sportygal2009's Profile
Stat Summary
- Average Rating:3.5
- Helpful Votes:8,859
- Reviews Submitted:221
- First Review:November 12, 2011
- Most Recent Review:November 28, 2015
- Featured reviews0
Status:
Only by discovering clues left by advanced civilizations can you stop the return of an ancient enemy and save Earth.
Overall rating
1
/
5
46 of 49 found this review helpful
Hey Big Fish - Cut This Off And Pull The Plug - Review Based On Demo
PostedJuly 17, 2013
sportygal2009
fromSouth Bend, IN
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Hidden Object
Fun Factor
1
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
1
/
5
Level of Challenge
1
/
5
Storyline
1
/
5
Story: You are due for a holiday, so you set off in your Cessina for Bimini to do a little diving and salvaging.
Once you arrive, you enter the airport and browse the brochures. One or more will be highlighted by your cursor changing to a magnifier and will put "notes" into your journal which is located at the bottom that constantly sparkles.
The information the brochures give you will allow you to leave the airport and get the taxi. You will then see a map with the available locations, and you move there.
There is only 1 play mode and if you want the custom cursor well if you leave the game when you enter back into the game have to select the custom cursor each and every time.
There is no wide screen.
It was mentioned in a review about voice overs my downloaded version here had no voice overs but does have music which is the same music and grated on my last nerve so I cut that off.
The hint and skip are really quick on charge up.
HOS: I did come across 3 scenes and these are found by word list. The ones in green are your inventory. I had no problem here as I didn't need the hint.
PUZZLES: I only came across 2 and the kind I hate the slider puzzle where there is a piece missing and you keep "sliding" the pieces to hopefully some day form a picture.
OVERALL IMPRESSION:
Well I'm usually all for games where you have to figure out what to do which I must say about 5 to 10 minutes into the game I caught on how to get out of the plane for starters but I just found this game downright BORING using the taxi to travel back/forth for just one thing as this game seems to be more on the "adventure" side than HOS and puzzles. I also don't mind games that appear to be dated and without high tech graphics however there's just not enough action going on in this game for me. It would of been nice to see a couple of characters in the game with some interaction here.
Overall sorry Big Fish and developer but this game is dreadful and needs to go back to the Big Fish attic. This just might get better after the demo time but I'm not spending my money to find out. A 1 star stop the madness, cut this off and pull the plug is the best I can do for this. Sorry but this is a no go for me and would definitely cure insomnia.
As always, give it a whirl and decide for yourself.
I don't recommend this game.
Help Kate save her friend and find a mysterious briefcase! Travel across the world in Millennium Secrets: Emerald Curse!
Overall rating
5
/
5
15 of 15 found this review helpful
Hey Big Fish More Millennium Secrets Games PLEASE - Review of Completed Game
PostedJuly 16, 2013
sportygal2009
fromSouth Bend, IN
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
Story: You take on the role of Kate McCormick and you receive a call from your friend Professor Jones who's an expert in ancient civilizations to find a mysterious briefcase in the Hangar No. 9 in New York City that needs to get to the authorities before it gets into the wrong hands.
CHAPTERS: 6
2 PLAY MODES:
CASUAL: This offers a tutorial, faster hint recharge, and a Skip button, and the cursor will sparkle when you are able to interact with an item.
ADVANCED: This has no tutorial, a slower hint recharge and Skip button, and no cursor sparkle. I played this mode and you can also earn extra hints by finding bonus items.
JOURNAL: This is down at the bottom and keeps track of your tasks that you have to complete and also crosses them off once completed along with keeps track of notes for some of the puzzles. There is NO map.
GAME PLAY: This is a point and click adventure game. There are NO HOS. Use the arrows on the left and right to move to the next scene.When you are in a close-up, click the down arrow to exit. This is also A LOT of clicking around to "activate" something in the scene. Once you "activate' something you are shown how many you have to find and they go into your inventory down at the bottom. Also be sure to go over the areas pretty thorough as some items can be missed.
INVENTORY: The items in red will show a picture (key for example) and how many you have to find. Once you find them all and can use in a scene the color changes to green.
PUZZLES: There are quite a few puzzles to this game and for me they varied in challenge. Most I found pretty easy but I did have to skip a few. For the instructions you click on the HINT down at the bottom. It doesn't take away from your hints. There is a skip button at the bottom as well. This takes a few minutes in Advance mode.
OVERALL IMPRESSION:
I'll start by saying this is the first game in the series as the second one is Millennium Secrets: Roxanne's Necklace which I played first. It doesn't matter though cause they are both different stories.
Just like Roxanne's Necklace well I was hooked to this Emerald Curse game from the get to and held my interest to the very end. I had no problem with the graphics. A very well done here. I enjoyed the story, liked the characters, game play, and voice overs. Speaking of the story though at the end of this it does say "to be continued" and I'm not quite sure what that means as I felt I had a completed game when I got to the end and as I mentioned Roxanne's Necklace was done after this game but doesn't "continue" this particular story as it's a different story. Maybe the developer here just meant that there would be more Millennium Secret games which the Roxanne's Necklace followed this?
I do however have one minor criticism about this game but not enough to bring down the rating and that is: When I had to use the hint it showed me where the item was and not always in that same scene but when I would click there, it wouldn't pick up the item but take me back to where I was originally and then I had to go back again to that scene to get the item? The hint didn't work this way in Roxanne's Necklace.
GAME LENGTH: This was about 6 hours for me. May be more/less for you.
Overall though a 5 stars from me. I enjoyed this very much and so much that I wrote into Big Fish Customer Service to see about getting more of these Millennium Secret games or at least something similar. It may be too repetitive and "dated" for some but not me. Loved it. More like this Big Fish PLEASE.
As always, give it a whirl and decide for yourself.
I recommend this game!
You've arrived in the peaceful resort town of Aurora Peak to investigate some mysterious local crystals. But the devious plot you uncover there could endanger the entire world!
Overall rating
4
/
5
24 of 27 found this review helpful
A Nice and Relaxing Game - Review Of Completed Game
PostedJuly 15, 2013
sportygal2009
fromSouth Bend, IN
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Hidden Object
Fun Factor
4
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
4
/
5
Level of Challenge
4
/
5
Storyline
3
/
5
STORY: You take on the role of a geologist and you get a call from your brother Alan to join him to investigate some of the odd mutated plants and animals along with some mysterious crystals at your grandfather's resort - Aurora Peak.
CHAPTERS: 7 (bonus review at bottom)
There is Widescreen.
There is Voice-over.
3 PLAY MODES: Easy, Medium, Hard.
In Easy mode, the Hint button takes 60 seconds to recharge.
In Medium mode, the Hint buttom takes 3 minutes to recharge. Skip is the same for charge up. Hint is also helpful outside of HOS as I tried it out during my demo time before I actually started playing the game.
In Hard mode, sparkles and hints are disabled, and you cannot skip puzzles. There are black bar tips however.
In Medium mode, the Hint buttom takes 3 minutes to recharge. Skip is the same for charge up. Hint is also helpful outside of HOS as I tried it out during my demo time before I actually started playing the game.
In Hard mode, sparkles and hints are disabled, and you cannot skip puzzles. There are black bar tips however.
BOX: There is also a box at the bottom that will give you the stories of the different characters as you encounter them.
MAP: This is transporter and shows where you are, where there is things to do and also shows areas with ? marks that haven't been discovered yet.
HOS: A very nice variety here: Word list, silhouette, place items back into the scene and they are very interactive here. I thought these were really well done here.
PUZZLES: I really didn't come across anything new: Rotate rings, get the bear out of the maze, making potions, etc.
OVERALL IMPRESSION:
Well I'm going to start off with the graphics. I thought they were beautifully done. I had no problem with them being fuzzy, dated or anything else. I also really liked the cut scenes.
The voice overs are really good however the characters mouths don't move.
I really enjoyed the game play as I thought the balance of HOS, puzzles and adventure traveling back/forth was well balanced but didn't come across any HOS until the demo time was almost up and then more as I moved along in the game.
I also felt the main game came to a satisfactory conclusion for me but the bonus chapter does add to the story. Some locations are from the main game but some new ones. I was also satisfied with the length as I don't like for games to go on and on.
Main game 4 hours. Bonus Chapter: 1 1/2 hours. I mostly played in the hard mode. Only switched back to easy mode to find 2 objects in the HOS and to skip 2 puzzles. Oh and I also didn't find all the morphing objects. Those for me were pretty well hidden. I didn't find these to be as obvious as most games I've played. I only found 12 of them.
CE EXTRAS:
Bonus Chapter
Strategy Guide
20 achievements
20 morphing objects
Wallpapers
Gallery of Concept Art and Music
Mini-games (6HOS & 15 puzzles)
Strategy Guide
20 achievements
20 morphing objects
Wallpapers
Gallery of Concept Art and Music
Mini-games (6HOS & 15 puzzles)
Overall 4 stars from me. I only have 2 criticisms about this game and that is: While I enjoyed the story and this game for the most part I wish this would of been more suspenseful and no I don't mean going the way of the occult and the thing that annoyed me the most was the 3 play modes: . If you choose not to have sparkles you lose hints and cannot skip puzzles? You have to switch back/forth. I didn't have to do it a lot thank goodness but I don't like this at all. Please address this Big Fish and developer by just making a CUSTOM MODE where we can choose if we want sparkles, black bar tips, the hint/skip to fill quick and then have it apply to the game.
As always, give it a whirl and decide for yourself.
I recommend this game!
Confront an ancient evil and uncover your true! After a startling revelation changes your world forever, you must embark on an epic journey to save mankind.
Overall rating
4
/
5
93 of 97 found this review helpful
The SE Here Get 4 Stars - Review Of Completed Game
PostedJuly 14, 2013
sportygal2009
fromSouth Bend, IN
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Hidden Object
Fun Factor
4
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
4
/
5
Level of Challenge
4
/
5
Storyline
4
/
5
HOPA: (Hidden Object Puzzle Adventure) - More on the adventure side.
STORY: You take on the role of Aarya and you are the fabled Descendant of the Sun, rightful heiress to the most powerful artifact in the world! You set off in search of 4 talismans to save mankind.
WIDESCREEN -- Deselect aspect ratio in options. This did work for me and filled my 20" monitor just fine and didn't appear to be stretched for me. This may or may not work for you.
2 PLAY MODES: Casual/Expert Mode - I played expert mode. There are sparkles and black bar tips on both modes. Hint/Skip take 1 minute for charge up on Casual and 2 minutes on Expert mode.
HINT: is helpful outside of HOS.
JOURNAL: You will get this shortly into the game as this keeps track of story.
MAP: A total of 25 locations. This is transporter and shows where you are as there are circles on the map and the one with "yellow" is where you are. Areas with "green" exclamation points are areas where there are things to do.
HOS: Not a whole lot scenes in my opinion. All found by word list and some on the list are interactive. I didn't find these to be on the Sanford & Son junkyard pile side. I also had little to no difficulty here. Just used a couple of hints.
PUZZLES: At first not too many but then more as you move along and the usual run of the mill such as: slider, rotate rings, repeat sequence, etc. I did skip a few of these. The rotate the rings and repeat sequence with the mole got on my last nerve.
SKIP: Available in 2 minutes for puzzles.
My overall impression:
I've played and reviewed the CE version and gave that 3 stars since it didn't have the bells and whistles: collectibles, achievements, morphing. I only purchased this as a CE because Big Fish had their buy 1 get 1 free sale when this was released as a CE.
I really welcomed a different location and culture. I found this refreshing and different from what I usually play.
The graphics for me were quite well done. I had no problem with them.
I also liked the balance of HOS, puzzles, and adventure though I will say I didn't find it very challenging as far as the HOS and getting lost in the game on what to do or go to next as every game I play doesn't have to be very challenging but I still wished there wouldn't of been any sparkles and black bar tips on the Expert mode. I do like to figure out on my own. I mean what's the purpose of having 2 play modes if they are both going to be the same with the exception it takes a bit longer to use the hint/skip on Expert mode?
The story started off very intriguing but was getting way too "out there" for me when the talking animals started popping up. This could of been worked on some more.
I thought the voice overs were really good except for one lady and the few animals I found downright annoying and glad they didn't last very long. Oh but no fellow fish in the pond if you are not into the "dress up" of animals well you can relax no "dressing up" animals here.
The ending of this game came to a satisfactory conclusion for me and while I overall enjoyed the bonus chapter I didn't find it was needed.
GAME LENGTH: The main game here was 4 hours for me and it was long enough. No complaints here. May be more/less for you.
So overall I give the SE here 4 stars. I found this to be a very good game but story could of been worked on just a bit more. I also wish all developers would have a CUSTOM mode and let the game player decide and choose if they want sparkles, black bar tips along with the hint/skip charge up. Once we have chosen the options we want then have them apply to the game.
As always, give it a whirl and decide for yourself.
I recommend this game!
Soul and machine are one in Motor Town, where a stunning mystery awaits!
Overall rating
5
/
5
4 of 4 found this review helpful
Intriguing Storyline Definitely Out There - Review Of Completed Game
PostedJuly 11, 2013
sportygal2009
fromSouth Bend, IN
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
Story: You take on the role of a young journalist who is desperate for a big story so you accept the offer to try and get an interview with the famous inventor Paul Camping whose latest invention is to try and create cars with souls.
There is widescreen at least for me. Displayed just fine on my 20 inch monitor. No tech issues.
2 play modes: I played expert mode. There are no sparkles not even for the HOS. There are black bar tips.
HOS: A total of 34 locations. These are definitely on the Sanford & Son junkyard pile side however I got through them with little difficulty but did have to use a few hints here. They are also interactive. Hint is also helpful outside of HOS. Takes a few minutes for charge up.
PUZZLES: A total of 21 puzzles I didn't come across anything new. The usual run of the mill but found most doable but did skip a couple of these. Skip also takes a few minutes.
OVERALL IMPRESSION:
Well I was hooked to this from the get go while yes the story line is a bit "out there" but I sure enjoyed this one. I didn't stop playing this until I got to the end.
The graphics are definitely grungy/creepy style. I found them to be quite nice.
The characters and voice overs a very well done here.
I just thought this game had a lot to do and places to go. At first this started out to where you use inventory right away but the further I moved along in the game a lot of back tracking and I thought I map would have been helpful.
As for the game length I'm one that takes my time and don't rush through my games and I found this to be a good length @ 6 1/2 hours for me. May be more/less for you though.
Overall 5 stars from me. Thanks Big Fish and developer for a great game here with a bit of a different story line.
As always, give it a whirl and decide for yourself.
I recommend this game!
Your murderous half-sister has escaped, and you've got the last piece of your father's treacherous film projector...
Overall rating
2
/
5
34 of 101 found this review helpful
Wasn't Impressed With The 1st This Is No Better - Review Based On Demo
PostedJuly 11, 2013
sportygal2009
fromSouth Bend, IN
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Hidden Object
Fun Factor
2
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
2
/
5
Level of Challenge
2
/
5
Storyline
2
/
5
Story: This leaves off from the first one(Final Cut: on the Silver Screen) as this time your murderous half-sister has escaped the mental institution. Well I found this sequel story leaves much to be desired. The story is just all over the place.
3 play modes that you can switch at any time during the game. For this demo here I just played the easiest mode since the middle of the rode mode I usually play has sparkles and black bar tips. Hint and skip pretty quick on charge up.
Game play: Just like the first. While there is a transporter map, this is just a lot of tedious back/forth just for one object to finally have everything you need to complete something. Most of the time having to go back several scenes so thank goodness for the map.
HOS: There are quite a few scenes and some objects ridiculously large or some small enough to give eye strain. Some scenes the graphics OK and some grainy at least for me. If you don't feel like finding objects you can play match 3.
Puzzles: The usual run of the mill nothing new here but can be skipped and pretty quick in the easiest mode.
Graphics: Overall I thought were very flat. I've seen way better in other games.
The voices and characters OK but nothing to get excited about in my opinion. There was nothing to make me go WOW!
Overall sorry Big Fish and developer but the best I can do for this is 2 stars while yes it has the many extras like achievements and collectibles but it takes more than that for me to buy a game. I was honestly so glad for the demo time to be up on this as I just found this game boring. I won't even by this as a SE when that arrives, the $2.99 price or if I had a coupon code that was ready to expire. Yes I disliked this game that much. Definitely not the worst I've downloaded but I've downloaded much better.
As always, give it a whirl and decide for yourself. I'm sure most will enjoy this but it's a definite no go for me.
I don't recommend this game.
Many years ago, mysterious events separated Rachel and her father. Help find him and save the world from catastrophe!
Overall rating
4
/
5
Good Game Play Story Could Of Been Better - Review Of Completed Game
PostedJuly 10, 2013
sportygal2009
fromSouth Bend, IN
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Hidden Object
Fun Factor
4
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
4
/
5
Level of Challenge
4
/
5
Storyline
3
/
5
Story: You take on the role of Rachel who must find her father who went missing 15 years ago due to an experiment that went totally wrong so back to Howlville you go to try and solve this mystery.
There is widescreen at least for me. I had no problems here. No tech issues.
There is voice overs
5 CHAPTERS
2 play modes: I played the harder mode which has no sparkles or black bar tips. Hint is helpful outside of HOS but slow on charge up.
There is a journal which holds notes and some clues on how to solve some of the puzzles.
HOS: There are quite a few but I thought they were spread out pretty good and they are interactive and sometimes have to "move" an item to get to some of them. No black bar tips here either as you have to figure out on your own but I didn't find it difficult at all. Sometimes a little "mini game" will pop up on some of them to get the item(s) you need.
PUZZLES: Most the usual run of the mill such as rotate rings, repeat sequence, connect the gears, etc., but did come across some different ones as well. Most I found doable but had to skip a few of these. Skip is slow on charge up.
OVERALL IMPRESSION:
The story started out with some promise but once I got more into the game I thought this could of been worked on some more. Didn't care so much for the "monster" as I thought it was dumb.
The voice overs and graphics are really good. I also enjoyed the game play is the reason I played this all the way through. I was happy to see no black bar tips and let me figure out on my own.
I thought this had a nice balance of HOS, puzzles, and adventure the traveling back/forth. While there was no map I never got lost in the game.
GAME LENGTH: This was just a little over 4 hours for me which was just fine by me. No complaints on game length. May be more or less for you.
Overall 4 stars from me. I enjoyed it overall but I thought the story could of been better.
Thanks Big Fish and developer for a good game here.
As always, give it a whirl and decide for yourself.
I recommend this game!
Residents of Happy Orchard Farm are disappearing at night. Is there an innocent explanation, or could the farm be at the mercy of supernatural forces?
Overall rating
3
/
5
8 of 45 found this review helpful
Would Be Great For A Beginner But Not For Me - Based On Demo
PostedJuly 8, 2013
sportygal2009
fromSouth Bend, IN
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Hidden Object
Fun Factor
3
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
4
/
5
Level of Challenge
3
/
5
Storyline
3
/
5
HOPA: Hidden Object Puzzle Adventure: Heavy on HOS, some puzzles, with light adventure traveling back/forth.
1 PLAY MODE: This is very sparkle heavy.
The game filled my screen however not true widescreen as the graphics appeared to be stretched a bit.
There is a journal: Holds notes and some puzzle clues.
There is no map.
There is no voice overs
HOS: Found by word list and I did 10 scenes during the demo time. The ones in green color are your inventory. These I found to be well done and not Sanford & Son junkyard pile. No problems here. The inventory is pretty much used right away. Not much traveling back/forth what I played of this.
HINT: This is the green lantern down at the bottom and charges up very quick as it's within a few seconds. If you don't do anything at all in a scene, or just click about, you will get nudged into the right direction.
Puzzles: The usual run of the mill: Slider puzzle, jig saw, guess the code, and get the stove knobs to all light up etc. Directions for puzzles is the hint button at the bottom. The skip is the green button at top of the screen.
Overall impression:
This is not a bad game but I think maybe it was designed for someone who is new to hidden object games or someone who just wants to relax without any frustration and will definitely not appeal to anyone looking for a challenging game.
The graphics are quite good however old school. Nothing high tech here. No bells and whistles.
Overall 3 stars from me. This looked like it might have been a pretty good game however II just couldn't get into this game or the story. I don't mind games that aren't very challenging at times along with a lot of HOS but for me this was overkill on the hand holding sparkles. I do like to try and figure out on my own. This ruined it for me.
Sorry Big Fish and developer but this is a no go for me.
As always, give it a whirl and decide for yourself. I still recommend the game but only to a beginner or someone who isn't looking for a challenging game and likes a lot of HOS.
I recommend this game!
Something's driven everyone away from Linden Shades.
Overall rating
3
/
5
30 of 34 found this review helpful
My Opinion Hasn't Changed - Not Eerie/Creepy Enough - Review Of Completed Game
PostedJuly 7, 2013
sportygal2009
fromSouth Bend, IN
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Hidden Object
Fun Factor
3
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
4
/
5
Level of Challenge
3
/
5
Storyline
3
/
5
HOPA (Hidden Object Puzzle Adventure)
Story: Your news editor sends you off to Linden Shades to look around a now long ago abandoned orphanage rumored to be haunted by the red hooded boogeyman The editor had once investigated the story but never had a chance to bring it to any conclusion cause he ended up getting assigned a different case.
7 Chapters along with 7 cassette tapes to be found throughout the game.
I play all my games running on PC Windows 7 64 bit and this had widescreen for me. Filled my 20 inch monitor just fine. No tech issues.
There are live actors in some cut scenes, otherwise voice overs.
There are 3 modes of play. Regular, Expert, Insane. I tested out before I started actually playing. The easier two modes have sparkles/black bar tips, hint/skip quick on charge up. The Insane mode is really slow. Hint also helpful outside of HOS on all modes. If you are not in an area where there is something to do a portal box will come up and just click there and it will take you. You can switch between modes at any time during the game. I played on Insane mode and didn't use hints/skips once I actually started playing the game.
Journal: This is the typewriter down at the bottom. Click on that and inside you will also find Objectives, Evidence.
Map: Is transporter and shows where you are on the map for all play modes along with objectives which also pop up on the screen however the 2 harder modes don't show active task indicator at least it didn't for me.
HOS: Found by word list and very interactive here and there are quite a few scenes. I didn't find these to be Sanford & Son junkyard. I thought these were very well done. I had no problem here locating anything.
Puzzles: The usual run of the mill found in many games just to name a few: Get the cats and snails from one side to the other, get the emblem out of the maze, slider puzzle, etc. The challenge varied for me. Usually in most games I at least skip a couple however didn't skip any in this game.
My overall impression:
I purchased the CE and rated that 4 stars and the reasons were because it was on sale for $8.99 at the time and I enjoyed trying to earn/find the achievements, collectibles, and letters. I found that to have a lot to do however while the voice overs and live actors were really good along with the graphics but for an orphanage that is supposedly haunted by the red hooded boogeyman well past the intro to the game I didn't find the game eerie/creepy at all really. I also had my suspicions early into the game who the boogeyman was and confirmed for me by the half way point of the game. If this would of been $13.99 although it has the extras I would of skipped this and waited for the SE here and rated the CE 3 stars as well but because of sale I wanted to see where the game would take me.
The main game here comes to a satisfactory conclusion. The bonus chapter not needed in my opinion unless of course you are interested in earning the achievements and finding the collectibles and letters cause those aren't included in the SE version here. No eerie/creepy feel to this bonus chapter either.
As for the game length this would probably be about a 5 hour game for me. The CE was longer for me and that was because there was more to do. No complaints on the length though. So you take away the extras this is just an OK game in my opinion. Sorry but I don't get all the hype over this game. So overall I rate this 3 stars. Thanks Big Fish and developer.
As always give it a whirl and decide for yourself. I still however recommend it. It looks like most really like this game and you may too however I wasn't that impressed with it.
I recommend this game!
Guide a mother who pursues a terrifying apparition into a twisted reality to save her daughter.
Overall rating
4
/
5
23 of 28 found this review helpful
A Very Good Sequel I Enjoyed It - Review Of Completed Game
PostedJuly 6, 2013
sportygal2009
fromSouth Bend, IN
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Hidden Object
Fun Factor
5
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
3
/
5
Storyline
5
/
5
This is the 2nd game in this series. The first being: Stray Souls: Dollhouse Story released as a CE February 2011 and as a SE March 2011. If you haven't played the first one it's not totally necessary but I'd recommend it if you want to get a better understanding of the story. This second one here uses different characters for this story however there is reference back to the first in this series.
Story: You take on the role of Rose who is out to look for her missing husband whose last known address is a very creepy motel room. When you have arrived to the motel from Hades, Julie (daughter) is suddenly carried off by her father through a portal. You meet up with a creepy looking hand puppet and you both enter a really bizarre world. A town of wooden life size puppets and a mad stalker clown who doesn't look exactly like Pennywise from Stephen King's IT however made me think of this clown all the while I was playing this game.
CHAPTERS: 14 bonus review at the bottom
PLAY MODES: 2 Casual and Expert.
In Casual mode, the hint button takes 30 seconds to refill, in Expert mode, it takes 2 minutes to refill and is helpful outside of HOS. You can change the difficulty setting any time during the game. I played Expert mode. There are no sparkles however black bar tips.
WIDESCREEN: I had no problems here. Filled the 20 inch monitor just fine. No adjustments needed. Running on Windows 7 64 Bit no tech issues.
There is voice overs
JOURNAL: Holds some notes, puzzle clues and the map.
MAP: You will get this shortly into the game. This is transporter. The red triangle is where you are. Green areas are where there are things to do. Orange areas nothing to do at the present.
DOLLHOUSE: At the bottom there is also a dollhouse where you will add different "doll figures" throughout the game.
HOS; Not very many here. No I didn't count but only did 2 during the demo time. They are not interactive but you will have to "move" something to locate some of them. A couple on the Sanford & Son junkyard pile side however no problem. Pretty well done for the most part.
PUZZLES: Not very many here either but seemed to be more puzzles than HOS and most the usual run of the mill: Rotate rings, get pieces from one side to the other, slider puzzle, get the bride & groom out of the maze, etc. Skip takes a couple of minutes.
The main game does come to a satisfactory conclusion in my opinion. The bonus chapter is not needed.
MAIN GAME LENGTH: 5 hours. May be more or less for you.
BONUS CHAPTER:
Seems to be some confusion on this just reading the game forum for this game. It's NOT 4 separate chapters where you play each one individual. It's also not 4 different stories to the game. This is just divided into 4 chapters. I'm thinking the developer may have done it this way just in case anyone got really hung up in the game and had to refer to the strategy guide.
I thought this was really well done and added to the story. This bonus chapter in my opinion REALLY helps you understand the connection between this story and the first in this series. This also has all new locations as you don't use the same map as the main game. Shortly into the bonus chapter you get a new map. This isn't HOS overload but I did more HOS than in the main game. There's puzzles of course. From the ending of this looks like there MIGHT be a sequel and I'd sure welcome it.
BONUS CHAPTER LENGTH: 1 hour 15 minutes. May be more/less for you.
CE EXTRAS:
Bonus Chapter
Strategy Guide
12 Wallpapers
12 Concept Art
12 Characters - just shows all the characters in the game.
16 Mini games
12 videos
Bonus Chapter
Strategy Guide
12 Wallpapers
12 Concept Art
12 Characters - just shows all the characters in the game.
16 Mini games
12 videos
OVERALL IMPRESSION:
While I didn't find this game very challenging I still thought it was a really good sequel to the first game in this series. The game play I would consider as an adventure light type of game because while the inventory for the most part pretty much used right away I found this to have more traveling back/forth to it than HOS and puzzles.
I thought the graphics were great. Very well drawn and definitely on the creepy/eerie side. I know they won't appeal to everyone but I loved them. Huge kudos to this developer's art department here. I also liked the characters and thought the voice overs and music were really good as well.
I also really enjoyed the story and thought it was well told while yeah it's "out there." LOL!
Overall 4 stars from me. I knocked this down a star and my reasons are: For having 2 play modes I wish there wouldn't of been any black bar tips on Expert mode. I also liked the doll however I thought the black bar tips and doll were a bit too helpful playing in Expert mode. I do like to try and figure out on my own. Just provide a hint button and I'll decide if I need it or not. Also for being a CE should have all the bells and whistles as there are no achievements, collectibles, morphing objects. Oh and that strategy guide while I didn't need it but checked it out and well that leaves much to be desired. No text just pictures. I only purchased this because of the sale getting it for $8.39 instead of $13.99 otherwise I would of skipped the CE and waited for the SE. Sorry and I hope the Big Fish and the developer is taking note of this. I no longer purchase CE's at full price $13.99 if they don't have all the bells and whistles. I will only purchase on sale like this one was. As I stated earlier looks like there MIGHT be a sequel. If so and this developer does a CE again please include the bells and whistles: achievements, collectibles, and morphing objects.
Thanks Big Fish for the sale and to the developer for a very good game here. I still recommend it however because I know some don't care about the achievements, collectibles, and morphing objects.
As always, give it a whirl and decide for yourself.
I recommend this game!