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Well, I played through the first Nightmares from the Deep: The Cursed Heart CE. I thought is was great. The story was interesting, and the production value was very good. The graphics and art design (widescreen optimized) were excellent. The hidden object scenes are good, but there are a lot of them (plus/minus). It was a fairly lengthy game, without the CE bonus. Overall, I would say the highlights of the game are the graphics and the story. Puzzles are all pretty easy.
The CE bonus chapter was also fun, but seemed less polished than the main game. Several HO clues were misspelled or wrong. But, it made a nice epilogue to the game and featured all new locations. It took less than an hour to complete.
Overall, I enjoyed the game and will definitely pick up the sequel when the SE comes out. I would give it 3.5 or 4/5.
I’m playing Corpatros the Hidden Village. Despite it’s poor reviews at BigFish, I’m going to recommend it to anyone who wants some challenge and no handholding. Be prepared, the hints are not much use other than for the HOG scenes. There is a WT available on YouTube if you get stuck.
Well, I played through the first Nightmares from the Deep: The Cursed Heart CE.
I’m sorry. When I first read your post I thought you were talking about new additions to the Nightmare Adventure series. Now that I know that we’re talking about something different I’ll take another look. Re: the Nightmare Adventure games, you have to play the first if you want to understand the second. I really liked the second, but, truth be told, I don’t have any interest in playing a third.
For whom the games toll,
they toll for thee.
I’m playing Corpatros the Hidden Village. Despite it’s poor reviews at BigFish, I’m going to recommend it to anyone who wants some challenge and no handholding. Be prepared, the hints are not much use other than for the HOG scenes. There is a WT available on YouTube if you get stuck.
Poor reviews at BFG usually mean that it is a game I would like to play. Interplay regularly tracks reviews for games at Gamezeebo. Reviews at that site generally rate “challenging games” a bit higher than the wimps at BFG.
For whom the games toll,
they toll for thee.
When I first read your post I thought you were talking about new additions to the Nightmare Adventure series. Now that I know that we’re talking about something different I’ll take another look. Re: the Nightmare Adventure games, you have to play the first if you want to understand the second. I really liked the second, but, truth be told, I don’t have any interest in playing a third.
??? Those games are awesome. I would play a third in a second.
I’m playing Corpatros the Hidden Village. Despite it’s poor reviews at BigFish, I’m going to recommend it to anyone who wants some challenge and no handholding. Be prepared, the hints are not much use other than for the HOG scenes. There is a WT available on YouTube if you get stuck.
Poor reviews at BFG usually mean that it is a game I would like to play. Interplay regularly tracks reviews for games at Gamezeebo. Reviews at that site generally rate “challenging games” a bit higher than the wimps at BFG.
I’ll look into that. I find most of the new casuals embarassingly easy. I’m playing the new Mystery Trackers (Silent Hollow)right now. Other than finding the objects, the few puzzles I’ve seen had the codes written right beside the lock. What’s the point? Just leave the bloody thing open.
I’m playing Corpatros the Hidden Village. Despite it’s poor reviews at BigFish, I’m going to recommend it to anyone who wants some challenge and no handholding. Be prepared, the hints are not much use other than for the HOG scenes. There is a WT available on YouTube if you get stuck.
Poor reviews at BFG usually mean that it is a game I would like to play. Interplay regularly tracks reviews for games at Gamezeebo. Reviews at that site generally rate “challenging games” a bit higher than the wimps at BFG.
I’ll look into that. I find most of the new casuals embarassingly easy. I’m playing the new Mystery Trackers (Silent Hollow)right now. Other than finding the objects, the few puzzles I’ve seen had the codes written right beside the lock. What’s the point? Just leave the bloody thing open.
Unfortunately, puzzles in this genre are almost always embarrassingly easy, as you say. Worse, they usually contain only variants of the same 10 or so basic puzzle types, just variations on the same mechanic. Most good new games tend to have a few novel unique puzzles in them; these usually end up being very fun but sadly even easier than the standard puzzles. If you look back at the evolution of the genre, the challenge in these games used to come from having very difficult hidden object scenes. However, most newer AAA titles (can I even use that expression when referring to this genre?) have very easy HO scenes which can usually be completed in a minute or so.
Off the top of my head, trying to think of games with more challenging puzzles, I would recommend the aforementioned Nightmare Adventures games (which have the added bonus of having no HO scenes). I think the casual game with the hardest puzzles I can think of is 9: The Dark Side (the first game). Some of the puzzles in the Drawn series were also quite challenging - I’m thinking especially of one puzzle where you recreate a colored mural by mixing different colored waters (it’s in the 2nd game I think, the most challenging of the 3).
Nevertheless, despite all this, I do find the games a lot of fun to play, kind of like doing a relatively easy crossword puzzle. Though I would certainly welcome much more difficulty.
Edit: as rtrooney said, Gamezebo can be helpful in this regard. I always look for games where their review says “Cons: Puzzles may be too difficult for some.”
I played through Off the Record: Linden Shades SE. I was looking forward to it after reading reviews elsewhere, but in the end found it a little mediocre. It is a new release from Eipix, a company whose prior games Final Cut and Amaranthine Voyage I have enjoyed a great deal. You play as a reporter trying to find out why an orphanage was abandoned many years ago. I found the story pretty uninteresting and derivative. It came across like a poor man’s Mystery Trackers plot.
The production quality is quite high. The graphics are sharp and widescreen optimized, but they came across as a little sterile and lacking of the character you get with some of the more beautiful 2D games. There is not much variety in locations and the game is fairly short as well. Hidden object scenes are very easy. Puzzles are few and far between and very easy as well. There are a few FMV cut scenes with good quality a la Mystery Trackers. One area I applaud the developers for is the dialogues are carried out with animated characters and they have taken the effort to lip synch the animated characters to the English dialogue. I imagine they have done this for all the localizations. It was a nice touch.
The gameplay was a little frustrating as well. It suffers from many of the worst casual cliches, eg the protagonist refuses to get her hands dirty as a way to create a puzzle. Also, the game seems very linear. There is essentially no backtracking even though the game is short. Most inventory items are obtained about a screen away from where you use them.
A final annoying thing (sorry) is that while the music is minimalist and good, the music track stops and restarts every time you go to a new screen. As you quickly travel through the game screens, this becomes very annoying and I’m not sure why they made this design choice.
Anyway, great production values but regressive gameplay. I will give it 2.5/5 because I really feel gameplay should be progressing in this genre, not going backwards. This might be a good starter HOPA, and others may rate the game higher.
I just finished playing Rite of Passage - Child of the Forest a second time. It’s a fairly long game. I don’t remember exactly how long it took me to finish it the first time, but the replay took over 2.5 hours, and that’s with me knowing what I had to do.
I mentioned earlier that the graphics are only fair. Certainly not up to 1000 Doors’ standards. Voice acting is pretty good, but there is no animation during the conversation sequences.
The story, itself, is quite good. In fact, there are three storylines. The first has you, as protagonist, attempting to save your husband from the otherworldly dreams he is having. The second has you saving the town from the invading forest. The third is the backstory of why the husband is having the dreams, and why the forest is invading. While they all tie together nicely at the end, it takes awhile to understand what is going on.
The puzzles are not very difficult although there are a few action puzzles and also some timed sequences. I never cared for these very much in real adventure games, and I didn’t like them very much here either. When I say not very difficult, that may not be entirely accurate. For example, at one location you will find a record player. You must then find a record to play on it. When you do, the record player will play a series of five notes that are each represented by a hieroglyphic character. In a totally different location you will be asked to reproduce the secquence on a musical instrument. Yes, the notes are in your journal, but finding the right page is not easy. So, while reproducing notes heard in one location on an instrument found in another location is fairly easy, putting all the pieces together is a bit harder.
Several puzzles require the assiatance of your incredibly well-trained hamster who you find fairly early in the game. Unlike assistants in other games, your companion does not speak. A welcome touch. Another nice touch is you can name your hamster.
There are a large number of locations. Fortunately the game comes with an interactive map. Once you’ve been to a location, you can return to it with a mouse click. If you were required to actuall walk this game, it would take forever to complete.
Saving the best for last are the hidden object scenes. This game has the largest variety of hidden object scenes of any game I’ve played. The variety keeps the scenes fresh. Instead of saying “Oh no! Another HO scene!” I found myself wondering what variant I would be playing this time. Quite nice.
I’m going to give this 4/5 stars. That said, others who are looking for graphic elegance or top-notch animation will likely be disappointed. And if they were to rank it 2/5 I would certainly understand. As I said in an earlier post, I would certainly recommend playing the demo first to see whether the style is to your liking.
As a side note, there is another game in the series, Rite of Passage - The Perfect Show, from develper Mad Head Games. I will certainly be giving it a try in the near future.
For whom the games toll,
they toll for thee.
As a side note, there is another game in the series, Rite of Passage - The Perfect Show, from develper Mad Head Games. I will certainly be giving it a try in the near future.
Thanks for the review. I had picked up Child of the Forest earlier. When I started playing it though, it became obvious it was a sequel, so I held off to decide whether to get the first one. I think, based on your review that the 2nd one is good, I will go ahead and pick up the first and play them in order.
I also picked up Child of the Forest earlier during one of the BOGO sales. I’m now moving it up on my to-be-played list—already played Perfect Show. I’ll also give Corpatros the Hidden Village a try—I’d skipped it because of the weak reviews.
I’m playing Perfect Show now. I can easily see where Mad Head Games cut their teeth preparing for the next game.
What I don’t see is Interplay’s comment that the second game is a sequel. I see nothing in the first game that would lead me to believe that the next game has any connection to the first.
For whom the games toll,
they toll for thee.
Okay, so there’s a sale on for the rest of this weekend. What’s got people’s strongest recommendations?
Josh
Okay, so there’s a sale on for the rest of this weekend. What’s got people’s strongest recommendations?
Josh
Holy recommendations, Batman! Late lunch guest just left. She brought three bottles of my favorite chardonnay, Indaba from South Africa. We finished them all. And now you want me to become clear enough of mind to recommend some games.
How many?
I’ll give you a quick four:
- Calavera - Day of the Dead. Yes, a rip off of Grim Fandango, but fun.
- House of 1000 Doors - The Palm of Zoroaster. The best of the three.
- Rite of Passage - Child of the Forest. Complex for a Casual with some interesting twists.
- Mystery Tracker - The Four Aces. If you don’t want to use hints, your memory needs to be in top form.
Congrats on the release of LSL Reloaded. I was never a fan of the original game, and thought that your and Al’s talents were not used to their best advantage in this remake. But then I wasn’t paying the bills.
If the publisher wants more remakes, I hope they will give you a break from LSL. You, of course know what I want to see. If it can’t be a sequel, FPFP Reloaded!
For whom the games toll,
they toll for thee.
I’m playing Perfect Show now. I can easily see where Mad Head Games cut their teeth preparing for the next game.
What I don’t see is Interplay’s comment that the second game is a sequel. I see nothing in the first game that would lead me to believe that the next game has any connection to the first.
Yeah, I may have been thrown off by the fact that I knew there was an earlier game in the series. I only played the 2nd game for about 30 seconds before I thought I might be missing something and quit.
I don’t regret the mistake at all, though, because I just played through the first game, The Perfect Show, and I thought it was fantastic. You can tell the game is a couple of years old (no widescreen support, etc.) but other than that I have no complaints. I thought the story of the game was very, very good, both in the way it starts and the way it develops. I have to say, I can’t remember a casual game that has as involving a beginning. In most games, you’re just a random investigator on an assignment or some such. In this game, you’re a piano teacher who is late for an appoinment and because of that a child who was waiting for you is abducted. Very good start.
I enjoyed the HO scenes, which have a good variety. All were easy. The puzzles, however, I thought were much more difficult than the average modern HOPA. I was stuck forever on a tile puzzle. I was treating it like a mathematical problem, but I didn’t clearly ascertain the mechanics of the puzzle. I was forced to look for a small hint online to figure it out, and I can’t remember when if ever I’ve had to do that in a casual (this is a good thing that the puzzles were harder). The other puzzles were more straightforward, but there were many novel puzzles.
This game also ranked very high on the not-wanting-to-stop meter. I’ve found that many recent HOPAs have very high production values, but after playing for a little while, I don’t have much desire to keep going for too long. The flow of this game is very good and addictive.
Anyway, I really liked this game and would give it 4.5/5 personally. I am very much looking forward to playing the sequel now.
Edit: I forgot to mention but I also really liked the way thatthe game tells the back story, through the use of several interactive puppet theater vignettes. They are puzzles of the find-what-is-out-of-place variety, but they were really well done and fit the game world perfectly.
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