pennmom36's Profile
Stat Summary
- Average Rating:3.7
- Helpful Votes:358,445
- Reviews Submitted:4700
- First Review:December 10, 2012
- Most Recent Review:January 15, 2025
- Featured reviews0
Status:
Ominous Objects: Family Portrait Collector's Edition
A father returns home to find his children missing - all but one, who refuses to say a word...
Overall rating
5
/
5
159 of 437 found this review helpful
A Father's Nightmare
PostedJuly 17, 2014
pennmom36
fromI closed the book dad, each man for himself
Skill Level:Expert
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Hidden Object, Match 3, Time Management, Puzzle
Fun Factor
5
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
5
/
5
Storyline
5
/
5
You have been on a long business trip and you've finally arrived at your new home, The Grofford Estate. Perhaps you should have investigated the castle before buying because there is a restless spirit roaming the castle, and portraits coming to life! The children were playing in the library when they discovered a hidden passage just behind the bookshelves, naturally they explored and found a portrait that began to glow, releasing an evil entity. Brandon, William and Anna are missing, Leia however managed to grab the book that moved the shelf and ran for her life!
As Elizabeth comforts Leia, you scoop up the family cat, Mr. Jenkins and set off to rescue the children from the man who painted these cursed portraits that keep coming to life. There are hidden coins throughout the game which you can use to decorate Mr. Jenkins humble abode, and there are plenty of achievements to earn as well. This is a game that has a ton of gadgets and locks to find inventory items and repair which is a feature I love, some games have very little to do in each scene which can become boring after a while, but not this game! You will also notice that all kinds of items can be interacted with, it has nothing to do with the game just kind of fun, I actually kept petting the horse just to see him spook!
There weren't too many hidden object scenes, but they are very well done and every HOS has a somewhat lengthy puzzle to complete such as a triangle puzzle where you switch tiles that are next to each other until the triangle piece is in the correct place. The puzzles were so engrossing that I forgot it was an HOS! There are list finds and Fragmented finds in the same HOS and one HOS required you to find the clothes to a doll and dress her in a specific order. Some of the mini games were new some tried and true. There are pendants to drag until each one is on a separate square horizontally and vertically, and cube puzzles to rotate to complete a picture but when you rotate one cube, others move as well.
The graphics are simply gorgeous, the characters well done, and the game itself is very professional. This Collectors Edition comes with a Bonus game, bonus match 3, developers diary, concept art, a kitty playroom, achievements, wallpapers, music and of course a built in strategy guide, enjoy!
I recommend this game!
Resolve a family squabble before the gates to the realm of the dead swing open and horrors beyond imagination pour into this world!
Overall rating
5
/
5
150 of 443 found this review helpful
Fantastic Mini Games and HOS!
PostedJuly 16, 2014
pennmom36
fromWho is the bad guy, Beatrice or Lily?
Skill Level:Expert
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Hidden Object, Match 3, Time Management, Puzzle
Fun Factor
5
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
5
/
5
Storyline
5
/
5
The story isn't bad either! Two Alchemists opened a portal to the other side, but the dead wanted desperately to join the living. The builder of the portal sacrificed his soul to seal the portal, but over time the dead have weakened the portal seal and it's only a matter of time before the dead join the living! (Zombies!!) Fast forward to the present and you are a Supernatural Detective, actually you are a Detective that deals with the Supernatural, and you have been hired by Lily to defeat her sister Beatrice who's a real witch. One of the sister's want the portal open the other wants the portal closed, but which one? One things for sure, you don't have much of a choice at this point, there's only one way out, up!
There are 36 different achievements to earn, and 100 hidden cat paws that can be used in the Upgrade Room. You are teamed up with Boris the cat with a cheshire grin (hmm?) who is best at using sarcasm to point out the obvious. You can cash in your coins in the Upgrade room on outfits for Boris, which are actually 25% faster hint recharges for HOS and Quests and 25% faster recharge of the skip button.
The Hidden Object Scenes are very well done, keep in mind that there are two modes of difficulty. The Easy mode has easier mini games and HOS, the Hard mode has more difficult mini games and well blended hidden object items. I played the Hard mode, which is challenging but not impossible. The HOS are very interactive, there are keys to find that only open a specific drawer, items that need put together and lot's of very well concealed items, but they are really fun. The mini games I fell in love with, they were all challenging but entertaining. There were two games in particular that I loved, one had a frog in the middle with cobwebs that rotated around the frog and you have to wait for small spaces to open between the rows of cob webs so that the frogs tongue could reach out and grab the spiders on the outside circle. The one I found most challenging was sliding different colored tokens around tracks to their matching colored slots, but, there were very few empty slots and most of the paths only had one intersection which got clogged easily, this puzzle took me a while but it felt so rewarding when I accomplished the goal.
The graphics aren't bad, the characters could have been a little better and moved less stiffly but the story is interesting so I didn't mind. There are a few bell and whistles which makes this a good game for the price. Personally I enjoyed this game, see what you think, enjoy!
I recommend this game!
Pachinko Pop
Jump into a vortex and start popping! Travel into the past and collect ancient artifacts!
Overall rating
5
/
5
99 of 148 found this review helpful
Awesome Pachinko Adaptation!
PostedJuly 15, 2014
pennmom36
fromFollow the bouncing ball!
Skill Level:Expert
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Hidden Object, Match 3, Time Management, Puzzle
Fun Factor
5
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
5
/
5
Storyline
5
/
5
Not sure if anyone has ever heard of Pachinko, much less played this game before. Pachinko is an old game where you dropped metal ball bearings into slots at the top of a large upright board which of course had a glass front. The balls would drop and ricochet off various pegs which would randomly cause the balls to move all over the board until they dropped into bins of different denominations and then some of the balls would return to you in a catch basin at the bottom and you would quickly drop those balls as well. Well times have changed and the computer version has brought forth some fantastic features, making this a fun and addictive game.
You need to aim the shooter cannon with your cursor and then adjust the power of the shot by pulling the cursor up or down, click to release the ball and watch it go! Each level has certain criteria to meet such as earning 25,000 points or destroying 20 of the little face pegs. Some of the "pegs" are rubber and cause the ball to bounce off, these will be destroyed after the ball hits the same peg a few times. There are also walls that are destroyed after a few bounces, some walls and tubes are destroyed after just one hit, but you earn points for almost anything the ball hits each and every time. The ball will eventually end up in one of the urns at the bottom and some urns are worth more points than others. You will receive up to three gold stars for each level depending on the amount of points you earn.
There are score boosters available once they are earned or unlocked such as a boost when your ball hits 30 times before falling into the urn. You can earn a bigger ball when you hit the same urn 5 times in a row, a larger ball enlarges your score. There is a doubler, when you hit both walls you get an extra ball with double the power. There is also a fireshooter which shoots fireballs from the cannon to burn your way to the urns.
If you don't meet the goals for that level, you have two options, the first option is to lose one of your lives, the second option is to "pay" to continue with two more balls. You start out with 30 gold bars and many of the upgrades will cost you in gold bars which are difficult to earn, so eventually you will probably need to use real money to purchase more gold bars as the levels progress and get harder to beat. Other than that, this is really a fun game to play, and each level has different goals as well as different obstacles and patterns, enjoy!
I recommend this game!
Fly to Paris to cover the opening of Paris's hottest new restaurant, Le Roi Soleil! Help discover who murdered the restaurant's famous chef!
Overall rating
4
/
5
92 of 205 found this review helpful
Sharpe Investigations
PostedJuly 15, 2014
pennmom36
fromI have feelings too, please take this into consideration
Skill Level:Expert
Fun Factor
4
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
4
/
5
Level of Challenge
4
/
5
Storyline
4
/
5
This isn't a bad game, but it isn't really exciting either. Journalist Taryn Sharpe and photographer George Haske have teamed together to cover the Grand Opening of Le Roi Soleil, however, Chef Basille was found frozen to death between 6 green apples and 6 red apples in the walk-in freezer! There are no voiceovers, so you will have to read a lot of dialog boxes to understand the objectives. I loved the sarcastic attitude that George the photographer brought to the table, otherwise this game would have been too dry.
The Hidden Object Scenes are a mixture between slightly interactive list finds and find 6 green apples, and 6 red apples (hence the freezer pun) The HOS were basically piles of junk to search through. The very first scene was at the feet of several reporters with all kinds of random garbage that the reporters were standing in, megaphones, teddy bears, magazines and trash. There are simple mini games such as using directional arrows on a red and a blue ball, using each ball as a bumper stop to allow the balls to move into their coordinating colored slots.
This is a basic who-dun-it game, I wish there were more activities to do in each scene, and I wish there were more HOS and puzzles than offered, but the game flows well, the graphics aren't bad, and the added touch of humor makes this an entertaining investigation, enjoy!
I recommend this game!
Real estate agent Angie Dee must get her first home ready for sale. Explore, solve puzzles and clean cobwebs to unravel the house’s mystery in this amusing adventure.
Overall rating
4
/
5
174 of 344 found this review helpful
Don't Give Up On This Game Too Soon
PostedJuly 14, 2014
pennmom36
fromWhat am I looking for???
Skill Level:Expert
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Hidden Object, Match 3, Time Management, Puzzle
Fun Factor
4
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
4
/
5
Level of Challenge
4
/
5
Storyline
4
/
5
I barely made it through the first tutorial (still got a tutorial in hard mode) on the first scene. How dreadful and archaic is this game? But I kept playing, just to be fair, getting to know the mechanics of the game. What I discovered was a game with a bit of a challenge and some interesting concepts, so don't give up on the game too quickly, you may be surprised as well. You play the newest realtor, Angie Dee, and your boss, Homer Echers, has given you a practically condemned house to sell. You must rid the house of bugs and cobwebs as you search the house for useful items.
Each scene will have an icon with a duster at the top of your screen which indicates the number of cobwebs and spiders that need removed. There are items to clean in the Hidden Object Scenes as well. Each item you clean, makes the value of the house rise as shown on the top right of the screen. There are inventory items to pick up and when you come to an area that requires the use of that inventory item, you need to click and drag the item to the scene rather than the normal click on inventory item click on correct scene. When you come across mirrors, you need to assess your feelings and give yourself a pep talk, and clean away bugs and cobwebs. I will admit that I cannot find the last item to clean on the mirror to save my life.
The Hidden Object Scenes aren't very well done, some of the items are very difficult to find, the scenes tend to be blurry and many items are difficult to recognize. There are more than one item of what you are looking for, such as a glass of warm milk, even though a glass of milk is clearly sitting in the middle of the scene, it is actually the one on the window sill you need. I considered these HOS as a challenge, also items you find will first turn yellow and won't disappear until the next item is found.
There are mini games as well such as trying to figure out the answer to a question given. There are blank boxes that require you to drag available letters from a box, onto the blank spaces, if the letter turns red, it's correct.
There are mini games as well such as trying to figure out the answer to a question given. There are blank boxes that require you to drag available letters from a box, onto the blank spaces, if the letter turns red, it's correct.
I'm sure you won't be thrilled with the graphics, the story is cute and the game does have entertainment value. I have to wonder why this game wasn't released as a Halloween game, which would have been a perfect fit. It starts out very weak, but it's not meant to rub elbows with the big boys. Give this game a chance and challenge yourself to find those eency weency spiders and webs, enjoy!
I recommend this game!
Dreampath: The Two Kingdoms
Your sister, the Queen, has fallen deathly ill. Now you must travel to a faraway kingdom to find the cure.
Overall rating
5
/
5
137 of 381 found this review helpful
Silver And Gold
PostedJuly 13, 2014
pennmom36
fromIs there an endless supply of Elixir for all time or just that one bottle?
Skill Level:Expert
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Hidden Object, Match 3, Time Management, Puzzle
Fun Factor
5
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
5
/
5
Storyline
5
/
5
Once upon a time there were two dragons who lived peacefully together in a world that only knew harmony and happiness because the dragons knew the secret of the Elixir of Life. Out of the abyss of darkness, the Onyx dragon arose to spread darkness, pain and suffering upon the people, unable to create, only destroy. The Gold and Silver dragons rose to defeat the Onyx dragon, he was far too powerful to destroy so the Gold and Silver dragons built a prison to contain the evil dragon in chains for eternity. Unfortunately the two dragon's life force was nearly depleted during this epic battle, not even the Elixir of Life could restore their immortality. The Silver and Gold dragons transformed themselves into humans and created two Dynasty's, The Golden King of Goldthorn, and the Silver Queen of of Silverstar, each would hold a key to the Onyx dragons chains. This responsibility would forever be passed down from your ancestors, generation after generation, to protect the keys and contain the evil dragon for eternity! Now you must travel to Goldthorn in search of the Elixir to save your dying sister, the Silver Queen.
This is a very beautiful fantasy themed game with a creative storyline, detailed graphics and challenging tasks available. Shortly after arriving at Goldthorn, you realize you aren't a welcomed guest, a sinister cloaked figure has been trying to sabotage your every move. You will rescue the tower servant, an intelligent well spoken cat named Muir who will assist you in this quest to rescue your sister anyway he can. Muir happens to be an excellent storyteller and begins to educate you with this elaborate story of how the two Dynasties came to be, and hopefully you can find out what happened to the last Gold King who mysteriously vanished without a trace!
The Hidden Object Scenes are beautifully drawn, and a mixture of interactive list finds, finding items that match the silhouetted shapes and even finding multiples of, such as finding 15 insects, and some of those insects need caught, some need to be uncovered etc. The mini games are really fun, some are puzzles that I haven't seen before! There are simple games such as guiding a golden ball through a labyrinth using directional arrows to turn the entire board either left or right as you guide the ball through the maze to the opening slot at the end. Other games were more complex, two of my personal favorites were placing circle tokens, some small some large, some have straight line "arms" with the goal of placing them correctly so that all circles are filled and the indentions on the circles fit snuggly into the arms making a complete honeycomb pattern. The puzzle I thought was the most entertaining was using a dragon claw to grab horizontal and vertical pillars, using directional arrows to guide the claw to be able to grab and remove only the necessary pillars to expose the crown at the bottom. You only get 15 moves, therefore you can't remove all of the pillars, just the ones blocking the crown and it is necessary to remove the pillars that are blocking the claw from reaching the pillar below the top one.
The Collectors Edition has 30 silver and 30 gold coins hidden throughout the game, which will be used to equip Muir's cat room with luxury items. There are also many achievements to earn, concept art, videos, music, posters, replayable mini games, a built in strategy guide, a bonus chapter and a media room which actually has several categories within that section. Either edition is an excellent choice, nothing seems off with the absence of the extras and the game is fairly logical therefore you will be able to figure out most of the game and puzzles without referring to the SG. In any case the hint system is excellent and will show you the picture of the location with an active area and ask if you want to teleport, enjoy!
I recommend this game!
Overall rating
5
/
5
10 of 19 found this review helpful
Dark Tales: Edgar Allan Poe's Black Cat
PostedJuly 12, 2014
pennmom36
fromIs the cat a ghost too?
Skill Level:Expert
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Hidden Object, Match 3, Time Management, Puzzle
Fun Factor
5
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
5
/
5
Storyline
5
/
5
Another Poe masterpiece reincarnated into a masterpiece game! Sarah Davies has been reported missing for nearly two weeks and Detective Dupin has once again asked for your sleuthing skills to help solve this case. People of the town have reported seeing Sarah walking the streets with her faithful feline, but when approached, Sarah vanishes into thin air, as if she were a ghost! (they never say if the cat disappears too) Is this an elaborate hoax, did her oddly behaving spouse, Monsieur Mark have anything to do with her disappearance? One thing's for sure, this black cat seems to be purposely leading you to places of interest as if helping you put the pieces together of this bizarre missing persons case
Even though this is one of the older Dark Tales game, I was still amazed at how vivid and detailed the graphics are, Detective Dupin doesn't yet have a voice, meaning that the newer Edgar Allan Poe games have voiceovers and this game just has dialog boxes that you have to read. This feature actually annoyed me, not because I had to read what each character was saying, but because the dialog boxes popped up directly onto the inventory bar each time I would click on an active area, with a "helpful" description. You would have to then exit out of the dialog box or press continue, if it wasn't an item that could be picked up but rather a task that required an inventory item. No biggie, just sort of annoying. The Hidden Object Scenes were slightly interactive list finds where you might have to click to open a drawer for example, exposing more items. Almost every scene has a HOS, just the right amount, not too many not too few and some of the items are very well blended into the area.
The Collector's Edition has wallpapers, soundtracks, a built in strategy guide and a bonus chapter available. These extra's are only available in the full version, not the demo, and because there is no hint system during the regular game (only for mini games and HOS) I think the Collector's Edition is the better choice, unless you don't want any hand holding, enjoy!
I recommend this game!
Was Veronica West’s death an accident… or a cold-blooded murder?
Overall rating
5
/
5
224 of 502 found this review helpful
Who Killed Veronica West?
PostedJuly 12, 2014
pennmom36
fromHow come the opening scene had the sound of a glass breaking but the glass was in tact?
Skill Level:Expert
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Hidden Object, Match 3, Time Management, Puzzle
Fun Factor
5
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
5
/
5
Storyline
5
/
5
You're going to love this who-dun-it game. Veronica West was found floating in the water during a celebration party on a beautiful yet remote island. Could this be suicide or murder? Collect evidence and interrogate the list of suspects, some are truthful others seem to be hiding pertinent information or are just downright lying! Each person you investigate will talk to you about Veronica's death, if they tell you they have been crying all night, you look for signs that they are truthful, has their makeup been ruined from crying, do they have red puffy eyes? You look for motives as well, are they hurting for money? If they have expensive clothing or jewelry, probably not. Each suspect's bio will be kept on your evidence board, one section for evidence collected such as a torn picture that you assemble as you find the pieces throughout the island, the other section is for pictures of the suspect, which contains brief information about that character such as their relationship to the victim.
There are 44 hidden collectible stars to find throughout the game as well as achievements to earn for such goals as using the map to jump to another scene or not using the hint button during a Hidden Object Scene. There are mini HOS where you find 4 or 5 objects that match a silhouetted shape shown, and these mini HO's are usually in a zoomed in window. The main Hidden Object Scenes are usually in three sections, interactive list finds, followed by silhouetted shape finds and then finding the item that matches a short description. You can opt for a Bubble shoot game, which I will admit is extremely fun, you shoot bubbles of the same color as the group you are aiming for and as the golden symbols fall off the board it represents an item on the hidden object list. The bubble shoot game has bombs, cannons and flame shooters to help win the game because after a few times shooting and missing, the balls drop down a line at a time which will eventually cause you to lose if it reaches the bottom. The mini games are fairly easy and definitely not frustrating, mostly in the form of an intricate lock you need opened. You may need to use a pick to rotate through several rings to find the next opening to proceed to the next ring until you reach the center ring. There were also mini games within zoomed in areas such as using a hook to grab an item at the bottom of a well but you have to wait until the hook is in the green target zone before clicking each time to retrieve that item.
This Collectors Edition has pictures, a souvenir room, music, movies, the making of, hidden stars, HOP play, bubble-shooter games, a built in strategy guide and of course a bonus chapter available. The graphics are superb, real eye candy, the lighthouse and surrounding locations are very realistic, in fact I have to wonder if it's a real destination because I would love a vacation there! Each character is well drawn and lifelike with well synced voiceovers. You are going to love the entertainment value this game brings to the table (computer table lol) it's simply got a lot going on with new and tested true concepts, enjoy!
I recommend this game!
Go on an adventure with Inspector Dupin! Monsieur Mark Davies has reported his wife missing and now it’s up to you to help!
Overall rating
5
/
5
17 of 27 found this review helpful
Dark Tales: Edgar Allen Poe's The Black Cat CE
PostedJuly 11, 2014
pennmom36
fromI was surprised there was a Doberman instead of the usual Newfoundland!
Skill Level:Expert
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Hidden Object, Match 3, Time Management, Puzzle
Fun Factor
5
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
5
/
5
Storyline
5
/
5
Poe wrote some creepy stories that's for sure, and this game would have made him proud. Mark Davies has reported his wife Sarah, missing for nearly two weeks and Detective Dupin has asked for your assistance once again. People around town are beginning to believe that this is either a hoax or a haunting because people have actually seen Sarah walking the streets with her beloved black cat (more like creepy with that single red eye!) but when approached, Sarah simply vanishes into thin air! You would normally brush that off to superstition if you hadn't seen Sarah holding her cat by the window with your very own eyes, this case is going to require all of your detective skills.
I do have a few gripes with the mechanics of this game, mainly in the fact that there is no hint button other than in a hidden object scene, and the strategy guide (and Collectors Edition extras) is only available if you purchase the game. Personally, I want to see what goodies are inside before I buy. There are no voiceovers, you will have to read a lot of dialog boxes, and they sometimes get frustrating when you click on an item and the dialog box pops up directly on top of the item you are trying to figure out what to do with, and you have to click the continue button or click out of the zoomed in area and return to the area. Other than that this is a fantastic story, I loved the graphics and the characters are very well drawn. The soundtracks are creepy and pleasant all rolled into one!
The Hidden Object Scenes are slightly interactive list finds requiring you to click to open drawers or doors to expose more items. The mini games are fun, not frustrating and each scene has several areas of interest with many items combining before being able to use them such as using a string to tie a razor onto a stick so that you can cut the guard dog's leash from a safe distance. I won't say this is an easy game, there were a few things that even I got stumped on, but most of the game is logical meaning the solutions are usually solvable with uncomplicated solutions.
The Collectors Edition has wallpapers and soundtracks available as well as a Strategy guide (not available on demo) and of course a bonus chapter. I think the strategy guide in the collectors edition is a wise choice due to the lack of a hint or directional button, but I plan on checking out the Standard Edition next, enjoy!
I recommend this game!
Twenty years ago, the children of Greystone were taken by a mysterious fog - only you escaped. It’s time to find out why...
Overall rating
5
/
5
115 of 254 found this review helpful
Welcome Home
PostedJuly 11, 2014
pennmom36
fromIf I read the words Welcome Home on my windshield, I'm outta there!
Skill Level:Expert
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Hidden Object, Match 3, Time Management, Puzzle
Fun Factor
5
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
5
/
5
Storyline
5
/
5
You and your mother moved from Greystone, your brother went missing and your father never came home after he went searching for him, or so you were told! After mother's death you find letters from your father, all current, still searching for your missing brother after all these years. Of course you leave immediately for Graystone, surrounded by a dense fog, and the scar on your hand begins to react, Welcome Home! Memories of that fateful day begin to come flooding back, a strange orphan child appeared one day while you were playing Hide and Seek. She wanted to play as well but asked you to read a poem instead of counting: I count one two three, better hide while I can't see. Four and five and then comes six, my friend has a lot of tricks. After seven, eight then nine, hide or run you'll be mine. A fog falls as I count ten, you can't ever leave again! Just like that poof, everyone is gone except for you!
The people you meet will have a dialog option for your answers, one kind and polite, the other sarcastic and to the point. Choose your words wisely there is a Karma meter that changes depending on your answer that will ultimately affect the outcome of the game. (looks like you'll have to play this game twice) You will also discover new powers that your scar can activate such as translating ancient text or melting the weird ice that the fog creates.
The Hidden Object Scenes are cleverly called Hide and Seek games, they are interactive list finds but when you find the item listed the item will move out of the way to expose a keypad number for instance that will be used for the final items quest. There are a lot of mini games some simply puzzle pieces like torn pages to reconstruct others are more complex such as adjusting several colored balls on rods until all lights on the rods turn green but when you move one ball others move as well.
The Collectors Edition has 43 collectible handprints which will be assembled on a Hide and Seek model and 43 alchemical ingredients that will be used to mix a magic potion. There are soundtracks, imaginings, backgrounds, reels, storybook, cast, achievements, unlimited Hide and Seek games, a built in strategy guide and of course a bonus chapter available as well. Either edition is a sure bet because this is an excellent game that has lot's of entertainment value, enjoy!
I recommend this game!