Tauret's Profile
Stat Summary
- Average Rating:3.1
- Helpful Votes:346
- Reviews Submitted:17
- First Review:November 13, 2011
- Most Recent Review:July 26, 2014
- Featured reviews0
Overall rating
4
/
5
1 of 1 found this review helpful
An enjoyable take on Poe
PostedDecember 3, 2011
Tauret
fromKansas City, MO
Favorite Genre(s):Word, Adventure, Hidden Object, Puzzle, Mahjong
Fun Factor
4
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
4
/
5
Level of Challenge
4
/
5
All in all this was a pretty good game. The scenery is appealing and the graphics in the HOScenes clear.
Some of the artwork is quite lovely but there are scenes that appear “unfinished”. In one room there are picture frames on the wall, but nothing can be seen in them. This is quite noticeable because there is a great deal of other detail in the character’s clothing and in the area’s carpet and upholstery fabrics and wallpaper. I’m not lowering my rating for this, but it did catch my eye.
Unlike the Poe short story there is no narrator suffering from the fear of being buried alive. There is a man using this technique on others he wishes to do away with. This is one aspect of the story that didn’t quite gel with me. Seems to me that a man of his status could find an easier, less risky way of getting rid of his intended victims. But, this didn’t ruin the story for me either.
The vengeful specter was a bit much, but I could chalk her character up to this being based on a Poe story. I think they could have told a better story with less of her, but I’m not lowering my rating for her inclusion.
The majority of the game play was pretty straightforward, but there were a few times that I had to exit the game to check the walkthrough because I just couldn’t determine what I was to do next. This is one reason that I didn’t give the game a full five stars. If there had been help in the game play sections I would have rated this higher.
The help feature in the HOScenes was fine. It clearly pointed out the object and recharged within an acceptable length of time. The help feature in the mini-games was just OK. It gave a vague overview of the game, but most of the time I had no problem figuring out what they wanted done. But, that doesn’t mean I didn’t skip a few games. There were some that I just didn’t care to play to their finish.
My big complaint with the mini-games is that they over-did some of them. In several of the games you have to do three or more versions before you are allowed to move on. In one you have to repeat the process six times. That was way too much for me. The game wasn’t hard, but it wasn’t something I wanted to do six times before getting back to the actual game play. They are called “mini-games” for a reason.
The voiceovers were very good but the music was lacking. It was very repetitive and I turned it off fairly quickly. It wasn’t bad music, but I can’t listen to the same tune over and over.
I definitely feel I got my money’s worth with this game and will certainly play it again in the future.
Keep your dorsal fin up
Tauret
Tauret
I recommend this game!
Return once more to the haunted grounds of Ravenhearst Manor to uncover new details about this poignant saga. What you find could very well be the final chapter of this riveting story-if you escape.
Overall rating
4
/
5
1 of 3 found this review helpful
The best Ravenhearst but hopefully the last Ravenhearst
PostedNovember 27, 2011
Tauret
fromKansas City, MO
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Word, Adventure, Hidden Object, Puzzle, Mahjong
Fun Factor
4
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
5
/
5
I have purchased and finished the game and while still not the best MCF out there it is a great improvement over Ravenhearst and Return to Ravenhearst in some ways. The graphics are clearer and easier on the eyes, the hint button reloads quickly and when you use the hint button it more clearly points out the item you need in the HOScenes. With the other two games the hint gave you a HUGE circle rather than point more directly to the item. This required that you continue to search for something you couldn’t find in the first place.
Now to the “hot” topic of the morphing items, my eyes tire very easily, but I didn’t have a problem with the morphing items. It did seem that in some scenes some of the items morphed at a quicker pace than others requiring that I had to wait a bit for tell tale movement. But, I am not downgrading this game for their choice of HOScene style.
The other big topic is the Strategy Guide. I had to use it a lot and found it helped me some of the time. I am more comfortable with text, but can understand how a picture SG can help players who are not proficient American English speakers.
My biggest complaint was that there wasn’t sufficient help for the puzzles. I don’t want to be given the solution, but hints to help me understand what is wanted and/or steps to reach the final solution. MCF games have some of the most innovative puzzles I have ever seen. But they can also be baffling which can quickly transition to frustrating. Sometimes I just need help starting a puzzle or a nudge along the way so that I can understand the logic of the game and finish on my own. There really is no help with this in the game and it really should have this for the Collector’s Edition price.
On to the soundtrack. You need to listen to Charles along the way, but other than that I had the sound off. It wasn’t terrifying or disturbing, it was just annoying after a while.
Now, for the story line. This actually got boring. I am not making light of child abuse or family dysfunction but I was getting very tired of his “I had a terrible childhood so I want you to suffer too” attitude. I found much of his dialog to be more a whinging temper tantrum than a chilling descent into madness.
All in all, I don’t regret the purchase but I do hope this really is the end of Ravenhearst.
I recommend this game!
A mysterious fortune teller has foreseen her demise at midnight this very day. Can you find the soul who seeks to kill Madame Fate? You be the detective.
Overall rating
4
/
5
12 of 13 found this review helpful
One of my favorite Mystery Case Files
PostedNovember 26, 2011
Tauret
fromKansas City, MO
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Word, Adventure, Hidden Object, Puzzle, Mahjong
Fun Factor
4
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
5
/
5
"I can feel the presence of a great and terrible darkness". This is just one of the many quirky quips you will hear from Madame Fate as you try to figure out who is planning on doing away with her at midnight. Granted, after a while I have to turn down the sound because Madame speaks frequently and there is a lot of repetition in her dialog. But her cheesy accent is a hoot.
You have to love Hidden Object games to enjoy Madame Fate. Unlike some others in the MCF family there really is no adventure aspect to the game. Your job is to investigate the carnival workers, doing Hidden Object games in various carnival attractions for each person.
There is a crystal ball mini-puzzle at the end of each employee's investigation. I prefer word puzzles to those that are math based and there are a couple of fun ones in this game. But, like other MCF games some of the puzzles can be pretty baffling, a few to the point of totally frustrating. But, because I enjoy the rest of the game so much I am willing to look for forum help with the ones I just don't "get".
I gave this 4 rather than 5 stars and a fun factor of good rather than excellent because you are only allowed 5 helps per employee and the help feature is pretty useless in the mini-games.
Madame Fate is one MCF that I have played several times and have no doubt that I will continue to play for many years to come.
I recommend this game!
Emma`s soul is free. But a dark secret still lurks in Ravenhearst Manor. Return to Ravenhearst to continue this tale of twisted love.
Overall rating
2
/
5
39 of 68 found this review helpful
What happened in Blackpool should have stayed in Blackpool
PostedNovember 21, 2011
Tauret
fromKansas City, MO
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Word, Adventure, Hidden Object, Puzzle, Mahjong
Fun Factor
1
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
2
/
5
Level of Challenge
1
/
5
I couldn’t remember if I liked this game as it as been almost 2 years since I first played it. So, I played again today and found that I really don’t like it. The graphics are better than Ravenhearst, but there are still grainy, unclear HOScenes that really strain my eyes. By the end of the game my eyes were burning and incredibly tired.
I liked only a few of the puzzles in this game. But, perhaps one of the reasons for that is that there is no help feature in the puzzles. Your only options are to exit the game and try to find help in a forum or skip the puzzle. I could have finished all of the puzzles if there had been a hint feature nudging me in the right direction. I know this because I did exit the game a couple of times and found a solution. I was very close each time, but just needed a little more info to figure out not the solution, but how the game was to be played.
The hint feature in the HOScenes was horrible. It took 5 minutes for it to reload. FIVE minutes of sitting and waiting for it to reload so that I could use it again for something else too blurry to be recognizable. I actually found my stepladder and changed a burned out light bulb in less time that it took for the hint to reload.
The hint feature in the regular game play was also sorely lacking. If you “showed” it an inventory item it would give you a snapshot of where that item is used. No text, just a picture. The item I tried this on was used in an area of the game that I hadn’t yet received access to so this was a total waste. Then I had to wait 5 minutes for the hint to reload.
There was no hint feature that helped you when you needed to know what to do next. Again, if you were stuck you had to exit the game and try to find someone’s forum or walkthrough.
The soundtrack was OK, but I did have to mute it couple of times as it was getting on my nerves. The storyline was OK, but nothing exceptional. On the whole a wasted purchase for me.
I don't recommend this game.
The history of Ravenhearst Manor is shrouded in mystery. Unlock the secrets within this episode of Mystery Case Files™.
Overall rating
2
/
5
20 of 40 found this review helpful
I must be the odd duck out - I didn't care for it
PostedNovember 21, 2011
Tauret
fromKansas City, MO
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Word, Adventure, Hidden Object, Puzzle, Mahjong
Fun Factor
2
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
2
/
5
Level of Challenge
2
/
5
With the release of Escape from Ravenhearst on the horizon I wanted to replay this and Return to Ravenhearst since I really didn't remember them.
The artwork has a grainy watercolor “look” that I found extremely hard on my eyes when doing the Hidden Object Scenes.
The puzzles are also not to my liking. I enjoy a jigsaw puzzle now and again but don’t want to have to do one every chapter of a game.
The door lock puzzles were often incomprehensible and the help feature in those puzzle areas was useless
The hint feature in the Hidden Object Scenes was too limited considering the blurriness of the graphics.
If I were to play this again I would need the Strategy Guide to help with the door lock puzzles and I just don’t like the game enough to make that additional purchase.
But as always, I encourage anyone who is interested in the game to play the demo. This is a wonderful feature provided by Big Fish, letting you try before you buy.
I don't recommend this game.
Explore a terrifying tale in Mystery Stories: Mountains of Madness! Find out what happened to an entire team of researchers!
Overall rating
4
/
5
49 of 63 found this review helpful
Great Advenure HOG
PostedNovember 19, 2011
Tauret
fromKansas City, MO
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Word, Adventure, Hidden Object, Puzzle, Mahjong
Fun Factor
5
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
3
/
5
Level of Challenge
4
/
5
I almost passed on this one because of the Lovecraft connection. No offense to anyone who likes his works, I have never been impressed by the ones I’ve read or found them in the least bit frightening. Just an aside, what was it with that guy and tentacles anyway (was it a Freudian fixation (hee hee))?
But, I did play the entire hour of the demo and am glad I did. I thought the artwork was very good. I have trouble with the grainy or blurry scenery you find in some games. While not as crisp and vivid as I prefer the graphics are well within my comfort range. They are a bit muted in some scenes, but not unclear.
I get motion sick easily so I really don’t like it when all of a game’s scenes scroll. But I tried the scrolling scenes in this game and was happy to say that I could use that feature without discomfort. The scrolling option gives much more depth to “look and feel” of a scene so I was happy that I could take advantage of it. I recommend that even fishies with sensitive tummies give this a try because it does add so much to a scene.
The HOScenes made me pay attention but were on the easy side. I did think it was an interesting choice by the Dev’s to require that you finish a HOS before advancing. I have never played a game where you can’t leave an HOS unfinished and return to it. I’m not complaining about this, just thought it was unusual. The puzzles I encountered during my trial period made me think but were logical enough that I could figure them out.
I just got to the part in the game where you begin to play as different people and really liked it. Am curious to see how many different characters you get to “be’ as the game progresses.
Now for my usual pet peeve, the soundtrack. It started out great, wind blowing, great voiceover, etc. But as I progressed the music became very repetitive so I had to turn the sound off. Granted it was on longer than some games, but still had to turn it off.
This is a definite buy for me, just need to wait for payday.
I recommend this game!
Explore a haunted amusement park in Weird Park: Broken Tune! Investigate a rash of “accidental” deaths and solve the case!
Overall rating
4
/
5
42 of 49 found this review helpful
Great way to spend an afternoon
PostedNovember 13, 2011
Tauret
fromKansas City, MO
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Word, Adventure, Hidden Object, Puzzle, Mahjong
Fun Factor
5
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
3
/
5
Level of Challenge
4
/
5
The artwork in this game is fantastic and the HO scenes clear enough that they didn't cause me any eyestrain. I enjoyed the storyline and following that strange little jester suited guy around the amusement park.
It took me all afternoon to complete the game (sorry I'm not sure how many hours) and the bonus content was a great size.
There is alot of "toing an froing" but I expect that in HOG/Adventure games.
My only complaint is the music. It is so repetitive that I had to turn it off after about 10 minutes.
I felt the game was worth the CE price, but for those that don't want to purchase the CE I think you will be very happy with the SE.
Happy gaming
It took me all afternoon to complete the game (sorry I'm not sure how many hours) and the bonus content was a great size.
There is alot of "toing an froing" but I expect that in HOG/Adventure games.
My only complaint is the music. It is so repetitive that I had to turn it off after about 10 minutes.
I felt the game was worth the CE price, but for those that don't want to purchase the CE I think you will be very happy with the SE.
Happy gaming
I recommend this game!