Pilot1's Profile
Stat Summary
- Average Rating:2.8
- Helpful Votes:2,264
- Reviews Submitted:127
- First Review:October 22, 2015
- Most Recent Review:November 26, 2022
- Featured reviews0
Status:
A mysterious exhibit sends a young woman into a parallel world!
Overall rating
4
/
5
10 of 11 found this review helpful
Simply, quite charming!
PostedApril 15, 2017
Pilot1
fromTaos, NM
Skill Level:Expert
Favorite Genre(s):Hidden Object
Fun Factor
4
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
4
/
5
Level of Challenge
4
/
5
Storyline
3
/
5
The storyline may not be unique —it reminds me of Enigma Agency - The Case of Shadows— and, while the graphics are, generally nice eye-candy, the characters are somewhat cartoonish in appearance.
The music is very low key, Andean pan-pipes played quite slowly.
There is also nothing unique about the hidden object sequences or the mini-games. They offer an easy to mild challenge, but only that.
Given all that, you're probably expecting a negative recommendation but, you know, I liked this cute little, easily played, game.
As I always say, play the demo and decide for yourself.
I recommend this game!
Can you stop a mystical murderer in time?
Overall rating
4
/
5
5 of 5 found this review helpful
Not for the nervous or easily disturbed!
PostedApril 5, 2017
Pilot1
fromTaos, NM
Skill Level:Expert
Favorite Genre(s):Hidden Object
Fun Factor
4
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
4
/
5
Level of Challenge
5
/
5
Storyline
4
/
5
Shapeshifters, flayed bodies, a mysterious and threatening crossbow-wielding villain, arcane symbols, and much more, they are all here.
All of the now-usual game settings are available, including one that is unique. At the very beginning of the game you have the choice of darkness of game play, and this has nothing to do with the ambient lighting.
The interactive map is very useful as you trek around the canal-bound Dutch city.
Graphics are a little indistinct around the edges at times, but that may be the artist’s intent. Background music is appropriate to the overall game as well as to particular scenes, and definitely adds to the playing experience.
This is not a game for the faint-of-heart, nor for children, but if you have a taste for the bizarre this game will certainly satisfy.
I played the demo twice, and I’m still not sure of the mission, but the game is so intriguing that I don’t care!
My recommendation comes with the usual caveat that you play the demo and decide for yourself.
I recommend this game!
Can you find your Maestro’s murderer in time?
Overall rating
2
/
5
12 of 15 found this review helpful
A surprising failure by a usually reliable developer.
PostedApril 2, 2017
Pilot1
fromTaos, NM
Skill Level:Expert
Favorite Genre(s):Hidden Object
Fun Factor
2
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
2
/
5
Level of Challenge
3
/
5
For me at least, an offering from Eipix is a pretty good indication that I’m about to play an enjoyable game. Not this time, though. Even the introduction doesn’t say ‘proudly presents,’ as it usually does, this time it’s just ‘presents.’
Others have written the play-by-play description, and I’m not going to duplicate their efforts.
Frankly, I am at a loss to understand the high ratings that some others have given this game.
Let’s start with the graphics for which, and for some unfathomable reason, Eipix decided to abandon its excellent CG engine and revert to old-school hand-rendered scenes. Okay, if done well, and appropriate for the game ambiance, this can actually be a good thing. In this game, while they were apparent time-period correct, they were also very dark and indistinct. I had the screen brightness turned up all the way and even with an HD graphics capable computer it was difficult for me to see what had to be seen. For this reason alone, if for no other —and there were others— I decided not to buy the game and deleted it from my computer.
This darkness issue was most especially true in the HO sequences. I usually breeze through most HOS, not this time. I found myself reaching for the hint button more times in just the demo than I normally would in an entire game.
The mini-games (puzzles) were not a huge challenge, even for one, such as me, who’s not a big fan of those things. Well, one was, but that was because I just couldn’t figure out the logic of it.
If you’ve read other reviews posted by me you know I am not a big fan of CE game editions. I just don’t find the so-called extras —semi-hidden collectibles, morphing objects, game guide, and so on— worth the extra cost of the game. This game did nothing to change my attitude.
The game title suggests that the setting is in Florence but, with the canals and gondola, it looks a lot more like Venice.
If the story line seems familiar, it should. We’ve been there, done that time and time again. Once more you are wrongly accused of murder, arrested, put in a cell from which, with outside help, you must escape and, while evading capture, must prove your innocence, and disclose the true culprit.
Again, if you’ve read other reviews posted by me, you know I admit to being a cantankerous old guy and, I’ll go even further, I may also be properly called a bit of a curmudgeon. Now, having said all that let me also say that I have no problem with strong, female protagonists capable of heroic feats. I do have a problem, however, with that being the case in almost every game offered here. Just once in a while, it would be nice if I were able to more readily identify with the character I was playing. The Adam Wolfe games come to mind.
Given all of that, I cannot recommend this game, but play the demo and decide for yourself.
I don't recommend this game.
A locked room murder awaits you! Was the killer human or something else?
Overall rating
4
/
5
30 of 35 found this review helpful
It could have been better, but it's okay.
PostedMarch 31, 2017
Pilot1
fromTaos, NM
Skill Level:Expert
Favorite Genre(s):Hidden Object
Fun Factor
3
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
4
/
5
Level of Challenge
4
/
5
Storyline
3
/
5
As usual, I’ll leave the play-by-play to those who do it so well.
If you just have to have CG graphics, put that need aside and at least play the demo. This is a graphically attractive game and, who knows, you might even like it.
All of the now-expected optional controls are available, as are the various levels of game difficulty.
The interactive map is most useful getting you from one place to another as game-play is, for the most part, intuitive and logical.
The music is nice in general and, specific to any particular scene, appropriate. Background sounds and other effects mesh well with the action. The lip-sync is good, and the voice text, tone and inflection are likewise well done.
There is a little helper, a sort of animated tree-like creature, but if you don’t want him, you have the option of not accepting him. I found him to be amusing, if for no other reason, while helpful in all of the usual ways, he’s klutz. If you have played League of Light - Wicked Harvest, his personality is very similar to the little scarecrow in that game.
The HO sequences are not unique, nor are they a great challenge. Some are interactive, and you do have to think about what you’re trying to achieve to get the next item.
The min-games —of which, if you’ve read any of my other reviews, you know I am not a big fan— offer a mild-to-moderate challenge, and even I found one or two to be interesting enough that I didn’t immediately reach for the skip button.
Okay, now for the Ho-Hum Report:
Once again, the antagonist is female which, if like me you’re a cantankerous old guy, is the reason that I only gave the game a 3-star Fun Factor.
Your task is to rescue a guy from the clutches of yet another evil apparitional entity, so there’s nothing new there.
Game play was a little too slow for my liking, but not so slow as to make for a boring and laborious experience.
That’s pretty much all of that stuff.
Overall, I rather enjoyed this not too challenging game but, as usual, my recommendation comes with the caveat that you play the demo and decide for yourself.
I recommend this game!
Can you find your long-lost brother in time?!
Overall rating
4
/
5
22 of 24 found this review helpful
A nice little game.
PostedMarch 30, 2017
Pilot1
fromTaos, NM
Skill Level:Expert
Favorite Genre(s):Hidden Object
Fun Factor
4
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
4
/
5
Level of Challenge
3
/
5
Storyline
3
/
5
As usual, I leave the play-by-play description to others who have a talent for doing that rather well.
At first this game seems much like many others we have played. It starts with a cute little kid getting snatched by an evil apparitional being. There’s no need to tell you that your job is to find and rescue the kid, is there? So, some twenty years later, that’s your task.
There are all of the usual game option controls; music, voice, background sounds, as well as the now standard game modes.
The interactive map works well, and is quite useful.
The graphics are little old school, but that fits the game’s apparent time frame —the mid-1930s— and are neither distracting nor do they detract from the game play.
The music is not obtrusive, and blends well with the scenery and particular scenes. The lip-sync is well done, and the voice tones and inflections are appropriate for the text.
Game play is relatively easy and, for the most part, movement from one location to another makes sense.
The HO sequences are nicely done, even though they do not present any real challenge. Likewise, the mini-games —which, if you’ve read other of my reviews, you know I am not a big fan of those.
All in all, this is a nice game to while away some spare time.
My recommendation, as always, comes with the caveat that you play the demo and decide for yourself.
I recommend this game!
Nostradamus: The Four Horseman of the Apocalypse
Play as Nostradamus and solve puzzles in order to thwart the plans of the four horseman of the apocalypse!
Overall rating
1
/
5
3 of 6 found this review helpful
Awful, awful, awful!
PostedMarch 30, 2017
Pilot1
fromTaos, NM
Skill Level:Expert
Favorite Genre(s):Hidden Object
Fun Factor
1
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
1
/
5
Level of Challenge
1
/
5
Storyline
1
/
5
There is so much wrong with this game that I am hard pressed to know where to begin!
Game level: No ‘Custom’ option.
Volume: No individual controls for music, background sounds, or other effects. It doesn’t need a voice volume control because there are no voices!
The game is obviously set in a long-ago time, as indicated by the architecture and travel by horse-drawn carriage, yet when the dialog appears, at the bottom-left of the screen, it is accompanied by the sounds of a typewriter.
The graphics, while somewhat appealing to the eye, are in such darkness that many items are almost impossible to see —even with the computer brightness set to the highest level.
The first HO sequence is a bore, and a nuisance. The game’s inherent darkness means that many, if not most of the items cannot be seen, even if you put your face a mere few inches from the screen. Too, you are also subjected to this same HO sequence multiple times in a row!
I can’t tell you much about the story-line or other game play because five minutes in I closed and deleted this complete waste of time!
To say that I do not recommend this game is an understatement, and I cannot understand how BigFish could even offer a game of such low quality in every aspect.
I don't recommend this game.
Can you stop the townspeople from mysteriously aging?
Overall rating
4
/
5
4 of 8 found this review helpful
From start to finish, never a dull moment!
PostedMarch 28, 2017
Fun Factor
5
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
4
/
5
Storyline
4
/
5
The opening sequence of this game —another fine offering from Eipix— didn’t have me clicking the skip button, as I usually do. It is one of the most dramatic and gripping that I have ever seen!
Other reviewers have given you a play-by-play description of the story-line, so there’s no point in my reinventing that particular wheel.
The graphics are crisp, clear, and extremely well rendered. The background music and sounds are appropriate and add to the game experience, unlike far too many others.
The dialog is similarly very well done; lip-sync, context, voice quality, even the Scots accent of one of the main characters.
The HO sequences, especially the interactive offerings, are challenging without need to hit the hint button, at least not too often.
The map is a little unusual for a couple of reasons, but I’m not going to spoil your pleasant surprise of discovery by describing them.
Game play is smooth, generally quite logical, and follows the story-line fairly well.
If you’ve read other of my reviews you know I’m not a big fan of mini-games, but those found in this game, while challenging, didn’t have me hitting the skip button —well, not too often, anyway.
The collectibles and other odd objects found in CE games are not a big inducement for me to spend the extra money, but if you like that sort of thing you’ll find enough here to satisfy you.
My recommendation to get this game comes with the usual caveat that you play the demo and decide for yourself.
I recommend this game!
Open a puzzle box to unlock four extraordinary worlds!
Overall rating
4
/
5
6 of 8 found this review helpful
What a nice little game!
PostedMarch 20, 2017
Pilot1
fromTaos, NM
Skill Level:Expert
Favorite Genre(s):Hidden Object
Fun Factor
4
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
3
/
5
Storyline
3
/
5
While not the type or style of game I usually play, this is a nice little game.
The graphics are stunningly hand-rendered —real eye-candy— and the music and sounds are equally well done.
While the pace of the speech is a little slow, I assume this is to allow the player time to also read the text.
If you've read some of my other reviews you know I'm not a big fan of puzzles, especially those that are overly complicated, or for which a degree in mathematics is almost a requirement to enable completion. In this game, however, the puzzles are sufficient to present a mild-to-medium challenge while, for the most part, should be solvable by the application of just a little logic.
The HO sequences offer variety and, again, a mild-to-medium challenge.
Now for the Ho-Hum report: Once again the object of the game is for the female protagonist to rescue an inept and helpless guy from the clutches of an evil supernatural being.
As I've said before, I like women and find nothing incongruous about them being heroic . . . but it would be nice, now and then, for this old guy to be able to play as the same gender.
Although I recommend this game, it comes with the usual caveat that you play the demo and decide for yourself.
I recommend this game!
Can you stop these stone-cold conspirators in time?
Overall rating
3
/
5
22 of 34 found this review helpful
Excuse me, I have to yawn!
PostedMarch 19, 2017
Pilot1
fromTaos, NM
Skill Level:Expert
Favorite Genre(s):Hidden Object
Fun Factor
3
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
3
/
5
Level of Challenge
3
/
5
Storyline
3
/
5
I don't do play-by-play description; others have the patience and talent for it, so I leave that to them.
Why any game developer is still offering hand-drawn graphics is hard to understand in this age of CG rendering. Having said that, the graphics in this game, while a little cartoon-like and decidedly soft around the edges, do not much detract from the game play.
The speech lip-sync is pretty good, but the characters speak so slowly —excuse me while I yawn— I almost fell asleep listening to them.
I'm not sure what era this game is supposed to be set in, but some of the artifacts, tools, and so on, are so modern that they sure don't belong here.
Okay, listen, there are walking, talking stone statues here. I know, I know, we've seen them in other games.
There's a stone parrot here, and guess what? If you glue it's broken wing back on —after finding ingredients and making the glue, of course— why, that little critter will take off and fly!
This is a simple game to play. So simple, in fact —excuse me again while I yawn— the puzzles and HO sequences equally so, that in offering any semblance of a challenge it completely flops.
It's a sort of cute time-passer so, if you're into that type of game, it might appeal to you.
My recommendation to buy comes with the usual caveat of play the demo and decide for yourself.
I recommend this game!
A dark fog is taking over Bremen!
Overall rating
4
/
5
45 of 51 found this review helpful
Not really my cup of tea, but it is a tasty brew.
PostedMarch 17, 2017
Pilot1
fromTaos, NM
Skill Level:Expert
Favorite Genre(s):Hidden Object
Fun Factor
4
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
4
/
5
Storyline
4
/
5
The CE version of the game garnered rave reviews from a great many reviewers, and after playing the SE demo I can see why.
The graphics and sound are very good, consistent with, and appropriate for the story setting.
If you've read my other reviews you know I'm not a big fan of puzzles —for the most part, I find them to be exercises by the coders to show how clever they are —the puzzles in this game, while mildly challenging, did not send me grabbing for the skip button.
The HO sequences were not a big challenge either, but they had sufficient variety to make them entertaining.
Now for the Ho Hum report . . . here's another city in the grips of a fiendish character, another instance of people being turned into monsters who you must restore to their human form, and another game where the protagonist is a young woman whose mission is to save her kidnapped sister from the clutches of the fiendish character.
I'm an old guy, some might even call me a curmudgeon, and I'd really like to have a more frequent opportunity to stay in gender while playing these games than allowed by most of those offered by Big Fish. Not that I don't like women, or think it improbable for them to be heroic, but I'm a little weary of having to cross-dress, as it were, when playing a game.
If you just want a pleasant, fairly easy game to play, this one will suit you just fine. As always, my caveat is to play the demo and decide for yourself.
I recommend this game!