riefer's Profile
Stat Summary
- Average Rating:4
- Helpful Votes:191
- Reviews Submitted:14
- First Review:April 25, 2012
- Most Recent Review:November 26, 2021
- Featured reviews0
A unique puzzle game inspired by sliding puzzle and platformer games. Explore a toymaker’s mansion and solve tricky slider puzzles!
Overall rating
1
/
5
46 of 49 found this review helpful
Shame on Big Fish for selling a remake as a new game
PostedNovember 26, 2021
riefer
This is a remake of the last game, Rooms: The Unsolved Puzzle. Not even a remake, really. The story and the levels are the exact same - the only difference is that the graphics are slightly cleaner. Shame on you, Big Fish, for hiding the fact that you already sold this same game to us 5 years ago. If I hadn't remembered the story so well, I may have thought it was a new game in the series, and paid again for the exact same game that I already own.
This is a horrible way to treat your loyal customers. It's one thing to release a remake that you clearly state is a remake, and let us decide if it's worth the money to us. It's another thing to change the name of an existing game, superficially update it, and try to trick us into giving you money for nothing.
The game itself is good, so I'm sorry to give it such a low rating, but I want to make sure people are aware of the underhanded behaviour by Big Fish Games here.
I don't recommend this game.
Join the Gizmos as they set out to explore mysterious jungles full of incredible riddles and brainteasers!
Overall rating
5
/
5
7 of 8 found this review helpful
Best nonogram series out there!
PostedDecember 3, 2020
riefer
Skill Level:Expert
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Brain Teaser, Puzzle, Strategy, Time Management
Fun Factor
5
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
5
/
5
I own all of the Gizmos games and I've also tried many of the other nonogram or "mosaic" games on Big Fish. This one's the best. The others only have simple puzzles, but this one keeps going up in difficulty to some decent-sized puzzles.
This release is similar to the other Gizmos games, but without the story or the jigsaws. The stories weren't great anyway, but they weren't the point of the game, so I'm fine with them being gone. I do miss the more themed games, in this one the solved images are a bit bland so far. But, if it gets me more puzzles, I don't really care. It's the solving that's the interesting part, so if the final object is just a hammer, it doesn't really matter.
So in the end I'd say this one may have cut a few bells and whistles, but the core is the same. If cutting that stuff helps them get more games out, then fine by me. :) Great game, worth buying, as is the entire series.
I recommend this game!
Tame the Wild West as you build a railroad from coast to coast! To earn your stars, all you have to do is think ahead and beat the clock!
Overall rating
5
/
5
4 of 4 found this review helpful
Very good TM game, like they used to be!
PostedFebruary 11, 2020
riefer
Skill Level:Expert
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Brain Teaser, Large File, Puzzle, Strategy, Time Management
Fun Factor
5
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
4
/
5
Storyline
3
/
5
I like that it's not a CE, first of all, and that we get 50 levels for the price of a standard game. Besides that it's a very nicely-done, fun game. So many TMs are just the same old same old, this one felt fresh, it had some new ideas mixed in with the regular (with the train stations, for example). If you like TM games, this is definitely one to try!
I recommend this game!
Adera
Jane Sinclaire faces her greatest challenge in the mysterious city of Adera. Solve puzzles, collect artifacts and unlock its secrets!
Overall rating
3
/
5
24 of 32 found this review helpful
I don't get the rave reviews
PostedSeptember 19, 2019
riefer
Skill Level:Expert
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Brain Teaser, Large File, Puzzle, Strategy, Time Management
Fun Factor
3
/
5
Level of Challenge
1
/
5
Storyline
3
/
5
The game is fine, but I don't understand why everyone's saying it's so different. I stopped playing HO's a few years ago because they're all the same - pick up objects, use it in obvious spot, with some simple puzzles and hidden object scenes along the way. This one's no different. I finished the demo in 23 minutes, and it would have taken even less time if it weren't for all the cutscenes. Maybe there are fewer as you go along, but the demo was almost entirely cutscenes. The gameplay has only two main screens, all the objects are blinking, it's incredibly easy to just pick them up and use them where they belong. I guess possibly the game gets more involved further on, but I'm not going to spend money on it to find out, given what I saw in the demo. I love adventure games and this shouldn't have been classed as one, because while it might have been fine as an HO, it's disappointing as an adventure game.
Visit amazing worlds on a quest to save the universe in this clever puzzle adventure!
Overall rating
5
/
5
7 of 7 found this review helpful
Great puzzle game!
PostedJune 27, 2018
riefer
Skill Level:Expert
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Brain Teaser, Large File, Puzzle, Strategy, Time Management, Word
Fun Factor
5
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
5
/
5
I don't post many reviews, but I felt that the score on here wasn't representative of the game, so I thought I'd add my voice. If you only play this for 10-15 mins, you're just seeing the tutorial. Yes, it's easy and boring. It's showing the mechanics of the game. Once you get past the first dozen or so levels, that's when it starts to get interesting (and challenging). If you love puzzle games that depend on using your brain and not reflexes or luck, then give it a try!
I recommend this game!
Take a journey through Europe in a hot air balloon, seek hidden treasures and help bring criminals to justice!
Overall rating
3
/
5
9 of 13 found this review helpful
Requires guessing
PostedMay 9, 2016
riefer
Skill Level:Expert
Favorite Genre(s):Puzzle, Time Management, Adventure, Large File, Strategy, Word, Brain Teaser
Fun Factor
3
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
4
/
5
Level of Challenge
2
/
5
For me, any logic game that requires guessing is a failure. You should be able to solve it by logic alone. But this game requires you to either use hints, or be a lucky guesser, to get perfect scores. It also gives you unwanted "hints" by crossing numbers off before you can logically do so. Like if there's a row that's 1 1 1, and you get the first 1, it will cross it off even if there are a bunch of unsolved squares in front of it. Cheap.
I gave it a 3 because I guess it's nice to look at, it has the multi-colour function, and if you don't care that you're playing a guessing game you might enjoy it. But if you want a logic game this would probably get a 1/5.
I don't recommend this game.
In Hospital Manager, it's up to you to make your hospital the best around.
Overall rating
2
/
5
2 of 3 found this review helpful
Dumbed down version of Theme Hospital
PostedOctober 27, 2015
riefer
Skill Level:Expert
Favorite Genre(s):Puzzle, Time Management, Adventure, Large File, Strategy, Brain Teaser
Fun Factor
2
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
3
/
5
Level of Challenge
2
/
5
Storyline
2
/
5
Someone else mentioned it's almost a copy of Theme Hospital... it's based on it, but definitely not a copy, because half of the game is missing. In Theme Hospital you had MUCH more control, over everything. You were given an empty hospital and went from there - size of rooms, what furniture is in them and where they're placed, how many rooms total. You could have as many doctors as you wanted, also there were nurses... they weren't all tied to rooms like they are here. You got real financial documents at the end of each month, you could take loans and finance them. For each sickness, you got an explanation of what it was, how it was cured, etc, and they were amusing descriptions and depictions of the patients. You could pick up and move patients, doctors, etc. It was just full control over everything.
This game, not so much. Very little control, you just plop the rooms, benches, and decorations down and you're basically done. You can do a bit of training and stuff but that's it. Then you just wait for the level to end. It's so, so basic. If they'd actually copied Theme Hospital I would have liked it, that game had a lot of depth to it. This one's a joke.
I don't recommend this game.
Come celebrate Christmas with these holiday themed puzzles and help the residents of Gizmoland bring on the Christmas cheer!
Overall rating
5
/
5
6 of 9 found this review helpful
Gizmo games excellent as always
PostedDecember 14, 2014
riefer
Skill Level:Expert
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Large File, Brain Teaser, Time Management, Puzzle
Fun Factor
5
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
4
/
5
Level of Challenge
5
/
5
Storyline
3
/
5
If you love nonogram games, the Gizmo series is the best-implemented one I've ever come across. No guessing, ever. Every puzzle is completely solved with logic. The way that it autofills when you're done the row is great. It never makes assumptions - some games, when you have 1 4 4 1, will grey out one of the 4's once you have a row of four finished on the board. That's a clue, which I don't want, as to which of the 4's you've gotten. This one will leave it un-greyed until either the 1 beside it or the other 4 is solved. It's just fantastic, better than Fantasy Mosaics, better than any of the others.
I've seen some reviews on other Gizmo games that said you had to guess sometimes, but that's not true. I finished both of the other games with no guessing at all. They are all solvable by logic only.
The storyline is pretty bad, and so are the graphics to illustrate the storyline. But I don't care. So is Fantasy Mosaics, and people still love that game. Also I don't know why they throw in the jigsaw puzzles, but whatever. There's maybe a dozen or so of them. I just finish them so I can get the achievement; I think they're skippable.
All in all, my favourite nonogram game. The only one I've come across that I think is better is web-based. I don't think I can put the name of the site here though.
I recommend this game!
A new mystery leads Arizona Rose to a hidden temple and her greatest adventure yet! Solve the riddles to unravel an ancient mystery!
Overall rating
4
/
5
18 of 21 found this review helpful
Pretty good, but so far only easy puzzles
PostedSeptember 22, 2014
riefer
Skill Level:Expert
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Large File, Brain Teaser, Time Management, Puzzle
Fun Factor
4
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
4
/
5
Level of Challenge
3
/
5
Storyline
3
/
5
I played this game for 57 minutes of the trial period. At the beginning you get a choice between casual mode and a harder mode (forget what they called the hard mode). In the casual one you get a tutorial and it starts with easy puzzles. Harder one has no tutorial and starts with harder puzzles. Well, I picked the harder mode and it's still pretty easy. I got to level 2-12 in the time I had, and still didn't get any puzzles bigger than 10x10. Most of the puzzles take less than a minute to finish. Also from the thumbnails I thought there would be multi-colour puzzles, but that doesn't seem to be the case. They colour in automatically as you play.
Other than that, it was a good game. I didn't get any puzzles that required guessing, which is a huge plus for me. There are hints and other tools you can use to help you, I didn't use any of them so I can't say exactly what they do. I could do without the mini-puzzles, but they're pretty easy and pretty few, so they're not that distracting. I'm not sure if I'll buy it because it was so easy so far. I'll see if other reviewers get past the 10x10 puzzles into something a bit tougher. If you like the simpler ones then this is a good game, I would recommend it.
I recommend this game!
Violett is reluctant to move to the dreary countryside. But when a strange light lures her to into a world of magic, she may never find herself bored again!
Overall rating
5
/
5
7 of 8 found this review helpful
Great, different puzzle game!
PostedMay 6, 2014
riefer
Skill Level:Expert
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Large File, Brain Teaser, Time Management, Puzzle
Fun Factor
5
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
5
/
5
Storyline
5
/
5
I usually don't do reviews, but this one has been so down-rated by people who don't like this kind of game that I thought I should come on and help out the score.
If you like games where it's clear what to do next and you just follow along, then do not play this game. It's not a HOG or a HOPA. It's in the puzzle category, but in my opinion it should have been in the adventure category. It's similar to the old-school adventure games that used to be so popular, before developers got lazy. Nothing is explained to you, and you have to experiment and try things to figure it out. If you don't want to do that, don't play it. If you like to play that way, then this game is absolutely fantastic! I love it when you have to actually think to finish a game. Too many of the hidden object games on here are basically guaranteed wins. You just keep doing the obvious thing, and eventually you get to the end. This one, you really have to work at. It gets the brain churning!
Maybe it would have scored better if it was in the adventure category, but it seems that people don't really check the categories before coming on here and complaining anyway, so it may not have made a difference.
I recommend this game!