arnold1049's Profile
Stat Summary
- Average Rating:3.8
- Helpful Votes:4,545
- Reviews Submitted:556
- First Review:February 24, 2012
- Most Recent Review:March 9, 2025
- Featured reviews0
Status:
Help friendly ghosts celebrate Christmas! They don't know how to do it and have less than a month to get prepared!
Overall rating
5
/
5
38 of 43 found this review helpful
LARUAVILLE LEARNS ABOUT CHRISTMAS
PostedDecember 14, 2015
Fun Factor
5
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
5
/
5
Storyline
4
/
5
Another excellent addition to the Laruaville series. I played the demo and it is a sure buy for me, to add to the other games in this series that I have purchased and played.
Here the residents have heard about Christmas but don't know anything about it. During the demo, I was able to build and decorate a house for the Scientist. I would guess the rest of the game consists of similar actions.
The Match 3 tiles have been increased in complexity. An Aurous tile has been added that can't be removed. I did not run into this tile during the demo, but it sounds like a real challenge. The Mahjong games are standard fare.
The book of instructions is a great help. There are some grammatical errors in it that reveal that English is not the native language of the developers.
The graphics and characters are bright and colorful and always create a nice, relaxing atmosphere, if you play the relaxed mode, which I did. There are two other methods of play, limited time and limited moves.
Great Match 3 play, great atmosphere, great game.
I recommend this game!
Tasty Planet: Back for Seconds
Gobble up the entire Tasty Planet in this fun and exciting Adventure game! Grow in size and take on even more delectable items!
Overall rating
4
/
5
CUTE GAME
PostedDecember 13, 2015
Fun Factor
4
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
4
/
5
Level of Challenge
4
/
5
Storyline
4
/
5
A scientist has built a time machine. In the process, he has also created a "blob" that can eat anything smaller than itself. With each item it eats, it gets bigger and can eat bigger items. Unfortunately, it gets big enough to eat the time machine, which takes it back 65 million years where it continues its process of eating everything smaller than itself.
I played 15 minutes of the demo and I think this is a fun game. Using your mouse you maneuver the blob to items that it can eat, avoiding bigger items that can create difficulties for it. Each round is scored according to the number of each type of items that the blog has eaten.
Although I like this game, it is not something that I would purchase. Moving the mouse around the screen gets kind of boring, which is why I only played 15 minutes of the demo. But it is a cute game and I think it would be fun for a younger audience. It kind of reminds me of Dr. Seuss' book, "Don't Feed the Fish".
I recommend this game!
Floria
Collect colorful tiles, release the magic power and return life to Floria!
Overall rating
5
/
5
1 of 1 found this review helpful
"FEEL GOOD" GAME
PostedDecember 12, 2015
Fun Factor
5
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
5
/
5
Storyline
4
/
5
The characters and graphics in this game are so bright, cheerful and colorful that they made me smile. I really enjoyed the game.
This is a Match 3 game that has so many variations I didn't want to stop playing. The storyline is about restoring the Floria civilization and returning the weather, including the 4 seasons. Mini games include a solitaire variation, jigsaw puzzles, etc.
I played the non-timed version and it was a fun, relaxing game.
I recommend this game!
World Riddles: Secrets of the Ages
Travel through time to locate all seven parts of the Medallion!
Overall rating
2
/
5
1 of 1 found this review helpful
CUMBERSOME GAME REQUIREMENTS ASSURE FAILURE
PostedDecember 12, 2015
Fun Factor
2
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
3
/
5
Level of Challenge
2
/
5
Each grid in this game requires that all squares be uncovered or deleted before the grid is considered complete. Changing the pointer from uncovering a tile to deleting the tile requires that you either set the game up to allow you to right click or click on the icon in the lower right of the screen to make the change. The time it takes to change the pointer and to take extra care that the pointer is set correctly before touching a tile reduces the speed at which the game can be played.
This necessity to change the pointer also makes it very easy to make a mistake. One mistake results in zero points earned for the grid, the same as using a hint or not meeting the "expected" time.
These built-in failure factors made me stop playing the demo after a very short time. It doesn't matter how interesting the information is on the various civilizations that are uncovered during game play or any other positive elements that the game may have. I don't like to be set up for failure and I refuse to beat my head against a brick wall when so many other games are waiting for me.
I don't recommend this game.
Jewel Quest II
Play the ultimate jewel matching adventure; turn precious relics to gold! Match wisely, and you’ll unveil the treasures of Africa!
Overall rating
2
/
5
3 of 4 found this review helpful
NOT ENOUGH "LIFE" IN THIS GAME
PostedDecember 7, 2015
Fun Factor
2
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
3
/
5
Level of Challenge
2
/
5
This game is a basic Match 3 with a storyline that is used to transition between scenes.
At the beginning, you are given 3 (?) lives. If you do not finish a game within the time frame allowed, you lose a life. You can earn additional lives by accumulating points, with a life added for every 50,000 points. There is no untimed option available. Once you run out of lives, which was pretty quickly for me, the only alternative was to start the game over from the beginning.
I am not a fast player but I would say I'm about average. I ran out of lives after only a few grids, so this game ended up being extremely short and frustrating. Start back at the very beginning? I have better things to do and better games to play than to play this one over and over again.
Thankfully the games later in this series removes this limitation and are much more enjoyable.
I don't recommend this game.
Jewel Quest
Search for lost treasure and hidden artifacts in this adventurous gem-swapping game.
Overall rating
2
/
5
1 of 2 found this review helpful
NOT ENOUGH "LIFE" IN THIS GAME
PostedDecember 7, 2015
Fun Factor
2
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
3
/
5
Level of Challenge
2
/
5
Storyline
3
/
5
This game is a basic Match 3 with a storyline that is used to transition between scenes.
At the beginning, you are given 3 (?) lives. If you do not finish a game within the time frame allowed, you lose a life. You can earn additional lives by accumulating points, with a life added for every 50,000 points. There is no untimed option available. Once you run out of lives, which was pretty quickly for me, the only alternative was to start the game over from the beginning.
I am not a fast player but I would say I'm about average. I ran out of lives after only a few grids, so this game ended up being extremely short and frustrating. Start back at the very beginning? I have better things to do and better games to play than to play this one over and over again.
Thankfully the games later in this series removes this limitation and are much more enjoyable.
I don't recommend this game.
I Spy: Spooky Mansion
Through the creaking gates, you’d best beware. A spooky mansion awaits, enter if you dare! Explore the inside of a scary house.
Overall rating
4
/
5
1 of 1 found this review helpful
CUTE, QUIRKY LITTLE GAME
PostedNovember 30, 2015
Fun Factor
4
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
4
/
5
Storyline
3
/
5
I started out not liking this game very much, but it grew on me and by the time I finished it, I was really enjoying myself. Since it is a fairly short game, that was quite an accomplishment.
The whole game is communicated through rhyming verses. Even the HOS lists were made to rhyme. That was part of what I didn't like about it, so I turned the sound off. But I could not turn all the rhymes off, and I still had to read them. I ended up actually chuckling at some of the rhymes and how the hidden object lists were made to fit into a rhyme.
The premise of the game is that you enter a haunted house through the front door but cannot exit the same way. By playing around 15 HOS and puzzles, you are finally able to find an alternative way out. The locations are repetitive but with different objects to find, and somewhat challenging, particularly when the words are changed a little to fit into the rhyme. The mini puzzles were good and at about the right level of difficulty for me.
The sequence of going in the front door and exiting a different way is repeated about 3 or 4 times, then the game ends. As I said, it is not that long. There were a lot of moving graphics in the game and they were very original and added a lot to the scenes. Many of them made me laugh. The whole atmosphere of the game was consistent with a haunted house and really held my interest.
Based on this game, I will probably explore some of the other "I Spy" games.
I recommend this game!
Travel to ancient Greece to relive a tale of romance between of a modest hunter deeply in love with the goddess Artemis.
Overall rating
2
/
5
1 of 1 found this review helpful
HARD TO NAVIGATE AND HOS WERE TOO EASY
PostedNovember 30, 2015
Fun Factor
2
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
3
/
5
Level of Challenge
2
/
5
Storyline
3
/
5
This game has very easy HOS that presented no challenge whatsoever. The object names on the list were extremely hard to read, as they were white letters on a light tan background.
The story of the star-crossed lovers, god's daughter and a mortal man, was not interesting enough to make this game worth playing. There was a lot of reading to do and, again, the font style and colors were difficult to see. The navigation within the game was also confusing. The direction for how to change locations flashed on the screen so quickly that I wasn't able to read it and was slowed down while I tried to figure it out on my own.
The game has 3 levels of difficulty and I played the middle level. Since difficulty is measured in sparkles/no sparkles, slow/fast skip and hint refills, etc., nothing can make the HOS more difficult.
I'm very glad I played the demo first.
I don't recommend this game.
Escape the Museum 2
After a devastating earthquake rocks the city, David must reach the museum before nightfall and save his wife and daughter!
Overall rating
5
/
5
10 of 11 found this review helpful
UNIQUE GAME
PostedNovember 24, 2015
Fun Factor
5
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
5
/
5
Storyline
5
/
5
The obstacles facing David on his way to the Museum to reunite with his family after an earthquake are numerous and very challenging. His helper, a street person, provides guidance and humor along the way.
Each obstacle/location requires various actions to complete in order to overcome the obstacle. There are HOS, bridge parts to find, people/animals to rescue then reunite, and demands from the street person to meet. All available stars must be earned in each location to be able to overcome the last obstacle in the game, a folding bridge that must be lowered. The number of stars varies from 1 to 3. Items found in the HOS are used to complete other actions in the scene.
This is a linear game where each location must be completed before the play can progress. The only thing that can be skipped in a scene is finding the hidden bridge part. But to be able to finish the game, all of the bridge parts must be found at some point in time. I had to refer to the walkthrough a few times because finding these parts was next to impossible in some scenes.
Hints are available in the HOS and recharge fairly quickly. Help outside the HOS is provided by the street person with step by step instructions when his icon is clicked. But even with his help, I was driven to the walkthrough for more explanation a couple of times.
The HOS are pretty hard with some objects fairly small and others that blend into the background. Other parts of the game were easier. This is also a problem with the game, the lack of continuity in the difficulty of the play. Some locations were easy and could be completed very quickly. Others were much harder to the point of requiring help from the walkthrough.
I gave this game 5 stars because it provided a unique approach to HO play and broke the monotony found in playing other games that are very similar to each other.
I recommend this game!
Jewel Quest Mysteries: The Seventh Gate
Help Emma find her family in Jewel Quest Mysteries: The Seventh Gate, an incredible Hidden Object game!
Overall rating
4
/
5
12 of 12 found this review helpful
HIDDEN OBJECT AND MATCH 3
PostedNovember 22, 2015
Fun Factor
4
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
3
/
5
Level of Challenge
5
/
5
Storyline
4
/
5
This is a tough HOG in my opinion, partly because the objects are tiny, hard to see and well hidden and also because of the time constraint for each chapter. The Match 3 games are also timed. There are no puzzles/mini games except for the Match 3 boards.
The storyline has the heroine searching for her daughter, current boyfriend and old boyfriend throughout an island that has a currently quiet volcano. As the story unfolds, it appears that the old boyfriend kidnapped the daughter to get help in finding a jewel (of course) of great value described in ancient legends. Messing with the jewel has a direct impact on the volcano.
For each chapter, there are several list-type HOS. Hidden in some of the scenes are pieces of the jewel board which you must find in order to play the ending Match 3 game that caps off each chapter. The time constraint is not by location, but applies to completing the chapter. If time runs out, you have to start over at the very beginning of the chapter. This happened to me many times through the game.
Finding medallions in the scenes add to available hints, but there were never enough hints for me to be able to finish within the time limit. I finally developed a strategy of playing each scene quickly, finding all the objects I could without too much trouble, accumulating as many hints as I could along the way. Then I would go back to the scenes where I had not found all the objects and use the hints to finish the scene. Even though the same locations were visited over and over, there were so many available objects in each scene that there was very little to memorize in a scene for faster play the next time around.
Each scene also contains several jewels that need to be collected. These jewels are used to purchase power-ups for the Match 3 boards. The Match 3 boards were also challenging, with each one having a different kind of obstacle to overcome in addition to the timer.
I found this game to be challenging and it easily held my interest.
I recommend this game!