I was disappointed with 'Christmas Wonderland' this year. Too easy and too much like the last one. At least with 'Trip to Europe' you learn about other countries' customs and whilst it is similar to the 'Rangers' games it's just different enough with some much better puzzles. I bought it straight away without the trial.
By the way, in British English, 'sledge' is the general term for a land vehicle that slides across a surface (usually of ice or snow). It's more common than 'sled' which is used in the U.S. So it's not a misspelt word, just a British one.
This series is my absolute favourite of all the mosaic games on offer. I replay them all quite often and never tire of them.
The graphics are, as usual, absolutely stunning. When you get to the jigsaw mini-games, you really see the attention to detail the developer bring to this game. A change of scenery this time, as we're underwater, giving a different feel and bringing in a couple of new characters. It seems our heroine and her hero(es) have been watched all this time without being aware of it. Intriguing!
I don't know about anyone else but I really want Juliette and Raven to be together. Will the fact that they're from different worlds mean there's no chance of this happening? I do hope not.
I bought this game without bothering with the trial and it doesn't disappoint. So many levels, 3 different mini-games that pop up now and then, gorgeous graphics and a storyline that draws you in. What more could you ask for.
I've been buying games from BFG since 2007 and can honestly say that in all those years, I've never read reviews like the ones being posted lately. Some of the words being used to describe this game are unnecessarily harsh, which only served to make me want to try it.
So I did and I've been pleasantly surprised by the amount of different choices on offer in what they used to call a 'compendium' (when they were boxed games!) in my early years. From Word Searches to Spot The Difference, from Sliders to Matches, there's a lot to keep you occupied. The 'Layered' Swap the Picture puzzles were excellent and don't expect the usual cut-out pieces in the jigsaws. There must be about 20 different puzzles to chose from and I even tried the ones I'm not usually keen on.
The graphics are nice enough and the whole thing is pleasantly 'Christmas-y'. Maybe not as much as Christmas Wonderland but I'm not feeling very festive this year after losing my Dad, so this game is enough for me.
To describe this game as 'pitiful' 'a repetitious, boring stinker' and a 'crummy little money grabber' is uncalled for and frankly downright cruel and nasty. The developers spend time producing games to keep up with the 'new game every day' ethos of BFG and maybe one or two might not be up to scratch. But why be deliberately cruel? Many developers are based in Ukraine, Russia or the surrounding regions and they have other things to worry about than supplying ungrateful gamers with something they feel is worthy of their attention.
I liked this game and bought it. It isn't 'pitiful' or any of the other harsh words used to describe it; it's actually quite fun and should give hours of entertainment. My mother always said "if you can't say something nice, don't say anything at all", an old adage some people could do with taking on board..
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Card & Board, Hidden Object, Puzzle, Time Management
Fun Factor
5/ 5
Visual/Sound Quality
4/ 5
Level of Challenge
5/ 5
Storyline
4/ 5
I haven't posted a review for ages, simply because mostly the games have been all the same lately and not really to my taste. Finding cats, dogs, 'critters', pups, birds, plants et al; cluttered searches that send you cross-eyed trying to find 2 or 3 of the same objects and of course there's the 'visit every country finding more stuff and doing repetitive puzzles' games. But my mother always said 'if you can't find anything nice to say, don't say anything', an adage some reviewers on here could do with observing. I've read some downright cruel and nasty things on here lately and there's just no need for it. If you don't like a game, delete it and move on.
I'm thoroughly enjoying 'Stephan's Journey'; a different take on the standard HOG that breathes new life into the genre. While essentially you are searching for lists of items, it's done in such a unique way that it doesn't seem like a HOG at all. Graphics are not as crisp as you would normally expect but they suit the game perfectly. Lots of questions with a choice of answers that determine Stephan's path through the game, with puzzles to solve and money to earn to help his hard-up family.
I've only played the demo and based on that, it's a definite buy for me. Hopefully the rest of the game is equally entertaining. I really like it.
When these games were first released (both this and Vacation Adventures), I hated them. Couldn't find the rubbish (or trash), couldn't find the lost items, couldn't even find the ordinary stuff. The 'cardboard' characters looked like they'd been cut and pasted from one game to the next. The mini-games were ok but didn't change from one game to another. I just didn't bother as they were boring.
Then one year, I tried 'Christmas Wonderland' and it completely won me over. After that, I bought every one of the Cruise/Vacation/Christmas games without even bothering with the trials! Everything I'd hated, I suddenly loved. Now I could find the rubbish because I knew what to look for. The lost items weren't so hard to find, I started to recognise the 'cut and paste' characters and actually looked forward to seeing them again!
So what changed? Certainly not the games but perhaps that's their charm. Like your favourite movie that you've watched 50 times and bought the DVD but still watch it again when it comes on TV, these games are familiar yet somehow comforting. Perhaps it was me; after years of HOPA's with complicated puzzles and intricate plots that were sometimes hard to understand, perhaps something simpler was just what I needed.
Today I bought this new Cruise Director game without trying it first and I'm so glad I did. Having just recently lost my lovely Dad, I desperately needed a comfort blanket; this game has filled that need perfectly.
This game is nowhere near as poor as it's been painted by some other reviewers. Always best to try it for yourself and make up your own mind; don't be swayed by bad reviews.
I had no virus issues; Avast Premium Security was perfectly happy to install this game with no warnings. I found the graphics to be much like the earlier games in this series, which I always preferred over the latter versions. The hidden objects weren't 'obvious', at least not to me; I had to look quite hard for some of them but my eyes are 72 years old now, so maybe that's the reason!
There is a lot of chat but you can skip it. I used to love the little Vikings in their kilts, dancing after I'd completed a level; they've now been replaced by more 'grown-up' Vikings who just jump up and down. Perhaps they don't find the work as much fun!
Penmom has done her usual excellent job explaining all the various elements, so no need for me to go into details. Suffice to say, if you've played any of the others in the series you'll know what to expect. I would compare this latest episode to the earlier (1-4) ones, rather than the later versions.
Too much time has passed since Big Fish gave us a good TM game, so this will be a definite buy for me. I'm off to quaff a stein of beer, grab my trusty axe and follow Ragnar on his latest adventure!
I didn't play this or the Vacation Adventures series for years; didn't like the wooden characters, the impossible to find 'trash' items or the general ambience of the games. However, one day I gave the VA series another try and since then I've been hooked. I had a lot of games to catch up on; Vacation Adventures, Cruise Directors and of course this lovely Christmas Wonderland series.
Yes, they may be mostly the same with just a few minor changes. Yes, the characters do look like they've been cut and pasted from previous games. And yes, the games are very 'old school' but none of that matters. Once you get lost in golden angels, sparkling baubles, busy elves and the sights and sounds of Christmas, it's impossible not to smile and feel like an excited child!
They do seem to have upped the difficulty very slightly with some objects being extremely well hidden but I refuse to use a hint so I get the three stars! In addition to the main hidden objects, you also search for lost toys and a hidden snowman. The mini games are enjoyably familiar, with an extra jigsaw or two thrown in. I love the jigsaws! There are also word searches, find the difference, matching pairs and rotating puzzles of varying shapes and sizes. Lots to do in this game!
It's corny, over the top and utterly charming. Even Scrooge might have been inclined to celebrate Christmas if he'd had these games to play! Forget about your worries for a while and lose yourself in this Christmas Wonderland; it's a joyful sleigh ride of fun :-)
**I've seen people having problems in one scene with putting the angel on the tree. You have to put the angel in the mothers hand, then she puts the angel on the tree.
I wasn't expecting much, since most of the reviews basically just complain about the developer and their lack of creativity. However I have to say I disagree with pretty much everyone, as I loved this game!
There aren't 100 doors so the title is misleading but there are a great many separate sections to play. You assist assorted characters to complete tasks in a variety of ways, from straightforward hidden object to replacing missing items with a ton of interactive elements along the way to keep the game from being too repetitive.
My favourite puzzles are those where you're given a small part of a picture to try and find in a larger scene; I could play those all day long! Some puzzles are tricky; I solved the two rows of different coloured candles without knowing exactly how I did it! There's lots here to keep me entertained and the game ended too quickly for me.
I'm about to do something I've never done before; buy the CE of an SE I already own, just to get the extras! Don't be swayed by the negative reviews; see for yourself if this is a game you'd enjoy. I'm certainly glad I did!
I find it astonishing that any one would choose to call this game 'the finest Paint by Numbers'. Unrealistic pictures do not make the painting experience enjoyable for me; when has anyone ever seen a psychedelic cat?
I like pictures that are realistic, not something out of a Salvador Dali nightmare. If you want the best paint by numbers, 'Art Colouring' would be my first choice. All the others pale into insignificance by comparison.
Favorite Genre(s):Card & Board, Hidden Object, Time Management
Fun Factor
4/ 5
Visual/Sound Quality
4/ 5
Level of Challenge
4/ 5
Storyline
4/ 5
For a long time I have not been able to download a game I've just bought from the purchase page. Neither can I download a game I've already bought from my 'purchase history'.
I have to do a search for the demo version, download the demo, then click on 'buy'. I then get a message saying I've already bought the game and giving me the option to activate it. If I click on 'activate', the demo turns into the full version.
I've been told this is because I've bought so many games. I would have thought BFG would have been happy with me but sometimes it does feel a bit like I'm being punished for buying a lot of games in the 15 years that I've been a member. Perhaps we should be given the option to delete some old games we're never likely to play any more; maybe that might help the problem with a huge game library? Just a thought.