bobbysian23's Profile
Stat Summary
- Average Rating:3.9
- Helpful Votes:475
- Reviews Submitted:78
- First Review:December 30, 2011
- Most Recent Review:January 28, 2022
- Featured reviews0
Status:
It should have been a tremendous achievement, but the tunnel through the Ridge of Leviathan became the site of a great disaster. What really happened that day?
Overall rating
4
/
5
1 of 1 found this review helpful
Surface: The Pantheon
PostedSeptember 27, 2013
bobbysian23
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Hidden Object, Large File, Puzzle
Fun Factor
4
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
4
/
5
Level of Challenge
4
/
5
Storyline
4
/
5
Just finished playing the demo and I will definitely buy this game.
A train carrying your husband and daughter goes missing after entering a strange tunnel. After a year, you go investigating to see if you can find them. The opening scenes are nice and quite dramatic. Felt quite drawn in already after just watching that.
The graphics as always are very good, but not quite so in the cut scenes; they go a bit fuzzy then. There are voice-overs plus subtitles, however the mouths don't move when there's talking.
I came across about 3-4 HOS in the demo which in my opinion is a good amount. You don't get a HOS in every location and I like that. I don't enjoy games where there's HOS in every location. It just gets boring and interupts the game play. So looks like the game is not cluttered with HOS which is good news! Puzzles are scattered aswell and range in difficulty; although didn't come across any that were very difficult.
There's notes, tasks, a lockable inventory (a must for me!) and the usual hint and skip buttons, plus three modes of difficulty. There are also flowers to collect; so far I've found about 2 or 3 in every location.
I would have given this game 5 stars had it not been for the excessive cut scenes and dialogue! Certainly in the demo, every time you move locations, there's a cut scene and more talking. I really hope that doesn't happen all the way through!
All in all, I'm looking forward to getting started again.
I recommend this game!
Nightmares from the Deep: The Siren's Call Collector's Edition
Face off against Davy Jones and his nightmares from the deep!
Overall rating
4
/
5
3 of 4 found this review helpful
Review of completed game
PostedAugust 10, 2013
bobbysian23
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Hidden Object, Large File, Puzzle
Fun Factor
5
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
4
/
5
Level of Challenge
3
/
5
Storyline
5
/
5
Nice sequel to The Cursed Heart. You must save a mermaid from an evil mayor of a town which has been cursed by Davy Jones. Help her lover in the battle to save her from the mayor's clutches!
Main points to note:
- Three modes of difficulty (can be changed in game)
- Clear and colorful graphics
- Good voice-overs, however one person did the voice of about 4 different characters which was unrealistic in my view)
- Map showing available actions
- Lockable inventory (important to me!)
- Some new and fun mini-games, not too difficult
- Fun HOS but too many in my opinion
- Too many cut-scenes (interrupted gameplay too much)
- Nice amount of Collectables and Achievements (19 octopi, 18 parrots, 7 seahorses - each has a different way of collecting, i.e. parrots were morphing, seahorses were hidden and you had to perform an action for them to appear - nice touch!)
- Average length, found the Bonus chapter very short though.
- Three modes of difficulty (can be changed in game)
- Clear and colorful graphics
- Good voice-overs, however one person did the voice of about 4 different characters which was unrealistic in my view)
- Map showing available actions
- Lockable inventory (important to me!)
- Some new and fun mini-games, not too difficult
- Fun HOS but too many in my opinion
- Too many cut-scenes (interrupted gameplay too much)
- Nice amount of Collectables and Achievements (19 octopi, 18 parrots, 7 seahorses - each has a different way of collecting, i.e. parrots were morphing, seahorses were hidden and you had to perform an action for them to appear - nice touch!)
- Average length, found the Bonus chapter very short though.
All in all, a good fun game, and the story was left open again for another possible sequel!?
I recommend this game!
Namariel Legends: Iron Lord
Escape prison, defeat an army of mechanical soldiers and destroy the Iron Lord’s dark power!
Overall rating
5
/
5
5 of 5 found this review helpful
Review of completed game
PostedJune 18, 2013
bobbysian23
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Hidden Object, Large File, Puzzle
Fun Factor
4
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
4
/
5
Level of Challenge
3
/
5
Storyline
4
/
5
Really enjoyed playing this game. I nearly missed it as it wasn't advertised as the newly released game that day so I'm glad I looked back at the recently released games!
To be honest, I've turned my back to 'machine' type games before as I find them quite silly, but this story I really liked. Without giving too much away about the story, a kingdom has basically been taken over by the Iron Lord and his army of machines and robots. The opening scenes are good and had me interested.
You meet quite a few characters throughout your travels; your uncle is one of the main characters who is with you on the journey, plus his pet which looks like half squirrel, half cat. Very cute though! And also there's Jim! Loved Jim; he is your uncle's own creation; a tiny little flying robot. He accompanies you throughout the game and helps you at hard to reach areas, etc.
One thing I noticed quickly was that there's no HO scenes. A plus in my book! Even though I do enjoy games with HOS, they do tend to get boring sometimes, especially when you can't find something. It completely distracts from the main game. So no HOS was a bonus for me.
Puzzles were quite easy I must admit. I didn't skip any and that's a first! Although I still enjoyed them as the game contained a lot of my personal favorite types of game. Fun game like puzzles, rather than mega hard frustrating 'pull your hair out' mind benders!
The Hint button was very helpful. Gives you directions of which scene to go to if you get stuck and then highlights the area within that scene where you have a task to perform. There is no map however I didn't really find that I needed it as there isn't much going backwards and forwards.
It's a great adventure game for those who prefer more inventory based puzzles and not HO scenes. Its a shame there's no CE as I wasn't ready for it to end and could have easily played for longer. Saying that though, the game is not short by any means. I played for about 3-4 hours, which I would say is average for a SE game.
Definitely recommended.
I recommend this game!
Return to the House of 1,000 Doors to save mankind from annihilation!
Overall rating
5
/
5
1 of 2 found this review helpful
REVIEW OF COMPLETED GAME
PostedJune 13, 2013
bobbysian23
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Hidden Object, Large File, Puzzle
Fun Factor
4
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
4
/
5
Level of Challenge
4
/
5
Storyline
5
/
5
The third in the series and definitely my favourite. Same concept as the first two, but with increased activites. This time, with the help of the usual crew (Gabriel, little Sammy, etc), plus a handsome stranger, Kate has to save the world which is over-run by giant snakes!
So, the gameplay is the same as the first two. The main house as your base, and then four different worlds to track down missing artifacts. Each is a different time period, so lots of variety in locations which I loved!
The graphics are great; bright, well presented and clear. All the cut scenes are exciting. Voice-overs are ok, bit dramatic in places and I think the same person does the voice of two different characters!? Music I turned off as it annoyed me slightly; I prefer to just listen to background ambient sounds.
This game is definitely a good mixture of adventure, HOS and puzzles. Puzzles however were slightly easy; some were a bit more difficult but I found I was completing the puzzles very quickly in a lot of cases. HOS I liked; interactive and alternated between a list of items to collect, and then items which you had to place into the scene.
You have your usual Hint button in the main part, and then a Skip button for the puzzles. I didn't actually use the Hint button so not sure if it was of any use. You also had a map and notebook. Notebook was the usual recording of various events; not really useful to help you through the game. But the map was good, and allowed you to jump between locations which in this game was VERY beneficial as there was lots of going backwards and forwards between locations. The map also showed you which locations had a task to be completed which is helpful if you're not sure where to go next, and also showed you if you'd missed any morphing objects. Both these functions can be switched off though if you didn't want the extra help.
There's six chapters to play and then the bonus chapter. Two modes of gameplay. Sadly there were no achievements that I could find, but there were 40 morphing objects to collect. And then you have the usual Bonus content of extra gameplay, gallery, music, extra mini-games, etc.
Really enjoyed this game and love this series. Hope there will be more!
I recommend this game!
Dark Dimensions: City of Ash Collector's Edition
A dark dimension has fallen over Phoenix Hill, turning its residents into volcanic ash. Help them rise from the ashes.
Overall rating
4
/
5
1 of 1 found this review helpful
Better than the first two...but very short for a CE!
PostedJune 9, 2013
bobbysian23
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Hidden Object, Large File, Puzzle
Fun Factor
4
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
4
/
5
Level of Challenge
3
/
5
Storyline
4
/
5
In my opinion, this game is a vast improvement on the first two Dark Dimensions. I found the first two unplayable due to too many bad points, so I was pleased that I could play this and enjoy it all the way through.
Although this is yet another 'tragedy' game, I did like the story. It was your job to find out why 'Phoenix Hill' now has a Dark Dimension and to rid the town of it. All the inhabitants of the town are made up of ash, so that's quite creepy in itself.
This game was just so much easier to play and it didn't feel a chore. It was enjoyable and relaxed. I say relaxed mainly because it was quite easy. There are loads of puzzles and I only skipped two as they were slider puzzles which I just cannot tolerate because they are soooo frustrating! All other puzzles I solved easily.
There are more HOS than puzzles though and these again were quite easy. All were interactive and alternated between listed items to find and sillouettes of items to find. The listed items were also interactive so for example, one item was used to find another, etc, which made it a bit more interesting. However, sometimes it was difficult to figure out what to use each item you found on next.
The map was helpful, although because I found the gameplay fairly easy, I didn't refer to it much. It was interactive though and showed areas where things needed to be done. I like these types of maps as it helps a lot if you get stuck and don't know where to go next.
Voiceovers generally good, however you don't meet many characters. Just the main character, Audrey, who guides you and helps you along the way. Her, and the Dark Dimension himself and two other characters are all you encounter. Music didn't intrude on your gameplay too much. I usually turn the music off as it gets annoying but this music seemed to fit well with the game and I left it on in the background.
I was slightly disappointed that there weren't any Achievements that you tend to get in CE, but there were 15 golden animals to collect. Other than that, there was nothing else to obtain or collect.
The biggest disappointment for me though was how short this game is. I normally check the Guide after a while of playing to see how far I am through a game, and I was dismayed to find that after only 1.5 hours of playing I was already over half way through. The bonus content also is very short. So overall, it only took me about 3 hours to complete the main and bonus game. I find that very short for a CE game.
Nevertheless, the game is very enjoyable and I would recommend it.
I recommend this game!
Dreamscapes: The Sandman
Be the one to save Laura from her nightmares
Overall rating
4
/
5
1 of 1 found this review helpful
Loved the game, but way too short!
PostedMay 28, 2013
bobbysian23
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Hidden Object, Large File, Puzzle
Fun Factor
4
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
4
/
5
Level of Challenge
3
/
5
Storyline
4
/
5
Glad I gave this game a chance after reading some bad reviews as I mostly enjoyed it.
LIKES:
- Original story
- Achievements/collectables, despite only being a SE
- Cute cuddly helper called Benny!
- Smooth quick movement around scenes
- Colorful scenes
- Lots of different locations to visit rather than just one.
- NO HOS! (they can get boring)
- Puzzles increased in difficulty and some were original
- Good hint system
- Original story
- Achievements/collectables, despite only being a SE
- Cute cuddly helper called Benny!
- Smooth quick movement around scenes
- Colorful scenes
- Lots of different locations to visit rather than just one.
- NO HOS! (they can get boring)
- Puzzles increased in difficulty and some were original
- Good hint system
DISLIKES:
- Main villain has an annoying voice that kept pausing after every word like he was out of breath - irritating!
- Way too short! Only lasted about 2 hours.
- Didn't end properly - it's a 'To be continued' game.
- No map
- No notebook
- Main villain has an annoying voice that kept pausing after every word like he was out of breath - irritating!
- Way too short! Only lasted about 2 hours.
- Didn't end properly - it's a 'To be continued' game.
- No map
- No notebook
All in all, a good fun game, but not my favorite.
I recommend this game!
After discovering that the queen has been having a secret relationship you are sent away to Roanoke Island!
Overall rating
3
/
5
1 of 1 found this review helpful
OK, but not great....
PostedMay 27, 2013
bobbysian23
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Hidden Object, Large File, Puzzle
Fun Factor
4
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
3
/
5
Level of Challenge
2
/
5
Storyline
4
/
5
I was weary of this game, mainly because of some bad reviews, but I decided to try it for myself. Mostly enjoyed it, but there were too many bad points to give it anymore than 3 stars I'm afraid.
STORYLINE:
- A lot like the Midnight Mysteries series, where you had to perform tasks for ghosts to help them rest. This one was set in a Royal kingdom. The character you play is a hand-maiden to the Queen.
- I liked the story, but it felt a bit rushed in places. Some 'ghost tasks' were very short and you just found what they wanted in the next scene.
- A lot like the Midnight Mysteries series, where you had to perform tasks for ghosts to help them rest. This one was set in a Royal kingdom. The character you play is a hand-maiden to the Queen.
- I liked the story, but it felt a bit rushed in places. Some 'ghost tasks' were very short and you just found what they wanted in the next scene.
GAMEPLAY/GRAPHICS:
- Gameplay was smooth; and moved quickly between clicking scenes.
- Graphics were ok, I've seen better, but I've also seen worse. A bit grainy in places, but fairly colorful.
- Gameplay was smooth; and moved quickly between clicking scenes.
- Graphics were ok, I've seen better, but I've also seen worse. A bit grainy in places, but fairly colorful.
MUSIC/VOICEOVERS:
- Music I had to shut off unfortunately as it was annoying.
- No voiceovers, just dialogue to read at the bottom. Didn't like to be honest, it feels better when you can hear people speaking, rather than having to read huge pages of dialogue.
- Music I had to shut off unfortunately as it was annoying.
- No voiceovers, just dialogue to read at the bottom. Didn't like to be honest, it feels better when you can hear people speaking, rather than having to read huge pages of dialogue.
HOS/PUZZLES:
- Both were very easy!
- HOS were just lists of items, no interactive items.
- Puzzles were super easy, didn't spend more than 1-2 minutes on any of them. However, what I did like about the puzzles was that they were different and I'd not come across the puzzle types before in other games.
- Both were very easy!
- HOS were just lists of items, no interactive items.
- Puzzles were super easy, didn't spend more than 1-2 minutes on any of them. However, what I did like about the puzzles was that they were different and I'd not come across the puzzle types before in other games.
WHAT DO YOU GET?:
- Hint/skip buttons
- Two game modes
- No collectables/achievements, or extras
- Notebook
- Map (not interactive, but does help you if you get stuck)
- Hint/skip buttons
- Two game modes
- No collectables/achievements, or extras
- Notebook
- Map (not interactive, but does help you if you get stuck)
LENGTH:
- Not bad length for a SE; took me about 3 hours to complete. But to be honest, I was kinda glad when it finished, as it wasn't great.
- Not bad length for a SE; took me about 3 hours to complete. But to be honest, I was kinda glad when it finished, as it wasn't great.
I do recommend but only if you want an easy and casual few hours.
I recommend this game!
The lighthouse fails and darkness invades Willow Ridge. Your husband runs into the forest for answers, unaware of the shadow hunting him.
Overall rating
5
/
5
2 of 2 found this review helpful
Fantastic game!
PostedMay 22, 2013
bobbysian23
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Hidden Object, Large File, Puzzle
Fun Factor
5
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
4
/
5
Level of Challenge
4
/
5
Storyline
5
/
5
This is by far the best game I've played on here. Anyone who's given this game less than 4 stars has just completely failed to appreciate how much effort and detail has gone into this game!
GAMEPLAY/STORY:
- Loved the story. Normally the stories are the same and get boring, but this was just lovely and almost sad in places.
- Some similar gameplay to the first Rite of Passage, i.e. the little theatre shows that give you parts of the story as you go along.
- There were also two references to the first game whilst in one scene which I thought was a nice touch.
- I liked that some items you collected could be altered and changed into something else. Makes life a bit more interesting!
- As I said before, the attention to detail is brilliant! Just small things like flies crawling across the screen whilst in a dirty location, and if you click on house numbers, it tells you who lives there. Just small things like this show the developers have made an effort to provide an interesting game.
- Loved the story. Normally the stories are the same and get boring, but this was just lovely and almost sad in places.
- Some similar gameplay to the first Rite of Passage, i.e. the little theatre shows that give you parts of the story as you go along.
- There were also two references to the first game whilst in one scene which I thought was a nice touch.
- I liked that some items you collected could be altered and changed into something else. Makes life a bit more interesting!
- As I said before, the attention to detail is brilliant! Just small things like flies crawling across the screen whilst in a dirty location, and if you click on house numbers, it tells you who lives there. Just small things like this show the developers have made an effort to provide an interesting game.
MUSIC/VOICE-OVERS:
- Music was gorgeous! Normally I turn off the music within 5 minutes of playing a game as it gets annoying but this was beautiful. Lovely piano and orchestral tunes in each scene, quite haunting in places. Loved it.
- Voice overs were ok, bit dramatic in places but then it was quite a dramatic story I guess.
- Music was gorgeous! Normally I turn off the music within 5 minutes of playing a game as it gets annoying but this was beautiful. Lovely piano and orchestral tunes in each scene, quite haunting in places. Loved it.
- Voice overs were ok, bit dramatic in places but then it was quite a dramatic story I guess.
HOS/PUZZLES:
- HOS were fine, a tad on the easy side in places but that didn't bother me too much. Sometimes it spoils the game if you're stuck for ages on HOS.
- The HOS also changed from fragmented scenes, to the usual list to collect. And you had the usual interactive items where you have to perform an extra action to get something.
- Puzzles were good. Increased in difficulty as well, and you even got BOSS fights at the end. Nice touch!
- HOS were fine, a tad on the easy side in places but that didn't bother me too much. Sometimes it spoils the game if you're stuck for ages on HOS.
- The HOS also changed from fragmented scenes, to the usual list to collect. And you had the usual interactive items where you have to perform an extra action to get something.
- Puzzles were good. Increased in difficulty as well, and you even got BOSS fights at the end. Nice touch!
WHAT DO YOU GET?:
- Four modes of gameplay including a custom mode
- Notebook
- Map
- Hint/Skips buttons
- Lockable inventory bar
- 34 acorns to collect, and 11 morphing objects
- Large amount of Achievements organised into easy-hard
- Four modes of gameplay including a custom mode
- Notebook
- Map
- Hint/Skips buttons
- Lockable inventory bar
- 34 acorns to collect, and 11 morphing objects
- Large amount of Achievements organised into easy-hard
LENGTH:
- Length was actually shorter than the first game which I was surprised about. It took me 4hrs 20mins to finish the main game and bonus. The notebook shows you your gameplay time which I like.
- Length was actually shorter than the first game which I was surprised about. It took me 4hrs 20mins to finish the main game and bonus. The notebook shows you your gameplay time which I like.
I thoroughly enjoyed this game and I wouldn't hesitate in recommending.
I recommend this game!
After your student goes missing alongside several other children, it is up to you to solve the mystery of Everlake.
Overall rating
5
/
5
3 of 3 found this review helpful
Really enjoyed this game!
PostedMay 18, 2013
bobbysian23
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Hidden Object, Large File, Puzzle
Fun Factor
5
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
4
/
5
Level of Challenge
4
/
5
Storyline
4
/
5
I missed this game first time round but was alerted to it when the new Rite of Passage came out a couple of days ago. Can't believe I missed this game, it was great. I really loved it and was disappointed when it ended. Should have got the CE in hindsight.
Storeyline - 9/10
- Another kidnapping story, but a little different to usual.
- Another kidnapping story, but a little different to usual.
Gameplay/graphics - 7/10
- Gameplay was smooth and quick moving around scenes
- Graphics were ok, but not much movement on cutscenes
- Very large area to investigate - many places to go. Some not accessible until certain tasks have been completed.
- Gameplay was smooth and quick moving around scenes
- Graphics were ok, but not much movement on cutscenes
- Very large area to investigate - many places to go. Some not accessible until certain tasks have been completed.
Music/voice overs - 5/10
- Music I cannot comment on as I always switch it off.
- Not much talking as you don't meet many characters.
- Music I cannot comment on as I always switch it off.
- Not much talking as you don't meet many characters.
HOS/Puzzles - 8/10
- HOS were quite good. Junk piles but not too cluttered.
- It ranged in difficulty. Some items easy to find, some not!
- The sound when you found an object got on my nerves!
- Not many puzzles throughout the game.
- HOS were quite good. Junk piles but not too cluttered.
- It ranged in difficulty. Some items easy to find, some not!
- The sound when you found an object got on my nerves!
- Not many puzzles throughout the game.
Challenge - 9/10
- Even on casual, it ranged in difficulty.
- Some Hidden objects were easy, some were tiny!
- Lots of moving around the different areas. Have to think sometimes where to go next. Not just easy going from one thing to the next in order.
- Even on casual, it ranged in difficulty.
- Some Hidden objects were easy, some were tiny!
- Lots of moving around the different areas. Have to think sometimes where to go next. Not just easy going from one thing to the next in order.
What do you get - 8/10
- Note book, just held notes and objectives. No real hints.
- No map
- Good to see some collectables in a SE. 55 masks to find.
- Usual hint and skip buttons with decent hints if required.
- Note book, just held notes and objectives. No real hints.
- No map
- Good to see some collectables in a SE. 55 masks to find.
- Usual hint and skip buttons with decent hints if required.
Length - 10/10
- Perfect length for me. Long game for a SE.
- Took me just under 4 hours to complete.
- The time taken is also logged in your note book.
- Perfect length for me. Long game for a SE.
- Took me just under 4 hours to complete.
- The time taken is also logged in your note book.
Thoroughly recommended and now downloading the sequel!
I recommend this game!
What dark and powerful secrets are hidden within the A.R.C.A.N.E. agency's old research base? Kiera Vale returns to find out.
Overall rating
3
/
5
0 of 3 found this review helpful
Not for me
PostedJanuary 27, 2013
bobbysian23
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Hidden Object, Large File, Puzzle
Fun Factor
3
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
3
/
5
Storyline
3
/
5
Don't have an awful lot to say about this game, except thank goodness I used a free game coupon to buy it as I really didn't enjoy it.
The graphics and game-play are very basic and I got a little bored. There are no HO scenes and I was put off by how difficult the majority of the puzzles were. I'm not playing these games to spend half an hour stuck on a puzzle just randomly clicking in the hope it will solve itself. I ended up skipping most of them just to get on with the game!
However I did like the inventory based puzzles and figuring out where to use items. I also liked that you had to read documents and emails, etc, to find codes and solutions to get through doors and stuff.
Overall though, the game frustrated me and I actually started skipping all the puzzles and using hints if I got stuck, just to get to the end.
This game just wasn't for me I'm afraid.
I don't recommend this game.