This "Top Reviewer" is one of our most frequent game reviewers. We think you'll trust what they have to say and find their reviews helpful and informative.
This "Top Reviewer" is one of our most frequent game reviewers. We think you'll trust what they have to say and find their reviews helpful and informative.
I wasn't crazy about the castles on this edition of Jewel Match, but the Match 3 levels are very addicting. It's one of those games where you just keep telling yourself, "I'll just play one more level before I get some actual work done" but six levels later you are still saying the same thing!
One thing's for sure, Suricate never skimps on Collector's Edition Extra's so if possible, you may want to consider that version which has all the bling you could ask for because they go above and beyond to give you way more than you are expecting. You get 3 extra Jigsaw Quests (after completing the Main Quests) 8 Music Soundtracks, 6 extra Cursor options, 6 extra Hidden Object Games, 3 extra Castles, the Making Of (really interesting concepts) Achievements, 15 Butterfly Levels, 14 Pearl Levels, and 10 Bonus Game Levels to unlock.
You can choose to play in a Timed Mode, a Limited Moves Mode, or a Relaxed Mode. Then you get to choose to play whichever type you selected, in a Normal or Advanced difficulty mode!
Each level has several "rooms" to complete, when one room is cleared, you click on the arrows to visit the next room. If you have time remaining after completing a level, you can either continue to the next level or go to the previous rooms and search for bonus items or earn more gold, etc. Gold and Silver Coins that appear can be collected with a single click (they will disappear after a brief amount of time) and Bags of Coins must be dropped off of the board to collect by making matches under them. The Coins earned can be used to purchase Shop Item upgrades of power-ups, Special Pieces are collected by dropping off the board as well, and they are used to purchase decorations such as Statues, Flowers, and Animals, Amulets are dropped off the board and they are used to purchase Castle Sections.
Large matches will reward you with power-ups, such as a Match 4 gives you a Joker Gem that can be matched with any tiles, and a Match 5 or more, awards you with an Arrow that clears rows, columns, cross formations, etc. There are Moving Bombs that strengthen with each move, Stomper Boxes that unravel with a hammer to stomp 3 different tiles, and even Atomic Tiles that turn tiles matched near them into atomic explosives.
The object is to clear all gold cells by making matches over them. Some items require you to make matches under the items such as keys until they fall off the board. Mana Bottles must be collected to cast spells, and Treasure Chests can be upgraded to hold a greater number of tiles, because once full, other tiles collected will go unused. (larger chests can be purchased in the Shop)
There are various obstacles such as Wooden Crates, Chains, Double Chains, Dark Fog, Amber Trapped tiles, Arrows that move tiles along the arrowed paths, and even Safe tiles that require a specified number of matches made next to them, according to the number inside. As you progress you will unlock Puzzle Rooms that don't allow power-ups and the goal is to catch the Butterfly. You will also unlock Pearl Rooms to gather pearls to purchase bonus mini-games. These levels are always available and won't restart unless you restart the entire game.
I love that we're finally getting some decent Match 3 games! Thank you Big Fish and Thank you SS and our fellow Pondie for another wonderful Jewel Match 3 game!
JEWEL MATCH 3 SERIES LIST Title***Standard Edition Release Date***Average Rating
1-Jewel Match 1 SE only (March 14-2007) 4.1 2-Jewel Match 2 SE only (March 11-2009) 4.3 *Jewel Match 2 Reloaded SE only (July 20-2015) 4.4 3-Jewel Match 3 SE only (April 13-2011) 4.3 4-Jewel Match 4 SE only (June 16-2016) 3.9 5-Jewel Match Origins: Palais Imperial SE (October 4-2020) n/a
I WAS TEETERING ON THE FENCE WITH MY RATING BUT...(☆4.5☆)
PostedOctober 3, 2020
pennmom36
fromAn old woman offered 9 books of prophecies to the King of Rome who declined b/c of the exorbitant price, she burned 3 & offered 6 books, he refused she burned 3 more. The King relented,The books were kept @Temple of Jupiter & consulted only 4 emergencies
This "Top Reviewer" is one of our most frequent game reviewers. We think you'll trust what they have to say and find their reviews helpful and informative.
Hermes: Sibyls' Prophecy has a new developer who has only created a few games, so I decided to push my star rating to 5-Stars rather than bump it down to 4-stars when I was teetering on the fence :) I wasn't crazy about the whole puffy cloud-scenario and the game seems to be very similar to the last Hermes as far as features and tasks, but it has some good strategies and you know how I love my Roman & Greek mythology!
You can play in a Relaxed (untimed) Mode, Novice, or Expert Mode of difficulty over 50 Main Levels (+ 20 CE Bonus Levels) with 36 Achievement Trophies to earn. The Collector's Edition "Extra's" also includes 9 Music Soundtracks, 8 Concept Art Pictures, 7 Collectibles, and a Strategy Guide.
Olive Trees and Olive Groves are the main sources of food, and the Olive Groves can even be upgraded! There are the normal TM tasks of clearing paths, collecting caches of jewels, repairing chariots, repairing bridges, mining stone, and gold, etc. and as you progress you will build, repair, and upgrade Banks for gold, Forges for weapons, Quarries for stone, or Sawmills for wood, hire more workers, and trade with vendors at the Market.
Because Hermes is on a mission to prove to his father Zeus, that the sibyl prophecy is coming to fruition, he is gathering allies, one god at a time. Each level requires restoring the god's statue, therefore that god joins forces with Hermes and brings to the table a new ability (Artemis can create a path of clouds for example)
Each level has a Hidden pile of Crates that are filled with various resources such as food and supplies and you may come across Feathers that will Increase the Power of the Gods. You will earn up to 3-Stars per level (3-stars are earned automatically in the Relaxed Mode) and those stars are used to rebuild the Acropolis which was damaged after the invasion of enemy armies. Each construction will give you a different type of booster, and each building can be upgraded to make the booster more powerful by a percentage:
ACROPOLIS BOOSTERS *you don't have to wait on the upgrades to complete, just keep playing it will automatically apply when complete*
•Erechtheum: makes workers run faster •Parthenon: makes Hermes run faster. (must upgrade altar of the gods to level 1 first) •Temple of Nike: makes workers work faster. •Propylaea: makes Hermes 10% faster. •Statue of Ares: Areas defeats enemies 10% faster. •Shrine of Zeus: reduces the cost of temples. •Erechtheum: makes workers run faster. •Altar of the Gods: reduces the cost of repairing altars. (must upgrade the temple of Nike to level 2 first) •Sacrad Fire: reduces the cost of repairing the Academy of •Ares. (must upgrade Erechtheum to level 2 first)
HERMES SERIES LIST Title***Collector's Edition Release Date***Average Rating
1-Rescue Mission SE only (May 07-2019) 4.2 2-War of the Gods (January 18-2020) 4.7 3-Sibyls' Prophecy (October 3-2020) n/a
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Completed Game approximately 5.5 hours (including completion of all mini-games & CE Bonus Chapter) 24 Main Game Scene Locations +12 Bonus Chapter Difficulty Range: Beginner-Intermediate
I keep my study room locked, the key is locked safely away in a locked box, so safely that I don't know where the key is to that box. My laptop is in desperate need of repair, it probably has something to do with the fact that the cable is in the top of the tree in the backyard? The FBI may not know why the midnight killer has chosen me for this case, But I certainly do, and I will solve this case...as soon as I dig up my typewriter keys, now where did I leave my shovel? I gotta tell ya, I worry about breaking into a car without a warrant so while I wait for the warrant to come through on a witness's computer, think I'll just blow up the neighbors mailbox with a stick of dynamite? I'm sure she won't mind if I borrow her fax machine while I'm at it... she's still a little shaken given that I just crawled through her window unexpectedly? At this point, Agent Kazinsky knows I'm one of the good guys, after all, I saved him from that fire so he could walk himself to the hospital, come to think of it 3 different people had to walk themselves to the hospital after I "saved" them? Hmm, I'm starting to re-think matters now...clearly, this town doesn't have a decent ambulance service! Rest assured folks, The Master has chosen the right agent for this case!
Gadgets/Helper: There were NO Gadgets or Helpers, but I do help a ton of animals in exchange for an inventory item?? :)
Collectibles & Morphing Objects (CE Version Only): There are 15 Morphing Origami Animals (including the Domini Dog Logo) and 15 Art Supplies that allows you to learn about The Master's thoughts (because everyone wants a piece of crazy?) There are 92 Zoom Zone Coins that can be used to purchase 15 Office Items...but the items aren't really "office" items and your office seems to be located at the end of a dark alley so it's not even an "office"??? There is an optional Collection Icon Tab that can be enabled or disabled in the settings as well. Maybe it was just my particular game that had a GLITCH but I wasn't able to access the office, the art supplies, or the origami shelf via the Collections Tab or the Pop-up achievement tabs this go-round, nor was there a tab on my Map to access these features. Every time I wanted to purchase something I had to exit to the main menu and go into the extra's menu (yes, I checked the custom settings) so this was either a huge oversite or a huge glitch, either way, it was a huge pain!
Hidden Object Scenes: There are 13 Hidden Object Scenes +3 in the CE Bonus Chapter and an alternate Match 3 Game available, which btw, doesn't allow you to make consecutive matches quickly. (you have to wait for all tiles to stop falling before you can make the next match) There were a lot of variations offered and the scenes had blurry or unrecognizable objects at times, not to mention that some of the objects were "hidden" on the outer darker fringes of the scenes where you couldn't possibly see what they actually were, you just clicked on objects there because there was nothing left to click on! There were Interactive Listed Item Finds, Spot the Differences, Multiples of the Same Object Finds, Similar Item Finds, Silhouetted Shape Finds, Missing Vowels Finds, Swatch Finds, Replace Items Into the Scene Finds, Items that Match Descriptions Finds, Matching Pair Finds, and Keywords in Sentence Finds as well.
Mini-Games: There are 21 Mini-Games +7 in the CE Bonus Chapter. You can choose to play them in an Easy or Hard difficulty mode and you can choose which mode to have them start out in the Custom Setting (you can still switch between modes for each individual game) Below are a few of my personal favorites:
1-Use directional arrows to push locks onto fingerprints. 2-Use triangle buttons to change the numbers that correspond to each symbol on a code. 3-Clear the field by selecting all tiles that don't contain bombs as indicated by the numbers under tiles. 4-Transfer power from each button to the lightning symbols by toggling between symbols on each connected tile.
Bonus Chapter (CE Version Only) Another madman is on the loose! He has hijacked the local news channel with a dire video message warning that people will disappear and people will know the police won't deserve their trust (Really? Bad timing Domini!) This is an above-average-length Domini chapter spanning over a whopping 12 scene locations with 7 additional Mini-Games but a measly 3 Hidden Object Scenes, You will continue your search for the final Morphing Origami Animals, Art Supplies and Zoom Zone Coins (of varying amounts) which allows you to purchase the final Office Items, which aren't actually office items and arent actually located in an office?!?
Collector's Edition Extra's: (CE version only) 10 Wallpapers, 10 Concept Art Pictures, 5 Music Soundtracks, 26 Movie Video Cutscenes, 40 Achievements, 9 Replayable Mini-Games, 17 Replayable Hidden Object Scenes, 15 Morphing Origami Animals,15 Art Supplies, a gazillion Missing Notes, 92 Zoom-Zone Coins, 15 Office Items (purchase with Coins...why is my office in a dark alley?) 5 Main Chapters +Bonus Chapter, and a Built-In Strategy Guide.
FATAL EVIDENCE SERIES LIST Title***Standard Edition Release Date***Average Rating
1-The Cursed Island (June 14-2019) 3.9 2-The Missing (April 17-2020) 3.2 3-Art of Murder (October 2-2020) n/a
HEY THERE LITTLE RED RIDING HOOD EVERYONE KNOWS YOU'RE JUST MISUNDERSTOOD
PostedOctober 1, 2020
pennmom36
fromGreek Cinderella-Rhodopis' shoe was stolen by an eagle & dropped in the lap of Egyptian king who searched for the owner. China-monarch searches for Ye Xian whose tiny feet fit gold fish-scale pattern shoe-mean stepmom crushed by stones in her cave home
This "Top Reviewer" is one of our most frequent game reviewers. We think you'll trust what they have to say and find their reviews helpful and informative.
Completed Game approximately 5.5 hours (including completion of all mini-games & CE Bonus Chapter) 25 Main Game Scene Locations +10 Bonus Chapter Difficulty Range: Beginner-Intermediate
What we have here is a Big Bad Wolf who's not really so big or bad and a Little Red Riding Hood who's not so little anymore and is definitely good at pulling the sheep's wool over everyone's eyes. Fairy Godmother goes on a wild Mother Goose chase and finds herself facing Gulliver-sized proportion problems...and yes, once again she loses her Magic Wand marbles! [turn page]
ZZzzz, this is another long, drawn-out Domini fairytale that nearly put me back to sleep and made me wonder why I left my warm and cozy bed this morning? I was so excited for a new HOPA game (I was busy last week enjoying time with my granddaughter and newborn grandson :) that I kept on playing even though chapter after chapter I was faced with a pile of dirt to dig up, finding random treasures in a pile of ashes, multiple piles of dried leaves that could have easily been kicked aside yet I had to go overboard and find a giant leafblower (and all the attachments, etc.) and at one point, a ridiculous contraption that attached to a drill!! I lost count of how many cobwebs and spiderwebs I torched or dusted, the animals I fed or scared away, the locks I picked, the smoke I dispersed, the wheels, doorknobs, and handles I replaced or the 3 inches of ice I melted instantly. The screws were numerous but I'm here to tell you that Taleville couldn't possibly have a nail left intact anywhere, it's not humanly or inhumanly possible. I removed nails with anything and everything imaginable, hammers, bottle openers, forks of every shape and size, salad forks, dinner forks, dessert forks, breakfast forks, lunch forks, baby forks, blue forks, green forks, invisible forks, 2-pronged forks, 3-pronged forks, at one point I think I used a spork, I even used a hair come for Cinderella Sake!
Gadgets/Helper: Naturally, Fairy Godmother has a Magic Wand which isn't very magical because it requires finding 3 magical charging chrystals to recharge it after a single-use. The magic wand is used 5 times in the Main Chapter and 3 additional times in the Bonus Chapter, accompanied by a puzzle or mini-game of course. (the mini-games vary each time)
Collectibles & Morphing Objects (CE Version Only): There are 15 Morphing Artifacts and 15 Quilt Patches that are fabric swatches belonging to various characters in Tale World such as the Little Mermaid, Scarecrow, or Cinderella. There are 61 Zoom Zone Button Coins that can be used to purchase 15 Pantry Items which are fantasy-related items such as Unicorn horns. but they basically just sit on a pantry shelf and couldn't be more uninteresting. Domini never changes this scenario, they don't even change the number of collectible other than the value of the coins or the names of the collectibles... how thoughtful? There is an optional Collection Icon Tab that can be enabled or disabled in the settings menu as well.
Hidden Object Scenes: There are 13 Hidden Object Scenes +5 in the CE Bonus Chapter and an alternate Match 3 Game available, which btw, doesn't allow you to make consecutive matches quickly. (you have to wait for all tiles to stop falling before you can make the next match which makes the game seem sooo slooowww) There are a ton of simplistic Listed Item Finds and Keywords in Sentence Finds which were super easy and super boring. There were also Interactive Listed Item Finds, Replacing items into the Scene, Finding ? + ? + a Photographer, Finding Objects that don't belong in Portraits, Swatch Finds, Matching Card Finds, Combo Silhouetted Shape Finds, Placing 12 Beans in the correct pots according to the clues shown, all of which can be completed within seconds because the objects are so easily spotted.
Mini-Games: There are 20 Mini-Games +7 in the CE Bonus Chapter. You can choose to play them in an Easy or Hard difficulty mode and you can choose which mode to have them start out in the Custom Setting (you can still switch between modes for each individual game) Below are a few of my personal favorites:
1-Arrange chess pieces so that they don't share the same horizontal, vertical, or diagonal lines. 2-Swap springs to adjust tensions so they are all equal. 3-Select the eye stone to reveal the arrow hints to connect stones. 4-Create a path to the castle by rotating sections. 5-Select arrows to guide the raven using the stop square to avoid hawks. 6-Create a path to the snowflake by connecting green dots & swapping regulators until the line is completely red.
Bonus Chapter (CE Version Only) You're off to see the Wizard, actually, you're off to see your new goddaughter Alice the Best Female Chess player in the country...how exciting! ??? This is a boring chapter with more repetitive, cliche tasks spanning over 10 scene locations with 7 additional Mini-Games and 5 Hidden Object Scenes. You will use the Magic Wand 3 more times after finding wand charges and playing a mini-game. You will continue your search for the final 3 Morphing Artifacts, 3 Quilt Patches, and 9 Button Coin Zoom Zone Coins (of varying amounts) which allows you to purchase the final Pantry Items.
Collector's Edition Extra's: (CE version only) 19 Wallpapers, 34 Concept Art Pictures, 5 Music Soundtracks, 29 Movie Video Cutscenes, 40 Achievements, 18 Replayable Mini-Games, 18 Replayable Hidden Object Scenes, 15 Morphing Crystal Birds,15 Backpack Items, a gazillion Missing Notes, 70 Zoom-Zone Coins, 15 Garden Decorations (purchase with coins) 4 Main Chapters, +Bonus Chapter, and a Built-In Strategy Guide.
FAIRY GODMOTHER STORIES SERIES LIST Title***Collector's Edition Release Date***Average Rating
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Completed Game approximately 4 hours (including completion of all mini-games & CE Bonus Chapter) 18 Main Game Scene Locations +8 Bonus Chapter Difficulty Range: Beginner
You know it's going to be a bad day when you wake up and the morning newspaper headlines have the details about your life's accomplishments... and the details of your death! Well, that sucks, let's just hope the paper has plenty of details so you know whether to avoid your morning cup of Joe, or whether you should opt for soap on a rope in the shower, or take a cab instead of driving to work, because you may be joining Anna's dad on a much-undeserved and unwanted vacation!
Helper/Gadget: There are no Gadgets or Helpers in Grim Tales: Heritage unless you consider the fact that Alice helps her mother Anna connect with objects and the fact that Anna time travels as a Gadget/Helper? Normally, daddy Richard's skull would be considered a Helper/Gadget but apparently, he went on vacation which leads me to believe the voice actor wanted too much money or Elephant Games wanted to test the market to see how players would react to a Grim Tales without a Skull...I for one think it's a totally messed-up freak show, but I kind of got used to his sarcastic attitude and totally expect him to deliver the goods!
Morphing Objects/Collectibles: (CE version only) There are 12 Collectibles that are shown in the collectibles section as if hey were sections on a map and I was sure this was going to be an extraordinary new feature that unlocked something amazing in each part of the map...I was wrong and sorely disappointed to find that they didn't do anything but show up as a pictured item :( There are 26 Morphing Objects that morph at medium speed but they do morph into a similar object to make it somewhat less obvious...but still too big, and still too fast-morphing to be a challenge, which is what a morphing object is supposed to be! Most of the Zoom Zones have a Jigsaw Puzzle Fragment (46 total) that automatically assembles 4 Screensavers...would it really be that difficult to allow us to assemble the jigsaws for ourselves? Looks like we just have to accept that less is more nowadays?
Hidden Object Scenes: There are only 11 Hidden Object Scenes +4 in the CE Bonus Chapter. There are Interactive List Finds, Silhouetted Shape Finds, Keywords in Sentence Finds, and Multiples of the same Items. I think they actually put some thought into the HO scenes because the objects were much smaller and blended into the scenery more than usual. There are no alternate games available.
Mini-Games: There are 14 Mini-Games +7 in the CE Bonus Chapter. They did a good job with variety and putting twists on standard games such as Match 3 games or Chess games, I actually like Elephant Games because most of them are mechanical type puzzles where you tinker with fuses, electrical panels, or gauges and they always seem doable and never frustrating.
Bonus Chapter (Collector's Edition version only) There's nothing more special than being carried across the threshold by your husband on your wedding night...unless your family has a long-standing history of a Hatfield-McCoy type feud situation that's so powerful the ghosts of your husband's ancestors won't let you enter the estate! You'll play Maureen Black in this average-length ghost-busting sequel as she tries desperately to mend fences between the dearly departed Egerton & Black family ancestors. There are 8 Scene Locations with 7 Mini-Games and 4 Hidden Object Scenes. You will search for the remaining 3 Collectibles, 8 Morphing Objects, and 12 Puzzle Fragments which allows you to complete the fourth and final Jigsaw Puzzle Screensaver.
Collector's Edition Extra's 5 Wallpapers, 5 Concept Art Pictures, 5 Jigsaw Fragments Screensavers, 5 Music Soundtracks, 23 Achievements, 13 Replayable Mini-Games, 13 Replayable Hidden Object Scenes (within the Archives Room) 26 Morphing Objects 46 Zoom Zone Jigsaw Puzzle Fragments, 12 Collectible Attractions? 3 Main Chapters +Bonus Chapter and a Built-In Strategy Guide.
GRIM TALES SERIES LIST Title***Collector's Edition Release Date***Average Rating 1-The Bride (August 4-2011) 3.9 2-The Legacy (January 5-2012) 4.6 3-The Wishes (July 12-2012) 4.5 4-The Stone Queen (January 3-2013) 3.9 5-Bloody Mary (August 1-2013) 4.3 6-The Vengeance (May 15-2014) 4.5 7-Color of Fright (November 6-2014) 3.7 8-The Final Suspect (May 16-2015) 4.0 9-Threads of Destiny (October 7-2015) 3.9 10-The Heir (February 25-2016) 4.3 11-Crimson Hollow (August 25-2016) 4.1 12-Graywitch (February 2-2017) 4.0 13-The White Lady (August 3-2017) 4.0 14-The Time Traveler (January 25-2018) 3.5 15-The Hunger (July 19-2018) 3.6 16-The Nomad (March 28-2019) 3.8 17-Guest From The Future (August 29-2019) 3.4 18-The Generous Gift (April 16-2020) 3.7 19-Heritage (September 24-2020) n/a
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Solitaire and Jigsaw Puzzles are my go-to games for relaxation. I can play a good solitaire game for hours and totally lose track of time, but this game just didn't take me to my Zen ☯
The music was over-bearing and repetitive and it felt like I was trapped in the hall of mirrors at a freak carnival show. The level layouts were the same layouts on every level, so much so, that I exited out at one point to see if I had mistakenly hit the replay ⟲ tab instead of moving to the next level! (seems every chapter is repetitive)
After every level, I had to endure endless dialog text boxes, mostly by the Fairy, who seems to have been cursed with a hideous curse. I rarely skip dialog, because I love to read for one thing, but mostly, I want to know the background story as it unfolds...perhaps the fairy turned me off, perhaps the story was uninteresting, perhaps the dialog was just too over-the-top and seemed like a Neverending story ahahaha ♫
There are no options. No cursor options. No card graphic options. No font options. No shop options. This can only mean one thing...We weren't given any options! Well, I could go out on a limb and speculate that perhaps the witch cursed and removed our options? Technically, there could have been options available yesterday but because the witch cursed us into limbo, they are only unavailable at this point in time? (man that's deep!)
This is a Higher/Lower Solitaire Game where you can earn up to 3-Stars for removing all cards from the board and the levels can be replayed to earn a better score. You get 2 Undo's per level, and 3 Boosters that are refilled by removing cards from the board: The Sword removes a card of your choice, The Magic Staff removes 2 random cards, and the Paw of Fate shuffles the cards. Speaking of Fate, you will earn Number Specific Wildcards and Jokers while playing. There are three different types of Jokers, a Red or Black Joker and a Rainbow Joker that can be used as any card desired.
There are only three different types of Obstacle Cards, a Lock & Key Card where you must uncover the Key Card to unlock the Locked Card, a Royal Frame Card where you must play a Jack, Queen, and King to remove the Royal Frame Card, and a Spider Web that requires playing the card twice. There are inventory Item Cards located under some of the cards on the field and these cards are required in order to progress the story.
The bottom line is, this is just an average solitaire game that doesn't have a lot of zing. I'm not super picky about solitaire games but I do insist on a few key features such as being able to remove all of the cards or being able to replay levels, and I will pretty much buy all solitaire games that meet those criteria's. This game just doesn't appeal to me, I have no desire to finish the last 15-20 minutes of the demo which is really rare for this solitaire lover :(
I don't recommend this game.
+54points
60of66voted this as helpful.
Summer Adventure: American Voyage 2
Explore America! Visit incredible cities, islands and other locations while taking in its unique spirit and culture!
Overall rating
3/ 5
73 of 83 found this review helpful
I'D LIKE TO GIVE THIS GAME 5 STARS BUT...
PostedSeptember 29, 2020
pennmom36
fromI DID spot the difference in the spot the difference game :')
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This is a really good HOG (Hidden Object Game) but it's basically a repeat with different cities, nothing new has been brought to the table. There for a while, I was really impressed because Ivan seemed to be reading our reviews and making adjustments accordingly, but you have to keep taking it one step further each and every time, otherwise, you will bore the player or risk someone questioning their need for purchasing another game in the series! You don't have to throw in the whole kitchen sink, but add a few tweaks here and there such as a different Hidden Object Mode (Scrambled Letters, Silhouetted Shapes, etc.) or add hidden Coins to help purchase Gift Shop Items faster, perhaps a Morphing Object (my personal favorite)
There are 60 Hidden Object Scenes that can be played in a Timed or Relaxed Mode, but it doesn't penalize you for misclicks or using the Hint feature. This is an old-fashioned Hidden Object Game where you are tasked with finding 15 Listed Items in each location in just under 15 minutes in the Timed Mode, to earn up to 3-Stars, you will earn a star for completing the scene, a star for finding all 3 hearts, and a star for finding all 3 GPS icons. Each scene has a single Zoom Zone (as indicated by sparkles next to the diamond icon with 3 curves underneath) that contains the final 3 objects, or 3 random listed objects, or is it the first 3 objects? You can improve your star rating by replaying the scenes, via the level map, but the objects to find are different each time you play.
Each Scene has 3 GPS symbols to locate that will unlock the scene location and add the photo to your Album (60 Total) Each Scene has 3 Heart symbols that unlock 3 animal pictures in your Photo Album (180 Total) as well. The animals have no rhyme or reason, for instance, after finding all 3 hearts in Indianapolis, Indiana you receive a Cockatoo, Lion, and a Regal Angelfish. After finding all 3 hearts in Cincinnati, Ohio, you receive a Guanaco, a Gentoo Penguin, and a Red-legged Seriema, and after finding all 3 hearts in Seattle, Washington, you receive an Arabian Camel, a Peruvian Thick-knee, a Red Sea Raccoon Butterflyfish. Now correct me if I'm wrong, but the last time I visited any of these states, NONE of these above-listed critters were native to these regions, I have never seen an Arabian Camel roaming the countryside of Seattle nor have I seen a Lion roaming the streets of downtown Indianapolis and I was born near Cincinnati so I'm pretty confident in stating that there are NO Guanaco's to be found crossing the John A Roebling bridge or enjoying the "Nati" nightlife by the river before catching a Red's game unless you count the ones in the zoo?
After each Hidden Object Scene, you will play a Mini-game such as Spot the Difference, a Memory Game where you flip over two cards at a time, Mahjong, Solitaire Pipes, etc. Although they did change the Spot the difference game to include actual subtle differences (yeah!!) the mini-games are always the same and there are no real challenges. Why not add an Easy/Hard mode on the Mahjong, add a Jigsaw Puzzle with a slider bar option to adjust the number of pieces? Why not ditch the Pipes game if it's always going to be the same stupid pattern? Why not join the pondfriends forum and talk to me? (because I know you are listening :)
I'd love to give this game 5-stars, I think it's a solid 3.5, and if you don't already own the original American Voyage, you will probably be delighted with this game. The graphics have improved, the proportion of the objects have improved, they have tweaked a few features here and there which is a good thing and shows they care. Now it's time to take it to the next level, you have to keep thinking outside the box if you want to keep people interested in a HOG series!
SUMMER ADVENTURE SERIES LIST Title***Release Date***Average Rating
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This is a delightful, old-fashioned Hidden Object Game filled with all the amazing things Our Beautiful Earth has to offer...sort of!?! I loved the sound effects of birds singing, frogs croaking, and crickets chirping in the background, it was especially adorable when you find the 3 cats in each scene and they meow when you click on them!
Although I found some of the items to be fairly well blended into the scenery, I felt that the graphics were a tad bit blurry and the listed objects they chose were poorly chosen given the nature of the theme "Our Beautiful Earth" To me they should have chosen objects that represented the beauty of the earth rather than the same ole standard stock photos of stenciled stars & hearts, arrow signs, a #8, telescopes, paper boats, clouds shaped animals, cucumbers, eggplants & grapes in trees, ties, paintbrushes, suns, and clocks.
This would have been an amazing game if they would have chosen a theme for each scene, (and even cooler if they layered each scene to include multiple levels as I'll explain) such as a Desert Scene filled with hidden desert wildlife like rattlesnakes, roadrunners, prairie dogs, jackrabbits & foxes, insects, birds, and various cacti, the top level would be the sky obviously, the mid-level would be the prairie, the lower level could be animal dens caverns or caves. Another scene could have been an Ocean Scene that had a coral reef under the water filled with hidden crabs, clams, corals, colorful reef fish, and sea horses, while above the reef in the waves they could hidden dolphins and whales with seagulls, pelicans, etc. flying above, perhaps even throw in an island scene or a volcano...doesn't that sound more like Our Beautiful Earth? Doesn't that sound way more exciting? I think I need to start developing my own games lol :)
You can play in a Casual or Challenge Mode of difficulty which basically just has a slower Hint recharge and a slower Skip feature for the Mini-Games. Each scene has 15 Listed Items to find and there is no timer or penalties for misclicks, nor is there a zoom or magnifying glass, but the items are a decent size without being overly large and out of proportion.
There is a single Hint feature and a Super Hint feature that briefly highlights and flashes several items on the list, but you will lose the "Never Use A Hint" 1000 bonus points if you use the hint feature. Each scene has 3 hidden Cats that vary each time, and they are worth 1500 points, you'll also receive 1500 for each level completed. The points are used to purchase 15 different Gift Shop items, but honestly, they are some of the most unappealing items imaginable, I don't even know what some of them were supposed to be!
After each Hidden Object Scene, you will play a Puzzle or Mini-Game such as Spot the Difference, Match 3, Memory Matching Card Pairs, Drag Shaped Puzzle Pieces into Place, or Rotate & Drag Tetris-shaped Pieces into a Grid.
It's a pretty game, it is a tad bit blurry and as I said, they really dropped the ball on creativity...or perhaps my idea of creativity is just more imaginative than this?
fromI never understood why we don't upgrade from tents to pop-up campers, to class C campers to class A campers to log cabins, to me that's what real-life campers do???
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Some Time Management games have branded themselves well. They have made a name for themselves in the gaming world by continuing to create interesting games that are unique, one of a kind niche games that no other developer was able to imagine. Campgrounds by Jumb-O-Fun Games are now on the fifth installment and one of my personal favorite Time Management series games. დ
You can play in an Untimed Mode as well as an Easy, Normal, or Hard difficulty mode (which amusingly has a skull & crossbones next to it) so the developer has excluded no one, absolutely everyone in the family can enjoy this game! There is a learn as you play tutorial during the first few levels as they slowly introduce a new feature level by level to ease you into the game mechanics. There are a ton of features in this game, that's what makes it interesting, but it isn't complicated because Jumb-O has done an amazing job with the tutorial. This CE version also has a built-in Strategy Guide that gives you helpful tips as to which tasks to assign workers to and at which point.
My favorite CE feature is the Hidden Map Pieces (SPOILER ALERT: look for the wooden cross and send a worker to dig up the map piece END SPOILER ALERT) The Hidden Map Pieces will be shown on the level map and if you missed a map piece you can return to the level to pick it up and then quit the level without affecting your original level scoring (gold, silver, bronze) even if you have to clear debris, cut down trees, build a bridge, etc. to get to the map piece! How cool is that?! The Hidden Map Pieces will unlock 6 Secret Developments once all map pieces have been found for each development:
Although you must clear paths to get to the campsites, there's not a whole lot of Resource gathering, instead, you build Factories or Food Trucks for example, and buy the resources needed in bulk. This is a multi-click type of TM game where you click on campsites and then a specific Tab within the main tab to select the correct type of housing or building:
When you select the "Housing Tab" several housing tab options appear, such as Tents, Campers, Bungalow's, etc. it just depends on the level goals as to which one to build. Each "housing" type can be upgraded 3 times, and each upgrade earns more rent than its predecessor. Buildings can also be Salvaged if it's no longer useful which allows you to erect a new building or tent.
When you select the "Buildings Tab" several tabs building tabs appear such as Food Trucks, Factories, Farmhouses, Markets, and even Playgrounds. Once you have purchased or constructed these buildings, you then have to select the "create" tabs to create either food or supplies in bulk quantities of 50-100-200 units depending on your available resources and the level goals, and of course, you'll get the money to pay for the resources by earning income from the various housing options (each type of house has a different income, the higher the upgrade the higher the income)
Collector's Edition Version Extra's: 50 Standard Levels, 6 Secret Development Worlds (unlock with hidden Map Pieces) 20 Achievement Trophies, 20 Challenge Levels (earn Gold, Silver, Bronze awards) a Built-In Strategy Guide.
CAMPGROUNDS SERIES LIST Title***Collector's Edition Release Date***Average Rating
1-Campgrounds l SE only (August 24-2012) 3.9 2-Campgrounds ll The Endorus Expedition (November 28-2013) 4.1 3-Campgrounds lll (May 25-2019) 4.6 4-Campgrounds lV (February 20-2020) 3.9 5-Campgrounds V (September 26-2020) n/a
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Let's face it, after the first Crown of the Empire disaster, any following releases could surely only improve, it couldn't possibly get worse than it's 1.7 average rating predecessor, right? When I first started playing Crown of the Empire: Around The World, I was impressed because the very first level seemed to employ some tricky strategies...maybe too tricky?
I think the developers panicked a bit and went overboard, I think they overcomplicated things and made the level goals unclear, let me rephrase that, they made it difficult to understand which strategies the player should employ to accomplish the level goals. They made it difficult to understand which resources are required for each TM task such as the buildings, removing holes, repairing bridges, etc. which all requires an extra step of clicking on each individual task, which in turn takes valuable time, which causes the player to lose valuable time. They gave us a Strategy Guide that simply shows the order in which you should build the buildings, etc. but it doesn't allow you to access the SG while playing without losing progress???
Let's move on to the graphics, they were good, I especially enjoyed the graphics of Africa with the lazy lions laying in the path, Zebra's, tribesmen, monoliths, the desert vibe, I loved all of the countries they have chosen, Scotland with its orange leaves, sheep roaming the countryside, harvesting crops, trains, chests, and of course Nessy the Loch Ness Monster, Malta with its knights, ports, bridges, coal and rocky landscape, Europe seems to have an ogre situation? lol
Collector's Edition Version Extra's 50 Main Levels +10 CE Levels, 15 Achievements, 5 Music Soundtracks, 10 Concept Art Pictures, a Strategy Guide (and not a very good one at that) No Collectibles, No Morphing Objects.
CROWN OF THE EMPIRE SERIES LIST Title***Standard Edition Release Date***Average Rating
1-Crown of the Empire (March 21-2020) 1.7 2-Crown of the Empire: Around the World (September 27-2020) n/a