magfan's Profile
Stat Summary
- Average Rating:3.4
- Helpful Votes:266
- Reviews Submitted:14
- First Review:September 12, 2012
- Most Recent Review:November 21, 2017
- Featured reviews0
The residents of Bitterford, Maine have fallen prey to a terrible curse. It’s up to you to unravel the series of mysterious events that led to the town’s downfall and uncover the evil that was responsible.
Overall rating
3
/
5
Not really CE material -- Lack of puzzle variety
PostedJanuary 11, 2013
magfan
fromUSA
Fun Factor
3
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
3
/
5
Level of Challenge
3
/
5
Storyline
3
/
5
I might recommend MCF Shadow Lake as an SE, but not as a CE. It doesn't really have a bonus game -- only the "opportunity" to hunt around the game for 50 morphing items after you find a special mask. Also the strategy guide only shows you pictures of what to do in your current location and a walkthrough is more useful.
The most interesting part of the game IMO was in the two video cassettes that you find. It would have been a lot more interesting to be ghosthunting along with all the ghosthunters. Instead you only follow Cassandra's instructions, which repeat the same pattern over and over: A new area becomes available so you go there. Soon afterward Cassandra phones you with a list of objects to find at that location, which blocks your view while you're trying to explore different rooms. Once you've found everything, Cassandra calls you and you have to return to the motel, where Cassandra gives you 6 drawings of pieces of things that you have to match to some place or some thing in the game. Once you find where all the drawings match, Cassandra calls you back to the motel and you have to "do a reading." This obnoxious "reading" puzzle was obviously created by someone who was overly enamored of a physics engine. The puzzle is a sort of moving picture divided into squares that rotate and float around and you have to reassemble it. You have to grab the pieces with your mouse and coax them into position so they'll snap together. The dratted things don't always move as you expect them to, and gravity is not your friend when the pieces are shuffled up because you can't pick up a piece from the bottom until you remove all the pieces on top of them. So you try to pick one up and it turns over instead -- or goes the wrong direction and bumps the piece you want to match it with so you have to go chasing that one too. Very fiddly puzzle -- and you have to repeat this puzzle for each location you visit.
The most interesting part of the game IMO was in the two video cassettes that you find. It would have been a lot more interesting to be ghosthunting along with all the ghosthunters. Instead you only follow Cassandra's instructions, which repeat the same pattern over and over: A new area becomes available so you go there. Soon afterward Cassandra phones you with a list of objects to find at that location, which blocks your view while you're trying to explore different rooms. Once you've found everything, Cassandra calls you and you have to return to the motel, where Cassandra gives you 6 drawings of pieces of things that you have to match to some place or some thing in the game. Once you find where all the drawings match, Cassandra calls you back to the motel and you have to "do a reading." This obnoxious "reading" puzzle was obviously created by someone who was overly enamored of a physics engine. The puzzle is a sort of moving picture divided into squares that rotate and float around and you have to reassemble it. You have to grab the pieces with your mouse and coax them into position so they'll snap together. The dratted things don't always move as you expect them to, and gravity is not your friend when the pieces are shuffled up because you can't pick up a piece from the bottom until you remove all the pieces on top of them. So you try to pick one up and it turns over instead -- or goes the wrong direction and bumps the piece you want to match it with so you have to go chasing that one too. Very fiddly puzzle -- and you have to repeat this puzzle for each location you visit.
Some of my puzzles malfunctioned. Some puzzles have random solutions and the game is supposed to give you clues to match your solution. But the numbers in the clues in my game wouldn't solve the puzzle, while the walkthrough had totally different clues which DID solve the puzzle.
I don't recommend this game.
E.P.I.C: Wishmaster Adventures
Experience an incredible space adventure in E.P.I.C!
Overall rating
3
/
5
6 of 6 found this review helpful
Play the whole demo
PostedJanuary 11, 2013
magfan
fromUSA
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Hidden Object, Large File, Card & Board, Puzzle, Mahjong
Current Favorite:
Sherlock Holmes and the Hound of the Baskervilles Collector's Edition
(46)Fun Factor
2
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
3
/
5
Level of Challenge
3
/
5
Storyline
2
/
5
I was disappointed in EPIC Wishmaster. Part of the reason was because I thought it would be different from what it turned out to be. I bought it after playing the demo for 22min because it was colorful and seemed light-hearted. But not long after that point it turned bleak and stayed that way until the end. I suggest playing as far as you can during the demo so you can see more of what the game is really like and not just the beginning. There is quite a bit of death and dismemberment and turning people into cyborgs with occasional bits of humor that don't quite fit. It's sort of a cross between space opera and dark fantasy -- not what I think of as sci-fi and not a happy game at all. You can choose your ending, but both endings involve sacrifice. Supposedly having two endings makes the game replayable, but I have no interest in replaying it at all. The story often doesn't hang together and characters' actions don't always make sense. Solutions to puzzles also don't always make sense. The Hint is usually of some help, but not always. It's the type of hint that tells you what to do instead of which direction to go, but it wasn't always clear what the Hint was telling me to do and I ended up consulting the walkthrough. It took me about 3.5 hrs playing on casual, but then I cheated with the walkthrough. As far as my experience went, it was a two star game at best, but since other people found something to like about it, I'll give it 3 stars and a restricted recommendation -- just make sure you play the whole demo before purchasing.
I recommend this game!
The Brothers Grimm have assigned the task of revealing the truth behind missing children in the town of Arbourshire; it is up to you to discover the secrets of the Fairy Tale Mystery, before it is too late.
Overall rating
3
/
5
4 of 6 found this review helpful
Shortest CE I've played
PostedDecember 7, 2012
magfan
fromUSA
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Large File, Puzzle, Mahjong
Fun Factor
4
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
3
/
5
Storyline
4
/
5
Fairy Tale Mysteries: Puppet Thief CE is the shortest CE I've ever played -- even shorter than the latest Dream Chronicles CE's (Book of Air and Book of Water). I finished the main game in a piddling 2hr 2min. The Bonus game added another hour -- mostly due to getting stuck trying to solve a rotator puzzle. The Bonus game has nothing to do with the main game, other than that the Grimm Brothers have given you another mystery to solve. I play games on casual because my eyes aren't so good and I don't want to have to wait all year waiting for Hints to recharge for objects I have no chance of ever spotting -- for example small safety pins and a gray owl head that was about 1/8 of an inch in diameter. I don't skip puzzles unless they malfunction -- which did not happen in this game. I was able to solve most hidden object scenes without using more than one Hint, though there were a couple where I had to use 3 Hints. I was expecting a lot worse going by some of the other the user reviews. I don't "rush" through games, and do take time to look at the scenery. I say all this to make it clear I'm not a speed demon when it comes to playing games. The game itself isn't bad. The graphics are clear even though the game takes place at night, the environments are interesting to look at and explore, and the animations are nice. The biggest problem is it's just too short to recommend at full price.
I don't recommend this game.
Sherlock Holmes VS Jack the Ripper
Sherlock Holmes faces off against England’s most violent and mysterious killer in this thrilling Hidden Object adventure game!
Overall rating
5
/
5
96 of 104 found this review helpful
Great bargain
PostedSeptember 12, 2012
magfan
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Hidden Object, Large File, Puzzle
Fun Factor
5
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
5
/
5
Storyline
5
/
5
Sherlock Holmes vs Jack the Ripper is a full on adventure game, not an IHOG or Adventure Lite. It's more difficult than most Adventure Lite games sold on Big Fish. It was originally released in 2009 for $30 or $40, so the $6.99 Big Fish is charging is a great bargain if you like adventure games. I strongly recommend playing the trial before you buy, because the actual system requirements are higher than for most games Big Fish sells. I found it easier than the previous games in the series, Sherlock Holmes vs Arsene Lupin and Sherlock Holmes: The Awakened, but it was still more challenging than casual games like Hound of the Baskervilles.
I recommend this game!