These developers have returned to the formula for success, bringing back the excitement and great adventure of The Void and Raincliff! When I did the Beta Test I knew something wonderful awaited.
The richness of the music, the clarity and beauty in the graphics, the flawless gameplay and extraordinary fun and mystery of the story took my breath away. Mystery Trackers: Train to Hellswich is a surefire contender for Game of the Year!
This is a busy game, with lots of collectibles and morphing objects to find, items to assemble and repair, and puzzles to solve. The HOPs are lists of items and silhouettes, interactive and just challenging enough in my books.
The voice acting is superb and the cutscenes are very entertaining and move the plot forward effortlessly. In my opinion, this is the best game I have seen so far this year and I highly recommend you give it a try.
After experiencing the opening scene, I had to step out for a moment and check to see if this game was a CE!
The high quality visuals and voice acting caught my attention straight away and as the unique story line unfolded, I was hooked! Boy, I thought my boss was bad! (just joking, Boss, if you are reading this)
The HO scenes are well done and not too difficult, with some tasks to complete and items to use together to reveal all objects. Some of the animation is really put together nicely!
The puzzles are mostly the usual fare with lights to connect and matching characters, though still a bit tricky to complete. Some take quite a bit of thought.
Other reviewers have talked about the plot and did so with great finesse, so I won't bother to rehash, except to say, this is something new, fresh, innovative, and definitely an exciting adventure!
I just purchased Mind Snares: Alice's Journey and it has finished downloading. I have already received some nice Achievements, but I think I will start again with a new profile so as not to miss a single thing!
Try the Demo folks. This SE will certainly surprise you!
This review is based on the Demo...I write as I download the full version.
Order of the Light: The Deathly Artisan is a joy to my eyes, ears and mind. The artwork, cut scenes and voiceovers are brilliantly executed. Puzzles are challenging but not mind-numbing and hidden object scenes are easy enough with some animated 'tasks' to complete to find some items.
One thing a bit different from the usual fare in recent months is the scoring of points for completing objectives and finding collectibles, of which there are many sets to discover. I actually found myself trying not to use a hint during the Demo in order to get the highest points allowed! Points don't normally matter in a HOG, at least to me, but I was striving to work harder in this game to take my time and focus more on the tasks at hand.
The story line is a familiar one, with a nasty entity accidently let loose during a renovation and now it is wreaking havoc amongst the towns people. After all, there only so many basic plots! But this one, in my opinion, catches your interest immediately and engages your investigative skills to the utmost.
You are the detective assigned to the case and you are given a handy-dandy ghost catcher to help you along the way. Discover who the stranger, accompanied by a mysterious swirl of smoke, is who seems to be following you around the town. Collect finger prints, small statues, cards and sea creatures, to name a few of the extras offered in this true Collectors' Edition!
I will not go further into the story details, beautiful music, and detailed landscapes, as I don't want to spoil any of the delightful surprise you will see for yourself when you try Order of the Light: The Deathly Artisan...
My game has finished installing. I must return to Smalltown to help the poor citizens!
I had the pleasure of Beta testing this game about six months ago and since then have played it again several times. I am excited to see it here today! This review is based on the demo.
The story line is the tale of Captain William's poor wife Isabella, who seems to have faded away and disappeared mysteriously. While apparently the Captain fought many pirates over the years, his body is found washed up on shore, dressed as a pirate and sporting a hook where one of his hands had been.
I found the artwork and graphics to be top-notch and the music suits the theme extremely well. On Casual mode the hint refills quickly and will also lead you in the right direction by telling you to check out an area. The narrator's voice was excellent and you had the option to skip if you chose.
I found finding the gold coins somewhat difficult and a novel approach to gain access to items you need instead of always looking for keys. The mini puzzles were fun and not too mind-racking for me.
The hidden object scenes had some great animation and were cleverly tucked into nook and crannies. Some found items had to be added to others to make them into one thing to use in your quest.
All in all I have to say I heartily recommend Legacy Tales: Mercy of the Gallows.
Lost Tales : Forgotten Souls seems at first glance to be just an average, run-of-the-mill Standard Edition HOPA game with an old story-line. After about 30 minutes of the Demo, I took a break for breakfast, but kept thinking about this game.
When I got back into it, I turned up the music and started paying more attention to details. The music is extraordinarily good, the pure notes and melody taking on a world of atmosphere and adding an edge to the story that seemed slightly lacking. An edge of despair and sadness coupled with a hauntingly chilling aspect. Superb!
The animation that is in some of the scenes and the HO's are clever and a bit different and purely delightful. The Hint system is quick to fill if you need it. The mini puzzles are easy but enjoyable. Sometimes I think simple is better and this time it is magical...
While I do like voiceovers, there is not too much reading and the story flows along quite well on it's own. As the game continues, I find the graphics better and the story becoming more detailed and engrossing.
What a pleasant way to start the weekend! A definite buy for me!
After playing the demo I was surprised to find that I really did not care what happened next...
Purple/magenta used to be one of my favourite colours, but with so much of it everywhere I looked, it rather sickened me.
I found the plot boring, the characters lackluster, the quest contrived and the graphics cartoonish.
While reading the other reviews here I was starting to think that I had played a different game. Am I becoming jaded after playing so many HOGs? I am asking myself, do I need morphing/beyond objects, achievements, superb graphics and voice overs?
My answer is no, not at all, as I gave 'Wizard's Curse' 4 stars because it was a gripping tale and plenty of fun, with nothing special about it and it was extremely short! And I found 'Shadows: Price for our Sins', another SE, to be loads of fun and great graphics and story-line!
Is there a magic formula for developers to use while creating PC games of this genre? I think there must be...and it is certainly missing here...
A wizard's curse is simply lovely to behold, with wonderful artwork and enchanting music! The narrative was superb and all the while I kept thinking I recognized the voice actor's work.
The hidden object scenes were very well done with items quite cleverly disguised and challenging, although there was no interaction or tasks to complete before finding the objects. The puzzles were not too difficult and easily skipped if desired, though little or no instruction was offered.
There was definitely a lot of back-tracking involved and no map, but the game play area wasn't that large. I didn't get lost! I am sure most of us are, by now, familiar with how to mix potions and solvents and the recipes were not too detailed to follow,
My only negative comment would be that this game is much too short, at just around two hours taking it at a leisurely pace. But I will likely play it again next year!
All in all, it was an enjoyable couple of hours on a cloudy morning!
After only twenty-two minutes I found myself completely enthralled and gripping my mouse in anticipation! I am downloading the full version as I write,
With a story line that flows along seamlessly, and graphics that are beautifully creepy and deeply engrossing, I have been swept into Laura's dream world in order to save her from her dreadful nightmares. I can only hope I am up to the task!
Dreamscapes: Sandman is an exciting adventure with so many things to seek out and do that even an avid Hogster like me can stop searching for crowbars, butterflies and mice for a few hours!
Like many fellow reviewers have said, watch out developers who are on our 'usual suspects' list, there's a new name in town offering achievements, friendly critter helpers and strange, creepy little eyeball creatures hidden all over the place in an SE.
I think I've died and gone to Heaven! Thank you...thank you...thank you...
This review is based on the one-hour free trial. It is a definite buy for me!
What can I say? For me, this game has it all...beautiful graphics, achievements, morphing objects to find, HOs that are not too easy, and lots of interactive tasks to complete!
The music is great and non-intrusive, voice-overs are very well done, there is a map, a journal, and the Hint system will send you in the right direction!
I am very excited about Keepers: The Order's Last Secret and I look forward to hours of pure enjoyment from these devs once again!
Unravel the mystery of Griffin’s strange experiment in this suspenseful hidden object game and find your beloved scientist before he disappears for good!
"The Invisible Man", written by H.G. Wells was published in 1897 and tells the story of the scientist named Griffen who experimented with optics. He was successful in making himself invisible, but could not reverse the results.
This game is set in the right era, 1899 Victorian England and the costumes, background, music, etc are excellent. While the HO scenes are rather dark, I didn't find them inpossible and rarely had to use the Hint, which fills up quickly.
I liked catching the phantoms which served to assist in the HOs by providing a visual hint! The game cursor was hesitant, but the system cursor worked just fine.
All in all I found this game wonderfully drawn with just the right amount of drama and suspense.
I purchased it after playing the entire Demo because I was having so much fun!
I would give this game 4.5 stars, but rather than go back to 4, I felt it deserved more!