Tiger2010's Profile
Stat Summary
- Average Rating:4.5
- Helpful Votes:1,743
- Reviews Submitted:76
- First Review:March 9, 2012
- Most Recent Review:January 21, 2015
- Featured reviews0
Status:
Something pulled your son into a shimmering portal. Dive into a magical world to find him!
Overall rating
5
/
5
147 of 167 found this review helpful
A Tale of Three Worlds
PostedFebruary 22, 2014
Tiger2010
fromEssex, UK
Favorite Genre(s):Hidden Object, Card & Board, Strategy, Time Management
Fun Factor
5
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
4
/
5
Storyline
4
/
5
WHOLE GAME AND BONUS
This game starts out like most others. You find yourself in a forest and, whilst you are diverted, your young son Jimmy goes off and gets sucked into a tree and a whole lot of trouble in different worlds. Of course, you follow. Only you can save him.
What seems like just another cookie cutter soon becomes something else the further you travel. For one thing, your teleport map takes you to three different worlds: Forest, Mountains and Castles and does so without lagging and lets you take yourself back to each world whenever you like.
This is important because you have four sets of collections in the form of snails, pine cones, skulls and snakes. All of these are incredibly well hidden so you really need to keep an eye out and they all make up achievements, with another achievement for collecting all of them. If you miss any of them, don't worry because your map will show you if there's one to be had and it will also tell you when there are no more to collect in a scene.
Voiceovers are well done and lip syncing not half bad either. You have 24 achievements and they are wide and varied, but not the usual we see. These are based on not skipping puzzles or using hints in HOPs, listening to all dialogue etc, and by this I mean NOT just the first hour or so, but throughout the whole game AND the bonus. On top of this, you have achievements for finding something in a puzzle in 20 seconds or less or solving a puzzle on your first attempt. Pretty tough! I only found there to be one 'find 3 items in 3 seconds' achievement. Wallpapers can be set from the start.
The HOPs are lists, silhouettes and 'put things back where they belong', but there is no alternative M3, shooter or jigsaw. The puzzles are on the easy side, but they are much more plentiful than the HOPs and I found them a lot of fun. It isn't too hard to achieve the 'no skip' or 'no hint' achievements. I found the music very pleasant and non-intrusive, but there are moments it becomes dramatic in keeping with certain scenes. The main game ends with a really dramatic 'Wow' and a very touching outcome.
The bonus sees Mom back where we first started and, yes, whilst you are helping to rescue the poor underwater creatures, you are not spending all your time in an underwater world.
This game really comes into its own once you get to the Castles world which goes on and on in a very good way.
Highly recommended for a good 6 hours' plus play in total.
I recommend this game!
Return to Raincliff, where what you see isn’t always what you get!
Overall rating
5
/
5
24 of 41 found this review helpful
Don't Lose Your Head!!
PostedFebruary 14, 2014
Tiger2010
fromEssex, UK
Favorite Genre(s):Hidden Object, Card & Board, Strategy, Time Management
Fun Factor
5
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
5
/
5
Storyline
5
/
5
WHOLE GAME AND BONUS
Another great game in the ever popular Mystery Trackers series and a sequel to Raincliff, which is even better than the first.
Mysterious otherwordly activities are happening in Raincliff and our reporter has gone missing. You, as the detective, together with your faithful dog Elf, must uncover the truth behind invisible characters and the 'Headless One' and try to restore the invisibles back to their corporeal forms.
You will find clues along the way in the form of various video recordings which give you photos of places throughout Raincliff where secret items are hiding. Whilst Elf is back throughout the game, there is no dressing up or shop to buy items for him. I found him a cute little helper with just the right amount of interaction.
You have 21 achievements in total which are all performance based, such as not using skips or hints, finding X items in X seconds and so on. There are also 15 adorable Mr Toads to find with hilarious names, dressed in typical regalia of countries from around the world.
On top of this, we have something new - a 'Frost Mode'. This is a thermometer which you top up by finding morphing objects throughout, such as warm clothes and drinks. Finding these also gives you achievements, which are viewed by pulling a switch in the achievements screen. Your achievements are a work of art in themselves as they are beautiful Venetian masks. You don't need to play the Frost Mode and can turn this off. I found it a lot of fun - if you let your thermometer run down completely you can't progress until you find something to warm you.
I found 22 puzzles and 12 HOS in the main game and 6 puzzles and 3 HOS in the bonus and I'd put total playing time at around 5 1/2 hours for both. The teleport map shows thumbprints of locations and I had no issues with any lagging at all. The transitions between scenes were flawless and instant.
There's also some nice humour going on, such as "Violators will be shot. Survivors will be shot again".
Did the main game end satisfactorily? This will divide some gamers, because one aspect is concluded totally, but another aspect is dealt with in the bonus. Your achievements, collectibles and morphs are all continued in the bonus chapter which is always a joy for me.
I found the ambient sounds of snow storms very well done and felt almost as chilly as if I'd been there in person.
A wonderful way to spend an afternoon and I can't wait to see the next Mystery Tracker!
I recommend this game!
Can a vampire and an ordinary girl be together, if the vampire's father opposes this?
Overall rating
5
/
5
103 of 120 found this review helpful
To bite or not to bite.....
PostedFebruary 8, 2014
Tiger2010
fromEssex, UK
Favorite Genre(s):Hidden Object, Card & Board, Strategy, Time Management
Fun Factor
5
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
4
/
5
Level of Challenge
4
/
5
Storyline
5
/
5
BASED ON THE WHOLE GAME AND BONUS
Finally!! Another vampire story and a very good one at that! You could be forgiven for thinking then that this is one dark, eerie and bloodthirsty game. Well, no. It's about a vampire in love with a human and renouncing his own family. Daddy dearest is none other than Count Dracula and he is none too pleased by this turn of events.
Emily goes missing and she and her beloved (Enron) are trying to find a way back to each other. You play alternately as Enron and Emily, which is a nice touch, and you send important items to each other via portals that help in reuniting you. One problem... Enron is a naughty boy. He omits to tell Emily he's a vampire. You'd have thought the fact that he keeps odd hours and only wants to take her out on dates when the sun has set would be a big warning sign... but, hey, love is blind. Will he ever tell her? I'm not saying.
The graphics are nice and I didn't find the music intrusive. There is a teleport map and you have achievements and collectibles. Garlic cloves buy you decorations for your Inventory and panel (we've seen this before recently). You collect bats to enhance your castle. There are also 15 other items to collect with trivia about vampires. Achievements are plenty and are a mix of the usual performance and story based. There are no massive spiders or snakes and there is no cute animal helper.
The collectibles are all in the main game, which ends rather suddenly but adequately. In the bonus you play only as Emily as our dear Enron has got into a spot of bother. As with a lot of vampire games, there is a choice you need to make here as to how it'll end.
This game is very heavy on puzzles (which range from incredibly easy to easy with some challenging ones). H0S are all lists with interactions and you can switch to Match 3, which has vampire themed M3 tiles. I counted 23 H0S in the main game and 5 in the bonus with 28 puzzles in the main game and 20 in the bonus.
I was thoroughly entertained during my 5 1/2 hours playing the whole game and bonus. If you love vampires, I think you'll like this.
I recommend this game!
Young Andrea suddenly collapsed, falling into a coma. Now her fate rests on an experiment that dives deep into minds.
Overall rating
3
/
5
16 of 20 found this review helpful
A re-vamped old game, so it seems
PostedFebruary 5, 2014
Tiger2010
fromEssex, UK
Favorite Genre(s):Hidden Object, Card & Board, Strategy, Time Management
Fun Factor
3
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
3
/
5
Level of Challenge
3
/
5
Storyline
4
/
5
BASED ON THE WHOLE GAME
I spent a PCC on this Standard Edition game and do not regret it. The story is a little different. A mother's daughter inexplicably falls into a coma and a doctor with a revolutionary machine, allowing her to enter her daughter's mind to find clues as to how to wake her, is helping her along the way.
Hence you have two scenarios, the real present-day world and the dream world full of little monsters and other weird creatures that only a child could conjure up in her slumber.
The colours were bright, but the graphics and gameplay gave away the fact that this appears to be a game that has been sitting on a shelf somewhere for some years, and then got a make-over of sorts. There are clues as to how old this game is within the game itself by way of dates.
I counted only 9 each of hidden object scenes and puzzles and the whole game took me 2 and 3/4 hours, so it's not very long. HOS are all lists with some interaction to speak of, and some have one lengthy interaction.
There is no lip synching, but some scenes had voiceovers, others were mainly just text.
An attempt was made at some kind of collectibles, but they were only 5 memory shards throughout which made up a photo.
The conclusion was fairly dramatic, but predictable.
All in all, it was enjoyable and worth spending a PCC on, especially if you have one about to expire, but I wasn't blown off my chair with excitement.
I recommend this game!
The wolf spirit still haunts… will you heed its call?
Overall rating
5
/
5
40 of 53 found this review helpful
Another great game from a top developer
PostedJanuary 23, 2014
Tiger2010
fromEssex, UK
Skill Level:Expert
Favorite Genre(s):Hidden Object, Card & Board, Strategy, Time Management
Fun Factor
5
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
4
/
5
Storyline
5
/
5
BASED ON WHOLE GAME AND BONUS
Exactly a week after the last wonderful game, comes an equally fantastic Collector's Edition from this developer.
As ever with Eipix, the graphics are colourful and crisp and the voiceovers second to none with near perfect lip synching. The theme is Native American throughout, which is a personal favourite of mine.
The music was suited to the game, suspenseful in some place and typically Native American in others. The teleport map is, once again, a piece of art by itself.
There are no furry helpers here. You find tiles throughout the main game that fill your Amulet which is used to disperse spirits. There is a sun rune collectible to find in every scene and they are not hard to detect.
The HOPs are a mix of the usual lists and silhouettes and I counted a massive 30 HOPs in the main game, with 5 in the bonus. Not all are full length HOPs, some of these are 'minis' with only 5 items to find. The puzzles weren't overly difficult - 32 in the main game and 4 in the bonus. You can play a bubble shooter game if you get tired of the HOPs. There are also 7 binocular puzzles. These are easier to do than the bow and arrow in the last game.
The game took me around 5 1/2 hours with 1 hour 15 minutes for the bonus. The main game is finished off nicely and completely with the usual dramatic ending from Eipix. There is nothing overly scary here. However, in the bonus you use your Amulet to get rid of some animals that are mutations and they are not pretty. One was a Tarantula/Horse/Eagle. There are 7 mutations in all so if you don't like this, you may wish to wait for the SE.
As ever, you have a souvenir room after playing the bonus to find an extra object in each scene. You can reply the HOPs from the Extras to try to earn all golden paws. The 'Making of' video is a bit of fun and Bonnie from the last game makes an appearance in this.
Another fantastic game from this top developer. Highly recommended!
I recommend this game!
Explore the abandoned house and search for the missing heir!
Overall rating
4
/
5
6 of 6 found this review helpful
A good creep fest, but not that scary!
PostedJanuary 21, 2014
Tiger2010
fromEssex, UK
Skill Level:Expert
Favorite Genre(s):Hidden Object, Card & Board, Strategy, Time Management
Fun Factor
4
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
4
/
5
Level of Challenge
5
/
5
Storyline
4
/
5
This isn't exactly the kind of game you can say "I thoroughly enjoyed that experience", only because it's dark (as much in theme as in visuals) and it's creepy (in a kind of decrepit, rancid, filthy, falling apart manor house way), but oh boy, this one draws you in and won't let go.
There's no hand-holding here, even on 'Easy' mode. The map is a teleport map, but it can take quite a long time to move between scenes. Whilst you are waiting to go to a different room, your screen will show a quasi map with footprints moving around. At first I thought this must be significant in terms of moving to different areas, but 'no' it's just a time killer whilst you wait to go there. No biggie. At least it's not a frozen screen as we had recently with another game.
Your Inventory, unusually, is at the top of the screen in this game, but what is vexing a lot of players is that the areas to unlock are mostly accessed to the left and right towards the bottom of your screen when your cursor changes to a large directional arrow. Hence, it's easy to go wandering around and around with no clue as to where to go because your map doesn't label locations. Even when you have objectives, you are often told "nothing more to do here".
There are an awful lot of HOGs and no puzzles. The HOGs are lists and others you need to find from sketched drawings. These are often ambiguous and I spent ages looking for items I thought they depicted, when they were something else entirely.
Also, in the demo my Hint button didn't work at all, but when I bought the game I had no problems, so the above was frustrating.
You have a 'helper' in the form of a real hand, which I call 'Thing' (The Addams Family). There's also a real boy actor who reminds me of Damian from The Omen. Other than that, and the general spooky atmosphere, I haven't come across any huge spiders. The animals you shoot early on are already dead and stuffed. You're shooting nothing but Taxidermy and putting them out of their misery at that, as you are freeing their spirits. I don't see anything really occult or offensive in this one.
Once you 'get' how the game mechanics work and you get used to those drawings in the HOS, this is a clever game that makes you think, doesn't babysit you and is entirely deserving of spending a credit or PCC on it.
I recommend this game!
Paranormal activity has turned Smalltown upside-down! As the newest initiate of the Order of the Light, you must investigate why.
Overall rating
5
/
5
51 of 61 found this review helpful
An engaging game from start to finish by a new developer
PostedJanuary 18, 2014
Tiger2010
fromEssex, UK
Skill Level:Expert
Favorite Genre(s):Hidden Object, Card & Board, Strategy, Time Management
Fun Factor
5
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
4
/
5
Storyline
4
/
5
BASED ON WHOLE GAME AND BONUS PLAYED
I had no problems with any part of it. It filled my large screen perfectly, transitions were seamless and items easy to pick up and place.
The graphics in this game aren't phenomenal, but if you've just played Amaranthine Voyage: The Living Mountain, the poor developers may have drawn a very short straw with this coming out a couple of days later.
You've got to like your HOS. Because there are an awful lot of them and some are junk piles, others not so much. They are the usual list/interactive type. The puzzles aren't overly difficult, but you can achieve 3 gold stars on each by being quick. You can replay from the extras to get them all.
What makes this different is that you have collectibles (50 in total) which are divided into different types of items i.e. fruit, masks, origami, chess pieces etc. Each set of 5 makes up a collection, so 10 in all. You'll find 7 sets in the main game and 3 in the bonus. Each scene will only have one in it. However, you won't know if it's a fruit, mask or other so it varies from finding one and the same all the time. They aren't all that difficult to find, however.
You have something else - a points system and the game challenges you to collect as many points as you can to see if you can beat your friends. That's a bit of fun in itself. Almost everything achieved here earns you points. There's also a statistics screen that shows you how well you've done. My HOS accuracy in the main game was 64%. Good? Bad? No idea, as I've never seen this before, but it's a nice idea.
You will receive a ghost catcher and it's not just a gimmick, as you'll see. The ending of the main game is nicely done and finished. You can also go back to find collectibles you may have missed as you are in the same world map.
The map at first seems incomprehensible; full of yellow !!! for objectives which are still locked. This could have been done better, because as the areas are revealed, a beautiful map emerges that is almost as exquisite as the one in Living Mountain - cutaways of detailed locations complete with furniture. Inaccessible areas will still have a cloud over them; accessible areas will have a light blue ring when moused over.
I got a good 5 + hours from the main game and just over 1 hour from the bonus. Again, not a rocket science game, but very nicely done.
Highly recommended!
I recommend this game!
Your strange travels continue in this sequel to the exciting game that took you on an Amaranthine Voyage…
Overall rating
5
/
5
100 of 126 found this review helpful
Don't have a single bad thing to say about this one! FAB!!!
PostedJanuary 16, 2014
Tiger2010
fromEssex, UK
Skill Level:Expert
Favorite Genre(s):Hidden Object, Card & Board, Strategy, Time Management
Fun Factor
5
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
4
/
5
Storyline
5
/
5
REVIEW OF FULL GAME AND BONUS
As ever, other gamers have done a wonderful job with reviews, so I'll just say what I like about it.
This drew me in like a bee to honey. It was a case of 'Surrender, Do Not Disturb sign on the door and phone off the hook".
If you like games with lots of achievements, collectibles, souvenirs and other things to find, and don't find them a distraction, then I think you'd love this.
The graphics are beautiful - bright and clear with some amazing detail in the masonry, for example. We start in England and are transported to a magical other world where things aren't always what they seem, especially when something quite extraordinary happens to our heroine (quite why still seems a mystery to me).
The HOS vary between silhouette and the usual kind, and there are also lots of mini HOS. The maxis very often have riddles and are divided between 3 different areas you move to seamlessly. If you get bored of that, you can play a Z*uma style bubble shooter. Puzzles aren't anything we haven't seen before and on the easy side, but they are a nice variation on the usual (how many times can we re-invent the wheel anyway?)
There's some subtle humour involved and whilst you do have a helper in Bonnie, I didn't find her intrusive. She wasn't helping excessively (I think a maximum of about 8 times during a 5 hour plus main game and a few in the bonus).
I found the music fitted each scenario well and this game has the absolute BEST teleport map of any casual game I've seen. It's as beautifully done as the actual game. A real work of detailed gaming art. Move to an area and the walls and roofs slide away to show you a 3D aerial view of that location, complete with all furnishings beautifully drawn in miniature - almost as if you're in an elaborate, huge doll house. Since I love building and decorating large, elaborate doll houses this was right up my alley.
My favourite colour ever is deep purple so I even loved the Inventory and SG.
Add to that that Beagles are one of my favourite dog breeds and this game could have been made for me.
Like many gamers I've collected hundreds of HOPAs over many years, but very rarely replay any. This is the first time ever I want to replay after only just having finished it.
This is no rocket science game, but it's exquisite. As ever, we all vary in what we like so try before you buy.
100% recommended!!
I recommend this game!
Fall of the New Age
Help Marla uncover the secret conspiracy of the Cult and release her brother from captivity!
Overall rating
5
/
5
61 of 67 found this review helpful
Dark Medieval Times to be sure!!
PostedJanuary 4, 2014
Tiger2010
fromEssex, UK
Skill Level:Expert
Favorite Genre(s):Hidden Object, Card & Board, Strategy, Time Management
Fun Factor
5
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
5
/
5
Storyline
5
/
5
What an absolute treasure and a crying shame it was a 'soft release' meaning many gamers will probably miss this.
From the opening sequence, you could be forgiven for thinking that this game was occult and had scene after scene of human/animal sacrifices. That's not the case. Yes, this is a dark and eerie game set in Medieval times (dark times to be sure - I wouldn't have wished to need surgery back then!), but it doesn't continue in that vein. Yes, it's about a cult but there's nothing really sinister in it.
The cutscenes are spectacular inasmuch as they flow seamlessly with lip sync voiceovers that are very realistic, given that games are translated into many languages. To me, it was like getting immersed in a movie. I happen to like Medieval stories so the scenery/buildings/atmosphere was also spot on for me as was the musical score.
This is not your average hand-holding game. Don't get me wrong - I love a good relaxing 'all bells and whistles' CE. Life is too stressful as it is.
But this one dumps you in a jail and with virtually no instructions you are left to fend for yourself. There is a map (if you can call it that) and a journal a little way into the game though that's not clear as neither are labelled, but the only help you really have is in the form of a madly jigging ferret type creature as your hint. Don't worry, he's only a hint, not a furry helper that retrieves things for you.
There's the whole thing about making disguises for Marla.
At first I thought that the lack of instructions was terrible and then the light dawned. This is what Playrix wanted to create with this game. They want you to think straight out of the box with little to no help at all. You know what? It worked!
There are times we need to relax and times we need to think. This is definitely one of the latter times.
Fantastic SE with which I hope many of us will have a lot of hours using our noodles!!
I recommend this game!
You came to the town of Brownville, Louisiana hoping to find a new job. But you weren't expecting to stumble upon a strange adventure in a world filled with beauty and danger!
Overall rating
4
/
5
10 of 15 found this review helpful
Not the best of Blam! but darn entertaining nonetheless
PostedJanuary 2, 2014
Tiger2010
fromEssex, UK
Skill Level:Expert
Favorite Genre(s):Hidden Object, Card & Board, Strategy, Time Management
Fun Factor
4
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
4
/
5
Level of Challenge
3
/
5
Storyline
4
/
5
Review based on entire game plus bonus.
I have always enjoyed Blam! Studios' games. Is this up to a par with The Keepers? Probably not, but does it deserve all the bad hype? No, I don't think so either. You really have to give this one more than 10 minutes or an hour for the demo to judge. Within that time you are nowhere near the best of this as their games are tend to be long (and we haven't even got to the bonus yet).
I didn't find the graphics outdated, fuzzy, unclear or anything of the sort. For me, they were bright and perfectly clear.
The gameplay is different and it's already been said so well by others, so I won't go into it all again. Suffice to say, it's different to what we're used to. For that alone, it should get kudos points.
One thing about the bonus gameplay - as ever with Blam! it's a very good length and I almost always enjoy that part more than the main game. Here, in this one we understand that the villain in the main game really isn't so bad, after all. More a character of unfortunate circumstance.
I've never watched Jumanji other than the trailers and a few minutes, but I'm aware what it's about. This, to me, is more like a warning to us all not to meddle with strange games, riddle boxes (another movie altogether) and the like for fear of what may happen. Of course, it's all complete fantasy, such as vampires, and at least to me, this game wasn't at all occult. It was just a bit of fun.
Yes, you don't require to be Einstein with this one, but in my opinion (humble or not) it's a darn sight better game than we've had with the recent Emerald Maiden and Love Alchemy.
Looking forward to what Blam! will do next.
I recommend this game!