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Casual Games Thread

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Elena -

Brink of Consciousness: Dorian Gray Syndrome.

If you buy the game,go for the CE version.It concludes the story.

That’s one of the very first times I’ve seen someone recommend the CE-version of a casual… Gasp

rtrooney -

I just finished Grim Tales: The Wishes.

... but it is still a 6+ hour game. Good value.

That’s massive for a casual! Gasp

Will need to check these out…

     

The truth can’t hurt you, it’s just like the dark: it scares you witless but in time you see things clear and stark. - Elvis Costello
Maybe this time I can be strong, but since I know who I am, I’m probably wrong. Maybe this time I can go far, but thinking about where I’ve been ain’t helping me start. - Michael Kiwanuka

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TimovieMan - 27 August 2012 12:17 PM

That’s one of the very first times I’ve seen someone recommend the CE-version of a casual… Gasp

The thing is,if you play the casual version and you finish the game,you’ll say “Now what??”.
Meh

I usually don’t recommend CE versions but this one is worth it.

     
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Grim Tales: The Wishes is an excellent game. Certainly better than the two that preceeded it, Grim Tales: Legacy and Grim Tales: The Bride.Game play was right around six hours, which is quite lengthly by casual game standards. Although, that time might be shortened considerably if you play in the easiest mode and use all the tools that are available.

Not unlike prior games, you have been summoned by your sister, Luisa to solve a problem. Or, in this case, problems. First, your nephew, Brandon, is suffering from an unknown malady of which you must discover the cause and cure. Second, Luisa’s husband is
lost and apparently killed in Siberia, and you will be tasked to save him. Third, Luisa, herself, will be trapped by an evil witch, (what other kind is there?) and you must save her as well.

It seems all quite convoluted, but the basic premise is that Brandon has made several wishes to the wicked witch. Each wish has caused an increase in the symptoms Brandon experieces. Bottom line is that to save Brandon and his family you must find
a way to make all his wishes come true. And in doing so, you will vanquish the wicked witch.

The graphics are very good. I would rate them excellent but for the static conversation set pieces between you and the various characters. One exception is the puppet, who, once freed, becomes your aide throughout the game.

That also hold true for the voice acting. The translations are exceptionally well done. The dialogs seem quite dry, except for the puppet, who brings a tangible enthusiasm to his role.

The music and sound effects are appropriate to the game and the scene you are playing. Unfortunately the volume levels need some adjustment. For most of the game, the music and sound effects are almost sub-liminal. And then BANG! you’re reaching for the volume control. That was not only irritating to me, but also to my wife who would occasionaly yell “Turn that thing down!”

The game has lots of different puzzle types: HOS, logic puzzles, lock/key puzzles and inventory puzzles. While not unique to this game, each hidden object scene consisted of three challenges: find the object, combine two or more objects to create the object and find an object that hides the desired object.

There are many lock puzzles that require finding the appropriate key. These are not particularly difficult. Most of the time the key is in close proximity to the lock in question.

The inventory puzzles are fairly straightforward. Find a support here, a winch there, a rope here and a handle there and you have a lifting mechanism. You may have to search a bit for all the elements, but they can usually be found without much difficulty

And then there are the logic puzzles. I thought that they were, by and large. fair. But there were a few…

There was one circular alignment puzzle, I’m sure your familiar with these, that required 35 steps to conquer. My hat is off to anyone who did this on their own without benefit of skip or walkthrough.

Lastly, let’s talk about some of the game mechanics.

If you are playing in the “easy” mode you don’t need a walkthrough. Click HINT and the game will tell you exactly what you need to do next. That is tempting beyond belief. Stymied? Don’t know what to do or where to go next? Click HINT.

I’m going to give this four out of five stars.
Crazy

     

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There was one circular alignment puzzle, I’m sure your familiar with these, that required 35 steps to conquer. My hat is off to anyone who did this on their own without benefit of skip or walkthrough.

I’m playing Grim Tales The Wishes now. I’ve come across one circular alignment puzzle (the one with a portrait in the center) that was a bugger to do. I spent about 1/2 hour on it. I hope you weren’t mentioning a more difficult one because I might have to pass on it. I quite enjoyed the block puzzle and wouldn’t mind another one of those.

     
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I liked the block puzzle too. But yes, we are talking about the same circular puzzle. After about 40 minutes of absolute frustration I threw in the towel and did a skip.

     

For whom the games toll,
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FYI, Amazon has a shit ton of casual games on sale for Labor Day. $2.99 each. Too many to list (I would post a link but I’m on my phone and I think everyone knows how to find Amazon).  For some examples, I picked up Snark Busters 2, Haunted Houdini CE (that’s right, CE for $3), that Natural Threat game that has gotten good reviews in this thread, and a HOG 10-pack from Alawar (also $3 - I’m sure they’re probably second rate games but I like Alawar games in general and you can’t beat 10 games for $3). I would also recommend Dark Strokes. It’s also on sale. I recently finished it and I’ll write my thoughts later, but it’s very good and would be a great one to pick up on sale. Enjoy.

     
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Anyone play Redemption Cemetery: Grave Testimony?

     

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

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Monolith - 01 September 2012 02:27 PM

Anyone play Redemption Cemetery: Grave Testimony?

I only played the first one. It had good production values and art. Overall though it was fairly standard and not very memorable. I think it’s a popular series though.

     
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Interplay - 01 September 2012 08:10 PM
Monolith - 01 September 2012 02:27 PM

Anyone play Redemption Cemetery: Grave Testimony?

I only played the first one. It had good production values and art. Overall though it was fairly standard and not very memorable. I think it’s a popular series though.

I find myself only play one of the games in any given series of casual HOG games. Sometimes some of the episodes/chapters suck in the series, but one jumps out and impresses me. So I was just curious if someone played that one game. Obviously the previous games never interested me. Tongue

     

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

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Monolith - 01 September 2012 09:50 PM

I find myself only play one of the games in any given series of casual HOG games. Sometimes some of the episodes/chapters suck in the series, but one jumps out and impresses me. So I was just curious if someone played that one game. Obviously the previous games never interested me. Tongue

You’re right. Though I think most series are pretty consistent in tone and quality. But there can be shocking differences between the games in some series.  The third Treasures of Mystery Island game, Ghost Ship, was the first one I played. It’s a great game, but it’s completely unrecognizable compared to the other games in the series, which I went back and played and are nowhere as good.

     
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I, too, only played the first Redemption Cemetery game. Of the three episodes in the game, I really only enjoyed the third. So, not only are there inconsistencies from game-to-game, as was pointed out, but there can also be inconsistencies from episode to episode. This game, to me, doesn’t grade very high on my “recommend list.”

     

For whom the games toll,
they toll for thee.

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There are some good casual games out there while we wait for the big titles. I hope your website will continue doing monthly overview of hidden object releases. I’m personally keen on ones heavy on inventory collecting and unique style such as Drawn series.

here is the latest casual game I enjoyed:

Inbetween Land


Please post your suggestions for more releases Smile

     
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I just saw it today. There’s a 50% sale going on at BFG. Sale lasts through midnight September 3. I bought two games: Dark Alleys: Penumbra Motel and Surface: The Noise She Couldn’t Make. Thought I would save my credit for when the games are back to full price.

     

For whom the games toll,
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lol Forgot to mention the Labor Day sale. Tongue

     

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

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I finished Grim Tales the Wishes. I played the CE, but would have been happy with the SE. Rtrooney did a good job of summarizing the game. I played in expert mode and had to skip one strategy game (colored flowers). The rest of the puzzles were fair, with the exception of the circle alignment.
I was hoping to get another game with this weekend sale, but I’ve already bought the one game that interested me - Theater of Shadows As you wish. I played a few of the newer demos:
Awakening Skyward Castle - very childish
Gothic Fiction Dark Saga - FMV, but very cheesy
Grim Facade Sinister Obsession - way too much dialogue and I hated having to buy items for inventory

     

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