timothya's Profile
Stat Summary
- Average Rating:4.3
- Helpful Votes:1,143
- Reviews Submitted:199
- First Review:June 24, 2012
- Most Recent Review:September 3, 2025
- Featured reviews0
Status:
Solve a series of near-hopeless cases full of suspense and drama!
Overall rating
4
/
5
6 of 8 found this review helpful
Better Than Expected
PostedMarch 5, 2023
timothya
fromSandpoint, Idaho
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Hidden Object, Puzzle
Fun Factor
5
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
4
/
5
Level of Challenge
5
/
5
Storyline
5
/
5
A straight detective game for a welcome change! Three episodes, three murders, and a set of fairly gritty partners that aren't stupid for an even more welcome change. We play as an anonymous Detective (her name leaks out later), brought in to assist the investigation of some fairly straightforward crimes for some not so obvious motives. Put on your deerstalker hat and get out your magnifying glass!
Pros: For me the best part was the Raymond Chandler-esque writing. The Detective is good - we know she's good - but the Boss isn't fawning and demands results. They're murderers, and they need to be caught! Some excellent graphics, better than average voice acting, and a very useful map (and I needed it). Mini-games are selectable for difficulty and I will confess to having to ease back on one of them. Great game length.
Cons: Animation of the characters was quite stiff, especially during dialogues, which may have been a bit too plentiful. Nothing that exceptional about the atmosphere either in music or in sound effects. Instructions for certain of the mini-games were a little vague. Not much to complain about, really.
Bonus Game: Another case, of course. Actress Ester has disappeared from her set but is someone after her, or is it all an elaborate ruse? Full-length case, some nice wrinkles.
Overall, a genuinely pleasant surprise. There's some genuine investigation going on and the villains aren't obvious. Even the minor speaking characters were well-done and not talking cardboard cutouts. A very solid effort that is exactly what it promises to be.
I recommend this game!
Can you uncover the truth behind a deadly shadow entity in time?
Overall rating
4
/
5
5 of 6 found this review helpful
I Fell For The Rick Tease One More Time
PostedFebruary 27, 2023
Fun Factor
4
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
4
/
5
Storyline
4
/
5
The latest entry in the Paranormal Files series promises long-suffering fans some progress on the Missing Rick narrative, which has resembled a cat toy over the last several games, dangled before us and snatched away to our collective howling of frustration. Herein we return to the series to see if something can be recovered from the mess the previous writers have left us. We play once again as Rachel, hot on the case of a curious and murderous Rick doppelganger, and even the most cynical fan has to wonder if the Devs have finally gotten serious about the meta-narrative. Apparently they have. Now what can they do with it?
So, back to the magic shop from which Rick disappeared, and we encounter an odd sort of Faustian bargain with severe penalties for voiding the contract. Alt-Rick - yes, that's the name he's been given - appears to be the offerer of these contracts, but perhaps a signatory to one of his own, offered by whom, or what? He's figured a way out of it, you see...but it isn't very nice.
Pros: Excellent, surreal scenery inside a magic shop that is much larger inside than out and is linked to alternate worlds, and a plot that develops through some nicely timed reveals. Plenty of locations, HO scenes are a variety of formats, mini-games are on the easy side.
Cons: It's another short game (but busy) and although it leaves us with a bit of a cliff-hanger it also leaves us without much closure. A couple of strange bugs in some of the scenes but none of them a game-stopper for me - I was apparently luckier in this regard than several other reviewers. This one should have been beta'd a little better. On the upside, Rachel's team are no longer helpless Damsels In Distress, mostly because they don't appear at all: Gabriel only, and then not very much. Basically Rachel solos this one and her team appears sporadically as dei ex machina.
Bonus game: Alt-Rick has been contractually naughty toward three angry ghosts, and due to the main game "ending" the team has to keep him safe - temporarily - to make progress on recovering the real Rick. Once again Rachel plunges into the labyrinthine magic shop to rectify the problem. Here too closure for the ghosts is denied; it won't be complete until Rachel and company find a way to void all the contracts which means maybe next time...again.
Overall, a workable effort wasting some spectacular graphics on a meta-narrative that still plods along although at least it does move this time. One star off for that and for the brevity of the main game, but I did have fun in places and the eye candy is almost worth the price of purchase by itself.
I recommend this game!
Welcome to Catstown, a scenic village with beautiful views, quaint cobblestone pathways, and stunning architecture!
Overall rating
3
/
5
10 of 12 found this review helpful
Cute But Very Short Game
PostedFebruary 13, 2023
timothya
fromSandpoint, Idaho
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Hidden Object, Puzzle
Fun Factor
4
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
3
/
5
Storyline
3
/
5
What do you get when you add anthropomorphic cats to a mystery game? Usually unbearable cuteness, but if the writing is up to it, it works as well as this one does, which is good, for as long as it lasts, which is not so good. We play as Shavan, a guards-cat in medieval Catstown, and yes, as another reviewer noticed (nice job!) we've visited its modern version before. He uncovers a conspiracy threatening the town he protects, but whose, and to what end? That turns out to be a nice twisty tale.
Pros: It's an intriguing little mystery of the who's-in-the-conspiracy sort. Very good voice acting, atmospheric medieval-ish music, some very nice interiors and excellent graphics. Better than average HO scenes, mini-games on the easy side. The frequent feline allusions are done on the light side and are actually pretty funny.
Cons: Major disappointment - it's one of the shortest main games I've played in a long time. And plot holes galore: who is this fellow Paul we're seeking all of a sudden? Who are the Alchemists, and what exactly was the Martens' nefarious plan? Stick a little game length into these not-so-little details and we'd have something here.
Bonus Game: We play alternately as Alvin, Mayor of Fishville, and his fiance-to-be, Valerie. The Foxes are planning mischief and we must save Fishville from inundation. Nice twisty plot here as well.
Overall, a great demo - oh, wait, was that the entire game? I giggled at the premise, enjoyed the graphics, music, and plot, but it was over so quickly I felt more than a little cheated. Compared to the older games I've been playing of late offering nearly equal quality and several times the length, not a particularly good purchase. Save your money.
I don't recommend this game.
Step into a tale of mystery, intrigue, deceit, and murder!
Overall rating
4
/
5
6 of 8 found this review helpful
At Last, A Believable Protagonist
PostedJanuary 29, 2023
timothya
fromSandpoint, Idaho
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Hidden Object, Puzzle
Fun Factor
4
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
3
/
5
Storyline
4
/
5
A lovely mystery in a short game. We play as Emily, a widower who has soothed her grief by podcasting mystery investigations and finds her own town a repository of unsolved crime. This particular crime cuts a little close to home, though, and among the suspects are some of her closest friends. Someone has decided to treat illnesses by simple organ transplant, but certain of the donors require a little...persuasion...
Pros: Excellent graphics, movements smooth and the actions realistic. It's a genuine mystery with - I hope this isn't a spoiler - no evil spirits, magic rituals, potions, or dyspeptic dragons. And best of all, our heroine is not a fist-swinging Mary Sue but a perfectly believable middle-aged woman who must use her wits against bigger but cruder opponents. Very good to excellent voice acting. HOS's are better than the mini-games but there are a couple good ones of the latter. The writing is quite good for the mystery genre with reveals spaced enough to keep us guessing for, well, for what time we have.
Cons: It's short. We could easily have been led further along the path of the red herrings, which would have lengthened the game and fleshed out the characters, several of whom were nicely sketched but not drawn. The ending seems abrupt, contrived, and not up to the rest of the plot at all. Somebody better stop paying the writers by the hour.
Bonus Game: Emily is still grieving the loss of her life mate and her friends have thought to snap her out of it by re-opening an old investigation. That one appears to be a straightforward murder, but is it? This chapter is straight investigation, no daring-do, but it's a nice solution even if once again the thing seems a little truncated.
Overall, a very nice introduction to a new protagonist, her environment, and some engaging supporting characters. Unfortunately it isn't much more than an introduction, and I hope to meet Emily again under more lengthy circumstances. She could be the next Miss Marple, long overdue in the face of an overpopulated flock of sweaty Lara Crofts of late who bludgeon their way to success. A solid four-star game with one star taken off for brevity and tacked back on for potential. More of this, please!
I recommend this game!
Revisit Moonfell Wood in this stunning remaster of the hidden object classic!
Overall rating
5
/
5
5 of 5 found this review helpful
Beautiful Re-Mastering, Lots Of Mini-Games
PostedJanuary 21, 2023
timothya
fromSandpoint, Idaho
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Hidden Object, Puzzle
Fun Factor
5
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
5
/
5
Storyline
4
/
5
I did not play either of the two original Awakening games that have been remastered, but the first remaster was so remarkable that I had to bite on this and I'm glad I did! The premise is the same - for those of us who are bored by Magical Princess games, what about an Un-Magical Princess? We play as Sophia, who has to prove herself in a skeptical, magical, and occasionally dangerous world, although she is guarded, however imperfectly, by creatures who this time around are at least willing to hope that she is who she is. Her human people have disappeared and she must find them, and the key is a Witch Of The Woods, who isn't going to make it easy for her.
Pros: Good heavens, it's drop-dead, wander around the scenery gorgeous. It's a long, rich, challenging ride with a very straightforward plot, which is fine because you're going to be slogging your way through mini-games enough to forget anything about continuity. Very minimal voice-acting, just enough to keep you going, and quite a bit of plot exposition is done textually. Incredibly soothing music throughout. Animation is top-notch.
Cons: If you don't like mini-games, give this one a pass, because they fly at you thick and fast, and some of them are very challenging. Sophia is being tested, and that means you. Some trouble occasionally with hot-zones that are overly small, which is typical of older games. There's a potion, and a spoon, and what I thought might be a bug turned out to be the Devs making me wait. Ugh.
Bonus Game: Here Sophia must continue her journey but Golden Beak has a little detour for her. In this island are answers to questions she hasn't posed yet. A couple of tough mini-games in this one - she'll have to earn both questions and answers.
Overall, an absolute delight for a mini-game lover. I had a great time playing it. Kudos to the remastering team - this is one of the most beautiful games I've ever played. It's an old-school game with not much of the hand-holding we've been offered of late, and I'm afraid I've gotten a little lazy myself. None of that will do here.
I recommend this game!
Can you stop a soul-stealing monster from terrorizing the kingdom?
Overall rating
5
/
5
5 of 7 found this review helpful
Very Enjoyable
PostedJanuary 15, 2023
timothya
fromSandpoint, Idaho
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Hidden Object, Puzzle
Fun Factor
5
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
4
/
5
Storyline
5
/
5
A lovely fractured fairy tale game! We play as the witch Geheldia, out to earn her place in the coven by facing a monster and recovering a lost prince. Along the way is treachery, magic, some pretty good secondary characters, and the unraveling of the events leading to the monster's disturbing propensity for eating men's souls. This particular Rapunzel, well, about the last thing you'd want to do is to try to climb her hair.
Pros: remarkably beautiful graphics in this one, one horse scene in particular being nearly photographic. Protagonist is really well done - our heroine manages to be effective without being a Mary Sue and possesses a wry sense of humor that fleshes out the character nicely. Excellent voice acting all around. The various witchy effects are pretty darn funny in themselves. Some great mini-games in this one pitched at just about the right level for a medium-to-advanced player. Very solid production values throughout - for once the top-notch art doesn't have to cover for other deficiencies.
Cons: it's a bit short, perhaps a reflection of how nice the environment is and how much the player is enjoying being there. You might as well go straight into the Bonus Game from the main one because it isn't long either and it does tie up a couple of hanging threads.
Bonus Game: we play as the long-suffering Leonard, envoy of the King and friend of the coven, who is tasked with preventing a war between two otherwise friendly kingdoms instigated by...well, that's the question, isn't it? Some nice interiors here, a couple of fairly obvious plot wrinkles; I just wish it were longer because the whole thing was so nicely put together.
Overall, a four star plus game I'm stretching to a five because it could have been just another run-of-the-mill fantasy game and it really did seem to rise above that. Good enough for a replay and that's saying something these days.
I recommend this game!
Can you restore your town's faith in the spirit of Christmas?
Overall rating
2
/
5
4 of 4 found this review helpful
Almost A Christmas Game
PostedDecember 16, 2022
timothya
fromSandpoint, Idaho
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Hidden Object, Puzzle
Fun Factor
3
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
3
/
5
Level of Challenge
2
/
5
Storyline
1
/
5
We play as Jacob, a young fellow who is lamenting the loss of the real meaning of Christmas among, well, nearly everyone. He returns home to impoverished parents without even the means to buy him a present. For reasons that aren't entirely clear he gets into a taxi whose rather seedy-looking driver is named Nick, to reclaim the spirit of Christmas by selflessly helping three - no, this is not Redemption Cemetery - three people in dire need of a Christmas miracle.
Pros: Excellent voice acting keeps you in the game long enough to hope that it just might get interesting after all. Delivery driver is a great minor character, nicely played. Colorful graphics, a very familiar set of musical themes for followers of this series. Some nice exteriors and a fair bit of animation where you might not expect it. Mini-games on the easy side, nothing much new in the HOS.
Cons: OK, so it's short and a little sappy at points. It's a Christmas game, after all. We're going to have to ignore that in pursuit of the spirit of Christmas Jacob commits multiple misdemeanors including burglary and destruction of private property...well, you get the picture. Nick's elves are probably good for a little bail money since they work for the greatest burglar in the world. There are a few stretches - is that manager really mean enough to fire that poor fellow on Christmas Eve for the loss of a single wooden toy to a careless delivery driver? Is Bob the kettle collector really going to bring in enough money to save (oh heaven help us) an orphanage?
Bonus Game: Jacob is mysteriously transported into Cat Town, wherein Christmas has been spoiled by a heartsick vandal who made the mistake of turning a witch away from his door and paid dearly from her wrath. Not a bad little mystery here for a short time. Once Jacob has made things right Nick scolds our vandal for doing so, leaving the underlying message to young players that you should admit scary-looking people into your home. I wonder if the authors thought that one through?
Overall, as others have pointed out, this game suffers from being in the same series as the extraordinary Nutcracker and that's an awfully high bar to jump. Unfortunately, after a decent start this one never quite gets off the ground. Our disappointingly unimaginative Christmas "miracles" consist of a recovered box, a repaired kettle, and the reuniting of a father and son, which might have qualified had it not been so easy. Our final miracle is - I'm not kidding - making a ham sandwich. Somewhere the real Santa is shaking his head and his pen is hovering over the transfer of the Devs' names from the Nice List to the Naughty List. Would I throw folding money at this one instead of stuffing it into Bob's orphanage kettle? I wish I hadn't.
I don't recommend this game.
A ski resort high in the mountains hides a dark past!
Overall rating
4
/
5
2 of 2 found this review helpful
MCF Has Set A High Bar
PostedNovember 29, 2022
timothya
fromSandpoint, Idaho
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Hidden Object, Puzzle
Fun Factor
4
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
4
/
5
Storyline
3
/
5
Now developer GrandMa has picked up the MCF torch, or most of it anyway. We play once again as Master Detective, although the halcyon days of working directly for Her Majesty are sadly behind us. In this entry someone or something has made a party of aristocrats disappear from a deserted ski resort and we are off to locate the missing. Behind it all is that pressing question: is this really a Mystery Case Files game?
Pros: The graphics at least have managed to clear a pretty high bar. The mini-games are outstanding, including three of the Rube Goldberg puzzles that typify this series. Production values are very high indeed - smooth game play, very good voice acting. Length of play in the main game is barely adequate for, one suspects, a reason detailed below. Some nice exteriors give the game a proper brooding atmosphere and the town seems charming but a little too empty - would true skiers really allow a mere murderous bloodthirsty monster to interfere with their vacation fun?
Cons: A couple of small things first: the traditional MCF feel has been lost in the form of the clacky typewriter being silenced and is devoid of any hint of the MCF musical theme. Plot flow is occasionally disjointed and it transitions confusingly from environment to environment with no real explanation - one moment we're in a diving suit in the middle of a wintry lake and the next we're standing on a roof. Must be those randomly appearing portals again. Overall plot is dismayingly villain-was-a-victim cookie-cutter and frankly not up to the rest of the production. We are left with more than a hint of sequel that will fill in the gaping hole in the plot that is how this all came to be in the first place, and a conviction that that's where the rest of the game went.
Bonus Game: A prequel, far too short but a couple of nice mini-games for one's trouble. We play as Katie, one of the three missing skiers, whose attempt to rescue her two cohorts wraps us around to their disappearance and the beginning of the main game.
Extras: We've had some beautiful games this year worth another trip through the art and this game is one of those. You get that chance picking up the morphing objects after the game, so leave a few of them where they lie and return to that scene for a last look.
Four stars for an excellent effort and a game that is a pleasure to play; one off for brevity and the somewhat meandering plot, and the overall impression that what is left over for a sequel belonged in the game we have before us. It certainly isn't up to the bar set by past entries in the series such as the first Dire Grove or the magnificent Return To Ravenhearst, but then not a lot in this genre is. It's still worth the price of purchase.
I recommend this game!
Can you stop a magical artifact from destroying the realms?
Overall rating
5
/
5
10 of 13 found this review helpful
Really Nice
PostedNovember 22, 2022
timothya
fromSandpoint, Idaho
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Hidden Object, Puzzle
Fun Factor
5
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
5
/
5
Storyline
5
/
5
Some games are so beautiful that it's a crime to play them too fast, hence this overdue review for which I do not apologize. I do thank the other reviewers for encouraging me to take a chance on it - fantasy games aren't really my cup of tea but this one won me over from the first scene. We play as Grace, sent to help her Uncle Bronn to save the universe from - what, really? - a magic Spindle that can crush worlds. It has been disassembled - that never works, don't these people play these games? - and someone sinister is after the pieces. And off with us on the quest!
Pros: Yes, it's gorgeous, not in the glaring purple-and-gold of too many past games but an entire palette of vibrant colors in detailed exteriors and some intricate interiors. Plenty of game play, fairly straightforward narrative with a couple of interesting twists. Great mini-games, although a couple suffer from deficient instructions - better to have to discover the rules yourself than be misled by inaccurate ones. The rest, though are great and pitched about right for an advanced user. Nice diversity of HO scenes, very good to excellent voice acting and not too much of it, and some atmospheric music. In short, the full package.
Cons: Not much to speak of - don't take my grumbling about the mini-game rules too seriously, could have just been taking stupid pills that night. One that could have been a con but really wasn't: Grace has her customary Owl assistant, but its sparing use saves it from being obnoxious to assistant-haters.
Bonus Game: Here our quest is after Tarukan, who turns out to be...well, that would be telling, wouldn't it? I'm still laughing after that discovery. A couple of nice mini-games in this one.
Extras: Collectibles include portal amulet pearls, which I would recommend the player pass on at least once per scene, because in the Extras you can go back and re-tour all the beautiful art looking for them. If that wasn't intended by the Devs it should have been.
Overall, just a lovely effort. Thanks, GrandMa, you've done it again!
I recommend this game!
Only you can end the curse of Bird’s Nest Castle!
Overall rating
5
/
5
8 of 10 found this review helpful
Puzzles Galore
PostedSeptember 9, 2022
timothya
fromSandpoint, Idaho
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Hidden Object, Puzzle
Fun Factor
5
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
4
/
5
Storyline
5
/
5
It's a brother-to-the-rescue game (haven't seen one of those in a while) wherein we play as Alex, brother of the recently married Katrina, a brilliant painter, whose new house - well, a castle, actually, wouldn't it be? - appears to have been the domicile of nobleman with an unpleasant habit of murdering his wives and stacking the bodies in the sinister Blue Room. Other than that it's a perfectly normal castle until ghosts, birds, paintings, and plants begin attacking the inhabitants and Katrina disappears. We're obviously not going to get a decent vacation out of this until we sort the whole thing out and reunite Sis with her new spouse, who actually appears to be a good guy except when he isn't.
Pros: Lots to list here. The graphics are colorful and really gorgeous, decent voice acting, HO scenes are varied and plentiful, but for me three things really stood out: the writing, length of game, and the mini-games. The mystery has plenty of twists, and who has done what to whom turns out to be a bit more elusive than it appears. Reveals are nicely timed right to the very last scene (no spoilers) and keep the narrative from going stale. There's a great deal of play here as the various kinks work themselves out of the plot, and a plethora of mini-games, hoorah! Some are easy, others delightfully challenging and integrated into the plot smoothly enough to avoid killing the flow. That's almost become a lost art and it's nice to see it done well here.
Cons: Very little. I did get stuck in a maze with no way back, the only puzzle I had to skip, which worked fine. At several points there were enough open issues to wonder what to do next, but a glance at the excellent map usually straightened that out.
Bonus Game: We play as Katrina this time. Her highly neurotic but apparently talented son Christian has gotten into the magic paints and painted his own fears. These we must dispel one by one. The writing isn't up to the main game's quality and the plot is almost too straightforward but there are a couple of nice mini-games to make up for it. Not really worthy of the main game, though.
Overall, it's a very solid, visually pleasing, well-written game with enough mini-games to keep the worst puzzle addict busy. Friendly Fox did a great job with this one - five stars from me and applause for all concerned.
I recommend this game!