alowan's Profile
Stat Summary
- Average Rating:4
- Helpful Votes:508
- Reviews Submitted:38
- First Review:April 16, 2015
- Most Recent Review:September 14, 2016
- Featured reviews0
Status:
Solve the mysteries of Stoneville and escape with your life!
Overall rating
4
/
5
7 of 9 found this review helpful
" ... go down the stoney end"
PostedSeptember 10, 2015
alowan
fromAmong the dust bunnies
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Hidden Object, Card & Board
Fun Factor
4
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
4
/
5
Level of Challenge
4
/
5
Storyline
4
/
5
Based on the demo.
Overall, a good but not exceptional game, which I will buy and enjoy.
Likes:
- Custom level lets you set hint and skip times from 1 - 90 seconds.
- I always like to fight evil!
- The map is clear and easy to use.
- The mini-games were challenging enough to get my interest, but simple enough to keep my ADD self from clicking "skip."
- Custom level lets you set hint and skip times from 1 - 90 seconds.
- I always like to fight evil!
- The map is clear and easy to use.
- The mini-games were challenging enough to get my interest, but simple enough to keep my ADD self from clicking "skip."
Dislike: Just one. There is no "continue" to click on, for dialogue, slowing this fast reader down. IOW, I've read it in about 1/3 of the time it takes to speak it. (By the way, the voice overs are decent.)
And... "Consider if you will..."
A hay allergy is cured by using a pitchfork, thus inhaling significant dust.
A little sulfur on top of gunpowder in dynamite makes it better, somehow.
(eerie music) You have entered ... the HOPA Zone.
I recommend this game!
The Statue of Liberty is missing! Investigate the disappearance of one of the most important symbols of the United States!
Overall rating
3
/
5
0 of 2 found this review helpful
Six of one, half a dozen of the other
PostedSeptember 4, 2015
Fun Factor
4
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
3
/
5
Level of Challenge
4
/
5
Storyline
4
/
5
Yes, it's a low-tech game, and won't stand up against ERS or Eipix. Perhaps the devs are using old, old software?
While the hint is my friend during the HOS, I liked the puzzles, and I want to see where the story goes, so I might spend a coupon on it - but not $2.99.
I had no trouble with the cursor, and I thought the new scenes loaded pretty fast. The people standing there going "ma ma ma" (that's what it looks like) are funny. I got up to get a snack, and when I came back, the poor old ranger was still standing there going "ma ma ma."
Play the demo, and make up your own mind; I'm neither recommending it, nor saying "don't buy."
I don't recommend this game.
A magic bear summons you to help save the neighboring kingdom of Nypha.
Overall rating
5
/
5
1 of 1 found this review helpful
I can't wait for payday!
PostedSeptember 1, 2015
alowan
fromAmong the dust bunnies
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Hidden Object
Fun Factor
5
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
4
/
5
Level of Challenge
4
/
5
Storyline
5
/
5
(Based on the demo)
ERS has come up with a goodie!
The story grabbed me right away! I played for an hour, and it felt like 15 minutes.
The artwork is just fine; not the best I have ever seen, but good enough to keep me happy.
I like the kind of mini-games they have. I haven’t run into any that frustrated me. The HOPs are fun and varied.
I have minor quibbles. First, I wish the map and journal weren’t right next to each other, and/or didn’t look so much alike.
Second – and this is personal, YMMV – I don’t like the music that kept reminding me to help the Bear. It is suspense music, and gives me an adrenaline surge, and I don’t like them! Again, it’s not a big deal, and most folks will probably be fine with it. I can always turn the music off.
I don't mean to imply that the overall music is bad; it's not. It works well with the story.
I hope I can go back later to look for the collectibles. The story and play keep me focused on the game, which means I forget to look for them. I don’t want to miss any of the extras because I've only found, well, one item so far.
I was grumpy before I began; I’m happy now. This game goes to the top of my list!
I recommend this game!
A carnival is no laughing matter when a murderer strikes.
Overall rating
3
/
5
1 of 2 found this review helpful
I don't know...
PostedAugust 28, 2015
alowan
fromAmong the dust bunnies
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Puzzle, Hidden Object, Adventure, Match 3, Mahjong, Card & Board
Fun Factor
2
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
4
/
5
Level of Challenge
1
/
5
Storyline
4
/
5
Based on the demo.
We have the usual collectibles that interrupt our game, break our concentration, and waste our time. I used to enjoy them, but need something fresh.
Eipix's graphics are, as usual, well above average.
It has those things I can't live without: jump map, jump hints, and custom settings. I have begun to hope for a "turn off flags/pop-ups" choice - that's what you get for spoiling me!
The music didn't force me (by being too repetitive, or grating, or inappropriate) to turn it off, nor was it so good it distracted me, so it must be decent.
The story line is interesting. I've liked the Dead Reckoning series framework from the beginning.
The HOPs are ... above average, in that I'm not too challenged by the basic list HOP with "find it" parts, and finding the differently colored bits on the list can be difficult. The non-list ones have just enough challenge to be fun and not frustrating.
Most of the puzzles are frustrating - because there is very little challenge. Hey, Eipix, I do have enough brains to put several pieces of something together. It irritates me when all I have to do is click and they fall into place.
Your puzzles used to be challenging, what happened? If I have a choice between looking for collectibles, and having puzzles that give me a challenge, please give me challenging puzzles.
I honestly don't know whether or not I'll buy this game. I'll choose "recommend", because there's no "Not sure" button.
I recommend this game!
Answer a distress call at an arctic research lab where scientists have made a chilling discovery!
Overall rating
2
/
5
22 of 25 found this review helpful
I'm disappointed.
PostedAugust 8, 2015
alowan
fromAmong the dust bunnies
Favorite Genre(s):Puzzle, Hidden Object, Match 3, Mahjong, Card & Board, Brain Teaser
Fun Factor
2
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
4
/
5
Level of Challenge
2
/
5
Storyline
4
/
5
I played the demo only. Please play it yourselves!
This will probably be the first Elephant game I won't buy, which is a shame. The Mystery Trackers series is a favorite of mine. I usually dislike "helpers," but I've loved Elf from the beginning. And their special gizmos are always fun. (Some from other devs are just boring, or even irritating.)
The story caught and held my interest right away. I also found the music to be above average: appropriate to the scenes, enjoyable enough to keep me from turning it off, but not so good it distracted me from the game. (I'm looking at you, Cadenza! I love me some Jazz!)
As I've come to expect from Elephant, the graphics were above average.
I was disappointed by the puzzles. Elephant seems to be "dumbing down" most of their puzzles lately. I don't mind that too much, except when they make my favorite kind so easy I could do it tied up and blindfolded! The only challenging one was done in several steps (each one a different puzzle). Unfortunately, when I messed up a puzzle near the end, and wanted to start it over, the "reset" button sent me back to the very beginning, meaning I'd have to redo several puzzles to get to the spot where I messed up. I just said a bad word and hit the skip button.
There were also two annoying glitches. They didn't affect game play itself, but caused me to use opprobrious epithets way too often.
If they fix the glitches, I will definitely buy it! (and amend my review!) But until then, I won't even get it for half price.
Do try the demo yourself.
I don't recommend this game.
It's the end of the world... at least in Oakville.
Overall rating
3
/
5
13 of 18 found this review helpful
You have entered... the HOPA Zone.
PostedJuly 10, 2015
alowan
fromChannelling Rod Serling
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Puzzle, Hidden Object, Match 3, Mahjong, Card & Board
Fun Factor
3
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
2
/
5
Storyline
3
/
5
Based on the demo.
Eipix has, as usual, done an excellent job with the art and graphics. I also greatly appreciate the ability to set my own game parameters with the Custom level. (I wish everybody’s devs would add an option to get rid of the pop-ups for achievements, objectives, etc.!)
I enjoyed the HOPs, which were of several different kinds.
I found the puzzles pretty easy, but that may be because I am very visually oriented. Or maybe because they were very easy. I was disappointed in a few because I wanted them to go on longer! But, please, let me do my own putting together of scraps of paper!
This will sound snotty, but isn’t. The music neither bored me nor offended me. It’s not too spooky. That is a good-to-excellent thing! There are many games in which I turn off all the sound, and put my own favorites on. (The only games I have totally loved the music in are the 2 Cadenzas.)
I am grateful for the fact that (at least, as far as the demo goes) we aren’t searching rooms while some person is there. If I was that person, I’d put a stop it right quick!
Now for the bad stuff. Consider if you will…
Whoever does the writing for Eipix has decided our heroine is a feckless numb-wit. Once again, she can’t stand to touch spiderwebs* and can’t pull off a branch of ivy to deal with them. She won’t get her hands the least bit dirty digging in loose dirt. She’s not strong enough to pull out a couple of different items that a toddler easily could. (I mean the “pliers” in the rusty barbed wire, and the toy airplane in the sand.)
I have to admit, that even though the game takes place in the HOPA Zone, the lack of everyday logic here has put me off the game. Especially the use of jumper cables to mend broken wires! !!!! !!!! Note that black-to-black might work, if you can get the clamps to stay on (which I doubt). Of course, I accept the HOPA Zone magic of electricity where even multiple wires can be fixed by simply taping them all together with electrician’s tape, or masking tape, or cellophane tape. But I’d rather have a connect-the-wires puzzle!
In the HOPA Zone, oil is a magical rust remover – but today’s hand lotions generally are grease-free. Of course, lotions could be a decent lubricator for one-time use. (But those rusty wire cutters are apparently stuck so hard that, without that hand-lotion, she would need a truck with a winch… Sorry; sarcasm switch off now.)
I had to gulp hard to swallow the idea that I have to fool with a piano to find a lost little girl, even though we’re in the HOPA zone.
But I’m going to buy it anyway. I’m not sure if I would without the attached sale; hence 3 stars. I strongly suggest that you try the demo for yourself.
I recommend this game!
Prepare yourself for a perilous journey across the world in order to save your niece from imminent danger.
Overall rating
4
/
5
34 of 44 found this review helpful
From the Demo: Old-fashioned Fun!
PostedJuly 4, 2015
alowan
fromThe HOPA zone
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Puzzle, Hidden Object, Match 3, Mahjong, Card & Board
Fun Factor
4
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
3
/
5
Level of Challenge
4
/
5
Storyline
3
/
5
While it's fairly old-fashioned, I enjoyed it enough to buy it, especially with the sale on. I strongly recommend that you try the demo. I think there will be strong differences among us!
BubbleGumBandit has given us most of the details of play.
There's a jump map. That has gotten to be more and more essential for me!
I do miss having a custom level where I can get rid of sparkles, and set the hint and skip to the lowest possible. I must say, though, that the sparkles in this game are much less intrusive than most.
I enjoyed the minigames precisely because they were pretty fun - and didn't need directions. (This may be because I like visual things like jigsaws, and can't think far enough ahead to beat a 6 year old at chess.)
The HOS were different, too. There were morphers in them all - but they are named on the list. The way they worked is new to me, and I enjoyed that.
They did not have the new fad, where you have to perform 3 or more illogical steps before you can get the named item. I'm not fond of those.
The story has, at least, some freshness. While we are once again rescuing a relative, we are doing so in Tibet, and the supernatural villain has a very Chinese form.
I didn't find the artwork to be awful. In fact, it was quite decent.
I also enjoyed the various logic disconnects. "Consider, if you will..."
The presence of aircraft built in the mid to late 1920s when the players travel in horse-drawn carriages, and antique ships...
The presence of engine technology not found on small airplanes even in the '50s and '60s...
The players' inability to use a tool in an inventive way to get a task done...
You have entered... the HOPA Zone!
I recommend this game!
The survival of an ancient kingdom has been threatened. Restore the four elements with help from an adorable fairy in this enchanting Puzzle game.
Overall rating
5
/
5
3 of 3 found this review helpful
Four Years of Enjoyment
PostedApril 16, 2015
alowan
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Hidden Object, Match 3, Card & Board
Fun Factor
5
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
4
/
5
Storyline
3
/
5
I'm another HOPA (Hidden Object, Puzzle, Adventure Game) fan, with a few Solitaire and M3 games in my system. This was the first M3 I bought, and it is still my favorite.
I'm also someone who doesn't automatically gush over every game I play.
When I change computers, 4 Elements is the first game I download. When I need a break from all the gloom, doom, and darkness of the average HOPA these days, I go straight to this. The artwork is beautiful; the background is just as good as the illustrations of Howard Pyle or Maxfield Parrish in their heyday.
The gameplay is excellent. I enjoy linking a long line of tiles to create an explosion so much that I've been known to yell "Boom!" (which makes my husband laugh).
The only part I'm irritated by is being unable to skip the tutorial. Obviously, I'm not all that bothered by it.
Another good thing. I have never had a running problem with 4 Elements; no slowdowns, lagging, or short lockups. I believe I was running Vista when I bought it, and have worked my way up to Win 8.1. Never a problem.
TL;DR: A great looking, great playing, and reliable game! I highly recommend it!
I recommend this game!