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apignarbCharophycean

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Casual Games

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Joined 2004-07-12

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I’m not dating this as a May or June. Some of you may still be trying to comment on the last Casual Games’ thread but can’t

If you have anything new to report, I would love to hear about it.

I’m also going to try to get some more current reviewed. If I am successful…well, not promising anything, but I think you will enjoy.

     

For whom the games toll,
they toll for thee.

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I don’t know whether this will work or not. I have submitted a request to BFG for access to six-eight free games-per month.

My plan is to distribute these games to participants in the Casual Game thread, which I also plan to update monthly.

The requirement is that the “players” have to write a review of the game. It doesn’t have to be fancy, complete with screenshots. It just has to be an honest opinion of why you liked/didn’t like the game, complete with specifics. If you want to do more than that, so much the better.

This is not a given. BFG may turn down my request. But I would like to know who might be willing to sign on if BFG agrees.

     

For whom the games toll,
they toll for thee.

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Joined 2006-07-30

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I would be interested in being a reviewer if BFG agrees with your plan.  I play a moderate amount of casual games and would be happy to write reviews.

     
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Joined 2011-01-02

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that sounds interesting to me. I was going to put myself forward for this when the website was looking for reviewers a while back, but i don’t think my writing is good enough for a proper article on the site, so i didn’t put my name forward, but i was one of the people in the other thread doing reviews of the games i played, and i do tend to play a lot of them.

I’m not working at the moment so i do have a fair bit of time on my hands..

     
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I just got a note from BFG stating that they are considering the proposal, and will reply shortly. I will let everyone know when I have their final answer.

On another topic, I am currently reading the “Hunger Games” triology. I think this has the potential to make a great casual game series.

     

For whom the games toll,
they toll for thee.

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Joined 2006-02-14

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There’s a new Snark Busters out; Snark Busters: High Society.

I enjoyed the previous games, both for their humour and their difficulty, but this one is getting mixed reviews. Downloading the demo now, hoping for the best.

I like the idea Rtrooney, and I wish I could contribute (as I play loads of HOGs, it would be nice to get some for free..Wink ), but I’m afraid I wouldn’t be able to deliver a review in a timely manner. That was also why I never dared write for AG, even though I really wanted to.

     

I play story-heavy games, watch animation, anime, B-movies, disaster movies, sci-fi movies and crime shows and try to write about it all on my blog: Snark, pedantry and random geekery

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Joined 2004-07-12

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Well, I wouldn’t be looking at reviews of the type that appear when you log on. While that would be nice, I understand people’s time constraints. I also know that the reviews would likely need to appear here, in the message section, so, per force, they would be a bit shorter.

I have heard from BFG, and they appear to be receptive to the idea. That said, AdventureGamers.com is the official affiliate, so I am guessing that whatever happens will need it’s approval. I’ve forwarded the correspondence to Jackal for his advice.

Fingers crossed.

     

For whom the games toll,
they toll for thee.

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Total Posts: 42

Joined 2011-01-02

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If it does get the go-ahead, what were you planning in terms of the reviews? Give 8 people 1 game each, or give each person all the games and get multiple points-of-view on each game?

I would definitely be interested in doing some reviews, though really only of the adventure/HOG hybrid type games (not sure if you were intending to just do those, or all their different types of game)

     
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I hope this isn’t a dupicate reply, because I tried to respond earlier.

My intent was to designate one game per interested party.

Everything depends on what AG thinks of the concept.

     

For whom the games toll,
they toll for thee.

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Joined 2005-12-06

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I would be interested if I just have the time, and doesn’t necessarily have to be just adventures though I’d imagine they mostly are considering that you are working it with this site.

I guess the time shouldn’t be a terrible issue either, they’re probably not throwing the games around like crazy if they agree.

     

Currently Playing: Dragon Age Origins: Awakening
Recently Played: Red Embrace: Hollywood, Dorfromantik, Heirs & Graces, AI: The Somnium Files, PRICE, Frostpunk, The Shapeshifting Detective (CPT), Disco Elysium, Dream Daddy, Four Last Things, Jenny LeClue - Detectivu, The Signifier

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Total Posts: 5035

Joined 2004-07-12

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Quick update: For very legitimate reasons Adventure Gamers has said we are on our own. Not the least of those reasons is that AG has a brand image to protect, and whatever happens here is not under their editorial control, and thus can’t be sanctioned. Let me restate, a very, understandable position.

So, I will pursue the conversation started with BFG, and hope something might come of it, even if not the 6-8 game package I was pitching. When I know something, I will let you all know.

Seeing that we in the US, which is where BFG is located, are coming up on Memorial Day weekend, it might not be until middle to late next week before I have anything to report.

     

For whom the games toll,
they toll for thee.

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Total Posts: 42

Joined 2011-01-02

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Well it’s a shame not to have the support of the site, but i can understand their position as if we were to say something derogatory BFG could pull their affiliation.

I think regardless of whether or not BFG send you games, we could still do it as I tend to get quite a few of them myself anyway.

Playing one called Final Cut - Death on the Silver Screen at the moment in fact, which I would highly recommend.

Pluses

very nice graphics with a lot of attention paid to having animation in the background, even inside HOGs which I’ve not seen much before. It might be something as simple as a strike of lightning lighting up the entire scene, or you might have to find something like a wasp nest inside a HOG and you’ll be able to hear the wasps buzzing and see them flying around the nest.

Very high production values throughout in fact, the main menu looks like it had more work put into it than some entire games. Overall I think this is the best looking hybrid game I’ve played aside from the MCF games.

Interesting story, and most importantly for me, it was different. No hub world with 5 different people you have to save in differently themes areas like 99% of these games, instead you have to rebuild an old projector which is said to wield great power. OK so there are a few different movie sets which you might consider to just be different themed worlds, but it didn’t feel as contrived as other games.

The game also had 4 types of collectable item for achievement purposes (like the morphing objects in the MCF series or photos in the Agency of Anomalies series). I quite like these as it adds a bit of an element of HOG to every scene.

Minuses

The logic puzzles were very easy in this, I completed most of them in under a minute. They were fun, but too many of them felt like they couldn’t be done incorrectly.

There was a bit of inconsistency with the characters you meet in the game. They are digitized real actors, but then when they start talking to you they change into a cartoon version of themselves which doesn’t always look much like the actor. Then later on in the game, they stop using the cartoon version for one of the characters altogether.

The voice acting is truly abominable throughout. The first character you meet sounds like she’s reading off a script that’s not her native language, and a man in the ending video puts on the most unintentionally hilarious “evil” voice I burst out laughing.

The game has achievements but some of them are ridiculous so you’d have to be a complete masochist to want to get them all. Stuff like having to spend more than 10 minutes in every HOG or skip every puzzle aren’t really the sort of achievement I like to see.

Overall

I would give this one a 8/10. I would have given it a higher score if it wasn’t so easy and they’d done a bit better with the characters in the game, but it was a joy to play this and it is gorgeous to look at, so I would recommend you play it.

     
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Joined 2012-02-17

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marcd2011 - 26 May 2012 11:47 AM

Well it’s a shame not to have the support of the site, but i can understand their position as if we were to say something derogatory BFG could pull their affiliation.

It’s got nothing to do with that.  The BFG affiliation (like most affiliations) helps them more than it helps us.  (And if you don’t think we ever said anything derogatory ourselves, you must not have read some of our monthly write-ups in the past. Tongue)

This is strictly an accountability issue.  Our staff reviewers have very strict guidelines for review accountability, and we simply can’t assure that for a volunteer forum venture.  You have our “support” in the form of a forum to share your reviews if Big Fish wishes to cooperate.  But the site simply can’t be held responsible if people don’t write reviews as promised, or are based on unfinished games, or show a particularly biased slant, etc.  So if we can’t ensure the result, we can’t really endorse the request.

     
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Total Posts: 5035

Joined 2004-07-12

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I agree with Jackal. Many BFG games received less than glowing reviews back in the day when casual games merited a monthy review. And even those games that received good reviews were frequently criticized in the Comments section.

As I think I mentioned in my post, but may have been misunderstood, we would not be held to the same editorial standards as staff reviewers. And, thus would not have access to the games staff reviewers would have access to.

I will continue the quest.

And, thank you for the first “review” we’ve every had that went further than an “I like” or “I didn’t like” comment.

 

     

For whom the games toll,
they toll for thee.

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Joined 2010-02-15

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Anyone else play/beat Special Enquiry Detail: Engaged to Kill? It was recommened to play the first game, but I never liked it. Relied to much on the generic HOG elements. THe sequel on the other hand really pushed the story and gameplay a bit, including a great jump in character writing. I had beaten the game like two weeks ago, but haven’t heard it mentioned here since. Definitely recommend if you like WMC but with more polish and character dialog and story. The gameplay felt really new for some reason, especially with the HOG scene where you are digging through drawers in a bedroom, making you open each drawer and finding the items. Gave the feeling of actually searching for items.

Also the characters point out through dialog the sheer misery in each HOG scene with some jab at how messy it is. lol

     

Stuart Bradley Newsom - Naughty Shinobi || Our Game: Shadow Over Isolation

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Total Posts: 5035

Joined 2004-07-12

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I started playing the demo, but didn’t care for it all that much. While the writing, by long-term AG contributor, Steve Ince, was better than that found in the WMC games, the overwhelming number of similarities was a turn off. Don’t get me wrong. I liked the WMC games. I just didn’t want to play another one.

     

For whom the games toll,
they toll for thee.

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