Rescue_helo's Profile
Stat Summary
- Average Rating:3.2
- Helpful Votes:10,878
- Reviews Submitted:226
- First Review:December 8, 2011
- Most Recent Review:June 25, 2019
- Featured reviews0
Status:
Big City Adventure: London Classic
Search for thousands of cleverly hidden items around the historic sites of jolly old London in Big City Adventure: London Classic!
Overall rating
3
/
5
65 of 91 found this review helpful
A simple HO game
PostedJanuary 29, 2012
Rescue_helo
fromLondon (UK) - French Alps
Skill Level:Expert
Favorite Genre(s):Brain Teaser, Adventure, Large File, Puzzle, Strategy
Current Favorite:
9: The Dark Side Collector's Edition
(104)Fun Factor
2
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
3
/
5
Level of Challenge
2
/
5
Unlike its sequel London Story, this first installment is very basic and a lot less intereresting. It's mainly a succession of HO Scenes with photos of London touristic sites as background. You play for a score as well as to earn achievements but hints are limited. There is a map but the game directs you to a specific location after completing the previous one. Linearity is complete, there is no way you can choose your destination. The puzzles, although they can be skipped, are dead simple and unimaginative.
The voice-overs at the beginning are amateurish.
It's an okay game to spend a rainy day in total relaxation when you need something without any challenge, ideal for younger players and beginners. Recommended with reservation.
The voice-overs at the beginning are amateurish.
It's an okay game to spend a rainy day in total relaxation when you need something without any challenge, ideal for younger players and beginners. Recommended with reservation.
I recommend this game!
Big City Adventure: London Story
Fitzpatrick McGovern is long gone, but his mysterious lost legacy is still out there! Find it in Big City Adventure: London Story!
Overall rating
4
/
5
189 of 210 found this review helpful
Backing Good Ol' Britain
PostedJanuary 29, 2012
Rescue_helo
fromLondon (UK) - French Alps
Skill Level:Expert
Favorite Genre(s):Arcade & Action, Brain Teaser, Adventure, Large File, Puzzle
Current Favorite:
9: The Dark Side Collector's Edition
(104)Fun Factor
4
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
4
/
5
This game has several nice features which makes it quite enjoyable to play.
Each scene is one of the most famous London sites, very well photographed. You visit the British Museum, St James Park, Trafalgar Square and a few others in search for items and to solve puzzles.
The HO Scenes are neat, the hidden objects easy to spot. The puzzles are inventive, pleasant, and offer a fair level of challenge. They can be skipped and their instructions are clear.
You travel directly from one location to another by clicking on it on the map. In each one, a brief summary of its history is available.
There is only one Mode but you can choose to play with or without hints at the start.
An interactive walkthrough, integrated in the game, tells you point by point as you go along what to do next if you get stuck.
The voice-overs are quite good and the characters you meet very picturesque. Dialogs are well written and full of british humor.
All in all, a very interesting trip around London, relaxing, refreshing, moderately difficult, and quite imaginative in some respects.
Each scene is one of the most famous London sites, very well photographed. You visit the British Museum, St James Park, Trafalgar Square and a few others in search for items and to solve puzzles.
The HO Scenes are neat, the hidden objects easy to spot. The puzzles are inventive, pleasant, and offer a fair level of challenge. They can be skipped and their instructions are clear.
You travel directly from one location to another by clicking on it on the map. In each one, a brief summary of its history is available.
There is only one Mode but you can choose to play with or without hints at the start.
An interactive walkthrough, integrated in the game, tells you point by point as you go along what to do next if you get stuck.
The voice-overs are quite good and the characters you meet very picturesque. Dialogs are well written and full of british humor.
All in all, a very interesting trip around London, relaxing, refreshing, moderately difficult, and quite imaginative in some respects.
I recommend this game!
Mystery Cruise
Just when Amelie has settled in for a week aboard a gorgeous ship, everyone else disappears, leaving her alone to find them!
Overall rating
3
/
5
37 of 45 found this review helpful
Simple, easy, relaxing
PostedJanuary 28, 2012
Rescue_helo
fromLondon (UK) - French Alps
Skill Level:Expert
Favorite Genre(s):Brain Teaser, Adventure, Large File, Puzzle, Strategy
Current Favorite:
9: The Dark Side Collector's Edition
(104)Fun Factor
3
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
3
/
5
Level of Challenge
3
/
5
A plain HOG with very little to do as regards the adventure side but with many minigames, that can serve as a filler for HOG fans and anyone looking for something relaxing.
The photo visuals are quite pleasant at the beginning, but as soon as the ship turns into decay, all the scenes become darkish, blurry and confused.
Most hidden objects are easy to spot except a few that are either tiny or nearly invisible like the pieces of wire you need to reconnect a control panel.
Tasks are dead simple and so are the puzzles which are all old classics but can be skipped. One interesting novelty though with the use of bulbs to light up the corridors on the ship map in order to progress to the next scene.
The HO Scenes constitute 80 % of the whole game, the hint system only helps with hidden objects but doesn't tell you what to do next.
The game is totally linear and doesn't allow you to roam freely around the ship. One scene replaces the previous one once it has been conpleted.
It is impossible to tell on the basis of the demo and the absence of walkthrough whether the game is long or short and whether the story becomes more interesting as the game progresses.
The best is to play the trial version and take it from there.
The photo visuals are quite pleasant at the beginning, but as soon as the ship turns into decay, all the scenes become darkish, blurry and confused.
Most hidden objects are easy to spot except a few that are either tiny or nearly invisible like the pieces of wire you need to reconnect a control panel.
Tasks are dead simple and so are the puzzles which are all old classics but can be skipped. One interesting novelty though with the use of bulbs to light up the corridors on the ship map in order to progress to the next scene.
The HO Scenes constitute 80 % of the whole game, the hint system only helps with hidden objects but doesn't tell you what to do next.
The game is totally linear and doesn't allow you to roam freely around the ship. One scene replaces the previous one once it has been conpleted.
It is impossible to tell on the basis of the demo and the absence of walkthrough whether the game is long or short and whether the story becomes more interesting as the game progresses.
The best is to play the trial version and take it from there.
I recommend this game!
The Curse of the Ring
Go on a fun adventure in Barbados! After trying on a cursed ring, you must now find 6 stolen treasures or pay the ultimate price!
Overall rating
4
/
5
23 of 26 found this review helpful
Defeat a pirate's curse in the Tropics
PostedJanuary 28, 2012
Rescue_helo
fromLondon (UK) - French Alps
Skill Level:Expert
Favorite Genre(s):Brain Teaser, Adventure, Large File, Puzzle, Strategy
Current Favorite:
9: The Dark Side Collector's Edition
(104)Fun Factor
4
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
4
/
5
Level of Challenge
4
/
5
Nothing truly extraordinary in this rather standard blend of adventure, HO Scenes and puzzles. The artwork is quite good, well detailed but sometimes confused, and that doesn't make the hunt for items a straightforward mission. Some hidden objects are not particularly easy to spot.
Luckily the hint system is lenient and helps you find the items as well as determine what to do next.
However, the number of HO Scenes is reasonable, leaving plenty of room for the adventure and lots of minigames. Both the former anf the latter present a fair level of challenge and even though the puzzles are no novelty [except one] they are quite interesting and good fun to solve.
I enjoyed the demo, and the length of the game together with the variety of locations makes it a worthwhile acquisition.
Luckily the hint system is lenient and helps you find the items as well as determine what to do next.
However, the number of HO Scenes is reasonable, leaving plenty of room for the adventure and lots of minigames. Both the former anf the latter present a fair level of challenge and even though the puzzles are no novelty [except one] they are quite interesting and good fun to solve.
I enjoyed the demo, and the length of the game together with the variety of locations makes it a worthwhile acquisition.
I recommend this game!
Special Enquiry Detail: The Hand That Feeds
Help the Special Enquiry Detail crack the case, and catch a criminal, in this fun and exciting Hidden Object game!
Overall rating
4
/
5
15 of 17 found this review helpful
A classical criminal investigation
PostedJanuary 28, 2012
Rescue_helo
fromLondon (UK) - French Alps
Skill Level:Expert
Favorite Genre(s):Brain Teaser, Adventure, Large File, Puzzle, Strategy
Current Favorite:
9: The Dark Side Collector's Edition
(104)Fun Factor
4
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
4
/
5
Level of Challenge
3
/
5
This is essentially a HOG on a criminal investigation background not unlike Women's Murder Club yet not as good.
I rather liked the visuals, clear, brightly colored, true to life, the minigames and puzzles most of which are directly related to the story, the storyline itself which does hold the road quite well, and questioning the witnesses and suspects.
Unfortunately there are too many HO Scenes and too many irrelevant items to find for me to fully enjoy the game.
Although the game is of medium difficulty in general, some puzzles present a fair challenge and so do the tasks you need to perform in order to progress.
The Hand That Feeds offers long playtime with 12 chapters and enough entertainment to consider adding it to one's collection especially if it comes on the Daily Deal.
Note: Review based on the demo
I rather liked the visuals, clear, brightly colored, true to life, the minigames and puzzles most of which are directly related to the story, the storyline itself which does hold the road quite well, and questioning the witnesses and suspects.
Unfortunately there are too many HO Scenes and too many irrelevant items to find for me to fully enjoy the game.
Although the game is of medium difficulty in general, some puzzles present a fair challenge and so do the tasks you need to perform in order to progress.
The Hand That Feeds offers long playtime with 12 chapters and enough entertainment to consider adding it to one's collection especially if it comes on the Daily Deal.
Note: Review based on the demo
I recommend this game!
Midnight Mysteries: Haunted Houdini Deluxe
When Houdini’s promises of contact from beyond go unkept, his wife comes to you in a final plea to unravel his mysterious passing.
Overall rating
4
/
5
57 of 80 found this review helpful
An interesting post-mortem twist on Houdini's life
PostedJanuary 28, 2012
Rescue_helo
fromLondon (UK) - French Alps
Skill Level:Expert
Favorite Genre(s):Brain Teaser, Adventure, Large File, Puzzle, Strategy
Current Favorite:
Governor of Poker 2
(36)Fun Factor
4
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
4
/
5
The puzzles/minigames are the most valuable feature of this game. They are interesting, varied, inventive and offer a fair challenge. I liked the intro and the cutscenes, and the artwork even more. All is neat and pleasant to watch, although sometimes a litle dark, but the important items as well as the hidden objects can be obtained without straining one's eyes too much.
I also appreciated the integrated SG, a novelty and a very good idea as it adds value to a game which is a Standard Edition.
The rest is not very different from what you find in other games and the storyline, although well conceived and full of imagination, is secondary.
I also appreciated the integrated SG, a novelty and a very good idea as it adds value to a game which is a Standard Edition.
The rest is not very different from what you find in other games and the storyline, although well conceived and full of imagination, is secondary.
I recommend this game!
Nightfall Mysteries: Black Heart Collector's Edition
Stop the evil Vansig family before they point their vengeful wrath at your friend Christine in Nightfall Mysteries: Black Heart!
Overall rating
5
/
5
120 of 146 found this review helpful
Good, Relaxing, Challenging and not really scary
PostedJanuary 26, 2012
Rescue_helo
fromLondon (UK) - French Alps
Skill Level:Expert
Favorite Genre(s):Brain Teaser, Adventure, Large File, Puzzle, Strategy
Current Favorite:
Nancy Drew: The Haunted Carousel
(16)Fun Factor
5
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
4
/
5
Level of Challenge
5
/
5
I must say I rather liked 90 % of what I saw and played during the 1 hour demo of this new release from the canadian developers [in Ontario} who made Masquerade [which I enjoyed very much], Asylum Conspiracy, Agony Creek [which I also liked], Curse of the Opera and Nightmare at Sea.
Masquerade remains their best work so far, while Black Heart is a definite improvement on the others. It would seem the developers took into account the opinion of their audience via the various reviews on BFG and elsewhere.
The structure of the game is identical to that of all new latest releases, which has now become a standard.
It's a blend of HOG and Adventure, with Puzzles and minigames. I suggest we call this type of game "HOPAG".... LOL...
The graphics are fair, pleasant, well designed, nicely colored, though not sumptuous, the HO Scenes rather tidy and interactive, the HOs and useful items easy to spot, the adventure straightforward without too much bouncing from one location to another and the puzzles quite interesting, some being the usual classics, others a bit different and a few challenging enough to require good use of one's brain cells and logic. Puzzles and minigames can be skipped.
Of course, the HO Scenes still contain items irrelevant to the context, like a shark or galoshes but, on the one hand they are visible [quite an improvement], on the other, Hints, like the Skip button, re-up at warp speed on Casual.
In addition you pick up Collectibles that unlock extra bonuses.
5 chapters for the main game plus a Bonus Chapter for the CE, a SG of 59 pages, should ensure long playtime and the extras replayability of the puzzles.
3 modes of gameplay, ranging from easy to hard.
I appreciated the possibility of perusing the whole SG including the Bonus Chapter. At least the developers had the good idea to offer us complete transparency, much to their credit.
The 10 % I didn't like concern the music which is soft but boring and the voice-over which tends to narrate the text too fast and doesn't sound very natural.
Intro and cutscenes are simple. I didn't see a widescreen option.
And, naturally, you are greeted by the usual crow [the same one that haunts almost every game] at the start of the game. Don't be too surprised either to encounter also a couple of skeletons here and there [they probably are so bored that they migrate from one game to another].
The storyline is just as traditional as the rest, interesting and it seems to unfold well.
I am not sure the conclusion at the end of Chapter 5 will be entirely satisfactory; the Bonus Chapter provides a better and more natural close-off.
I think a 4.5 rating [rounded up to 5] is fair and I would recommend the Collector's Edition.
Masquerade remains their best work so far, while Black Heart is a definite improvement on the others. It would seem the developers took into account the opinion of their audience via the various reviews on BFG and elsewhere.
The structure of the game is identical to that of all new latest releases, which has now become a standard.
It's a blend of HOG and Adventure, with Puzzles and minigames. I suggest we call this type of game "HOPAG".... LOL...
The graphics are fair, pleasant, well designed, nicely colored, though not sumptuous, the HO Scenes rather tidy and interactive, the HOs and useful items easy to spot, the adventure straightforward without too much bouncing from one location to another and the puzzles quite interesting, some being the usual classics, others a bit different and a few challenging enough to require good use of one's brain cells and logic. Puzzles and minigames can be skipped.
Of course, the HO Scenes still contain items irrelevant to the context, like a shark or galoshes but, on the one hand they are visible [quite an improvement], on the other, Hints, like the Skip button, re-up at warp speed on Casual.
In addition you pick up Collectibles that unlock extra bonuses.
5 chapters for the main game plus a Bonus Chapter for the CE, a SG of 59 pages, should ensure long playtime and the extras replayability of the puzzles.
3 modes of gameplay, ranging from easy to hard.
I appreciated the possibility of perusing the whole SG including the Bonus Chapter. At least the developers had the good idea to offer us complete transparency, much to their credit.
The 10 % I didn't like concern the music which is soft but boring and the voice-over which tends to narrate the text too fast and doesn't sound very natural.
Intro and cutscenes are simple. I didn't see a widescreen option.
And, naturally, you are greeted by the usual crow [the same one that haunts almost every game] at the start of the game. Don't be too surprised either to encounter also a couple of skeletons here and there [they probably are so bored that they migrate from one game to another].
The storyline is just as traditional as the rest, interesting and it seems to unfold well.
I am not sure the conclusion at the end of Chapter 5 will be entirely satisfactory; the Bonus Chapter provides a better and more natural close-off.
I think a 4.5 rating [rounded up to 5] is fair and I would recommend the Collector's Edition.
I recommend this game!
Orczz
Protect the Kingdom of Whiteleaf from an invading Orc Horde in Orczz, a fun and exciting Strategy game!
Overall rating
3
/
5
21 of 22 found this review helpful
Blast up the the orcs and show them who's the master
PostedJanuary 25, 2012
Rescue_helo
fromLondon (UK) - French Alps
Skill Level:Expert
Favorite Genre(s):Brain Teaser, Adventure, Large File, Puzzle, Strategy
Current Favorite:
Governor of Poker 2
(36)Fun Factor
4
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
3
/
5
Level of Challenge
5
/
5
The strategy is simple, similar to that of Plants vs Zombies, with many different types of units called "heroes":
- recruit the units available at the barracks. You first start with 6 Knights [swordsmen].
- place them on the lines of attack in front of the catapults that are your last line of defense [and correspond to the lawn-mowers in Plants vs Zombies]
- waves of orcish enemies will come from the right side of the screen along the attack lines
- the goal is to prevent them from getting to your mead which is behind your troops.
Each unit has a number of hitpoints. Each dead orc leaves money behind him, but you have to get it quickly else it disappears. The more money you have the more troops you can hire.
New units become available with each new level: archers, axemen, etc...
I had fun for one hour playing on Casual [one of the 3 Modes] which is supposed to be easy but starts getting harder as of Level 3.
The graphics are very cartoonish but less successful, less funny than in Plants vs Zombies.
Gameplay is fairly fluid but kind of slow [which is a good thing as you have to face many enemies and your troops are limited in number; in fact you are outnumbered most of the time, but the orcs....oops orczzz [LOL] seem to have less hitpoints.
Orczz, however, is good enough to be recommended and can provide a few hours of fun in spite of its lack of sophistication in the artwork.
- recruit the units available at the barracks. You first start with 6 Knights [swordsmen].
- place them on the lines of attack in front of the catapults that are your last line of defense [and correspond to the lawn-mowers in Plants vs Zombies]
- waves of orcish enemies will come from the right side of the screen along the attack lines
- the goal is to prevent them from getting to your mead which is behind your troops.
Each unit has a number of hitpoints. Each dead orc leaves money behind him, but you have to get it quickly else it disappears. The more money you have the more troops you can hire.
New units become available with each new level: archers, axemen, etc...
I had fun for one hour playing on Casual [one of the 3 Modes] which is supposed to be easy but starts getting harder as of Level 3.
The graphics are very cartoonish but less successful, less funny than in Plants vs Zombies.
Gameplay is fairly fluid but kind of slow [which is a good thing as you have to face many enemies and your troops are limited in number; in fact you are outnumbered most of the time, but the orcs....oops orczzz [LOL] seem to have less hitpoints.
Orczz, however, is good enough to be recommended and can provide a few hours of fun in spite of its lack of sophistication in the artwork.
I recommend this game!
Three Musketeers Secret: Constance's Mission
Experience the classic tale of the Three Musketeers from Constance’s eyes as she works as a secret agent for the queen!
Overall rating
5
/
5
125 of 160 found this review helpful
A lovely secret agent for a good fun game
PostedJanuary 23, 2012
Rescue_helo
fromLondon (UK) - French Alps
Skill Level:Expert
Favorite Genre(s):Brain Teaser, Adventure, Large File, Puzzle, Strategy
Current Favorite:
Nancy Drew: Ghost Dogs of Moon Lake
(18)Fun Factor
5
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
4
/
5
Level of Challenge
4
/
5
When I saw the presentation with the pictures of three "Find The Differences" scenes, I though "uh oh... that's going to be boring". Well, not at all. This game is good fun. I didn't see any of these FTDs during the whole demo, actually, which I played entirely up to the start of Chapter 3. They probably come later.
The storyline is well written, solid, and interesting enough to make you want to know what happens next and how it'll all end.
The well-made intro movie sets the pace, as it were, with a bit of action. And indeed, although the game is not a game of action such as a FPS, there is plenty to do.
Cutscenes however are less successful, being more static, with a couple of bizarre animations.
HO Scenes come in every now and then leaving plenty of room for the rest. At times you have to find a list of objects which are not related to the story, like pumpkin seeds or a snail, but none are anachronic [a plus], or fragmented pieces of various garments and costumes which Constance, as the Queen's special agent, needs as a disguise in order to complete her mission [like in Mata Hari]. That, too, is good fun .
In others, which act as minigames, the surrounding objects move as you hover your cursor; these scenes are rather overcrowded but they can be skipped like all the other minigames.
There is plenty of puzzles, of all sorts, not difficult, traditional, easy yet good fun.
The hunt for useful objects and their use present no true difficulty; the tasks are clearly stated and several of them are quite inventive such as what you need to do in the Cardinal's bedroom.
Hints help you find the hidden objects but their guidance as to what to do next is often vague.
All the scenes have great visuals, bright, sharp and detailed. You explore only a minimum of locales in each chapter, which means maximum linearity and very little traveling back and forth.
The soundtrack seems to have only two themes; a nice piece of classical style music which comes up once, and another boring one which forced me to mute my speakers.
You don't have a choice of Game Modes; there is only one, and no widescreen option.
I wish the developer had polished certain features of this secret mission, such the cutscenes, had made navigation a bit clearer and had added some good voice-overs. However the scripted narrative is not too lenghty, well worded, very pleasant to read and makes sense.
Constance's Mission constitutes a healthy change from monsters, madmen, gore and guts, showing that a casual game can be fun without being necessarily morbid. This is why I am giving this game 5 stars.
The storyline is well written, solid, and interesting enough to make you want to know what happens next and how it'll all end.
The well-made intro movie sets the pace, as it were, with a bit of action. And indeed, although the game is not a game of action such as a FPS, there is plenty to do.
Cutscenes however are less successful, being more static, with a couple of bizarre animations.
HO Scenes come in every now and then leaving plenty of room for the rest. At times you have to find a list of objects which are not related to the story, like pumpkin seeds or a snail, but none are anachronic [a plus], or fragmented pieces of various garments and costumes which Constance, as the Queen's special agent, needs as a disguise in order to complete her mission [like in Mata Hari]. That, too, is good fun .
In others, which act as minigames, the surrounding objects move as you hover your cursor; these scenes are rather overcrowded but they can be skipped like all the other minigames.
There is plenty of puzzles, of all sorts, not difficult, traditional, easy yet good fun.
The hunt for useful objects and their use present no true difficulty; the tasks are clearly stated and several of them are quite inventive such as what you need to do in the Cardinal's bedroom.
Hints help you find the hidden objects but their guidance as to what to do next is often vague.
All the scenes have great visuals, bright, sharp and detailed. You explore only a minimum of locales in each chapter, which means maximum linearity and very little traveling back and forth.
The soundtrack seems to have only two themes; a nice piece of classical style music which comes up once, and another boring one which forced me to mute my speakers.
You don't have a choice of Game Modes; there is only one, and no widescreen option.
I wish the developer had polished certain features of this secret mission, such the cutscenes, had made navigation a bit clearer and had added some good voice-overs. However the scripted narrative is not too lenghty, well worded, very pleasant to read and makes sense.
Constance's Mission constitutes a healthy change from monsters, madmen, gore and guts, showing that a casual game can be fun without being necessarily morbid. This is why I am giving this game 5 stars.
I recommend this game!
Otherworld: Spring of Shadows Collector's Edition
Use a mystical locket to explore a magical world and save a young girl in Otherworld: Spring of Shadows!
Overall rating
4
/
5
26 of 34 found this review helpful
A fairly interesting fairy tale
PostedJanuary 22, 2012
Rescue_helo
fromLondon (UK) - French Alps
Skill Level:Expert
Favorite Genre(s):Brain Teaser, Adventure, Large File, Puzzle, Strategy
Current Favorite:
Nancy Drew: Ghost Dogs of Moon Lake
(18)Fun Factor
4
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
4
/
5
After a standard intro you are taken into a fantasy world inhabited by dryads, to save a little girl abducted by a horrible creature with sharp teeth, horns and no eyes called "The Shade".
As I started the trial version I thought the game would go off the beaten tracks and offer us something totally different. It does in a fashion but not entirely.
The first scenes, remarkable by the way they have been crafted are bucolic, similar to paintings; the highly detailed artwork is indeed a work of art and must have taken hours and hours of hard work.
This idyllic atmosphere doesn't last long, soon turning towards gloom; the marvellous sceneries of the beginning become darkish, confused and up to a point a bit disturbing. That reminded me of Isabella but the other way round and with the slight difference that Isabella did not convey any impression of uneasiness difficult to define.
Focusing on the game itself, and the artwork set aside, I did find some interesting features.
The cutscenes are good, the voice-overs perfect, the goals unambiguously given in the journal, the useful items easy to find, the tasks simple and not too irrelevant in relation with the story, and traveling reasonnable due to the important linearity.
More or less in line with the context too, are the HO Scenes, which for once, do not force us to find the odd rubber duck or the set of false teeth. However some of them are a bit tedious like having to move vines left and right to find 22 spiders that blend in perfectly with a background abundant in leaves and the like. But a few scenes are lovely and easy.
Misclicking too often causes the face of The Shade to invade the screen, something definitely not to my liking.
In addition there are 60 collectibles to gather. They, too, are invisible. I found only one during the demo, quite by chance actually, and made no effort to get the others. This kind of task doesn't exactly correspond to my idea of fun.
The game has a total of 40 puzzles/minigames; those I played had various levels of difficulty, but I didn't really get enthusiastic about any of them as they are variants of tangrams, jigsaw puzzles and rotating circles. They can be skipped, and they reset automatically if you exit before completion.
3 Modes; on Casual hints re-up fast and guide you effectively in determining what to do next; plus a soft music that's quite relaxing, and many achievements to be rewarded with.
The demo lets you play the first 2 Chapters but you need to be fast to complete them in that 1 hour. Which means a more than decent total playtime as you have 6 Chapters for the main game plus the Epilogue [bonus chapter] for the CE.
All in all, in spite of the 22 spiders, the mixture of loveliness and gloom and that awful Shade, I am convinced Otherworld is worth adding to one's collection, although I cannot tell if the storyline is solid no more than if the Epilogue justifies purchasing the CE. I am waiting for the SE.
As I started the trial version I thought the game would go off the beaten tracks and offer us something totally different. It does in a fashion but not entirely.
The first scenes, remarkable by the way they have been crafted are bucolic, similar to paintings; the highly detailed artwork is indeed a work of art and must have taken hours and hours of hard work.
This idyllic atmosphere doesn't last long, soon turning towards gloom; the marvellous sceneries of the beginning become darkish, confused and up to a point a bit disturbing. That reminded me of Isabella but the other way round and with the slight difference that Isabella did not convey any impression of uneasiness difficult to define.
Focusing on the game itself, and the artwork set aside, I did find some interesting features.
The cutscenes are good, the voice-overs perfect, the goals unambiguously given in the journal, the useful items easy to find, the tasks simple and not too irrelevant in relation with the story, and traveling reasonnable due to the important linearity.
More or less in line with the context too, are the HO Scenes, which for once, do not force us to find the odd rubber duck or the set of false teeth. However some of them are a bit tedious like having to move vines left and right to find 22 spiders that blend in perfectly with a background abundant in leaves and the like. But a few scenes are lovely and easy.
Misclicking too often causes the face of The Shade to invade the screen, something definitely not to my liking.
In addition there are 60 collectibles to gather. They, too, are invisible. I found only one during the demo, quite by chance actually, and made no effort to get the others. This kind of task doesn't exactly correspond to my idea of fun.
The game has a total of 40 puzzles/minigames; those I played had various levels of difficulty, but I didn't really get enthusiastic about any of them as they are variants of tangrams, jigsaw puzzles and rotating circles. They can be skipped, and they reset automatically if you exit before completion.
3 Modes; on Casual hints re-up fast and guide you effectively in determining what to do next; plus a soft music that's quite relaxing, and many achievements to be rewarded with.
The demo lets you play the first 2 Chapters but you need to be fast to complete them in that 1 hour. Which means a more than decent total playtime as you have 6 Chapters for the main game plus the Epilogue [bonus chapter] for the CE.
All in all, in spite of the 22 spiders, the mixture of loveliness and gloom and that awful Shade, I am convinced Otherworld is worth adding to one's collection, although I cannot tell if the storyline is solid no more than if the Epilogue justifies purchasing the CE. I am waiting for the SE.
I recommend this game!