bfeinstein's Profile
Stat Summary
- Average Rating:2.3
- Helpful Votes:391
- Reviews Submitted:28
- First Review:May 8, 2012
- Most Recent Review:June 23, 2016
- Featured reviews0
Status:
Book of Legends
Join Zoe and Charleston Black as they unravel a powerful and ancient Arthurian legend in this gripping Hidden Object game!
Overall rating
1
/
5
1 of 2 found this review helpful
Run away from this one
PostedOctober 25, 2012
bfeinstein
fromRichmond, VA
Skill Level:Expert
Favorite Genre(s):Word, Adventure, Hidden Object, Large File, Strategy, Time Management, Puzzle
Fun Factor
1
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
2
/
5
Level of Challenge
2
/
5
Storyline
1
/
5
I lasted about 30 minutes with this and I only did that because I must have purchased it at some point. Not sure what I was thinking because this game is awful. Badly done HO scenes with poorly drawn object, many of them all but hidden in ways that make it so you can never find them. Absurd "jobs" to pay for your travel. And the dialogue is so bad...and performed so badly...it is a total mess. Not fun. Not even pleasant to look at. A huge combination of boredom, irritation and frustration. This game has absolutely no redeeming qualities
I don't recommend this game.
Time Dreamer: Temporal Betrayal
After joining a research team you are sent out to mine valuable krawtite. Along the way, however, something goes horribly wrong!
Overall rating
4
/
5
3 of 3 found this review helpful
Solid if not top tier
PostedSeptember 14, 2012
Fun Factor
4
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
4
/
5
Level of Challenge
4
/
5
Storyline
4
/
5
Straightforward HO puzzler. Not terribly difficult, but a lot of fun. Good story, decent artwork and a nice time travel mechanic to give the story a very interesting timeline. Unfortunately, like so many of these games, it is only a couple of hours of gameplay.
Worth using a free game off a punch card to get this or buy it if it is a $2.99 special. Not sure it is worth full price, but it is not a clunker by any means.
I recommend this game!
Amusement World!
Enjoy a thrilling and delightful romp through a world-class amusement park!
Overall rating
1
/
5
32 of 87 found this review helpful
Seriously? Someone actually produced this thing? NOT RECOMMENDED
PostedSeptember 1, 2012
bfeinstein
fromRichmond, VA
Skill Level:Expert
Favorite Genre(s):Word, Arcade & Action, Adventure, Hidden Object, Large File, Match 3, Card & Board, Strategy, Brain Teaser, Time Management, Puzzle
Fun Factor
2
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
3
/
5
Level of Challenge
2
/
5
Storyline
1
/
5
I love theme parks so I did everything I could to give this the benefit of the doubt.
There is no point. It's awful. I bailed about 30 minutes into the demo. I couldn't take it anymore.
The storyline is so bad you might think it is a parody. A princess wants to build an amusement park. What? Seriously? The princess looks like she is out of some medieval tome and yet she is running a modern, if pathetic, carnival. It's absurd.
You play some carnival games that are silly, easy and uninspired. There is some HOG action that is forgettable. The limited use of actors, and the way they are used in the game will ensure none of them put this gig on their resumes.
Maybe a 5 year old might enjoy this. No adult will spend more than 30 minutes with this, and will only spend even that much time because they love carnivals and are hoping something becomes appealing. It never does. All you get is bland, uninspired gameplay backed by a silly, insipid story. Skip it.
Runaway With The Circus
An endearing 1930s love story set around a traveling circus.
Overall rating
2
/
5
Been there, done that. You've seen this all before.
PostedSeptember 1, 2012
bfeinstein
fromRichmond, VA
Skill Level:Expert
Favorite Genre(s):Word, Adventure, Hidden Object, Large File, Match 3, Card & Board, Strategy, Time Management, Puzzle
Fun Factor
2
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
3
/
5
Level of Challenge
2
/
5
Storyline
2
/
5
This is another phone-it-in hidden object game. Nothing you have not seen 100 times before. This would have been innovative around the time of the first Mystery Case File games. Now it just seems tired and dull.
The description said something about an endearing love story. I don't remember running across that. I don't remember much of a story at all. All I remember were scene after scene with a random list of items to find, many of which were impossible to see and required heavy use of the hint button.
There is a pointless scoring mechanic for each scene. Not sure why HOG games need a score or what the point really is.
The circus is, to me, such a setting with such great potential for storyline and visuals, that it seems a shame that it was given over to very basic HOG. While the artwork is generally nice, there is nothing innovative or especially fun with this one. With all the excellent gaming options on Big Fish, don't waste your time on this one.
I don't recommend this game.
Infected: The Twin Vaccine Collector’s Edition
A new breed of virus has spread throughout the City of Oxford. You must search the city for a missing girl who holds the key to stopping the global epidemic!
Overall rating
4
/
5
1 of 1 found this review helpful
High production values. Short on play time. Recommended.
PostedSeptember 1, 2012
bfeinstein
fromRichmond, VA
Skill Level:Expert
Favorite Genre(s):Word, Adventure, Hidden Object, Card & Board, Puzzle
Fun Factor
4
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
3
/
5
Storyline
4
/
5
Infected: The Twin Vaccine is one of the best looking games on Big Fish. The production values are some of this best you will see in a game at this price point. The story line is interesting and given some emotional depth by the quality of the voice acting. There is an unusual new hidden object mechanic that has potential but is not quite there yet. And the game is a lot of fun. The problem, as with so any Big Fish offerings in this genre is the game is very short.
Let’s start with the good. This is a great looking game and it is a lot of fun. In the Collector’s Edition extras—and this is one game where getting the Collector’s Edition makes sense—is a short video showing how they made the game. They made use of a lot of high quality full motion video with live actors and they shot a lot of the backgrounds on location rather than creating them in the computer or in a studio. Some other games have tried this as well, but this one does it very well. It doesn’t look cheap like so often happens.
Add to the very good physical and voice acting, especially by Michael and Carl. They are memorable both in appearance and in character and you will want to see more of them and know more about them. All of the graphics, video and narration do a great job of conveying the atmosphere that the designers intended.
The puzzles on the whole make sense and are solvable by real people using real logic. Not too many “no one in their right mind would have thought of that” solutions. While challenging, I found I did not need to be overly dependent on the hint button or the strategy guide.
Now the OK. There is a new hidden object mechanic here. Every object in a hidden object scene has an actual purpose toward completing the scene. No more just looking for something completely random like an armadillo because it is in the list of things to find. Now the armadillo will be needed to find more things in the scene making it feel a little bit more purposeful and makes the whole hidden object scene feel like more of a large, organic puzzle. This is a great idea and if others pick this up, it could really move the genre forward. The problem with this initial stab at the idea is that so many of the objects that are called for are used in ways that feel bolted on, and not organic. The idea is a good one, but it needs a lot more polishing and thought to become what it can be. That being said, the game is worth playing to just to experience what the designers were attempting to do since it is very different and very interesting.
Now the downsides. Once again, the game is too short. There are maybe 3 hours of game play in here with the extra content in the Collector’s Edition. That is simply underwhelming. Do get the Collector’s Edition for the added gameplay though. While the gameplay itself is less inspired than the main game, it is better than most of the extra content you find in Collector’s Editions, and it gives some clever backstory as to why certain objects are found where they are in the main game. Finally you will find out why some key for a car is hidden behind what is otherwise a random panel.
The game itself is incredibly linear. While that is an issue with many of these types of games, this one is particularly inflexible. You are almost pushed in one direction at all times, with limited open exploration flexibility. It may be that this keeps the game more accessible for casual players, but I found it a little too planned out.
Finally, like so many of these games, there are the occasional unnecessary make-work mechanics. Expect to spend time dragging coins one by one into slots on vending machines and the like. Dragging 12 coins one at a time is just annoying. Also expect to use a hose to put out fires. The game wants you to hold the hose on the fire while a bar disappears. There is no skill to this…just time passing. It is a silly mechanic and it totally unnecessary,
All in all, I recommend this game. It’s fun. It’s engaging. It’s well-produced and has some innovative game mechanics. The downsides are it is too short and a little too linear. That being said, most Big Fish aficionados will enjoy it and this is one game where getting the Collector’s Edition is worth the extra money.
I recommend this game!
Echoes of the Past: The Castle of Shadows Collector's Edition
Restore the royal amulet to break an ancient curse and stop an evil witch from regaining her terrible powers!
Overall rating
3
/
5
13 of 20 found this review helpful
Thankfully I only paid $6.99 for this not full price
PostedJune 4, 2012
bfeinstein
fromRichmond, VA
Skill Level:Expert
Favorite Genre(s):Word, Adventure, Hidden Object, Strategy, Time Management, Puzzle
Fun Factor
3
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
3
/
5
Level of Challenge
3
/
5
Storyline
2
/
5
When I play games like this and then read what other reviewers write, I begin to wonder if my standards are too high. Look at all of the other reviews. They gave this five stars. That's laughable. This is a mediocre game at best.
Nice graphics, but nothing you haven't seen before. Music is lousy and repetitive. The story line is sillier and more vapid than most. There were periods where there was no story, like the developer occasionally forgot they were supposed to have a plot line with their hidden object scenes and puzzles.
Some of the puzzles are new. I liked having to find "missing" objects elsewhere in the game and replace them to remove curses. A few innovative puzzles, but most are standard fare.
The game is VERY linear. You will not have a lot of choice over what you can accomplish next. The game doles out items in a pretty precise order, sort of like a path with very high walls to keep you from deviating.
Decent length of play compared to others. I completed the game in about three hours or so. That's longer than most on here, yet it was not all that challenging. I found about 95%+ of the hidden objects with no trouble at all. The puzzles in most cases, all but solve themselves since you have gotten the codes and clues earlier.
The extras are disappointing. While I got about an hour of play on the bonus content, it was totally bolted on. No story. No reason to be in the environment. It was like running an obstacle course of puzzles and hidden object scenes without any real purpose. The developers could have taken 10 minutes to come up with some sort of flimsy plot like most of these games do.
Bottom line is that the game is OK but hardly the amazing experience some of the other reviewers describe. If you have been on Big Fish for more than a week than you have played a ton of similar games that are equally generic and uninspired. It's not that it is a horrible game. It's just completely undistinguished. You can skip it and your life will not be worse for it.
I don't recommend this game.
Film Fatale: Lights, Camera, Madness!
Rita Ray, your mother and world famous film star, has disappeared! Find her before it’s too late in Film Fatale: Lights, Camera, Madness!
Overall rating
4
/
5
Well, that went by quickly...
PostedJune 1, 2012
bfeinstein
fromRichmond, VA
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Word, Adventure, Hidden Object, Large File, Strategy, Time Management, Puzzle
Fun Factor
5
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
2
/
5
Storyline
4
/
5
Here's a mixed bag that forces you to decide whether quality is better than quantity.
This is a good game, although far from perfect. For once we are not in a creepy mansion or town. OK, it's a creepy movie studio, but at least it is kind of different. It's very linear and uses a map system to allow you to move around from room to room very quickly--but in doing so, it almost solves many of the puzzles for you.
Artwork is good, but not mindblowing. Voice acting is the same. Puzzles tend to be either very easy or completely incomprehensible...the game doesn't tell you what the goal of the puzzle is so if you cannot figure out what the nature of the puzzle, you are forced to wait for the "skip" button to fill.
Interestingly, the game times how long it takes you to complete it. On the one hand, it is nice to know how long something like this takes. On the other hand, in my case it was just under 2 hours. This seems incredibly short for a game, especially one with zero replay value.
Ultimately, there is some good stuff here. It's just that when you are done, you will think the portion was a little on the small side.
I recommend this game!
Fantastic Creations: House of Brass Collector's Edition
Escape an underground vault of clockwork wonders with the help of its mysterious and eccentric inventor in Fantastic Creations: House of Brass!
Overall rating
3
/
5
Good game but too short even with the bonus content
PostedMay 8, 2012
bfeinstein
fromRichmond, VA
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Word, Adventure, Hidden Object, Strategy, Time Management, Puzzle
Fun Factor
4
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
4
/
5
Level of Challenge
3
/
5
Storyline
5
/
5
This was a very cool game. Nice and original twists on the standard hidden objects portions. A lot of pipe puzzles, circuit puzzles and ring matching puzzles, all of which I enjoy. Excellent music. Great artwork.
So why only 3 stars? It's too short for a $13.99 game. Even with the bonus content included there is probably only about 3-4 hours worth of play in the game. For a game that really doesn't offer any incentive to play it again once you have gone through it the first time, that seems like a poor value. There are $1.99 games in the App Store that have longer play value with the same level of quality.
It's a lot of fun while it lasts. It just doesn't last very long. There are games of equal quality, but much more to do and see. I just can't recommend spending $13.99 on this or $6.99 when the regular version comes out.
I don't recommend this game.