somegeek's Profile
Stat Summary
- Average Rating:3.9
- Helpful Votes:669
- Reviews Submitted:44
- First Review:September 4, 2021
- Most Recent Review:November 7, 2023
- Featured reviews0
Status:
Prepare to be enthralled as you unearth hidden objects in this extraordinary Antiquarium!
Overall rating
4
/
5
Not bad, really not bad
PostedNovember 7, 2023
Fun Factor
4
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
4
/
5
Level of Challenge
5
/
5
Storyline
3
/
5
This is a good old school game. I think they could have increased the size of the scenes a little bit because it seems like the format of the scenes is a bit squashed, at least on my tiny screen.
I liked the fact that some of the objects were hard to see and how streamlined this game is. It does remind me of some games I played in the past, in a favorable sense. The variety of the puzzles is decent. This is a no frills game, typical of what Seven Sails tends to produce. That is quite okay! I still love their sudoku games that were very simple.
It's a bit of a mix of genres: peaceful puzzle and swap scenes, HO scenes a bit like Gardenscapes where you have to please customers by finding the items they want to buy and then normal HO scenes were you find 20 of something. There are also 'find the fragments' scene where you rebuild three items at the bottom of the screen. I would have liked for it to be clearer which ones are finished and which ones are yet to be completed.
All in all really not bad at all!
I recommend this game!
Sit back and relax with the summer’s best word game!
Overall rating
4
/
5
A nice change but a bit short
PostedAugust 19, 2023
Fun Factor
4
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
4
/
5
Level of Challenge
5
/
5
I like playing wordgames in English because I am an anglophone who lives in a non-anglophonic country and I don't want to lose my mother tongue.
This game fits that purpose and it's nice to see a word game on offer here. I also hope that the developers offer this game in other languages too (I would play it in other languages too).
It's well-made, the art is cute and it's relaxing. I did not like the music or the sounds all that much so those got turned off within one minute of loading up the game. I am ecstatic that it is offered on the Mac!
My only complaint about this is that I would tear through this in no time, and I am no wordgame genius by any means being someone who is more into math and logic problems! I don't mean that the levels are easy. What I mean is that there aren't that many levels and the daily word is time-gated, which is a pity.
I still recommend this because I like that Big Fish offers non-HOGs and non-HOPAs. It adds variety and that is a good thing!
I recommend this game!
Immerse yourself in a fresh Atlantis Solitaire quest!
Overall rating
3
/
5
21 of 21 found this review helpful
Something feels off with this game
PostedJuly 19, 2023
Fun Factor
4
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
4
/
5
Level of Challenge
3
/
5
I only played the demo and first off, I would like to say that I am normally a big fan of both the Suricate solitaire and match 3 games. It is thus with dismay that I am rating this as only okay. Normally they produce what I deem to be 4 and 5 star games.
Let me explain: it does not run as well for some reason on my computer as the older games for no obvious reason. I even played the solitaire game that was just released before this one to compare. Not only did this one seem to throttle and speed up in a weird way that made things seem really jolty, but also it made my computer's fan run a lot, unlike the older game.
This alone produces an unsmooth player experience that surprised me because I agree with another reviewer on here that the graphics seem fuzzy somehow and more simplified. The scenes are not as beautifully detailed and rendered as in the older games.
I also agree with another reviewer that the music seems to loop really often and really quickly, like the whole game is sped up somehow. I like the older games for their relaxing music and atmosphere.
Then for the features, I guess I got really spoiled by the fact that this developer seems to iterate often by releasing one or two new game mechanics with each new game. I only played the demo, so perhaps anything new is in the higher levels, but so far I did not see anything new.
Lastly, the first twenty or so levels are really easy, or at least they strike me as such. The older games seem to ramp up the difficulty already by the first ten or so levels.
I feel a bit let down by this game, so I think I will probably not purchase it myself. I prefer the previous installment of Atlantis solitaire and also the last release before this one that does not take place in Atlantis. I hope that Suricate gets back on track with the next release! I am not going to either recommend or not recommend it because new players to the series might like this game. It's not awful by any means but it's not for me!
Just a quick aside before ending this review: if you dislike the new default card faces as much as I did, you can go into the options for the game and select a different card face (and card back). I went for the old one, even though the format seems off with squatter cards and bigger numbers.
Meet the most fun & challenging clutter yet!
Overall rating
5
/
5
6 of 6 found this review helpful
Another excellent Clutter game!
PostedJune 18, 2023
Fun Factor
5
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
4
/
5
Level of Challenge
5
/
5
Storyline
3
/
5
This review is based on the demo.
First a bit of advice: if you have another Clutter game installed via Big Fish, you might want to change profiles as soon as you load up this game and before starting to play. This way you don't accidentally risk erasing your other Clutter game's progress. You can do this by going to the main menu (click on up arrow on upper left) and then click on one of the smiley faces to the right when you are on the main menu.
Secondly, I am surprised people reviewing the game said there are few clutter scenes and the like. There are a lot, you just have to go to one of the other areas of the game. You can see these by again going to the main menu and clicking on the dice on the left. There's even an old school quest you can do if you don't like the newer quest.
So on to the actual review part.
I really liked this game, but then I am the kind of person Joe's Clutter games speaks to. I love puzzles: visual, mathematical/logical, word-based... This one has a big variety of puzzles, even if the actions are similar: sliding, matching, finding singletons, dragging, and so on. The subjects change and there is humor in the item selection.
I also love the flexibility of the UI and the game in general. There are so many options you can toggle on and off or tweak. The UI has been changed in this one and I am unsure yet if I like it more or less so far. Gone though is the funny conveyor belt at the bottom, which I will miss. I have not investigated if there is a toggle somewhere to bring it back.
I also like how Joe keeps providing us with different themes, types of puzzles and such.
As far as the story goes, I put in okay because from past experience they are usually okay. They are more associative and reflective than actual stories. I'm fine with that, that's cool, but I admit I don't play most of these games for the story.
The only thing I do not like so much is the music, but I tend to turn off the sound on many games, so that's not surprising I guess.
So overall, this is an excellent addition to the Clutter series. The only downer for me is that I am still playing It's About Time: I have done 300+ puzzles and have a bazillion more to go in that game. I have not yet touched the B-Sides game, which I have as well.
I will still be getting this because I really have loved this series so far and want to show support for Joe and Big Fish, which is kind enough to offer this game to Mac users like me.
I recommend this game!
Discover and defend the rare animals previously unknown to science!
Overall rating
4
/
5
10 of 10 found this review helpful
A HOG with a funny story
PostedJune 10, 2023
Fun Factor
5
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
4
/
5
Level of Challenge
5
/
5
Storyline
3
/
5
I am a bit late to the game (no pun intended). I only gave this game a try today. I am glad I did not pay too much heed to the negative reviews, because I found this better than many games I have tried lately.
The story is amusing and I actually like it. Usually, I don't like stories in these games, because they have been done over and over again so often they have practically become memes. This one is actually more creative and I like that it's based on a discovery, biodiversity and journalistic theme for once. It involves what is a true and serious subject, which is discovering and classifying new species in the face of collapsing biodiversity.
Getting back to the game, I think the only issue I had with the game is what some other reviewers have said: the graphics are not crisp and clear and we could definitely benefit from a magnifying glass.
The graphics are still clear enough to play, but they are a bit 'fuzzy' for lack of a better term.
The sound quality is fine. I like how clicking on an animal makes that animal's sound. I liked catching butterflies and the fact that there is a small penalty if you click too often on the wrong thing or miss a butterfly. I know some people don't like that, but to me it makes the game more interesting.
I feel so-so about the clutter scenes. I dislike the Shopping Clutter series but love Joe's Clutter games. These scenes seem better than the Shopping Clutter games, but they are still covered in the big, fat suns, which I don't like particularly having to click on.
The swap puzzles are okay, not as good as in Joe's games.
So all-in-all, I like this game primarily for its HOs, a bit less for the other puzzle levels.
The game in all is probably about 10 hours long for me, which is not bad for an SE at all! I think that's good value.
I recommend this game!
Explore the beauty of Australia and New Zealand – piece by piece!
Overall rating
4
/
5
8 of 8 found this review helpful
It's okay
PostedMay 23, 2023
Fun Factor
3
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
4
/
5
Level of Challenge
4
/
5
I am a big jigsaw puzzle freak so was pretty happy to see a new jigsaw game, but this one was a little underwhelming, especially after the last two of this series.
I agree with HeavenBound that the animal scenes were really disappointing. I mean, it's Australia, with all of its freaky animals: Tasmanian devils, wallabies, kangaroos, platypuses (or is it platypi) and so on! There are some pretty weird birds in New Zealand too.
The nature scenes are okay to nice, but I was also disappointed in the city scenes. There are only three castle scenes and only a few food scenes, none of which are interesting. Most of the pictures are of nature, which is not a bad thing at all! I just wish they had chosen some of the more iconic places in both countries to showcase.
I am also disappointed to see that my beefs with this game series have still not been addressed: specifcally pieces getting stuck behind the GUI buttons (a problem mainly with the trays).
The music is very nice and relaxing. Overall sound and visual quality are quite good.
Despite my quibbles, this is still a good puzzle game overall. I would rate it 3.5 stars if I could because the pictures are a little average this time around. Average pictures means an average rating.
I recommend this game!
Your ship has come in!
Overall rating
3
/
5
5 of 5 found this review helpful
This is a great game brought down by bugs
PostedMay 21, 2023
Fun Factor
5
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
2
/
5
Level of Challenge
5
/
5
Storyline
3
/
5
I know I am a bit late to the game, but I hope that someone who doesn't just look at the five star reviews might find this helpful as well as hopefully spurring the developers to fix things.
I usually would rate a Casual Arts game five stars. I love the park ranger series and almost always get each one that comes out. So why three stars this time?
I had two very annoying problems with this game, which makes me think that they did not do their usual level of quality assurance before releasing this game.
The first problem encountered is a very annoying and loud hum that makes me want to shut off the sound as fast as I can. It is overpowering, even louder than the music or the other sound effects.
I did not notice it on every scene thankfully. This is why I rate the visual/sound quality at 2. The visual quality is fine, but the sound is in some cases awful. I hope that this does not reappear in any other Casual Arts games!
The second bug encountered was on a puzzle, specifically the first one on Route 66. I finished the puzzle only to discover that there was a piece missing. I did not misplace it, there quite simply was no piece and so I had to skip it. Fortunately, I did not get stuck so there's that, but it was disappointing to take to do the puzzle only to find out that it can't be completed.
So in all, I am a bit annoyed at this game and can't recommend it even if in other aspects it's fantastic. If they patch it up, I will of course change my rating.
I don't recommend this game.
So much stuff to dig through in this off-the-wall hidden-object game!
Overall rating
3
/
5
16 of 22 found this review helpful
It was okay
PostedApril 29, 2023
Fun Factor
3
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
4
/
5
Level of Challenge
3
/
5
This is definitely one of those storyless HOGs, which is the kind of game I tend to like. It's a puzzle game based on pictures, just like the first one in this series. Outside of a few games with stories like the park ranger series, I tend to stay away from story-based games. So this game should have been a natural "like" for me. However, I am on the fence with this one.
What I liked: the pictures, the themes, the visual quality and the UI. As usual, Tiny Little Lion produces a solid game bug-wise and visual quality wise pretty much every time. One nice thing is that it looks like you can go to any theme without having to complete all of the puzzles in a given theme. So if there is a type of puzzle you don't like, that is okay.
I also liked the find the differences because that was the only type of puzzle that offered a big of challenge. The clutter-like puzzle is too easy and not interesting enough. The So Much Stuff puzzle is okay.
I did not like the swap puzzles or the jigsaws all that much. Again, they were too easy. I could fly through this game in a couple of hours and I am no expert.
I also did not like the music. There was one song that has a jarring, highish-pitched sound that made me wonder what kind of effect they were aiming for. That got turned off pretty quickly.
I feel that Tiny Little Lion missed its mark a little bit here. What I would like to see is more flexibility. Perhaps we could choose what kind of puzzle each scene is and/or have a difficulty mode or just something to mix things up a bit? This seems very, very basic.
That does not mean that I hate this game. However, I am not running out to go buy it. I actually like Just Find It more because there is more challenge and even there I was kind of on the fence but on the positive side.
Unfortunately, I don't think this one is a recommend on my part.
I don't recommend this game.
Overall rating
4
/
5
20 of 22 found this review helpful
Where are the bonus levels?
PostedApril 25, 2023
Fun Factor
4
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
4
/
5
Someone thoroughly trashed this game in their review, but it fits the genre perfectly. If you like picture-based puzzles and games like the Clutter series or So Much Stuff, you'll probably like this game. Is it a brand-new and original idea? No, but then neither is sudoku and yet there are puzzle books and computer games full of them.
There was nothing in particular I disliked. In fact, there is a lot for me to like since I do like picture-based puzzle games. I did not find the game particularly challenging or easy, so I rated that part out of 4 stars. I like a bit more challenge than is on offer here.
I found it pretty fun. I still prefer the Clutter series to this, but this is a bit of a change because it's more mellow, which can be a good thing. Is it the most amazing gameplay since the invention of sliced bread? No, so I gave that 4 stars as well.
I really liked the pictures and the quality was excellent. Tiny Little Lion games tend to be great in this category and this one does not disappoint. I actually wish they had a jigsaw puzzle option so that I could play some of these levels in jigsaw form. Some of them would be challenging as 1000+ piece puzzles.
I took off a star for one thing only for the global rating: what's not clear to me is where the bonus levels are, as my title says. They're not under the CE content. Are they mixed in with the other levels? If so, which ones are they? I don't know if it's a Mac edition particularity, but I don't see them anywhere.
Otherwise, I find this game enjoyable and high quality all around. I may purchase the SE version once I get through a few other games.
I recommend this game!
Complete incredible works of art one pixel at a time!
Overall rating
5
/
5
14 of 22 found this review helpful
Excellent pixel art game
PostedApril 12, 2023
Fun Factor
5
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
5
/
5
I really loved this game straight away, as the title says. I won't go into the same things exactly that HeavenBound and Pennmom mentioned, but I will say what I liked and liked a bit less.
I love the flexibility: you can choose which ever scene you want at any time and you have a choice of four sizes. This is great if you don't have much time and want to just do a small scene. However, you also have the option to come back to a large scene you don't finish and continue on with what you're doing. Once finished, you can choose to reset the scene and redo it on the same profile.
There are just enough tools to hit the fine balance between being too trivial and too tedious.
I also like the scenes and their subject matter. There are no pastry/cake scenes that make me want to raid my fridge, unlike in some pixel art games. Okay, admittedly I found the very first scene kind of ugly, but the rest of them are great to fantastic.
The music is relaxing. This combined with the generally relaxing nature of painting the scenes makes this perfect for my need to want to cool off after a stressful and intense work day. This is the primary reason why I do these art games.
What I liked a little less was how sensitive the zoom is, at least on my computer. With just a tiny touch of my touchpad, I could end up zoomed in all the way and it's actually tricky to control. Thankfully, there are buttons for zooming in and out, but it would be great if a slider was added to control the mouse/touchpad sensitivity a bit better.
Maybe my suggestion will be added to a new episode of this game? Here it just came out and I'm already hoping for the next one...
And thank you to Big Fish and Tiny Little Lion for releasing a pixel art game for Mac as well. There haven't been all that many recently, so that is a nice feature for us pixel art game fans.
I recommend this game!