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Lady KestrelluckyloserTheTMD

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Casual Playthrough #10 - Mystery Case Files: Dire Grove, Sacred Grove

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Since most of us are moving fairly quickly through this one, go ahead and complete the next two chapters.  We’ll make the deadline Sunday, June 7, but it can be adjusted if need be.  Don’t forget to look at the deductions at the end of each chapter.

By the way, I love this face:

Most of the voice acting is good, too.
 

     

Carpe chocolate.

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I wish you a speedy recovery Tim.


I have just finished the first part, and I have to admit that I had to use the hint button several times at that big puzzle Meh No matter how much I looked at it and no matter how much I experimented, I simply couldn’t make heads or tails of it and figure out what I had to do. But that is also the only time I have used the hint button.

As for the story then I don’t like it nearly as much as the previous game, there might of course still be some surprises for us, and it might pick up and get better, but so far it looks pretty much like a stand casual story (no offence meant), and it lacks the same eeriness that the last game had.

As I can see Lady K has given greenlight for the next chapter, I will get back in and continue without further delay.


BTW: I chose a male protagonist, simply because most of the previous has all had female protagonists, and I was longing for something different.

     

You have to play the game, to find out why you are playing the game! - eXistenZ

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I’ve just got the key to the hotel from Samuel. Is this where we are supposed to stop?

     
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Have arrived in South Bend for my grandson’s graduation. Daughter, second grandson and son-in-law are sitting next to me in an un-air-conditioned gymnasium. Waiting for the festivities to begin. The high school has Wi-Fi! Yeay!

The mega puzzles, similar to the Ravenhurst puzzles are very difficult inasmuch as I can get to the last level, and, despite the puzzle hint, I don’t know what to do. I’ve used two skips so far, and am not embarrassed to say so.

Elgar’s Pomp and Circumstance is now playing. We will see later whether my hotel has Wi-Fi.

     

For whom the games toll,
they toll for thee.

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Congratulations to your grandson, Tim!  Enjoy your family visit.

Colpet,
Continue through Samuel’s chapter (#3).  Stop after you talk to Ulf and restore the amulet.

     

Carpe chocolate.

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I’ve just met Ulf and the gang. Kinda surprised that more damage wasn’t done by the kerfuffle. Not that I enjoy watching violence on-screen, but maybe a scratch or two, just to show that the intent was serious? A bear, a wolf, lots of guns—nobody hurt, all good friends now?

Like Izno, I chose the male voiceover because playing as a male is so rare in these games.

I’m fully expecting the masked Mistwalker who hasn’t earned his name yet to end up being someone very, let’s say, connected.

     
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I have now played the first 3 deductions, though if we are talking about the same amulet, then I still only have one piece of it.

I am very happy to say that I managed to solve the third mega puzzle all on my own without any help or hints whatsoever , so either these are getting easier, or I’m just getting better at decoding how they actually work - Okay I almost gave up on the slider puzzles part, which I’m NOT a big fan of, but I persevered.

Story-wise I thought that it picked up quite a bit with the attack of the druids, which was actually very well made and very dramatic, but then it kind of just inflated again when they afterwards just all stood there like nothing had happened Meh And It actually happens a second time, when one of the druids is shot, and a few seconds later it is once again as if nothing had happened Shifty Eyed

Still the mean and angry looking spirit stag, that regularly pops up out of nowhere, does manage to add a bit of extra tension to the game. And you have to give credit where credit is deserved, I can’t imagine that it is easy to make a stag look mean and angry, at least not without turning into a cartoon character.

BTW: Did you know that ULF means Wolf and BJORN means Bear in the Scandinavian languages (well Ulf in old norse, Ulv in modern Danish/Norwegian). By that logic I will assume that the third druid is called something like ARN which refers to Eagle.

     

You have to play the game, to find out why you are playing the game! - eXistenZ

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Iznogood - 06 June 2015 10:46 AM

I am very happy to say that I managed to solve the third mega puzzle all on my own without any help or hints whatsoever , so either these are getting easier, or I’m just getting better at decoding how they actually work - Okay I almost gave up on the slider puzzles part, which I’m NOT a big fan of, but I persevered.

Heh.  When playing the part with the letters, I thought they had to be upright, but couldn’t for the life of me figure out how to do it.  It turns out it doesn’t matter as long as they’re placed correctly.  I think the 2 by 2 aspect of the slider puzzle made it easier, but I really liked the puzzle underneath.

If anyone needs help with those big puzzles, just holler.  I’ve been through them a few times now.

Iznogood - 06 June 2015 10:46 AM

BTW: Did you know that ULF means Wolf and BJORN means Bear in the Scandinavian languages (well Ulf in old norse, Ulv in modern Danish/Norwegian). By that logic I will assume that the third druid is called something like ARN which refers to Eagle.

That makes sense, since they forgo their given names to protect the forest and the creatures within it.

I think the cut scenes are well done, but the way the characters just stand around waiting for you to do all the work reminds me of some of the older 1st person games like Dracula Resurrection, The Messenger, and The Secrets of Da Vinci.  They stand like statues until you talk to them up close.

     

Carpe chocolate.

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Have caught up after being very stuck having forgotten the axe in the tree. It is amazing how you get all these inventory items that don’t help you at all. Once the one scene is released, I knew exactly how to use them up. I found this mega puzzle to be more obtuse than the others. Like Lady K. I thought the NWSE letters had to be right side up.  I solved the upper right ‘combination lock’ puzzle by trial and error. I thought it was tied into the numerical sequence, but the solution code (R4 L3 R5 L1 R3) didn’t seem to relate. The slider was only hard because the picture wasn’t really sharp and clear. The rest of the mega puzzle was good. I loved the 4-way directional arrows to the right. Finding the hints was like finding the stairwell behind the open door in Riven. You think you are done, then wham! there is another clue. 

     
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Lady Kestrel - 06 June 2015 11:25 AM

When playing the part with the letters, I thought they had to be upright, but couldn’t for the life of me figure out how to do it.  It turns out it doesn’t matter as long as they’re placed correctly

I wish I would have known that. I assumed the same and did it with all the letters upright. So it can be done if you want the extra challenge…

     
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Speaking of making things harder than they need to be—I carefully noted the numbers on the little china animals, and after I found the formula to put it together, I zipped over to the office where — it didn’t work. So I went back and took the paper out of the suitcase and kept it, and fiddled around with the doodads to get the numbers on the paper, and then I put the paper on the desk, and THEN the same combination worked. Sheesh.

But the mega-puzzles are mega-fun. I also like being able to play a bit with the CE extras before finishing the game—you can finish a jigsaw at the end of chapter 1, and another after chapter 3.

     

These days I go everywhere with a carpetbag containing a crowbar, a flashlight, a screwdriver, an oilcan, a ladder, a zipper tab, and a chihuahua.

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Go ahead and finish the game.  We’ll discuss the basic game on Tuesday, June 9 and then add the twists that the CE throws into the mix.  I haven’t played the alternate ending yet, but I’ll be ready to talk about that also.

     

Carpe chocolate.

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Finished the game. The original storyline. There were only a couple of ocasions that I hit the skip button, in two of the “big” puzzles. I also curse myself for losing some jigsaw pieces (CE).
In general, while I liked the game as a whole and there is surely a vast improvement in the puzzle area from its predecessor, the much less dark atmosphere and the more “usual” storyline (can’t say I didn’t guess what happened) gives my preference to the first one. Don’t get me wrong, it is a very good game, it is just that while I found the first Dire Grave a unique casual game, Dire Grove, Sacred Grove is just a very good one.

EDIT: Waiting to start the alternate ending! Smile

     
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Wow, things are suddenly moving quickly! I’m still stuck at the third (I think) “big puzzle”, where you have to move four letters around to spell a word (again, that’s what I think). I’ll try to catch up with you tonight.

     
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I finished the Rube-Goldberg-style puzzle with the shield and arrows. I’ve now become accustomed to expecting the unexpected in these puzzles. Not that this knowledge necessarily helps me at all. I find that I click on the “hint” function more later in the puzzle—you’d think that solving several steps would encourage me to NOT use the Hint button. But sometimes I just feel overloaded and impatient by the last step(s). Maybe I should just move away from the computer after solving half of these complex puzzles, and then come back later to solve the other half.

I loved the brief snowmobile ride. I read a note that reminded me that there’s more than one meaning for the word “game.” Got a chuckle out of it. The environments are impressive, but somehow they feel more decorative than in the first Dire Grove. The first game made me feel downright cold a lot of the time.

     

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