CyndiLouWho2's Profile
Stat Summary
- Average Rating:2.1
- Helpful Votes:6,719
- Reviews Submitted:392
- First Review:December 19, 2011
- Most Recent Review:August 7, 2022
- Featured reviews0
Status:
Complete fun and challenging matching puzzles and climb to the top of the Jewel Tree scoreboard!
Overall rating
1
/
5
7 of 9 found this review helpful
No option for player profiles
PostedJuly 31, 2016
CyndiLouWho2
fromSomewhere in Gameland
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Match 3, Puzzle, Strategy, Time Management
Fun Factor
1
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
1
/
5
Level of Challenge
1
/
5
Storyline
1
/
5
Jewel Tree is geared more for children who might have more patience to play it. I found the game to be clunky, the cartoon graphics annoying, and I didn't like the fact that I was forced to play in timed mode.
Most odd was the fact that you can't create any player profiles. You just start playing. If another person wants to create a profile so they can play as well, there's no option to do so. I can't believe none of the other reviewers noticed this and failed to comment on it.
If you're the only person who's going to play this game, that's fine. As long as you like cartoon graphics and childish storylines, you'll be good to go.
I don't recommend this game.
Can you save the Metzengerstein line before it's too late?
Overall rating
3
/
5
16 of 16 found this review helpful
Great game but not worth the CE price
PostedJuly 22, 2016
CyndiLouWho2
fromGreat game, but not five star worthy IMO
Skill Level:Expert
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Large File, Puzzle, Strategy
Fun Factor
4
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
4
/
5
Level of Challenge
4
/
5
Storyline
4
/
5
I played for the trial hour and fell in love with the game. This installment of the Dark Tales series grabs your attention from the moment you start playing. I won't bore you here with all the in-depth details of the game or reveal spoilers as so many other reviewers do. I'll let you read all the five star reviews for that.
I'll just say the graphics and audio were excellent and helped to fuel the mood of the game. I was immediately drawn into the story line and the trial hour flew by. The puzzles I encountered were fun as were the hidden object scenes.
There were two things keeping this game from getting a high rating. First, the location of the story is Budapest, yet accents were horrible and the voices they chose really didn't fit the characters you were looking at. People should have sounded like Hungarians. And one would think a French person would know how to pronounce the word "monsieur". To me, this failure at autheniticity is simply laziness.
And lastly, I enjoyed everything else about Metzengerstein except what's being offered for the $13.99 price tag. There's simply nothing in the way of achievements or collectibles to justify asking such a high premium for this game. As always, I will wait for the SE version and purchase it then.
However, it's a great story by Edgar Allan Poe. I definitely recomment you try the game for an hour and make your own educated decision.
Find relics hidden across the lands of Gorram to revive the runestones to defeat the evil Morghar and save the land.
Overall rating
3
/
5
9 of 11 found this review helpful
Good game but animation slow
PostedJuly 21, 2016
CyndiLouWho2
fromGreat game, but not five star worthy IMO
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Puzzle, Strategy, Time Management
Fun Factor
3
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
3
/
5
Level of Challenge
3
/
5
Storyline
3
/
5
At first, I thought this was a five star game, even though the story line is a bit convoluted. But then, this IS a solitaire game, and the story line really isn't all that important. So at this point, it's still a five star game.
Graphics are exceptional for a solitaire game. You have your choice of card decks and you get to play three types of solitaire which is a great feature. There are powerups you can purchase with the coins you earn. Sounds great, right?
But here's the rub: Animation is painfully slow. Having to wait for cards to disappear or to re-shuffle gets annoying after awhile. It totally disrupted the flow of the game and my train of thought. I tried running the game thru my PC's compatibility feature with no positive result.
Another feature I didn't like was the Match 3 portion of the game. It turned out you are only allowed to make matches in one direction which was not explained. I had to figure that out on my own after quite a bit of frustration.
So, while Disappearing Runestones isn't a bad game, I didn't have the patience to sit and wait for the slow animation. Others may not think this important, so I definitely recommend trying the game for yourselves.
I recommend this game!
Sunken Secrets
A New Wave of Farming is HERE! Magic. Island. Sea Witch. Dive into Sunken Secrets!
Overall rating
2
/
5
33 of 38 found this review helpful
Too much waiting around.
PostedJuly 20, 2016
CyndiLouWho2
fromBuffalo NY
Skill Level:Expert
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Large File, Puzzle
Fun Factor
2
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
3
/
5
Level of Challenge
2
/
5
Storyline
3
/
5
This is another of those social media type games where you have to wait several minutes for components to re-charge. Personally, I like a game I can play when I want to play it.
Sunken Secrets has a cute story line, lovable characters and fairly good graphics. The trouble is that you have to constantly wait anywhere from a few minutes to several hours before you can re-gain energy and finish tasks.
Since free games take up just as much hard drive space, I'd rather pay for a game that I can play when I want and for as long as I want without having to wait and wait and wait. I do enough of that on my smart phone.
I don't recommend this game.
An amulet purchased in an antique shop has awakened an ancient and terrible evil. Help rescue your beloved and save mankind from the coming eternal frost!
Overall rating
2
/
5
7 of 7 found this review helpful
Five star ratings . . . SERIOUSLY???
PostedJuly 11, 2016
CyndiLouWho2
fromThis is so bad, so very very bad.
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Hidden Object, Large File, Puzzle
Fun Factor
1
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
2
/
5
Level of Challenge
1
/
5
Storyline
1
/
5
It used to make me cringe when reviewers would say they "must be playing a different game from those giving high ratings". I always thought they were being a bit dramatic. But after playing twenty minutes of Insane Cold, I found myself thinking the exact same thing!
Right off the bat, the opening video ran in slow motion. I have a fairly new PC with a gaming video card so maybe this annoyance was for effect. But I found it maddening.
Characters were stiff and not natural looking at all. They reminded me of old games from 2005, like Syberia. To make it worse, there were no voice overs which added to my boredom.
Locations were shot at a distance so while there were a lot of things to look at in a room, all the things were either small or far away.
When I clicked on something to pick it up, the item sort of sat on the screen, hovering for several seconds before it went into inventory. And to make matters more frustrating, there was NO LOCKING inventory bar which really irked me. Honestly, how hard can it be to add a lock?
As others have mentioned, hidden objects were totally mis-labeled so I had to use a hint within that twenty minutes of game play. Also, if I didn't click exactly on a certain spot, I wasn't able to pick up the item.
The story line was not fleshed out well at all. Even in just twenty minutes, I lost interest. It's beyond me how anyone could stay focused on this game all the way through to the bitter end. I guess patience is truly a virtue that I don't possess.
The only thing I liked about Insane Cold was the dark, somber music. The music was definitely effective in conjuring up feelings of icy coldness and gloom. Unfortunately, the music wasn't enough to save the day.
There are simply too many things wrong about Insane Cold so I'm not recommending it. If you decide to test it out, you'll know within the first few minutes whether you want it sucking up your valuable hard drive space.
I don't recommend this game.
Follow trails, uncover secrets in hidden object scenes, and solve various puzzles on your quest to break the curse of the Willmore clan!
Overall rating
4
/
5
41 of 54 found this review helpful
There are collectibles in this SE game!
PostedJuly 6, 2016
CyndiLouWho2
fromEnjoying this SE game with collectibles
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Large File, Puzzle
Fun Factor
4
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
4
/
5
Level of Challenge
4
/
5
Storyline
4
/
5
Even though Regained Castle reminded me of old school hidden object games, it has a lot going for it.
I rated it a solid four stars across the board because it's not perfect, but it kept me interested until the end. Graphics are hand drawn but they're clear and well-drawn. Hidden object scenes are basic, no interactive element, but they're quick and enjoyable. The puzzles were fun as well.
There are no voice overs but the dialogue is well written and flows nicely. The music and sound effects are pleasant and don't require being turned off.
While I wasn't automatically taken out scenes when I completed tasks, I didn't find that a big deal. And having to drag items to where I needed to use them was also not annoying to me -- there are many games that work the same way.
What I was most impressed about was the immersive story line and that there were collectibles to search for in this standard edition game. Regained Castle had a lot more going for it than most of the new CE offerings coming out. I recommend trying it for the trial period to see what YOU think.
I recommend this game!
Can you save your sister before it's too late?
Overall rating
1
/
5
16 of 34 found this review helpful
Let's throw in a werewolf for good measure . . .
PostedJune 11, 2016
CyndiLouWho2
fromSo lame. So very lame.
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Puzzle, Adventure, Strategy
Fun Factor
1
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
1
/
5
Level of Challenge
1
/
5
Storyline
1
/
5
Oh my, what's up with this developer? This is by far the worst game I have seen from them. What a jumbled mess of a story. It's as if four writers wrote separate stories and then they tossed them all together.
As usual, there's a choice of game mode, a map and a locking inventory bar. But the first thing that bothered me was that the graphics were blurred, not crisp. The audio was unimpressive as well -- in fact, I turned it down, which is something I never do. Puzzles were too easy with nothing new or different. And as I mentioned, the storyline was all over the place and downright lame.
I don't buy CE versions because there's usually not too much incentive for me to pay the extra money. While there were tarot cards to collect, an extra bonus chapter, and fun-to-find morphing objects, it was buying food for the ridiculous looking & unecessary animal helpers that aggravated the heck out of me. Sorry, but that's where I draw the line.
I don't ususally get bored or THAT aggravated during a game's free trial hour, but I actually preferred doing laundry instead of playing this game. Kudos to Elephant for getting me to do my chores.
I don't recommend this game.
Can you help the tormented spirits before it's too late?
Overall rating
2
/
5
43 of 51 found this review helpful
Time to put Redemption Cemetery to rest
PostedJune 3, 2016
CyndiLouWho2
fromDon't understand the high ratings ~ it's the same game over and over again really
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Puzzle, Hidden Object, Adventure, Strategy
Fun Factor
2
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
2
/
5
Level of Challenge
2
/
5
Storyline
2
/
5
I'm hoping this will be the last installment of the Redemption Cemetery series. I loved them in the beginning, but finding my way out of a cemetery and helping hapless dead people every time, in every game, got old four titles ago.
Graphics have gotten worse, they're not as realistic looking and seem to be quickly thrown together. The color palette used this time would be more suitable for a fairy tale game, with it's bright and gaudy colors.
Once again, this is another game with the same mechanics -- we're offered nothing new or innovative and in fact, something was taken away. In the custom mode, we are now forced to choose between a quick filling hint button OR a quick puzzle skip button. What's up with THAT?
I was so hoping the devlopers had redeemed themselves by going back to the high quality that was present in their first few Redemption Cemetery games, but I ended up playing only the trial version of At Death's Door. Everything was just so ordinary and despite all the hype, I did not find this game to be overly creepy or engaging.
I don't recommend this game.
Sometimes we think that if we could change something from our past, our whole life would turn out differently.
Overall rating
2
/
5
3 of 4 found this review helpful
Interesting idea but poorly executed
PostedJune 2, 2016
CyndiLouWho2
fromPlaying games that seem to be getting worse instead of better
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Puzzle, Hidden Object, Adventure, Large File
Fun Factor
2
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
2
/
5
Level of Challenge
2
/
5
Storyline
2
/
5
Others have given the story line away, so I'll just mention the mechanics of the game.
Usually, I like quirky little games that other people wouldn't bother with. As others have said, this is a made-to-look-retro game, but I think the game engine used was old school as well, making game play clunky and slow.
Even though this is a small file game, each scene took a long time to "load". And after the scene would load, there would be parts of the story to read. However, in order to click quickly through it, you couldn't just click on the screen -- you had to click exactly on the word "Continue".
The hidden object scenes are cartoon-like and hand drawn which is a feature I don't like, but a child might enjoy. In fact, the entire game seems to be geared toward children except for the philosophical aspect of going back in time to change things in your life.
I ran across only one mini game where I had to break balloons with a dart, but I had no idea what my goal was. When I chose to skip the mini game, I was returned to the main menu. I figured that was my cue to exit the game.
This game was just slow and frustrating with no voice overs and poor graphics. Even with the 'zoom' feature, there were times I couldn't locate hidden objects because they were poorly drawn.The premise and core idea for this game was an interesting one, but more time and effort should have gone into the final product.
I don't recommend this game.
Take a journey through an isolated research facility in the Antarctic and discover the secrets of its past.
Overall rating
1
/
5
23 of 36 found this review helpful
Relied mostly on hints -- glad I didn't have to pay for them
PostedMay 28, 2016
CyndiLouWho2
fromGlad I wasn't playing the Android version where I had to pay for hints
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Puzzle, Hidden Object, Adventure
Fun Factor
1
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
3
/
5
Level of Challenge
1
/
5
Storyline
3
/
5
Facility 47 was originally an android game where you had to pay for extra hints. I would have gone broke because I totally relied on constant hints.
While the visual and sound quality were okay, I found game play totally frustrating. I have played point and click adventure games before but I found Facility 47 to be all over the place. There was no map so constant backtracking got old really fast. I would find an item and then have to try to remember where all the previous locations were. Any kind of map would have been a help.
The story line itself was pretty well constructed although never once did my character wonder who he was or why he woke up in a frozen cell. My biggest complaint was that there was no journal to keep track of notes and there were just too many things to read along the way. I enjoy reading a book but not when it's within a game.
I never finished Facility 47 because it just kept getting bleaker and bleaker and more depressing as I found dead bodies along the way and didn't really seem to care too much. I ended up googling the ending, which was poorly done, so I was glad I decided not to waste more time on this game.
Try it and see what YOU think.
I don't recommend this game.