StuMotor's Profile
Stat Summary
- Average Rating:3.6
- Helpful Votes:650
- Reviews Submitted:12
- First Review:November 15, 2011
- Most Recent Review:November 8, 2013
- Featured reviews0
Status:
The rich folklore continues with this exciting tale set in an old Slavic land. As Child of Spring, can you save the world from eternal winter?
Overall rating
1
/
5
109 of 145 found this review helpful
Not a Game, but an Interactive Story
PostedNovember 8, 2013
StuMotor
fromMyst Island
Skill Level:Expert
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Hidden Object
Fun Factor
1
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
4
/
5
Level of Challenge
1
/
5
Storyline
1
/
5
First of all, this is not a review. A review should only be written by someone who plays the entire game. I wish to only post my thoughts for Big Fish (because it seems they are giving the game developers suggestions as to what we gamers might like) and to encourage the designers of this game to keep on trying.
I was so disappointed when I played the trial version of this story. It really isn't a game; it is an interactive story. The player isn't invited to adventure and solve puzzles. The player simply clicks his way through the story. I kept thinking, "Okay, the game is going to ask me to adventure pretty soon. There's got to be a challenge up ahead." But, sadly, no. Even your little helper is smarter than you are: need a screwdriver? Give the little critter a stick and he makes one for you. There are multiple scenes where you only click on one thing and that's all there is to be done in that scene. For example, in one scene, you are faced with getting passed ice bees. You only have one thing in your inventory: an invisibility cloak (that someone just gives you), so you put it on and the bees go away and the scene is over. That's it; nothing more to do, nothing to solve.
Big Fish: we need a new category besides "games"; we need something like "interactive story", where the player simply clicks his way through the story.
Game Developer: this is not a five-star game as some have said. There is no challenge - no game - here. Give us puzzles to solve, environmental challenges to overcome, adventure to be had. There is nothing wrong with failing; just keep on trying and improving.
One last piece of advice to the reader. My evaluations of games are often contrary to popular opinion. If I love a game, many others hate it or think it is very average. If I don't like a game, many others love it and think it is the greatest thing since sliced bread. So, if I don't like this game, there is a good chance you will. I, on the other hand, am going to save my money for the next fun game.
I don't recommend this game.
Journey down a magical road to save two worlds!
Overall rating
5
/
5
14 of 16 found this review helpful
Wonderful Game
PostedNovember 2, 2013
StuMotor
fromMyst Island
Skill Level:Expert
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Hidden Object
Fun Factor
5
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
5
/
5
Storyline
5
/
5
This is a great game: bright, colorful graphics, classic storyline (good versus evil) told in a new way, and the gameplay is inviting, inventive, and fun. I knew I was going to buy the game from the opening scene: that's the first time I have seen a tractor crash start a game. And then, to top off that brilliant moment, the driver turns into a tree. That made me smile. The puzzles in this game are unique and the adventuring (where to go and what to do next) made me think. Blam did a great job of developing this game: someone out there is listening to players' desires and wishes, and this game really shows it. This is a five star game in my book all the way. Thanks Blam for the great game, and thanks BF for getting it to us.
I recommend this game!
Is it just a high fever or something much worse? One doctor's house call is about to become an investigation!
Overall rating
2
/
5
94 of 125 found this review helpful
Cliche Game
PostedJanuary 2, 2013
StuMotor
fromMyst Island
Skill Level:Expert
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Hidden Object
Fun Factor
2
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
1
/
5
Storyline
3
/
5
This game is in the running for two annual awards: 1) The game with the most back-tracking, and 2) The game with the most cliche puzzles and tasks.
1. I can deal with back-tracking; in fact, in some cases, in can be fun and rewarding. However, there is so much of it in this game that it becomes hard to remember where you are to use an inventory item once you find it. Within the first hour of play, I can remember four locations that you need to return to over and over and over again because you find only one piece of the puzzle at a time. There is just way too much back-tracking in this game.
2. Within the first hour of play, I did not encounter one single original puzzle. Every puzzle you and I have ever solved in previous games is repeated here, not just once, but many times. The developers merely copied puzzles from other games. Let me give you just some examples: upholstered furniture that needs to be cut to get something inside, drawer or door without a handle (multiple times), statue that holds an item you need but won't release it until you give it something (2 times so far), an animal that has something you need but won't give it up until you feed it (3 times so far), dark places that you can't explore until you place a light source (2 times so far), something rusty that needs oil, locks without keys (many times), an item you need but can't take until you find another piece such as a hammer without its head or handle, thread without a needle, half a pruner, etc. (many times), a spider web that needs to be swept away, a pile of leaves that needs a rake, something stuck in a crack but you can't take without a tool (several times so far), a plant that needs water that instantly grows and blooms once you water it, something to be dug up, slider puzzles (which I detest), blah, blah, blah, blah, blah.
This game doesn't have an ounce of originality. I, for one, am not supporting these kind of games with a purchase. A lot of you are going to like this game because of the graphics, but I buy games for the adventure, the challenge, and the discovery. This game has none of that.
I don't recommend this game.
When your daughter, Emily, is taken over by a mysterious force, you must travel to the Nightmare Realm to search for a cure. But nothing could have prepared you for what you find there…
Overall rating
5
/
5
7 of 10 found this review helpful
Game of the Year!
PostedDecember 30, 2012
StuMotor
fromMyst Island
Skill Level:Expert
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Hidden Object
Fun Factor
5
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
5
/
5
Storyline
5
/
5
Forget the recently announced games of the year: this is THE game of the year. I was going to write a long, detailed review of this game, but it ended up being too long. If you're reading this right now, you're wasting time: buy the game and play it.
I've been a member of Big Fish for a long time and my list of games purchased is quite long, but I haven't played a game this good in just about as long as my membership.
Visuals: outstanding
Game-play: excellent
Puzzles: wonderful
Length of Game: bountiful
Story: entertaining
CE edition: worth it, finally! It's been a long time since I said that.
Game-play: excellent
Puzzles: wonderful
Length of Game: bountiful
Story: entertaining
CE edition: worth it, finally! It's been a long time since I said that.
Thanks to the developers and to Big Fish.
I recommend this game!
Find out who stole your magic animals, and reveal the secret of the Dark Minotaur.
Overall rating
4
/
5
135 of 151 found this review helpful
Too Good To Be So Short
PostedDecember 27, 2012
StuMotor
fromMyst Island
Skill Level:Expert
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Hidden Object
Fun Factor
4
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
4
/
5
Storyline
5
/
5
This is a review of the completed game.
It is beautiful, inventive, and fun. I really liked the game-play involving animals and how they help you. So, why didn't I rate the game a five? I gave it a four for two reasons.
1. The game is way too short. I expect much more game-play from a Collector's Edition. Maybe it was because the game was so fun that I found it to be too short. I wanted it to go on for another couple of hours at least. If you're wondering, it took me about two hours to complete the game, including the bonus chapter. To me, that is way too short.
2. I can tell you right now that if you decide to wait for the standard version of this game, you will find that the game doesn't resolve the story, and you will be missing out on some of the game's most fun moments involving the animals. I don't think it is really fair to those who can't afford the price of the CE to miss out on so much.
If you can deal with the short length, you will like this game.
I recommend this game!
A disastrous avalanche... an evacuation... did anyone survive? The ski trip you've dreamed of for so long turns into a nightmare.
Overall rating
1
/
5
18 of 21 found this review helpful
Not Up To My ERS Standard
PostedDecember 8, 2012
StuMotor
fromMyst Island
Skill Level:Expert
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Hidden Object
Fun Factor
1
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
3
/
5
Level of Challenge
1
/
5
Storyline
1
/
5
I have to weigh in just in case ERS is reading these reviews. This game is a HUGE disappointment to me, a loyal ERS fan and someone who has purchased all their previous games. This game is, in a word, annoying.
Annoyance #1: the little animal that keeps popping up. If it played into the puzzle structure, it might be okay. However, this isn't cute; it's annoying.
Annoyance #2: the constant interruptions by characters. As soon as you find an object to use and are on your way to the puzzle location, you're blocked by a character with something stupid to say. Give me a stun gun and I'll take care of those characters' constant interruptions. Boom! Now that would be fun.
Annoyance #3: the cursor constantly turns into a question mark wherever you point it because the game has a comment about everything. This isn't helpful. It just adds to the disappointment of "O, I found a puzzle or something useful; NOT" This is the first time I can remember that ERS put items in the game that can be manipulated but aren't a puzzle or lead to anything useful.
Annoyance #4: the puzzles are boring and cliche. How many times do we have to give an animal some food just to get it to stop guarding an inventory item. Same old drill: find a hammer that only pounds nails but doesn't pull them (who has a hammer like that!), go to a door without a handle, pull something closer that is just out of reach, etc., etc., blah, blah, blah.
So, I end up with my first ERS game that I won't buy. I will wait to see what happens with the next one. I'm still with you ERS, but you let me down with this annoying game.
I don't recommend this game.
Only Amy, the 13th zodiac sign, can free the zodiac children's souls from the Dark Lord.
Overall rating
5
/
5
1 of 2 found this review helpful
Excellent for Adventurers
PostedNovember 30, 2012
StuMotor
fromMyst Island
Skill Level:Expert
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Hidden Object
Fun Factor
5
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
5
/
5
Storyline
5
/
5
I really liked this game. You get a lot for your money: this standard edition game has more puzzles than two or three collectors editions. I hope the developers make more games for us.
I recommend this game!
Olivia has been kidnapped by the mysterious Lonely Hearts Killer who murders those suffering from a shattered love. Save her!
Overall rating
1
/
5
68 of 94 found this review helpful
Be Warned: Mostly Dialog
PostedNovember 19, 2012
Fun Factor
1
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
4
/
5
Level of Challenge
1
/
5
Storyline
1
/
5
I cannot believe that this thing is getting five star ratings. I say "thing" because to call this a game is a huge stretch. This is more of an experience of you watching animated characters act out an old fashioned who-done-it. I will give you two facts to help you determine if you will like this "game."
1. This is mostly dialog. It is a one gigabyte download and most of that is dialog. You sit and listen to characters talk for long stretches of time; then they stop talking and you get to do a couple of things; then the characters start talking again. What's worse is that you can't even skip through the dialog line by line: it's either listen to the whole thing or skip the whole speech. How bad is it really? It's so bad that some of the chapters of the story are ENTIRELY dialog. That's right: you don't do anything except sit, watch, and listen. Not a game by my definition.
2. The few puzzles in the game aren't really puzzling. It's just token fiddling with stuff. In fact, my young son was watching me work through one of the "puzzles" and he chuckled and said, "You call THAT a puzzle?" It's pathetic.
This was a total waste of the cost of a CE "game." If I could get a refund, I would. The only restitution is to warn others. If you don't like dialog in your games, you will hate this thing.
I don't recommend this game.
Investigating her parents’ deaths, Edwina rekindles a centuries old tale of love and revenge. End the curse of the severed heart!
Overall rating
5
/
5
57 of 63 found this review helpful
One of My Current Top Ten Games
PostedNovember 19, 2011
Fun Factor
5
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
5
/
5
If you have stumbled across this game, please give it a try. The graphics are glorious, the story is cool, and the puzzles are fun. In fact, this game has puzzles that I haven't seen in any other game: very creative and challenging. This is a sweetheart of a game.
I recommend this game!
Set off on an adventure and help your professor with a mysterious discovery in Tearstone, a fun Hidden Object game!
Overall rating
5
/
5
83 of 87 found this review helpful
One of My Current Top Ten Games
PostedNovember 19, 2011
Fun Factor
5
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
5
/
5
This is a game that you will either hate or love. I happen to love it. For each chapter you get a pictorial list of what you have to find and use. At the end of each chapter you will have used all your current inventory so that you start fresh for each chapter. I like that. The locations and challenges are unique and very creative. This is a great game. I wish the developer would make more like it.
I recommend this game!