Winter Wolves released the next chapter of Vera Blanc called Ghost in the Castle. Feel free to check out our review of the first chapter Full Moon. The Ghost in the Castle, a detective mystery written in a comic book style finds the heroine Vera Blanc travels to a small town in Italy to discover who’s behind the ghost and a string of deaths scaring the locals.
Game Review by Maria C. Collins
Game Rating = 1/5
Hidden object games are my passion and I eagerly anticipated reviewing this downloadable game “Hidden in Verona”. Unfortunately, the reality did not match my anticipation. Initially, all was well, the graphics were bright and cheerful and the sound good. The storyline loosely based on Romeo and Juliet was interesting and appealing. The game was creative and innovative. I completed and enjoyed the first two object searches although the hint feature takes ages to reload. Then to a match three game. It seemed to bear no relevance whatsoever to the story and was completely out of place. It appeared that the game designer put the match three game there to show his prowess rather than because it belonged.
Hidden object games are my passion and I eagerly anticipated reviewing this downloadable game “Hidden in Verona”. Unfortunately, the reality did not match my anticipation. Initially, all was well, the graphics were bright and cheerful and the sound good. The storyline loosely based on Romeo and Juliet was interesting and appealing. The game was creative and innovative. I completed and enjoyed the first two object searches although the hint feature takes ages to reload. Then to a match three game. It seemed to bear no relevance whatsoever to the story and was completely out of place. It appeared that the game designer put the match three game there to show his prowess rather than because it belonged.
The first puzzle picture of the Cathedral was quite difficult to complete and there were insufficient instructions on how to move the pieces successfully. I could not get the “skip” feature to work at all. I solved the puzzle eventually and continued with the game. The game told me that I had unlocked more games in the trophy room, where more jigsaw type puzzles followed. I solved all the unlocked puzzles available, but every time I tried to get out of the trophy room, the game cut out and I had to re launch it. I could not return to the map of Verona no matter what I did or where I clicked and the game continually cut out.
This game needs more work and I do not recommend that anyone spend hard-earned money buying this downloadable game. It is not ready for market yet. The spelling mistake in the help feature clearly illustrates that “Hidden in Verona” was not checked or tested sufficiently and, thus, is not ready for market; someone appears to think that the word “panel” needs an extra “n”. This game really disappointed me and I score it 1/5 because it promised much but never delivered. The game is inexpensive compared to similar games but even at 9.95 dollars US, it is far too expensive in its current state.
I cannot find three reasons to buy the game in its current unfinished state. However, if the designers were to remove the irrelevant “match three” puzzle, clean up the glitches in “Hidden in Verona” and make this downloadable game work properly, it is a promising and interesting game. I especially liked the jigsaw type puzzles they exercised my brain considerably and the pictures were interesting. I would have liked some quick facts about Verona. All game designers should understand that people who enjoy hidden object games find “Match three” puzzles boring and prefer puzzles that make them think.
Vera Blanc Game Review by Matt Bird
Game Rating = 2/5
You should buy this game if:
- You like a lengthy tale
- You enjoy applying logic to your gaming
- You like comic books
You shouldn’t buy this game if:
- You’re looking for innovation
- You’re bored of point-and-click games
- You hate reading
Vera Blanc has it all: money, looks, a ritzy lifestyle… and, unfortunately, a tumor in her brain. This is enough to spoil anyone’s day – though when she winds up miraculously cured thanks to modern medicine, she’s suddenly able to add telepathy to her already magnificent repertoire…
Thus begins the story of Vera Blanc, a follow-the-story detective game that sticks you in Vera’s shoes. Having survived her operation and gained the ability to read minds, Vera is enlisted as a detective, teaming up with former FBI agent Brandon Mackey to solve crimes with her mysterious gift. And, in the case of this game, the major item on her to-do list involves a Werewolf – though who knows what the truth behind the monster may be…?
Greatly resembling a semi-classic comic strip, Vera Blanc is a point and click game. You proceed through the case, talking to people, making note of clues and trying to discover what’s up with this werewolf. Along the way you can use Vera’s claim to fame, her psychic abilities, to try and read people’s minds, or you can go the old-fashioned route and reason the crimes out with mere logic. It’s nice not to be forced to read minds all the time, as the mini-game associated with it – a little version of Hangman – gets tiresome.
Vera Blanc has less to do with exploration than simply following the flow of the story. What really matters in this game is how you proceed through the events, as they’ll change what happens; you’ll still probably wind up in the same place at the end, but how you get there can be drastically different from game to game. As such Vera Blanc bears replaying once or twice to see everything there is to offer.
That said, there are some polishing problems with the storyline. Take the beginning of the game. While you’re riding on a train to investigate the werewolf, Vera may discover a bomb in her compartment, and she can disable it in a mini-game. Later on, however, she makes mention of the bomb having destroyed your compartment. Having the story change according to your actions is good and all, but only if the story keeps up with those changes.
Overall Vera Blanc is nice looking. The art is clean, consistent and for the most part good enough for the game. Static panels detract from the excitement of the events, of course, but that’s no new problem to comic strips. The story, too, is well presented and written, though there are occasional flubs within that hurt the overall package.
Is Vera Blanc worth the money? If you like a good detective story, yes. This is a solid title and at $20 won’t break the bank. It’s not the most innovative thing in the world, but it’s far from the worst tale spun. 3.5/5
Brunilda and the Dark Crystal Game Review by Matt Bird
Game Rating = 2/5
You should buy this game if:
- You adore point and click adventures
- You like puzzles
- You like mini-games
You should not buy this game if:
- You’re bored of fantasy tales
- You dislike generic games
- You want to preserve your eyesight
Fantasy stories are legion. Point and click adventure games are legion. Stick the two together and what do you get? Aside from something so common you’ve seen its kind a billion times before, you get Brunhilda and the Dark Crystal.
There is, apparently, a fantasy world that exists beyond our own, known as the Faerie Realm – and, for reasons most dire, the magic of the place is seeping away, which will result in some nasty implications. A demon has been sent out to look for the only one who can save the realm, a girl named Brunhilda, whose aunt is knee-deep in magical lore.
Accompanied by the vexatious demon Brunhilda must travel through a variety of locations, trying to discover the mystery behind the loss of magic – entombed within an artifact known as the Dark Crystal – and save the Faerie Realm. Sounds rather generic, yes, and it is: there’s little innovative substance behind this story, if you’ve read even one fantasy novel, and though the overall setting has some neat aspects there’s almost nothing new here.
But enough story. On to the game play. What makes Brunhilda tick? Unfortunately, it’s a mechanic that’s familiar to the extreme, as Brunhilda and the Dark Crystal relies almost entirely on point-and-click mechanics to get the job done. As she travels Brunhilda is propositioned by all manner of creatures to do something or other for them, from finding cheese to matchsticks to spider webs, and this requires the tried-and-true method of hunting through static environments and clicking until you find what you’re seeking.
And, unfortunately, there’s not a whole lot more to this game. There are some mini-games, true, but they’re not boisterous or inventive enough to save Brunhilda. It’s too simple. If you like these kinds of games you’ll probably have fun regardless, but for the rest of us…
Nor does the presentation help much. Brunhilda isn’t UGLY, per se, but there’s something off about this game’s aesthetics. Everything looks blurry, which doesn’t help when you’re trying to identify items of importance. Your eyes will probably start to hurt when you strain to pick out important details.
This is all rather unfortunate, because Brunhilda’s programmers tried to be ambitious by including full voice acting. This would have been awesome had the writing not turned out rather poor: some of the storytelling is downright awkward, and even the spunky demon is boring as a sidekick. Add in the fact that most of the voice actors are bad (Brunhilda has no emotion at all) and, well, there you have it.
Brunhilda and the Dark Crystal is par for the course. It’s the same as anything and everything else you’ve ever seen in a point and click adventure. It’s not really worth the money unless you’ve never played a point and click before, and even then there are better titles.
Mystery PI New York Fortune Game Review by Stephen Campbell
Game Rating = 5/5 Balls
Mystery PI New York is a new twist on an old favorite. Mystery P.I. is an “I spy” style game where you play as a New York City sleuth working to locate lost items to fulfill a will. After playing the limited demo of the game I rated it a 5/5 based on five sections.
Game Review by Kenneth Andrews
Game Rating = 4/5 Balls
Item-based adventure games are the oldest genre of computer games around, dating back to the 1970s, and have developed from text-only affairs to full-motion video extravaganzas.
Avenue Flo is a quirky adventure that takes in the hidden object genre as well as traditional object-based puzzles and character interaction. A wedding is occupying everyone’s mind in Flordia Street, Dinertown, but on the big day the dress, rings, butterflies, cake, flowers and poodle have all gone missing. Flo wanders off to find or replace all of these items in time-honored fashion, and probably to uncover the mystery of who has gone to such lengths to disrupt the wedding.
Game Review by Kenneth Andrews
Game Rating = 3/5 Balls
Jewel Quest Mysteries 2: Trail of the Midnight Heart is an odd beast that relies primarily on the player’s observation skills, Where’s Wally with added interactivity.
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