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The Tarot’s Misfortune Review

Posted by Ruff on March 28th, 2010

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During the preview of The Tarot’s Misfortune, I said that the game is “still the same hidden object gameplay we all love”. Well, I guess that’s true to a point; but after playing through many of its levels the previous week, I think I might have to rephrase that previous statement.

You see, The Tarot’s Misfortune is not just a hidden object game. It’s actually more of an adventure, masked as a hidden object because, well, you’re trying to find hidden objects in order to go through each level. Drawing the line between the two genres is harder than you might think. It’s not like there are a set of rules to categorize the game between the two. It’s just something you feel after going through most of the game; and that’s definitely what I feel for this game – it’s an adventure.

The game puts you in the shoes of a girl, a fortune teller of sorts that uses tarot cards in order to predict the future. Of course, in every story there’s a bad guy, and for this game, it’s some weird, definitely evil looking musician that possessed the whole townspeople out of their wits. Long story short, you’re off to save the people because for some magical reason, you’re not affected by his evil music.

In my opinion, it’s not the most original of stories since even the characters are all cliche, but the game pulls you into the story enough to make you interested in developments. This is a good thing since it succeeds in its aim to get players playing from beginning until end.

The Tarot’s Misfortune employs a straightforward hidden object gameplay. Find all the items in the list that are marked blue. Some of the found items will go into your special inventory and will be used to interact with locked parts of the environment. Gray items cannot be found until you uncover them, so that’s another problem where you’ll have to think of a way in using inventory items. Well, all of that is nothing new, so I guess we’ll move on writing about the new stuff starting here on out.

Something I noticed since the beginning is that all the game environments won’t fit into a single screen. This means that you’ll have to scroll left and right searching for hidden items instead of just a bland, messy area on most games of this type. This presents quite a challenge, so two crystal balls are placed on each side of the screen to help guide you on where most hidden items lie. It’s not as easy as it sounds though.

The feature is very innovative but there’s a downside to all these. Sometimes, because of the perspective, objects are completely blocked from plain sight by stationary stuff that’s nearer to your point of view. I guess this is intentional, but it kinda gets frustrating unless you use a hint to reveal the object’s actual location. With the unlimited hints, the game can be too easy for lazy players also. Makes you wanna think whether playing the game is easy or not.

Again, The Tarot’s Misfortune feels like an adventure because each of its chapters is composed of multiple intertwined rooms filled with puzzles and clues to aid you moving forward. The idea is for you to move back and forth between rooms until all of them are completed; but be warned, this also means having a good sense of direction, or even just a good memory of the name of each place you visit.

You may think this as annoying, but it’s actually more fun. The storyline develops whenever you visit key rooms to your current objective, and just finishing a chapter gives a sense of accomplishment due to the hard work you’ve been through just to finish up. Besides, a finished chapter will also reward you a tarot reading – something that will give you anticipation on what lies ahead for our courageous heroine.

As an ending note, The Tarot’s Misfortune has a great storyline, deep and challenging puzzles, and a hidden object gameplay that will keep you interested from beginning until end. It has all the elements that makes up a great adventure game and I would very much recommend playing it. It has some of its unlovable points too, but all that is greatly offset by how fun the game is in overall.

The Tarot’s Misfortune Download

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The Tarot’s Misfortune Preview

Posted by Ruff on February 8th, 2010

(1 votes, average: 5.00 out of 5)

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The Tarot’s Misfortune is a currently under development casual game coming from Triple Hippo. I got a fairly complete demo of the game and I must say there are definitely many good things to expect coming from its release.

Well no, it doesn’t have new gameplay mechanics because it’s still the hidden object gameplay we all love, but it won’t stop the game in delivering a refreshing interface that is both enjoyable and challenging for the seasoned player. I mean for example, each stage may contain more than one room of hidden objects, and most of these rooms can’t even fit on a single screen. Just like looking to your left and right searching for objects in the list, instead of looking blankly on a single bland side of a room.

I know this is not something new to casual gaming fans but there’s just something in the mix of mini-games, searching and using tools, and the dark and mysterious nature of the story that makes The Tarot’s Misfortune special. Special enough to make us anticipate its release.

Well, no more blabbering here. Head on over to The Tarot’s Misfortune website and download the demo. Or even sign up as Triple Hippo’s game tester if you’re up to playing under development games in your free time.

For now, I bring you the screenshots:

The Tarot's Misfortune 1

The Tarot's Misfortune 2

Elementals: The Magic Key

Posted by Ruff on October 18th, 2009

(4 votes, average: 5.00 out of 5)

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Elementals: The Magic Key is a hidden object – adventure game that blends both puzzle and action into one casual game experience. Set in the fantasy world of Eiron, you play as a young wizard off to save his sister from the bad guys. And even with magic and wit by your side, it’s going to be one tough ride.

Albert is the name of the wizard in training and his trusty sidekick Fellian the Familiar is always there to give him advice. After his sister Lilian was kidnapped by the evil Sibelius, and the Key of Eiron shards scattered all around the world during the process, it’s now Albert’s task to gather all the shards back in order to prevent it falling into the hands of evil. Using magic, he has to crack witty puzzles and battle dangerous villains and of course, meet other friendly creatures along the way.

The main gameplay of Elementals: The Magic Key is hidden object, that is to say, you have to find what Albert instructs you to in order to move on with the story. There are no random objects though, since all items you need to find will be needed to crack puzzles and other hindrances throughout your adventure. And if you find yourself stuck, Fellian’s hint button will help you find those items without any trouble at all.

In each scene, you have to speak with other fantasy characters, interact with the surroundings using your gathered tools and cast spells. Many times, you’ll come across mind-numbing puzzles in order to move on with the adventure. This will engage a pop-up window where you will play the mini-game. Some of the puzzles are quite hard, so if you find yourself wanting to quit, just wait for the door-like icon to activate and skip the puzzle behind.

There’s a second gameplay involved in Elementals: The Magic Key – the battle mode against the enemies you encounter along the way. This involves a unique turn-based system set on a chess-like board with various elementals for you to move. The objective is to eliminate all of your enemy’s elementals by using your own elementals against them.

This part of the game needs great planning and strategy in order to clear since in later levels, your enemy will also gain the power-ups that you also use, which is really quite frustrating if you don’t think before you act. Just remember the basic mechanics – 3 of the same level and kind of elementals can combine to form a stronger one when lined up together. Stronger elementals have more life and greater destructive power, so try to make them as soon as possible.

Power-ups for the battle mode are gained by helping characters in the adventure mode. They are very helpful whenever in a pinch, so use them whenever possible to clear as many enemy elementals as you can. Power-ups are activated through elemental fusions you make, therefore involving more strategy in order for you to win each encounter.

Elementals: The Magic Key is made beautifully with all animation, backgrounds and design made as flawless as possible. Sounds and visuals join together to form a fantasy world you’ll enjoy playing in, making the game very hard to put down once you already start playing. And there are full of surprises and twists in the story too, comparable to the most popular casual adventure games in the market today.

The gameplay is very unique and the storyline drives the adventure unlike most hidden object games that involve random item hunting. The unique battle mode and puzzle mini-games are enjoyable to play and are repeatable through the Bonus feature in the main menu. All of these making Elementals: The Magic Key one of the best adventures I’ve seen this year.

Elementals: The Magic Key Download

DinerTown Detective Agency

Posted by Ruff on June 28th, 2009

(1 votes, average: 5.00 out of 5)

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Who says that the citizens of DinerTown can only star in time management games? Well, I may have mentioned that before, but for this game, PlayFirst proved me dead wrong in my assumptions. DinerTown Detective Agency is a hidden object twist for the popular people of DinerTown. And as PlayFirst expands their characters’ potential in exploring another genre, it’s also a welcoming break for me too since I seem to be reviewing too many time management games lately.

The game stars Bernie the Bookworm. As the name implies, Bernie loves to read and him owning a magazine newsstand is evidence of that quality. However, Bernie has another dream of becoming a private investigator and chance came upon him through a magazine ad selling him his very own handy P.I. kit to start his newfound career. With Flo helping him, the duo scours through the whole of DinerTown trying to find wacky and quirky mysteries needing the help of the town’s first detective.

As a hidden object game, DinerTown Detective Agency has 2 types of mechanics spread throughout its 25 levels. First is traditional hidden object wherein you have listed objects as clues and all you have to do is to find them all to move on, and the second one needs you to collect broken parts of items and use the repaired items to interact with the actual scene. Some clues are important for Bernie’s detective work, indicated by flashing lights and sometimes, Bernie’s head popping out at the bottom of the screen telling you what clue that particular object showed him.

Each scene lets you collect one P.I. badge that either grants you bonus time or points depending if you’re playing timed or relaxed mode respectively. Actual detective work also happens in the scenes, letting you dust for fingerprints, scour the scenes for minute clues or use the dropper to collect samples depending on the particular tool available for you. You may also get to play arranging mini-games and move from room to room on some scenes.

Hidden object is only the first part of the DinerTown Detective Agency gameplay though. The second part makes use of Bernie’s cognitive abilities in trying to narrow down the suspects to three primary ones. In this phase, you get to play an IQ game, a jigsaw puzzle or some fingerprint matching to cross out those who have alibis to pass trial. Afterwards, you’re off to the last part of your sleuthing activities.

The last part makes use of deductive reasoning in order to pinpoint the actual suspect of the crime scene. By use of a checklist, you get to ask the friends of each suspect on some points they wish to share that may be used as a clue to prove them guilty or innocent of the crime. This part is quite easy since you can even deduce who’s guilty even just using half of the invited friends. Just make sure that you read the conditions carefully, or else, you lose detective points if you keep on failing.

After you reach 4 to 5 levels in DinerTown Detective Agency, you’re going to get ranked depending on how well you played. In order to get the highest score possible, try not to use hints, play well and fast, and don’t make mistakes during the second and third parts of the level. Honestly, I didn’t care much about this feature but for those not like me, I guess it adds a little replay factor to the game.

Overall, the game is presented nicely in familiar DinerTown art and fashion. I loved how all the famous Dash game stars are included in the game as either innocent or guilty on such wacky crimes. Mini-games are very engaging and enjoyable to play, and I didn’t even notice time fly so fast during my supposed-to-be trial run of the game. In summary, it’s such a fun trip through DinerTown unlike you’ve ever seen it before.

DinerTown Detective Agency Download

3 Days: Zoo Mystery

Posted by Ruff on May 4th, 2009

(3 votes, average: 4.67 out of 5)

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So much can happen in a day, especially when you are investigating a mystery. What’s more if solving it must only take you three days? Well, that’s the theme of 3 Days: Zoo Mystery, a hidden object game developed by Realore Studios about a girl, her love for animals, and her quest to save them from a mysterious animal-napper. And with its familiar-but-somehow-unique gameplay, let’s see how it fares against other games of its type.

The story of the game puts you in control of a girl named Anna. Anna is part of a family that owns a zoo of their own, managed by her Uncle Ben. One unfortunate night, five rare animals from the zoo were taken, including Anna’s favorite elephant. With Uncle Ben out on a vacation at China and the federal inspectors going to visit the zoo within three days, it is now up to Anna to investigate what happened that night as she contends with lazy police and other characters that contribute into running her of her precious time.

3 Days: Zoo Mystery follows a traditional hidden object gameplay but instead of finding objects depicted on listed words, you are given picture of objects as clues. Yes, it’s not a silhouette, but rather the appearance of the same object you’ll need to find in the scene. Of course, sometimes clues are just representations of the actual items, but I guess this is just an offset of the relative ease of the game.

All items you’ll need to find will go into the inventory after finding them. This is another feature that took me by surprise since most hidden object games will only have you take selected items as inventory. Inventory items will either be used to interact with the scene, or be used in playing puzzle mini-games in-between tasks.

Another unique feature of 3 Days: Zoo Mystery is how you can also drag movable objects in order to reveal blocked items from view. Looking for these objects is easy since your cursor will change into a hand if you come across movable objects. Later on the levels, you will also given the ability to use the Plazmatron, a gadget available from the interface which is powerful enough to temporarily discard unmovable objects to reveal hidden items.

Aside from the story, the greatest feature of 3 Days: Zoo Mystery is the number of mini-games you get to play during the actual game or through the Puzzle section at the main menu. I counted about 54 mini-games available in the Puzzle section but it really seemed many more during the actual hidden object game. Many of these mini-games are also very unique and challenging enough to delay your accumulated playtime for hours.

The storyline is also fun to follow and I loved the 3-day time pressure presented by the story even though it is not actually a basis during the actual hidden object game. It just gives me the feeling that I should get the next installment to the story as soon as possible, which is a good sign of a great storyline influencing my interest about the game.

As a matter of fact, I also loved how the story develops through the actual hidden object gameplay. Since most of the scenes also show an in-game character, speech between them and Anna will soon appear if there’s a chance to develop the story. All in all, peaking your interest to keep going with the game until the main problem is resolved.

I really can’t find negatives about 3 Days: Zoo Mystery other than how lazy all the other characters in the game are, but that’s something given on all hidden object games anyway since their function is to give you tasks to fulfill. And with that, I say 3 Days: Zoo Mystery is definitely one of the tops when it comes to the hidden object genre. It’s an enjoyable game filled with creativity and I loved playing it very much.

3 Days: Zoo Mystery Download