laurakay76's Profile
Stat Summary
- Average Rating:3.6
- Helpful Votes:723
- Reviews Submitted:154
- First Review:November 16, 2011
- Most Recent Review:February 13, 2024
- Featured reviews0
Status:
Can you traverse the Underworld and make it out alive?
Overall rating
2
/
5
1 of 1 found this review helpful
Out of the Underworld? I didn't even make it out of the demo!
PostedDecember 8, 2020
laurakay76
fromLehigh Valley, PA
Skill Level:Expert
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Brain Teaser, Hidden Object, Puzzle, Strategy, Time Management, Word
Fun Factor
2
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
4
/
5
Level of Challenge
1
/
5
Storyline
3
/
5
This was... honestly, the best word I can give it is boring. It's not a bad game, just an incredibly dull one. I've never played the other Mystery Tales games, so I can't comment on how this compares to them, but for me it was just very tedious and kind of corny.
The visuals were beautiful, although the animation was a little stilted. The music was fine and the voice acting was good. But I felt altogether unchallenged. It had a syrupy quality that didn't appeal to me, like it was sort of oversaturated somehow. The whole 'stolen bridegroom' plotline reminded me entirely too much of the movie Corpse Bride. I like that movie a lot - but it didn't quite work for me here.
On the whole, I just didn't find it appealing enough to hold my interest. I uninstalled after about fifteen minutes.
I don't recommend this game.
Answer a distress call at an arctic research lab where scientists have made a chilling discovery!
Overall rating
4
/
5
One of the better Mystery Trackers installments
PostedDecember 4, 2020
laurakay76
fromLehigh Valley, PA
Skill Level:Expert
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Brain Teaser, Hidden Object, Puzzle, Strategy, Time Management, Word
Fun Factor
4
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
4
/
5
Storyline
4
/
5
I run hot and cold on the Mystery Trackers. I've played maybe six or seven of the games in the series, and don't care for most of them; Silent Hollow is probably my favorite. I only started playing the series at all because I adore Agent Brown in the Detectives United series, but he doesn't really feature in anything except Raincliff (which I found unplayable). I always love Elf, though.
However, I also really like Agent Shade, so I decided to give this one a go since she's an important figure in it, and I was not disappointed. This was actually a very impressive game to me. The story is a little odd, but compelling enough to keep me moving forward; Cold Stalkers are apparently an ancient race of something like humans, with incredibly advanced technology and abilities like shapeshifting and mind control. It's wild. The animation is done well, the voice acting is excellent (as usual for Elephant), and the music is particularly good - I found the intensity of the background instrumentals to be very well suited to whatever was happening on the screen. (And Elf's winter gear is precious!)
The Winterpoint Tragedy is of the level of quality that I wish more games would reach.
I recommend this game!
The quaint mountain town of Hochwald hides a deadly secret. Defeat a mechanical mastermind and save your friend before another earthquake strikes!
Overall rating
5
/
5
2 of 2 found this review helpful
I want to know more about these characters
PostedDecember 4, 2020
laurakay76
fromLehigh Valley, PA
Skill Level:Expert
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Brain Teaser, Hidden Object, Puzzle, Strategy, Time Management, Word
Fun Factor
5
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
4
/
5
Storyline
4
/
5
This is an engaging game. I love the steampunk world Artifex Mundi has created for us - the idea that even the religion of the game world centers around science, as shown in the bonus chapter, amuses me greatly - and want to see more of it. Evangeline Glass and Dr. Ink may have weird names, but they're very likable characters and I want to know more about them, about their relationship and their past. They've clearly known each other since Evangeline was a child, but how are they connected? I love Matthew the mechanical bird too.
The game itself is well constructed. The animation is smooth, the story is complex, and the voices are enjoyable. While the villain's motivations are something of a question mark, the whole thing was just really well done.
Basically, I want this to be the first game of a new series.
I recommend this game!
A bomb is aboard the Titanic II, a replica of the famous cruise ship! Search the ship and solve a 100-year old mystery!
Overall rating
3
/
5
2 of 2 found this review helpful
Kept me interested to see the end
PostedNovember 20, 2020
laurakay76
fromLehigh Valley, PA
Skill Level:Expert
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Brain Teaser, Hidden Object, Puzzle, Strategy, Time Management, Word
Fun Factor
3
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
4
/
5
Level of Challenge
3
/
5
Storyline
4
/
5
This isn't my usual sort of hidden object game - I'm not a fan of junk piles - but the premise was interesting and I had a coupon about to expire, so after the free trial managed to catch my interest I went ahead and bought the full game.
The game provides many interesting facts about the Titanic which were fun to read. The mystery was engaging and I found myself getting invested in the story of the star-crossed lovers. I could tell well ahead of time what was going to happen when Ellie went to that meeting but it was still well executed, and it was clever to see the changes handled in the diary. I especially appreciated that they gave the diary's two authors different handwriting. The outcome of the diary's story was sad, but not unexpected, although the final present-day twist was a surprise. I fully expected it to be a different character behind it all.
All in all, it was a solid game and I enjoyed it. My in-game clock says I finished in a little over four hours, which is a pretty good length for a SE game. I don't know how much replay value it has for me, but it's a nice relaxing game that's worth trying.
I recommend this game!
Play and complete unique logic puzzles to assemble ingredients and craft 25 unique potions!
Overall rating
2
/
5
3 of 5 found this review helpful
Well, "unique logic puzzles" was correct, at least.
PostedNovember 3, 2020
laurakay76
fromLehigh Valley, PA
Skill Level:Expert
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Brain Teaser, Hidden Object, Puzzle, Strategy, Time Management, Word
Fun Factor
2
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
2
/
5
Level of Challenge
4
/
5
This is a new game? It looks like it dates from about 2005! The graphics are extremely simple, the tutorial doesn't explain the premise very well, and the writing in the tutorial isn't the most polished. The puzzles themselves are interesting, but again, not explained very well and so it takes a bit of trial and error to understand what you're supposed to do. The game is also extremely repetitive, since you need to acquire multiple ingredients to make potions. I played the demo for maybe ten minutes before I just got too bored to continue.
I don't recommend this game.
A journey through time to save ancient Greece!
Overall rating
1
/
5
3 of 3 found this review helpful
I NEVER give just one star. That's how bad this is.
PostedSeptember 30, 2020
laurakay76
fromLehigh Valley, PA
Skill Level:Expert
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Brain Teaser, Hidden Object, Puzzle, Strategy, Time Management, Word
Fun Factor
1
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
3
/
5
Level of Challenge
1
/
5
Storyline
1
/
5
This game's only redeeming feature is that it has nice bright colors and the sounds were well recorded. That was it. The main character is completely unlikable, his motives are stupid at best, and the whole thing makes no sense whatsoever.
To make matters worse, I found it unplayable! I attempted the first level just to see how it went, and at first it was off to a halfway decent start; I collected some blue crystals and followed directions for creating a quarry. And then... nothing. The game seemed to still be running - the music was playing, the timer was winding down - but no matter where I clicked, nothing happened. I couldn't pick things up or accomplish anything. It's rare for me to uninstall a demo game after less than five minutes of play, and even rarer for me to come here and tell you how much I hated a game, but that's the case here. This was just pointless.
I don't recommend this game.
Embark on an exciting expedition to crack the intriguing puzzles of the past, while developing new lands for the kingdom!
Overall rating
3
/
5
If you've played the others, you know what to expect.
PostedSeptember 29, 2020
laurakay76
fromLehigh Valley, PA
Skill Level:Expert
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Brain Teaser, Hidden Object, Puzzle, Strategy, Time Management, Word
Fun Factor
4
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
4
/
5
Level of Challenge
4
/
5
Storyline
3
/
5
I liked this third Royal Envoy, but not as much as the two which came before it. They've made some changes - there's only one cinematic, right at the beginning of the game. There's much less interaction with the characters. The young pirate Tippi doesn't show up at all except on occasional loading screens. The biggest house you can build is a chalet - no more mansions. Dovecotes now house only two doves instead of five, so you have to build multiple dovecotes in some areas to reach the happiness requirements.
On the whole, it's a good game, but I wish they had made fewer changes. Still worth playing, though.
I recommend this game!
Can you save an old friend from a deadly legend in time?
Overall rating
2
/
5
1 of 1 found this review helpful
Disappointing
PostedSeptember 16, 2020
laurakay76
Skill Level:Expert
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Brain Teaser, Hidden Object, Puzzle, Strategy, Time Management, Word
Fun Factor
2
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
4
/
5
Level of Challenge
3
/
5
Storyline
2
/
5
The first question I ask myself, when playing a new Dark Tales game, is "Is this as bad as Lenore?" You see, I hated the installment Lenore, so it's the baseline to which I compare all the other DT games. The answer here is no - but it's pretty close. I rank all the DT games on my own personal list, with Lenore at the very bottom and Morella at the very top, and this one falls close to the bottom.
I did the beta test before the game launched, so I went into it expecting better than what I got. The first act is decent. Lots of red herrings, enjoyable puzzles, interesting backgrounds, subtle nods to previous games. The beta version ended on a pretty exciting note and I wanted to see where it went. But the game just continued to throw twists and turns at me with no end in sight. The killer is this person! No, actually, it's this person! No, actually, it's these people! No, wait, it was Colonel Mustard in the billiard room with the candlestick! On and on. I like a good long game, but this one just dragged.
The music is okay, if earwormy. The backgrounds are well done as usual. The voice acting left much to be desired, especially the high-pitched Anna Wheeler, who just sounds whiny most of the time. I also can't figure out where the game is supposed to be taking place - Dupin lives in France, but there's no Morden in France. There's one in England, but we have major characters named Lars and Otto, which are Scandinavian names, and Otto has an accent I can't place at all.
The puzzles are mostly decent. I can't be the only one who is sick and tired of "puzzles" where you have to have a fistfight with another character. They're annoying and tedious. The hidden object scenes are pretty good, if few and far between. One puzzle near the end was maddening, because some of the answers are inside the diary that you find but others are in the trunk where you find the diary and there is absolutely nothing in the game to suggest this - even the hint button and strategy guide are completely useless for this puzzle. Also, the final puzzle sequence in the bell tower just went on way too long, stretching my suspension of disbelief until it snapped. It was completely unrealistic, even for these games.
The collectibles didn't appeal to me; you have to find two or three disappearing/reappearing puzzle pieces in each scene, and a dozen cards hidden within puzzle scenes. The cards weren't bad, as they gave interesting tidbits about real-world magicians, but the puzzle pieces drove me nuts.
The story, which is always the biggest deciding factor for me, was bewildering in places. I'm still not completely clear on what one bad guy's motivations were. I also don't understand what prompted the murders, or why some characters who turned out to be innocent were acting so completely suspicious.
I have loved this series since the third game, and many of the games in it are replayable because they're so well done. But I think after eighteen installments, it's losing steam and even the developers are getting tired of it. It might be time to retire my beloved Dupin.
I don't recommend this game.
Help Robin Hood and his merry men rescue King Richard from a cunning kidnapper in this captivating time management game!
Overall rating
3
/
5
3 of 3 found this review helpful
I liked it when I could play it
PostedSeptember 11, 2020
laurakay76
fromReally wish they'd kept the forums so we could discuss glitches and other issues with our fellow fishies.
Skill Level:Expert
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Brain Teaser, Hidden Object, Puzzle, Strategy, Time Management, Word
Fun Factor
3
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
4
/
5
Level of Challenge
3
/
5
Storyline
3
/
5
This is good, although not as much fun as the one before it. I liked having the five characters work together in different combos. The music is nice, if repetitive and ear-wormy; the story is just sort of meh and okay. The game doesn't work past level 40 for me; I complete the objective and the characters just stand around instead of running off to the next level like they usually do. I have no idea why. It's a good game when it's playable, but not much of a challenge.
Take on a thief’s quest to recover a sorcerer’s recipe book from her deadly tower!
Overall rating
4
/
5
Entertaining!
PostedSeptember 1, 2020
laurakay76
fromLehigh Valley, PA
Skill Level:Expert
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Brain Teaser, Hidden Object, Puzzle, Strategy, Time Management, Word
Fun Factor
4
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
4
/
5
Level of Challenge
5
/
5
Storyline
3
/
5
If you like escape room games, this is one for you. The puzzles are challenging (downright maddening in one or two places), and you'll be put through your paces trying to get out of the tower. Beatrice's sense of humor is delightful, and the assorted pop culture references are a trip. The hand-holding is minimal, which is good (usually).
I was hoping for something in the sphere of The Cabinets of Doctor Arcana, and this does come reasonably close, although not quite as spellbinding to me. The ending was relatively anticlimactic and I confess to having needed a walkthrough for the final confrontation. Still, it was a good one to play and if you're looking for something to sharpen your wits, definitely give the demo a go.
I recommend this game!