tide of Treachery we are off on a fun adventure on the high seas. We play the game as an investigator called in by the navy to investigate a smuggler who has been plying her trade in the waters around the Island of St. Margaret. Unfortunately several ships have been lost as a result of the nefarious activities in this area and the navy really needs your help. Will you be able to stop the pirate and solve the mystery? Jump into this fun game with lots of twists and turns in the plot. I have to admit that I really didn’t figure it out until much later in the game and loved the fact that I was kept guessing.
The game offers four modes of gameplay: Casual, Hard, Advanced, and the custom mode where you can set the game up for the way you like to play. Nothing much needs to be said about the graphics because once you see this dev’s name you know that the graphics and sound package will be top-rate.
You have an interactive, transporter type map but no helpers or other gimmicks as tools.
As usual the HOPS are varied and multi-tiered with some interaction required to find some items. I happen to enjoy the HOPS in from this dev because of the great variety they include. If you don’t want to complete the HOPS by locating items then there is an alternate match 3 game available.
As many of you know, puzzles are my favorite part of HOPA games and the puzzles are very creative and excellent. Of course some might seem easy for many of you but for me they were just right. As we progress through the game the puzzles become a bit more challenging so I think there is something for everyone.
There are some thoughts that I will mention in closing that might be important to some gamers. I had to suspend a sense of reality because I doubt that the navy would hire a female investigator during the time period that is seemingly depicted in the game. The other thing is that I really had a difficult time pinpointing a time period because of the mix of clothing and types of ships depicted. I guess that since this is a game it really shouldn’t matter but I do know that several of you gamers really like accuracy in your games. If you can suspend your ideas about this sort of thing then you will undoubtedly enjoy the game for its gameplay, storyline and entertainment value. I purchased the CE of the game and found it to be entertaining and quite a bit of fun mainly because of all the twists in the storyline. If you happen to enjoy a good whodunit, Sea of Lies Tide of Treachery might just be the right game for you. As always, I recommend that you at least try the demo to see if this is a game you will enjoy. As an afterthought, I should let you know that the game picks up and becomes much better after the demo.
A mountain observatory is hiding a big secret!
Overall rating
5
/
5
106 of 179 found this review helpful
AN EXCITING NEW HIDDEN EXPEDITION GAME
PostedAugust 27, 2015
biscuitsmama
fromMaking a go of it on my own since Sam is down for the count
Skill Level:Expert
Fun Factor
5
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
5
/
5
Storyline
5
/
5
You and your old sidekick Sam are off again to solve another case for H.E.LP. A mysterious signal has been noted in an area in Montana where a recent swarm of earthquakes has occurred and some higher power has requested the aid of H.E.L.P. agents. Of course, you have hardly arrived on scene when Sam is disabled so it looks like you are on your own. As you begin to investigate you find that there are some very strange events occurring at a nearby abandoned observatory that is now some sort of secret facility. When you finally jump through enough hoops and make contact with H.E.L.P headquarters you find out your mission is to rescue someone who is being held captive in the observatory and once you finally gain access your adventure truly begins. What is really going on at the observatory and how can you rescue someone who doesn’t seem to want your help?
With this being a game from one of the top developers, we already know the graphics will be exceptional and of course so is the sound package with the voiceovers being excellent. The game offers four modes of gameplay: Easy, Medium, Hard, and the Custom option where you can set up the game for the way you want to play.
Your tools include the ever-present H.E.L.P. box that contains your video messages, fact cards, and a section that shows your achievements. You also have an interactive, transporter type map that is found early in the game. The thing that I dislike about the recent Hidden Expedition games is that with the H.E.L.P. box we no longer have a journal. It would be very helpful if the developer would add a section for notes that we could review when needed.
The HOPS are interactive and some are multi-tiered but most seem to be the list type that I enjoy. The mini-games seemed quite good and different than those we normally find, and early in the game they include a lock-pick puzzle, another where we arrange tokens in ascending order, and one where we swap and rotate disks to create a pattern. The puzzle that gave me the most trouble was one where we had to align patterns on an oscilloscope. Maybe I didn’t understand the mechanics but I finally skipped that one. Overall the puzzles seemed fairly easy as is the norm in recent years but I keep holding out hope that the puzzles will become a bit more difficult as the game progresses.
The CE has 44 collectible globes to find as well as souvenirs. I didn’t notice morphing objects but that doesn’t mean they aren’t there. The extras include: Play HOPS, Play Puzzles, Videos, Music, Making of, Picture, Bonus Game, Secret Room, and the Strategy Guide. All in all a fairly decent CE package.
I actually enjoyed the demo and ended up purchasing it almost immediately. I happen to like the Hidden Expedition games and this one has an intriguing storyline that captured my attention and, of course, the demo ends on a cliff-hanger so that was the clincher and hook for me – lol. So now off I go to merrily save the universe once again in this excellent new HE game. As always, I recommend that you try the demo for yourself to see if this is a game you will enjoy.
I recommend this game!
Scarlett is back in an all-new Farm Frenzy adventure that puts the fun back in farming! Help her with the animals of an abandoned island.
Overall rating
4
/
5
35 of 45 found this review helpful
A CHANGE OF SCENERY FROM THE HOMETOWN FARM
PostedAugust 26, 2015
biscuitsmama
fromLost in a pirate's paradise and making the best of it!
Skill Level:Expert
Fun Factor
4
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
4
/
5
Level of Challenge
4
/
5
Storyline
4
/
5
Farm Frenzy Heave Ho is a fast paced, frenzied TM game and if you are a fan of the TM games you will most likely want to add this one to your collection.
The graphics are very colorful and the sound is not too annoying and fortunately I can turn the music off if I want. I have noticed that in most of the TM games I have played the music tends to be very repetitive and sets up that “beat the clock” feeling even though there might not be a timer involved. In Farm Frenzy Heave Ho I didn’t find any options to change the setting to a relaxed or untimed mode but since I wasn’t trying to win gold, it wasn’t too important.
As you progress through the various levels you can buy boosters that will help your progress but since I am new at these types of games I haven't reached that level yet. I have to admit that not playing too many time management games, I really don’t understand all the logistics but I am learning. After purchasing last weekend’s TM CE game I am beginning to enjoy the lively entertainment value of TM games.
Even though time management games are not ones that I am usually interested in, I found myself getting hooked trying to meet all of the goals for each level. The more I played, the more entertaining I found the game. I might have even found a new genre of games that I like to play. Now I think I am going to go back and take a look at some of the others that most of you happen to really like. Farm Frenzy Heave Ho is a game that I am enjoying but, as always, I recommend that you try the demo to see if this is a game you will enjoy.
I recommend this game!
Twenty years ago, in a frightening battle you have stopped Ragnar from descending upon your world, but everyone knows no peace lasts forever.
Overall rating
4
/
5
40 of 61 found this review helpful
CAN YOU STOP RAGNAR AGAIN?
PostedAugust 25, 2015
Fun Factor
5
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
4
/
5
Level of Challenge
3
/
5
Storyline
5
/
5
It has been twenty years since that horrible day when your foster father Professor Ashmore was killed on Iowa Island when he was trying to prevent the arch demon Ragnar from reentering the world. Now you are the last in the bloodline of the demon hunters and you fear that Ragnar is once again trying to gain entry to the world. Your mission is to stop him at all cost. I really enjoyed the first game in this series Chronicles from Beyond and I was very happy to see Demon Hunter 2 A New Chapter this morning.
The game has only 3 modes of play to select from when setting up the game: Regular, Advanced and Expert. In Regular mode the hint button takes about 30 seconds to recharge and the same applies to the skip button for the mini-games. The graphics are crisp and consist of a blend between computer generated and hand drawn artwork scenes. I am fond of the hand drawn artwork in games and in this game the scenes created are colorful and beautifully depicted. The voiceovers are excellent but the music was a bit annoying and, fortunately, there is an option to change the music volume without losing the special effects or voices.
The tools include a transporter type interactive map that indicates where you have available tasks. There is a journal that shows your objectives as well as follows the storyline and includes various notes as you progress through the game. I appreciate having a journal and really miss its inclusion in some of the newer games that are released. You also have a special tool – an amulet that proves to be very helpful in some situations.
The HOPS include a variety of interactive scenes and there is a nice twist to them. I hate to spoil your fun so I am not going to tell you about the surprise. I found most items in the HOPS to be clearly defined and at least they didn’t seem to be just jammed up junk piles to sort through. There seemed to be more mini-games than there were HOPS and most of them are fairly easy. In the first puzzle we need to replace fuses but that was a no brainer. In the next mini-game we need to prepare our helicopter for takeoff and that was again easy since all of the steps are displayed. The third puzzle was to determine which code applied to a gear and that made me a bit dizzy as the gears are spinning. I have yet to discover a mini-game that required a lot of thought but still most were fun.
One of the things I like about this game is that it is almost a CE quality game but at the SE value. As is the case with the first Demon Hunter game there are all sorts of extras including morphing objects and collectibles. There is even bonus content but it is not unlocked until the main story is completed. The only thing missing is the in-game strategy guide so this game is quite the bargain particularly if you have PCCs to use.
Since I enjoyed the first game in the series I purchased this game right away. I like the storyline and the fact that I am encountering a puzzle in almost every scene of the game. Although I really am enjoying this game, as always, I recommend that you try the demo to see if Demon Hunter A New Chapter is a game you will enjoy.
I recommend this game!