panicbear's Profile
Stat Summary
- Average Rating:4.3
- Helpful Votes:55
- Reviews Submitted:18
- First Review:March 27, 2013
- Most Recent Review:December 9, 2013
- Featured reviews0
When a medical consultation goes terribly wrong, it's up to you to realize the full potential of your ability and save the day!
Overall rating
5
/
5
2 of 2 found this review helpful
Different, and fantastic, though not perfect
PostedMarch 31, 2013
Fun Factor
4
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
4
/
5
Level of Challenge
5
/
5
Storyline
5
/
5
FACES has an intriguing storyline, and maintains a fun level of challenge throughout.
You play a character with special powers who needs to free herself and other gifted individuals from a secret facility. It's a little different from the more common 'solve a mystery'/'find a missing person' plots that populate a lot of HO games.
And the plot works very well to provide good structure and pacing for the game. It also means that you're exploring a modern hospital environment with a distressed, grungy, gothy vibe.
At times the motion graphics were a little rough. And a few times you're sent back to the same HO scene to find some of the same objects. The standard version ended with an out-of-nowhere cliffhanger that seemed to be nothing but a come-on to buy the collector's edition with the extra content.
Still, those were minor detractions from a well-made game with an involving story. For the most part it's great-looking in a modern, messy, decayed way, and there was plenty of variation and challenge to keep me moving steadily through the game.
I had a great time playing FACES, so despite tiny quibbles, I still score it with five stars.
I recommend this game!
Overall rating
2
/
5
9 of 9 found this review helpful
Disappointed
PostedMarch 31, 2013
panicbear
Skill Level:Beginner
Favorite Genre(s):Hidden Object
Fun Factor
3
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
4
/
5
Level of Challenge
4
/
5
Storyline
3
/
5
I was lukewarm on this game, but not really disappointed until I reached a hidden object scene where I clicked for a while trying to find the last item, for the clue "Bug"-- and when I finally resorted to the hint, the object pointed out was a RING. Not a ring with a bug decoration, either. A ring shaped like a wolf's head. What the heck??
I had a lot of problems like that with this game. Instructions for puzzles were often very unclear. I ended up skipping several puzzles just because I was confused about what I was supposed to achieve or how I was supposed to do it. Once I saw the solution, I understood, and realized I could have happily played that part of the game if there were better instructions.
Those problems are bad enough.
I also had some more issues with it that might be more personal to my tastes, but still worth noting:
It felt like this game had a lot of puzzles compared to the number of hidden object scenes. I'd really rather play HO scenes so I wasn't pleased with the game balance.
Most of the hidden object scenes were also not very well illustrated, in my opinion. The locations are beautiful but the HO scenes aren't really up to par.
I also really dislike it when the game requires me to go solve puzzles to earn objects when the things I need are available in plain sight. Why do I have to go solve a puzzle to get matches to burn away cobwebs when there are lit candles in that location right next to the cobwebs? One puzzle demands a pen, but the player can't take the pen that's in the very next room-- instead you have to go find a pen that's wedged into a stone wall (??) Similarly, a puzzle requires a wrench, and you come across a pile of wrenches in the garage, but you can't take any of those wrenches. I just feel these items shouldn't be visible in the locations... it throws me out of the game.
And this last complaint is totally a matter of personal taste, but I don't like the pacing of this game. I had to carry items in my inventory for a long long time before it was possible to use them, and it took so long to find some items that I lost track of what they were needed for. I've never used Hints or Skips as much as I did with this game.
I guess I prefer my casual games a little more casual. But on the other hand, I've played similar games-- from the Haunted Legends, Dark Parables and Edgar Allan Poe series-- and enjoyed them. I even liked the demo of Grim Tales: The Bride, but The Legacy really did not work for me.
I don't recommend this game.
Discover the secrets behind a magical deck of cards in Haunted Legends: Queen of Spades! Find The Countess and stop her curse!
Overall rating
5
/
5
Macabre & Enjoyable, though maybe a glitch or two
PostedMarch 27, 2013
Fun Factor
4
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
4
/
5
Storyline
5
/
5
Queen of Spades seems like a fairly typical mystery-in-a-spooky-manor game, but stands out for having some surprisingly macabre elements. For example, you keep a heart in a jar and some other body parts in your inventory for a while.
I liked the morbid humor, personally, and it did distinguish the plot from other games.
The puzzles had a nice variety and the locations and HO scenes looked wonderful. The hint system wasn't so great. I resorted to the walkthrough several times. That's fine with me, that's what it's there for.
However the walkthrough did lead me astray at one point... there seems to be a glitch when it comes to a rag in the boat. I picked it up but it vanished from my inventory, which was a problem, when the walkthrough told me I needed the rag to make a torch. Instead, when you take the boat to the other house, there's a torch available when you search around the house exterior. But it did take a visit to the forums to clear that up.
The cursed deck of cards seems like an extra, optional side element, but actually you need them to finish the game. That could've been clearer.
Even with caveats, I found this game entertaining and I liked the grim, gloomy, darkly funny plot.
I recommend this game!
Overall rating
4
/
5
A good game for the most part
PostedMarch 27, 2013
Fun Factor
4
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
4
/
5
Storyline
4
/
5
This is a fun HO game with an engaging story and puzzles. For the most part, it looks great. If you like the demo, you'll most likely enjoy the whole thing.
A few things hold it back from five stars...
Voiceovers were great for some characters, but for others... no.
While the visuals are mostly great, during the moments when a character was talking to the player, the animation just didn't look good.
Names of a few objects in the HO scenes had apparently been mistranslated.
Personally I find it really irritating when a game won't let me progress without finding a particular puzzle item when I have, or can see, identically useful items. In this game, I had to hunt quite a while for a pack of matches to light a bunsen burner... in a room full of candles!
Some odd writing choices, too-- the player is a detective who's meant to be trying to discover whether a woman has been buried alive, but at one point he won't climb a tree without a ladder because it will mess up his clothes? Sort of detracts from the urgency.
Even with all these caveats, I had fun playing the game. It looked great, I liked the HO scenes, and the puzzles kept me involved.
After a while, I started skipping the dialogue scenes, and I was happier then. All in all, a good game.
I recommend this game!
Nightmares from the Deep: The Cursed Heart Collector's Edition
Dive into an epic journey as a museum owner in pursuit of an undead pirate who has kidnapped your daughter in Nightmares from the Deep: The Cursed Heart!
Overall rating
5
/
5
3 of 3 found this review helpful
Outstanding Game
PostedMarch 27, 2013
panicbear
Fun Factor
5
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
5
/
5
Storyline
5
/
5
The start of Nightmares of the Deep has you poking around a mysterious museum. It's fun, but a tiny bit slow compared to the bulk of the game-- an exciting ride, in which you explore a ghost pirate ship and haunted island.
Every element here is top-notch: visuals, sound, music, puzzles... it's really special. The moment when you first see the pirate ship is fantastic.
The extra chapter of gameplay that comes with the collector's edition is substantial, too.
This was the first hidden object game I played and it hooked me! I've since played a couple of dozen of HO games, and Nightmares still stands out. The same creators made Dark Arcana: The Carnival, Enigmatis, and Abyss: The Wraiths of the Deep. After playing this game, I bought them all!
I recommend this game!
Find the woman who disappears in the Hall of Mirrors. Investigate two worlds: the Carnivals of Good and Evil!
Overall rating
5
/
5
1 of 1 found this review helpful
Artifex Mundi makes wonderful games
PostedMarch 27, 2013
panicbear
Fun Factor
5
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
4
/
5
Storyline
5
/
5
I played the Dark Arcana demo on one computer, and switched to another OS to buy it, so that I had to replay the demo section again-- and I didn't mind a bit.
It's a gorgeous game and a fun ride. Once you go through the mirror, the visual style changes, taking you from the cotton-candy carnival atmosphere to a stunning sulfur-yellow horror-fantasy world.
While the story has a typical missing-person plot, the way it plays out has a bit of a welcome twist to it.
I didn't find it all that challenging but it was enough to keep me involved and engaged throughout the game.
The same creators made Nightmares of the Deep, Enigmatis, and Abyss: The Wraiths of Eden. I bought all four after playing Nightmares of the Deep, and they've all been beautiful and well-made. Nightmares introduced me to hidden object games and I've been playing lots of them since then, so I guess they got me hooked! If you're into this type of game I think it's definitely worth checking their titles out..
I recommend this game!
After crashing your car in the middle of nowhere, you stumble upon a mysterious town with a shady background. Solve a dark mystery!
Overall rating
5
/
5
1 of 1 found this review helpful
A favorite, for sure
PostedMarch 27, 2013
panicbear
Fun Factor
5
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
5
/
5
Storyline
4
/
5
I've listed this game as my favorite. I'm a fan of the Silent Hill game series, and Phantasmat struck me as a similar experience, in a casual, more mellow mode of gameplay. Like Silent Hill, Phantasmat has compelling atmosphere and visuals.
The imagery is striking. It's not just beautifully illustrated, there are also some unique sights. I especially loved a submerged sitting room with floating furniture.
I often skip cutscenes but my finger didn't itch to click ahead in this game.
The plot is predictable, but it's mostly predictable in the pleasant way of a campfire ghost story. You know how it's going to go, but it's still enjoyable to hear it. Some of the horror elements are slightly cheesy and reminded me of Disney's Haunted Mansion, but it didn't take away from the overall atmosphere.
I enjoyed this game a lot and I felt it was extremely well-made.
I recommend this game!
Investigate the disappearance of the chancellor's daughter and uncover the long lost kingdom of the exiled Frog Prince!
Overall rating
5
/
5
Plot spoilers...
PostedMarch 27, 2013
Fun Factor
4
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
4
/
5
Storyline
4
/
5
If you like fragmented hidden object games with fairy-tale themes, try Exiled Prince out. The graphics are gorgeous, and there's a lot of variation in the visuals as you collect items related to five different princesses.
There are fun little side elements like morphing "cursed objects" hidden throughout the locations.
I had to consult a walkthrough a few times, but mostly it turned out I'd neglected to notice & click on live areas to find needed clues, so I didn't consider that the fault of the game.
The story is fairly dark and you're effectively helping the titular prince end his life, so if that theme would bother you, steer clear.
Otherwise it has a lot to recommend it. Gorgeous game.
I recommend this game!