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:
Princess Isabella - A Witch's Curse
Help Princess Isabella lift the evil curse that has been placed on her castle! Solve perplexing puzzles and save her friends!
Overall rating
5
/
5
106 of 117 found this review helpful
A sumptuous fairy tale that shouldn't be ignored.
PostedJanuary 8, 2012
Rescue_helo
fromLondon (UK) - French Alps
Skill Level:Expert
Favorite Genre(s):Brain Teaser, Adventure, Large File, Puzzle, Strategy
Current Favorite:
Nancy Drew: Legend of the Crystal Skull
(15)Fun Factor
5
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
5
/
5
I purchased this game two years ago now, and played it then with tremendous pleasure. I replayed it last night with the same delight.
A refreshing change from morbid locations, ghosts, demons, werewolves and other lovely creatures of like nature. I don't mind a few skeletons now and then, but the child still in me enjoys the company of little fairies.
And the one we have in this game is rather cute.
Nevertheless, as another reviewer rightly pointed out, Isabella is not solely meant for kids but for grown-ups as well.
I love the story, the gorgeous settings so well crafted and painted with such talent, the numerous splendid locations you have to explore, the tasks, and the puzzles/minigames which are not all easy.
I find it amazing how the artists managed to give such a contrast to one same scene, between its state while under the influence of evil [dark, grey, uninviting] and its renovation after the curse has been removed [bright, neat, luxurious].
Everything is good fun with Isabella; from clearing up a painting of its evil to restoring mirrors, via an impressive number of good puzzles and minigames or using special abilities.
Isabella keeps you busy in a very clever way, for there is plenty to do and each task is highly enjoyable, even the HO Scenes.
Classicism alternates with new ideas, "seriousness" with touches of humor [the males servant's face is just too much !], simplicity with challenge.
"A Witch's Curse" is one of the best games I have come across and it certainly would have deserved to be released as a CE.
It's a must-have which I highly recommend.
A refreshing change from morbid locations, ghosts, demons, werewolves and other lovely creatures of like nature. I don't mind a few skeletons now and then, but the child still in me enjoys the company of little fairies.
And the one we have in this game is rather cute.
Nevertheless, as another reviewer rightly pointed out, Isabella is not solely meant for kids but for grown-ups as well.
I love the story, the gorgeous settings so well crafted and painted with such talent, the numerous splendid locations you have to explore, the tasks, and the puzzles/minigames which are not all easy.
I find it amazing how the artists managed to give such a contrast to one same scene, between its state while under the influence of evil [dark, grey, uninviting] and its renovation after the curse has been removed [bright, neat, luxurious].
Everything is good fun with Isabella; from clearing up a painting of its evil to restoring mirrors, via an impressive number of good puzzles and minigames or using special abilities.
Isabella keeps you busy in a very clever way, for there is plenty to do and each task is highly enjoyable, even the HO Scenes.
Classicism alternates with new ideas, "seriousness" with touches of humor [the males servant's face is just too much !], simplicity with challenge.
"A Witch's Curse" is one of the best games I have come across and it certainly would have deserved to be released as a CE.
It's a must-have which I highly recommend.
I recommend this game!
White Haven Mysteries Collector's Edition
After waking up in an abandoned building, you find that you’ve been drugged and must now find the antidote before it’s too late!
Overall rating
3
/
5
77 of 112 found this review helpful
Decent, fairly interesting, but not out of this world
PostedJanuary 8, 2012
Rescue_helo
fromLondon (UK) - French Alps
Skill Level:Expert
Favorite Genre(s):Brain Teaser, Adventure, Large File, Puzzle, Strategy
Current Favorite:
Nancy Drew: Legend of the Crystal Skull
(15)Fun Factor
3
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
2
/
5
The one hour demo took me past half of what I suppose is the first chapter. The SG does not give any indication as to how many chapters there are in total; no index, not even the page numbers.
What I saw and did I in that hour didn't really blow my socks off.
At the start, the game advises you to play in the dark, loud speakers on, and warns you that the "adventure" is frightening and might not be suitable for the fainthearted.
I didn't find it scary at all..... but I am not hypersensitive.
I also turned the speakers down; the permanent sound effects and the music track get very annoying after a little while.
The strong point of this game is the voice-overs; truly professional. very natural, in one word, perfectly realistic. The dialogues are well worded and what the mysterious man says, the way he says it, is highly convincing.
Intro and cutscenes are very well done.
Oh, yes, the plot: the heroine has been drugged [we don't know how or why] and wakes up in what looks like a haunted mansion, except that it is not haunted at all. The inside is, or so it seemed to me, that of an abandoned, derelict mental asylum. Our heroine's goal consists in finding the antidote, escaping, and in the process, I suppose, defeat the man and save a little girl. Not a novel idea but it gave me the impression it was well developed and fairly interesting.
Graphicwise, nothing exceptional. The artwork is good, somber as befits the atmosphere, colored with talent.
Part of the game is an adventure, though the tasks are simple, unoriginal, and do not require much mental effort. They all respond to some logic in some way.
A large part of it is left to HO Scenes. These are neat, not overly populated, and fairly easily managed, save one: imagine dozens of objects, not even half an each in size, all of the same color more or less, and crammed up on... a telephone !!
I was happy, for this one, to be on Casual Mode [there are only 2 Modes], with a Hint System recharging almost at warp speed. Besides, you can click as much as you want without penalty. Hints also show you what to do next.
But it's difficult to get stuck; the linearity prevents that, and the number of locations to explore is rather limited, at least in the first hour. That's probably why you have no map.
Simple, too, are the objectives; moreover they are clearly stated in the journal. Clues also appear on screen.
I was hoping for numerous fiendish puzzles. In vain. The first one was a piece of cake, the second, in fact a minigame [make a chicken soup... LOL], perfectly uninteresting, even silly. I didn't get to play a third one which, probably, comes up later on. Puzzles are skippable.
I didn't see a wide screen option. Gameplay is fluid.
All in all White Haven is not exactly a paradise for true adventure lovers and puzzle aficionados, just another decent game for those who are keen on HOGs and simplicity.
However, bearing a full and perfectly objective judgement is difficult in the absence of further information; we don't know how successfully the storyline unfolds, what the rest of the game has in store, how good the other puzzles are, and whether it is long or short.
As is this game is okay, though I have seen better, so I can only give it 3 stars. I am waiting for the SE and a walkthrough to fine-tune this preliminary judgement, but I very much doubt I will ever purchase it.
What I saw and did I in that hour didn't really blow my socks off.
At the start, the game advises you to play in the dark, loud speakers on, and warns you that the "adventure" is frightening and might not be suitable for the fainthearted.
I didn't find it scary at all..... but I am not hypersensitive.
I also turned the speakers down; the permanent sound effects and the music track get very annoying after a little while.
The strong point of this game is the voice-overs; truly professional. very natural, in one word, perfectly realistic. The dialogues are well worded and what the mysterious man says, the way he says it, is highly convincing.
Intro and cutscenes are very well done.
Oh, yes, the plot: the heroine has been drugged [we don't know how or why] and wakes up in what looks like a haunted mansion, except that it is not haunted at all. The inside is, or so it seemed to me, that of an abandoned, derelict mental asylum. Our heroine's goal consists in finding the antidote, escaping, and in the process, I suppose, defeat the man and save a little girl. Not a novel idea but it gave me the impression it was well developed and fairly interesting.
Graphicwise, nothing exceptional. The artwork is good, somber as befits the atmosphere, colored with talent.
Part of the game is an adventure, though the tasks are simple, unoriginal, and do not require much mental effort. They all respond to some logic in some way.
A large part of it is left to HO Scenes. These are neat, not overly populated, and fairly easily managed, save one: imagine dozens of objects, not even half an each in size, all of the same color more or less, and crammed up on... a telephone !!
I was happy, for this one, to be on Casual Mode [there are only 2 Modes], with a Hint System recharging almost at warp speed. Besides, you can click as much as you want without penalty. Hints also show you what to do next.
But it's difficult to get stuck; the linearity prevents that, and the number of locations to explore is rather limited, at least in the first hour. That's probably why you have no map.
Simple, too, are the objectives; moreover they are clearly stated in the journal. Clues also appear on screen.
I was hoping for numerous fiendish puzzles. In vain. The first one was a piece of cake, the second, in fact a minigame [make a chicken soup... LOL], perfectly uninteresting, even silly. I didn't get to play a third one which, probably, comes up later on. Puzzles are skippable.
I didn't see a wide screen option. Gameplay is fluid.
All in all White Haven is not exactly a paradise for true adventure lovers and puzzle aficionados, just another decent game for those who are keen on HOGs and simplicity.
However, bearing a full and perfectly objective judgement is difficult in the absence of further information; we don't know how successfully the storyline unfolds, what the rest of the game has in store, how good the other puzzles are, and whether it is long or short.
As is this game is okay, though I have seen better, so I can only give it 3 stars. I am waiting for the SE and a walkthrough to fine-tune this preliminary judgement, but I very much doubt I will ever purchase it.
I recommend this game!
Jane Angel: Templar Mystery
Jane Angel, an FBI agent and an art expert, is investigating the Holy Grail! Follow the clues and find this priceless treasure!
Overall rating
3
/
5
48 of 58 found this review helpful
A Mega HOG
PostedJanuary 7, 2012
Rescue_helo
fromLondon (UK) - French Alps
Skill Level:Expert
Favorite Genre(s):Brain Teaser, Adventure, Large File, Puzzle, Strategy
Current Favorite:
Nancy Drew: Legend of the Crystal Skull
(15)Fun Factor
2
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
3
/
5
Level of Challenge
2
/
5
Just consider a game made almost entirely of scrollable, heavily populated HO Scenes in which you have to find no less than 30 items [or more] in each of them. This is exactly what Templar Mystery offers you.
No adventure, rare puzzles, one minigame in 50 minutes of the demo and a couple of original features:
- #1: instead of simply finding the differences, you have to locate where the items are misplaced and replace them in the window on the right half of the screen as per the example given in the window on the left.
- #2: at the end of certain locations, you need to create and object sequence in order to obtain additional evidence objects; the idea is to give the correct number to each of the yellow tags..... yes, I know, it's a bit difficult to grasp at first... LOL
The sceneries in Chapter 1 are just photos; you start at LAX [L.A. Airport - baggage claim section] and this is the first HOS filled to the brim with all kinds of objects, which are given in a list that fills up as you eliminate items.
This, to me, seemed like it would last forever.
Hints recharge fast, thank Goodness, but the cursor is a..... noisy brat. Each time you misclick you hear a "bang", faintly at first, but it gets louder and louder with every additional misclick !
I had to mute my speakers; no big deal because you do have sound effects, which are another annoyance, but no voice-over [all cutscenes are scripted], and the in-game music is not worth remembering, save for Beethoven's Moonlight Sonata.
The only feature I really appreciated is the background to the story:
- the intro gives a summary of the history of the Knights Templar Order, how it was founded, what its objectives were [eg: the Holy Grail] and how it was persecuted by the King of France, jealous of its wealth; we learn a little bit about the Crusades, too, as well as, later in the game, about Columbus, his supposed link with the Order and how the surviving Knights would have reached America via an old Viking route.
Jane starts her own quest to find the Holy Grail, as the legend has it the Knights would have hidden it on the american continent....or maybe in Scotland.....
Needless to say this is not enough to induce me to buy this game; I quit at end of Chapter 1, there are simply too many HO Scenes for me and each one is much too long.
If you are a fun of the genre, this game stands a good chance to make you happy.
No adventure, rare puzzles, one minigame in 50 minutes of the demo and a couple of original features:
- #1: instead of simply finding the differences, you have to locate where the items are misplaced and replace them in the window on the right half of the screen as per the example given in the window on the left.
- #2: at the end of certain locations, you need to create and object sequence in order to obtain additional evidence objects; the idea is to give the correct number to each of the yellow tags..... yes, I know, it's a bit difficult to grasp at first... LOL
The sceneries in Chapter 1 are just photos; you start at LAX [L.A. Airport - baggage claim section] and this is the first HOS filled to the brim with all kinds of objects, which are given in a list that fills up as you eliminate items.
This, to me, seemed like it would last forever.
Hints recharge fast, thank Goodness, but the cursor is a..... noisy brat. Each time you misclick you hear a "bang", faintly at first, but it gets louder and louder with every additional misclick !
I had to mute my speakers; no big deal because you do have sound effects, which are another annoyance, but no voice-over [all cutscenes are scripted], and the in-game music is not worth remembering, save for Beethoven's Moonlight Sonata.
The only feature I really appreciated is the background to the story:
- the intro gives a summary of the history of the Knights Templar Order, how it was founded, what its objectives were [eg: the Holy Grail] and how it was persecuted by the King of France, jealous of its wealth; we learn a little bit about the Crusades, too, as well as, later in the game, about Columbus, his supposed link with the Order and how the surviving Knights would have reached America via an old Viking route.
Jane starts her own quest to find the Holy Grail, as the legend has it the Knights would have hidden it on the american continent....or maybe in Scotland.....
Needless to say this is not enough to induce me to buy this game; I quit at end of Chapter 1, there are simply too many HO Scenes for me and each one is much too long.
If you are a fun of the genre, this game stands a good chance to make you happy.
I recommend this game!
Hidden Mysteries®: Salem Secrets
Help Constable Hawthorne investigate the rumors of witchcraft in Hidden Mysteries – Salem Secrets, a fun Hidden Object game!
Overall rating
4
/
5
76 of 81 found this review helpful
Atmospheric and entertaining.
PostedJanuary 7, 2012
Rescue_helo
fromLondon (UK) - French Alps
Skill Level:Expert
Favorite Genre(s):Brain Teaser, Adventure, Large File, Puzzle, Strategy
Current Favorite:
Nancy Drew: Legend of the Crystal Skull
(15)Fun Factor
4
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
3
/
5
Quite an interesting game that shines by its darkish but well rendered sceneries. Wording it that way may sound paradoxical, but the developers successfully recreated the heavy atmosphere of a 17th C settlement, a small town [old Salem seen by artists] made of wooden houses and cabins, one day when the sun was hiding behind a huge mass of foreboding grey clouds and patches of fog were floating here and there. Each locale is nicely hand-drawn and subtly colored with a full palette of greys and browns. The result is very realistic. The inside of the cabins, school, shops, stables, forest, mill, is equally true to life in those days. The horses looked a bit stiff, though....
Exploring the numerous locations is quite enjoyable and conveys the feeling of a true adventure, as this can be done at will, in any order, the game being non-linear.
Help is generous, with hints, a map, clues and the possibility of checking where to go by right clicking to display the different directional arrows.
I enjoyed this exploration as well as finding the useful objects and using them, and the first two puzzles; the demo ended before I could see the others, but there isn't that many of them.
The only criticism I can find concerns the HO Scenes. Several items are invisible and I had to resort to using a few Hints there and then.
With a decent storyline and a bit of mystery, this adventure, which is also a kind of investigation, is easy, pleasant and rather relaxing.
Exploring the numerous locations is quite enjoyable and conveys the feeling of a true adventure, as this can be done at will, in any order, the game being non-linear.
Help is generous, with hints, a map, clues and the possibility of checking where to go by right clicking to display the different directional arrows.
I enjoyed this exploration as well as finding the useful objects and using them, and the first two puzzles; the demo ended before I could see the others, but there isn't that many of them.
The only criticism I can find concerns the HO Scenes. Several items are invisible and I had to resort to using a few Hints there and then.
With a decent storyline and a bit of mystery, this adventure, which is also a kind of investigation, is easy, pleasant and rather relaxing.
I recommend this game!
The Secret Legacy: A Kate Brooks Adventure
Explore Egypt and discover The Secret Legacy of Kate Brooks’ grandmother in this exciting Hidden Object Adventure game!
Overall rating
4
/
5
60 of 60 found this review helpful
Visually impeccable
PostedJanuary 6, 2012
Rescue_helo
fromLondon (UK) - French Alps
Skill Level:Expert
Favorite Genre(s):Brain Teaser, Adventure, Large File, Puzzle, Strategy
Current Favorite:
Nancy Drew: Legend of the Crystal Skull
(15)Fun Factor
3
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
2
/
5
I believe that this game can have its place in a HOG lover's library. I prefer adventures but Secret Legacy fascinated me during the whole of the demo. The reason ? Its graphics: stunning ! So neat, so crisp, a palette of soft, extremely subtle colors, almost pastel in places, with a variety of beautiful hues.
The panoramic view is another of its nice features: the Virtual 3D enables you to scroll each location left and right. The effect is superb.
But the scrolling has another purpose: several hidden items can only be found by changing the viewing angle.
Secret Legacy is a pure HOG. Very little action and only a couple of puzzles !
On the easier of the two modes, hints help you with the HO Scenes but won't give directions or tell you what to do next.
In fact each location is a HOS, and in addition, within them, clicking on a hot spot opens another HOS.
These HO Scenes are neat, yet many items are small and difficult to spot. They are given in a list or as black silhouettes
Due to the linearity of the game, there is no bactracking.
As you go along you collect egyptian tablets which provide some information on the history of Egypt and serve as a diary.
The puzzles are by no means the strong point of this game; all are classics: tangram, slider [parking-lot type], gears.....
The intro is a bit weird, cartoonish but pleasant nonetheless. The intro music is very strange, and parts of the in-game soundtrack quite amusing.
I would recommend Secret Legacy to all those who are particularly keen on hidden objects, or are looking for a rather relaxing game, hence my 4 star rating, but die-hard adventurers like me will probably neither appreciate the linearity, the absence of action, the rare useful items, the too small amount of puzzles, the lack in variety of locales, nor the fact that the game doesn't require much thinking.
Still, it is really worth a good look, so the best is to play the trial version and take it from there.
The panoramic view is another of its nice features: the Virtual 3D enables you to scroll each location left and right. The effect is superb.
But the scrolling has another purpose: several hidden items can only be found by changing the viewing angle.
Secret Legacy is a pure HOG. Very little action and only a couple of puzzles !
On the easier of the two modes, hints help you with the HO Scenes but won't give directions or tell you what to do next.
In fact each location is a HOS, and in addition, within them, clicking on a hot spot opens another HOS.
These HO Scenes are neat, yet many items are small and difficult to spot. They are given in a list or as black silhouettes
Due to the linearity of the game, there is no bactracking.
As you go along you collect egyptian tablets which provide some information on the history of Egypt and serve as a diary.
The puzzles are by no means the strong point of this game; all are classics: tangram, slider [parking-lot type], gears.....
The intro is a bit weird, cartoonish but pleasant nonetheless. The intro music is very strange, and parts of the in-game soundtrack quite amusing.
I would recommend Secret Legacy to all those who are particularly keen on hidden objects, or are looking for a rather relaxing game, hence my 4 star rating, but die-hard adventurers like me will probably neither appreciate the linearity, the absence of action, the rare useful items, the too small amount of puzzles, the lack in variety of locales, nor the fact that the game doesn't require much thinking.
Still, it is really worth a good look, so the best is to play the trial version and take it from there.
I recommend this game!
Time Riddles: The Mansion
Use a magical board game to travel back in time and discover the history of a mansion! Find clues and piece together the story!
Overall rating
2
/
5
13 of 14 found this review helpful
Weird and uninteresting
PostedJanuary 6, 2012
Rescue_helo
fromLondon (UK) - French Alps
Skill Level:Expert
Favorite Genre(s):Brain Teaser, Adventure, Large File, Puzzle, Strategy
Current Favorite:
Nancy Drew: Legend of the Crystal Skull
(15)Fun Factor
1
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
3
/
5
Level of Challenge
1
/
5
The sole originality of this game resides in the gameboard........ and the Match 3 games.
There is no puzzle, no minigame, no action to perform. Only HO Scenes, some of which are neat and others kind of blurry. None offer any interactivity and all the items are given in a list.
They are not too difficult to find and that's a good thing because hints are limited to 5 per 5 HO Scenes.
Every 3 misclicks, the screen zooms in on you briefly. Quite surprising the first time, most annoying and eye-straining from the second time onwards.
In addition you collect jewels and gain achievements under certain conditions, although this is not mandatory.
Now the originality:
In the center of the board 2 dice; click on them to roll them and 4 chips move along the edge then stop on a location each. Click on one location to access a HO Scene. Do the same with the others then click on the center for the fifth one.
You're then back with the board and the dice. Repeat the process.
The Match 3 game is dull and presents always the same pattern: brown trihedras, brown cubes, brown cylinders. No other color, no variety in the layout, no power-ups.
I am not sure I grasped the story; it is rather confused and unclear
As regards the riddles, I didn't see any.
It takes a real fan of HOGs and Match 3's to like this one and go through all 15 chapters. I am not one of them.
Note: Review based on the demo
There is no puzzle, no minigame, no action to perform. Only HO Scenes, some of which are neat and others kind of blurry. None offer any interactivity and all the items are given in a list.
They are not too difficult to find and that's a good thing because hints are limited to 5 per 5 HO Scenes.
Every 3 misclicks, the screen zooms in on you briefly. Quite surprising the first time, most annoying and eye-straining from the second time onwards.
In addition you collect jewels and gain achievements under certain conditions, although this is not mandatory.
Now the originality:
In the center of the board 2 dice; click on them to roll them and 4 chips move along the edge then stop on a location each. Click on one location to access a HO Scene. Do the same with the others then click on the center for the fifth one.
You're then back with the board and the dice. Repeat the process.
The Match 3 game is dull and presents always the same pattern: brown trihedras, brown cubes, brown cylinders. No other color, no variety in the layout, no power-ups.
I am not sure I grasped the story; it is rather confused and unclear
As regards the riddles, I didn't see any.
It takes a real fan of HOGs and Match 3's to like this one and go through all 15 chapters. I am not one of them.
Note: Review based on the demo
I don't recommend this game.
Journalistic Investigations: Stolen Inheritance
Help Mary save her friend Lora’s wedding! Lora’s inheritance has been stolen, and now Mary must crack the case and catch the crook!
Overall rating
3
/
5
6 of 6 found this review helpful
Totally unsophisticated
PostedJanuary 6, 2012
Rescue_helo
fromLondon (UK) - French Alps
Skill Level:Expert
Favorite Genre(s):Brain Teaser, Adventure, Large File, Puzzle, Strategy
Current Favorite:
Nancy Drew: Legend of the Crystal Skull
(15)Fun Factor
2
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
3
/
5
Level of Challenge
1
/
5
What we have here is a pure HOG in 12 levels, with simple tasks and few minigames.
The pattern of each level repeats itself and is as follows, after the intro:
cutscene - HOS - Task - Place antique in display window
The ultimate objective is to recover all the family's antiques that have been stolen. They are scattered throughout every level and are retrieved one by one.
The HO Scenes are colorful, neat and well organized. I believe they are photos rather than drawings. That doesn't mean the objects are easy to find; some are, others not being tiny and/or hardly visible.
On the easier of the two modes hints recharge fast, but only help in the HO Scenes. 6 misclicks in succession deactivate the cursor for a few seconds.
When it is time for a task, you click on the notepad on the right and the full instructions get displayed on screen, all you need do then is follow the directives to the letter which consists in finding the 4 or 5 necessary items first, then using and placing them as indicated.
All these tasks are extremely simple, like cutting a wire to defuse a bomb, as one example.
The puzzles/minigames are pure classics without originality; here again, some are easy, others a bit trickier but not much. They can be skipped.
Since this "investigation" leaves no room for deep thinking, it is indeed very "relaxing"; in fact it doesn't offer anything exciting or even slightly challenging.
To be honest I found this game perfectly boring during the first 30 mns of the demo which took me roughly half way through Chapter 3 before I decided to quit. Yet, it is true it can be viewed as a relaxing break from more sophisticated games due to its straightforwardness and its being no brain-teaser.
It's a pity in a way, because the storyline is refreshing, does make a nice change from ghosts, corpses and demons, and has enough potential to be the basis of a truly gripping game had it been conceived differently and a lot of suspense added to it.
So, recommend or not recommend ? That is the question. Answer: "yes" but only to younger players and those who want something really simple.
The pattern of each level repeats itself and is as follows, after the intro:
cutscene - HOS - Task - Place antique in display window
The ultimate objective is to recover all the family's antiques that have been stolen. They are scattered throughout every level and are retrieved one by one.
The HO Scenes are colorful, neat and well organized. I believe they are photos rather than drawings. That doesn't mean the objects are easy to find; some are, others not being tiny and/or hardly visible.
On the easier of the two modes hints recharge fast, but only help in the HO Scenes. 6 misclicks in succession deactivate the cursor for a few seconds.
When it is time for a task, you click on the notepad on the right and the full instructions get displayed on screen, all you need do then is follow the directives to the letter which consists in finding the 4 or 5 necessary items first, then using and placing them as indicated.
All these tasks are extremely simple, like cutting a wire to defuse a bomb, as one example.
The puzzles/minigames are pure classics without originality; here again, some are easy, others a bit trickier but not much. They can be skipped.
Since this "investigation" leaves no room for deep thinking, it is indeed very "relaxing"; in fact it doesn't offer anything exciting or even slightly challenging.
To be honest I found this game perfectly boring during the first 30 mns of the demo which took me roughly half way through Chapter 3 before I decided to quit. Yet, it is true it can be viewed as a relaxing break from more sophisticated games due to its straightforwardness and its being no brain-teaser.
It's a pity in a way, because the storyline is refreshing, does make a nice change from ghosts, corpses and demons, and has enough potential to be the basis of a truly gripping game had it been conceived differently and a lot of suspense added to it.
So, recommend or not recommend ? That is the question. Answer: "yes" but only to younger players and those who want something really simple.
I recommend this game!
Timeless: The Forgotten Town
Escape from a town that is lost in time and space! Explore the mysterious city and solve its riddles to make it home!
Overall rating
4
/
5
45 of 46 found this review helpful
A HO/Adventure with many new twists
PostedJanuary 6, 2012
Rescue_helo
fromLondon (UK) - French Alps
Skill Level:Expert
Favorite Genre(s):Brain Teaser, Adventure, Large File, Puzzle, Strategy
Current Favorite:
Nancy Drew: Legend of the Crystal Skull
(15)Fun Factor
4
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
4
/
5
Level of Challenge
4
/
5
This game deserves a warm welcome for it is full of ingenuity and imagination.
Not only does it offer many HO Scenes - a feature that should delight the aficinados of the genre, and even ravish those who are not too keen on them, for they are all very pleasant to play, although at times a bit cluttered - but also many puzzles and minigames you don't find in other games; some are very original, others are classics with a twist [except one].
I had fun playing them as I had fun performing the tasks and visiting the various locations well crafted with taste and talent.
The HO Scenes do not always come with the usual lists, but also with silhouettes, and with objects you need to move aside in order to find the items buried underneath. Interesting.
I particularly liked the beginning, the voyage in the bullet train that suddenly turns into an old choo-choo.
And for once I didn't have to mute my speakers: the music is not bad at all and there is even a very nice piece that would do well as the main theme of a western or a war movie.
Still, the game is not perfect and one could regret its shortness [4 hours for the SE] without skipping anything, the absence of voice-overs, the amount of bactracking which increases half way through the game, the lack of a map [although the Hints show you where to go if you get stuck], and the last part of the ending which is quite unecessary.
The storyline is another classic, a ghost story mixed with an evil magician who stops time in and around a town.
It's a full 4 star game which I can only recommend, on account of its novelties, several challenging puzzles, good minigames, and many interesting actions to perform.
Not only does it offer many HO Scenes - a feature that should delight the aficinados of the genre, and even ravish those who are not too keen on them, for they are all very pleasant to play, although at times a bit cluttered - but also many puzzles and minigames you don't find in other games; some are very original, others are classics with a twist [except one].
I had fun playing them as I had fun performing the tasks and visiting the various locations well crafted with taste and talent.
The HO Scenes do not always come with the usual lists, but also with silhouettes, and with objects you need to move aside in order to find the items buried underneath. Interesting.
I particularly liked the beginning, the voyage in the bullet train that suddenly turns into an old choo-choo.
And for once I didn't have to mute my speakers: the music is not bad at all and there is even a very nice piece that would do well as the main theme of a western or a war movie.
Still, the game is not perfect and one could regret its shortness [4 hours for the SE] without skipping anything, the absence of voice-overs, the amount of bactracking which increases half way through the game, the lack of a map [although the Hints show you where to go if you get stuck], and the last part of the ending which is quite unecessary.
The storyline is another classic, a ghost story mixed with an evil magician who stops time in and around a town.
It's a full 4 star game which I can only recommend, on account of its novelties, several challenging puzzles, good minigames, and many interesting actions to perform.
I recommend this game!
Fear for Sale: Sunnyvale Story
Appease terrifying ghosts before they kidnap and punish the entire city of Sunnyvale in this dark and mysterious Hidden Object game!
Overall rating
4
/
5
116 of 137 found this review helpful
An entertaining game a little above average
PostedJanuary 6, 2012
Rescue_helo
fromLondon (UK) - French Alps
Skill Level:Expert
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Large File, Strategy, Brain Teaser, Puzzle
Current Favorite:
Nancy Drew - Curse of Blackmoor Manor
(23)Fun Factor
4
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
4
/
5
The spectacular intro with a soundtrack of rare quality let me presuppose the game would be outstanding. Well, not really.
The promising music rapidly turns into a funeral march, and, setting aside the supernatural which is now common to many storylines, the game is just a classic hardly different from its predecessor or games of like genre, although it does offer a couple of originalities here and there.
Nevertheless, there are many good things in Sunnyvale: the puzzles are interesting and challenging, the HOS's not overloaded and interactive, their items easy to find and the hint system lenient, tasks are simple, objectives are clear and the use of objects is good fun, backtracking reasonnable, the graphics neat, well crafted and colorful, the voice-overs and cutscenes professionally acted and near realistic.
Of medium difficulty in Regular Mode, the game makes you think enough for a bit of challenge and much enjoyment.
Total playtime is bound to be short in spite of the 6 chapters, as I completed Ch 1 and 2 in 58 minutes exactly when I tried the demo of the CE.
The promising music rapidly turns into a funeral march, and, setting aside the supernatural which is now common to many storylines, the game is just a classic hardly different from its predecessor or games of like genre, although it does offer a couple of originalities here and there.
Nevertheless, there are many good things in Sunnyvale: the puzzles are interesting and challenging, the HOS's not overloaded and interactive, their items easy to find and the hint system lenient, tasks are simple, objectives are clear and the use of objects is good fun, backtracking reasonnable, the graphics neat, well crafted and colorful, the voice-overs and cutscenes professionally acted and near realistic.
Of medium difficulty in Regular Mode, the game makes you think enough for a bit of challenge and much enjoyment.
Total playtime is bound to be short in spite of the 6 chapters, as I completed Ch 1 and 2 in 58 minutes exactly when I tried the demo of the CE.
I recommend this game!
Grim Tales: The Legacy Collector's Edition
After being invited to the Christening of your sister’s son, you arrive to find a deserted estate! Save your sister before it’s too late!
Overall rating
5
/
5
254 of 279 found this review helpful
Quite nice
PostedJanuary 5, 2012
Rescue_helo
fromLondon (UK) - French Alps
Skill Level:Expert
Favorite Genre(s):Brain Teaser, Adventure, Large File, Puzzle, Strategy
Current Favorite:
Nancy Drew: Legend of the Crystal Skull
(15)Fun Factor
4
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
4
/
5
More or less in the same style as its predecessor "The Bride", The Lecacy takes us into another eerie world of ghosts and, this time, werewolves -at least that what the hero of the story comes to suspect. A wolf does appear several times in the cutscenes and the least that can be said is that he is not the friendly kind...
The intro is brief but well done. So is every cutscene. The voice-overs sound very natural and truly professional.
The in-game music, pleasant and atmospheric, is played at key times during the game without ever intruding.
The Legacy is not overloaded with HO Scenes and although each is populated to the brim, none are a true mess and HOs are on the whole easy to spot. Besides you can click as much as you like without penalty, at least on the easiest of the 3 Modes of difficulty [there is a harcore mode for the boldest players].
The Hint System which recharges fast, is very helpful, both with the HO Scenes and with giving directions as to what to do next.
The Useful Items are easy to find and use.
Objectives are clearly set and tasks are no hassle to perform. Their nature, for most of them, is similar to what you find in other games: switch lights on, repair ladder, unscrew plate, etc... But a few are original.
As further help, the map indicates the locations that are yet unexplored, those where there is still a task to accomplish [shown by a "!"; click on it to get a small window with a photo and the instructions] and the player's current location.
You access the map via the compass at the bottom right.
I didn't see any minigames as such, only 6 puzzles in Chapter 1; they are all easy and fairly classical; #2 is a slider with a twist, #3 and #5 are original, and I noted in #6 a picture taken from "The Bride". They are all fun to solve, can be skipped and reset [a plus].
I counted 17 locations [but there may be more]; their graphics are excellent, highly detailed, artistically crafted.
Like in all games of such nature, there is a fair amount of backtracking to do [that's part of the fun] although nothing is exaggerated in this sense.
I didn't see a widescreen option nor a journal.
The demo gives access to only Chapter 1 which I completed in 57 minutes on Casual Mode, not skipping anything; I chose that option in order to get an idea of how long the whole game would last. If the producer did the same as with The Bride, we should have 6 chapters for the main game plus the Bonus Chapter for the CE.
Whether the CE is worth the extra expense or not cannot be assessed on the present basis; if you liked The Bride, as I did, you'll surely like this one too and go for the extra chapter.
It is difficult to tell how compelling the storyline is; all I can say is: "not bad".
I found the game too easy on Casual Mode, so I think it will be best played on medium difficulty or hardcore.
Although The Legacy doesn't bring anything new to the realm of HO/Adventure games, it is a pleasant experience and good fun which I, believe, deserves a 4.5 rating, rounded up to 5 as usual.
The intro is brief but well done. So is every cutscene. The voice-overs sound very natural and truly professional.
The in-game music, pleasant and atmospheric, is played at key times during the game without ever intruding.
The Legacy is not overloaded with HO Scenes and although each is populated to the brim, none are a true mess and HOs are on the whole easy to spot. Besides you can click as much as you like without penalty, at least on the easiest of the 3 Modes of difficulty [there is a harcore mode for the boldest players].
The Hint System which recharges fast, is very helpful, both with the HO Scenes and with giving directions as to what to do next.
The Useful Items are easy to find and use.
Objectives are clearly set and tasks are no hassle to perform. Their nature, for most of them, is similar to what you find in other games: switch lights on, repair ladder, unscrew plate, etc... But a few are original.
As further help, the map indicates the locations that are yet unexplored, those where there is still a task to accomplish [shown by a "!"; click on it to get a small window with a photo and the instructions] and the player's current location.
You access the map via the compass at the bottom right.
I didn't see any minigames as such, only 6 puzzles in Chapter 1; they are all easy and fairly classical; #2 is a slider with a twist, #3 and #5 are original, and I noted in #6 a picture taken from "The Bride". They are all fun to solve, can be skipped and reset [a plus].
I counted 17 locations [but there may be more]; their graphics are excellent, highly detailed, artistically crafted.
Like in all games of such nature, there is a fair amount of backtracking to do [that's part of the fun] although nothing is exaggerated in this sense.
I didn't see a widescreen option nor a journal.
The demo gives access to only Chapter 1 which I completed in 57 minutes on Casual Mode, not skipping anything; I chose that option in order to get an idea of how long the whole game would last. If the producer did the same as with The Bride, we should have 6 chapters for the main game plus the Bonus Chapter for the CE.
Whether the CE is worth the extra expense or not cannot be assessed on the present basis; if you liked The Bride, as I did, you'll surely like this one too and go for the extra chapter.
It is difficult to tell how compelling the storyline is; all I can say is: "not bad".
I found the game too easy on Casual Mode, so I think it will be best played on medium difficulty or hardcore.
Although The Legacy doesn't bring anything new to the realm of HO/Adventure games, it is a pleasant experience and good fun which I, believe, deserves a 4.5 rating, rounded up to 5 as usual.
I recommend this game!