Recent reviews by Diana

Regency Solitaire is a very nice, relaxing, charming, yet challenging game.

The setting takes places during the Regency era in the United Kingdom - early 1800s. The Regency era is noted for its elegance, fine arts, and architecture. It also encompasses a time of social, political, and economic change. This all is very nicely reflected in the game itself.

The game is centered upon a particular family within the Regency era, what each family member's role is, and how they handle, or mishandle, said role. As the storyline continues throughout the game, the player learns a bit more about each family member.

The artwork is absolutely gorgeous!!! The music very pleasant and reminiscent of that time era. You do have the capability to turn off the music, if it distracts you. There are two different settings, normal and hard. You can go back and forth if you like. If a level is too difficult, you can change the setting to normal ... or vice versa if you feel you want a more challenging game. Two of the Steam achievements involve finishing the game on the Normal setting and also the Hard setting. [Note: If you do not want to play the entire game over on Hard when you have already played it on Normal, you can click on the last 'pearl' of the game and just play that last level on hard to get that particular achievement.]

This is not your typical Solitaire game. This game involves the playing of cards in an ascending and descending order on top of the faceup card to be played off of ... until all of the cards have been removed from the tableau (the board). Within each level, there are specific challenges/goals you work toward achieving. By achieving those goals, you earn money to purchase power-ups, and to also decorate the main character's home. They go hand in hand. Further clarifying that, each power-up has it's place as a decorative piece within the home of Bella (the main character), and also becomes integrated into the card game itself for the player to use when needed. The power-ups replenish over time -- not by the clock but by subsequent cards played. There are also random 'wild cards' that, once found, are kept in Bella's fan in the lower right corner, to be played when needed. The power-ups and wild cards carry over from level to level if not used.

If wild cards are used, you will come upon them again by continued play. Bella's fan can hold up to 11 wild cards -- from 'Jokers wild' to a specific card itself. There are no time restrictions, nor penalties. The player plays at his/her own pace. For instance, if the player cannot complete the hand, has utilized the power-ups, and has used all the 'wild cards' they can use to keep that 'run' going, but cannot remove all the cards from the board by level end -- you earn no money, no achievements, but you are given an opportunity to retry that hand as many times as you like. You also do not lose the power-ups, they simply replenish over time by each subsequent card played. However, if used, the 'wild cards' must be found again and will be displayed in Bella's fan for play. The 'wild cards' are placed randomly throughout each hand.

There are several interesting additions in this game that I have not come across in other Solitaire games, which makes it that much more unique, challenging, and fun. For example, some cards have big blue bows on them. What that means is that there are 'two' of that particular card on the board, right on top of each other and secured by that bow. Sometimes, you will find that there are several sets of 'bowed' cards scattered about the board. By clicking on the first bowed card in an ascending or descending order to be played off of the faceup card, that will utilize that particular card, leaving its double still on the board to be played when the opportunity presents itself ... but no longer 'bowed'. It has become its own singular card to be played. There is also a set of cards whereby one is a 'lock' and the other is a 'key'. The player will find the key card through gameplay, click on it, drag it over to the lock, which then disposes of the 'lock and key' altogether, which in turn opens up that part of the board that was once blocked by the 'lock' card. Finally, there are also what is referred to as 'hidden cards' which I found even more challenging but fun, not a distraction at all! What happens is that on some of the boards, there is a card amongst the cards to be played whereby the player cannot tell if that is a 'stack' of cards or a 'singular' card on its own until it is clicked on to be played off of the face up card.

If you've played 'Golf Solitaire' -- this game is similar to that. You play in an ascending and descending order off the faceup card. It's the additional goals, types of cards, etc., that makes this game so unique and so much fun!! Please remember, there is no time limit nor penalties. You can take as long as you like to study the board and play accordingly. If it doesn't work to your advantage, the devs have integrated a 'retry' capability ... again, with no time limits nor penalties. This game does not have to be rushed through or become stressful. In fact, it is quite enjoyable!

And, yes ... the devs, Grey Alien Games, have also implemented Steam achievements and card drops!!!

I highly, highly recommend Regency Solitaire!!!!!

This is a fun Tycoon style game. Takes place post WWII. While 'Alexandra' is off trying to find her husband who was shot down during the war -- she places you in charge of resurrecting the now defunct Baumeister chocolate factory. You begin as a Novice chocolate maker, working your way through the game to become a Master Chocolatier. The storyline isn't much -- but with this style of game, it really didn't bother me. You receive tasks - some of which have strict time limits. You progress by completing tasks and filling orders efficiently. By doing so, this will open more ports. The more ports, the more ingredients you can obtain. Most ports have a variety of ingredients ... however, there are some ports that do have the same ingredient within their inventory as another port. Obtaining your ingredients at the ports selling them at the lowest price is key. As the game progresses, most ports increase their ingredient inventory. Thus, check ports for any possible additions that weren't available prior.

Your progression is measured by purchasing ingredients and producing items at your factories which include chocolate bars, coffees, infusions, truffles, exotics, and your own creations. You can haggle with a shop owner for a possible decrease in their ingredient price - being careful not to be too pushy or they become agitated and immediately increase all their prices. You are tasked with collecting ingredients, preparing orders, keeping your factories well stocked with ingredients for whatever product you're producing there, purchasing your own shops which will give you the best price to sell your own wares, and ultimately bringing all the Baumeister family members back together to resurrect the Baumeister chocolate empire. At a certain point in the game, you will be given an opportunity to purchase an airplane --- do it!! The travel costs and time to get between ports will deplete your money and your inventory.

"Chocolatier: Decadence By Design" is the only game in the "Chocolatier" series where you can make your own creations. You have the ability to pick the ingredients, create the appearances of, name the creations, describe them, and they become integrated into the game/inventory that customers will be asking for.

SIDE NOTE: especially when very, very, very tired, it is funny to see a particular character ask for X cases of your "________" creation. Meaning, don't let children play your profile -- make one especially for them. Else, you may get questions such as "Mommy/Daddy/Auntie/whomever, what does "________" mean???" Yeah, you can get real ... uhhhhhhhh ... creative with your names, appearances, and descriptions of your products.

(HINT: As soon as Havana opens up for you, hit the casino and the slots - not the other game - and you will see your money reserve explode! Bet max every time. Even if you hit "0" ... don't close that window! Just keep hitting max bet and you will get your money back plus a whole lot more! Time doesn't advance while you're in the casino ... so don't worry about that. Also, each factory can be retrofitted to produce any creation. Costs money, though. Thus, hitting the casino is well worth your while!)

Anywho, it is a simplistic time management/tycoon game that is fun to play when you don't want to immerse yourself into a game that takes a great deal of thought or strategy.

I believe I got this in a bundle (at least I hope so). I do not recommend this game. At all! If this game was created by a group of grade school children, kudos for the effort. But, it wasn't. Ohhhhhh, this is ... I don't even know what to say except nooooooooooooooo!!! Please, save your money! Literally, I have no words to describe how poorly this game was coded. It is awful! Don't --- just don't. I ...... uhhhhh ..... wow. Really, really, really bad. (I have never written a negative review. I'm sorry, but this game absolutely deserved one. Ugh!) Please read other reviews for this game and you'll get the point (of how awful this game is).

Rosangela Blackwell is a struggling author living in New York, and a medium. Enter Joey Mallone, a ghost and spirit guide tied to the female members of the Blackwell family. When Rosa's aunt, Lauren Blackwell, passes after being in a coma for decades, Joey is 'released' from Lauren and enters Rosa's life. Details are revealed throughout the five installments of the Blackwell series regarding the female members of the Blackwell family, how Joey came to be, what happened to Aunt Lauren to trap her in a comatose state, etc. Together, Rosa and Joey seek out and help tormented ghosts trapped in the physical world cross over to "the other side" throughout the series.

In BLACKWELL EPIPHANY, the fifth and final installment of the game series.
Rosa’s now fully embraced her quest to find trapped spirits in New York and help them to move on. We finally discover the origins of the two most prominent characters of the series, and learn a little more about a shadowy organization that is the antithesis of everything Rosa and Joey stand for. Many answers to things will be brought to light which have been hanging over the series since it's inception. The Blackwell series has always been focused on human stories, which has made this series so special. It definitely stands strong on its own merits with the incredible writing of Dave Gilbert.

EPIPHANY begins and immediately takes a serious dark turn when people's souls are ripped apart right in front of Rosa and Joey's eyes. And there's the ghost of a little girl which hits Rosa and Joey harder than others -- but, for the most part, not treated as all that different or special than the others along their journey. Death is unfair. Rosa and Joey know and accept that. It's the race to get the little girl's ghost ‘safe’ before whatever is destroying souls can take her death as easily as it took her life. There are other ghosts to be dealt with, too. From the TV news anchor desperate to leave her past behind, to the brother and sister striving to deal with childhood abuse.

How does one end such a phenomenal series? When you get to the last act, everything kicks into high gear heading for the finish line ... the grand finale. And, wow! What a finale! The very last scene is ... dare I say ... perfect!
Thanks, Dave, for such a wonderful experience over the past decade with the Blackwell series. Kudos!!!

(To enjoy the story at it's best, the games should be played in order of creation. 1st 'LEGACY' -- 2nd 'UNBOUND' which explores the events and time that Lauren Blackwell and Joey were working together in the 1970s (while Unbound turned out, unintentionally, to be a prequel to Legacy, it should be played after Legacy to not only help enlighten the player as to what happened in the first installment, but also gives the player clues as to what is coming in future installments) -- 3rd 'CONVERGENCE' which takes place about six months after the events in Legacy -- 4th 'DECEPTION' which takes place some time after Convergence -- and 5th 'EPIPHANY', which is the final installment in the Blackwell game series.)

As far as visual novels go, I have to say that CINDERS is my favorite, thus far. The game takes the player down a very mature path within a classic children's fairytale. The player has complete control over the decision making process of the main character. Thus, with each choice the player makes for Cinders, her personality changes as the game progresses. There is a large number of outcomes for this character based on those decisions she is presented with throughout the game. For instance, with the decisions the player chooses for Cinders, she could become very evil or good, very sexual or timid, and/or anywhere in between. I honestly couldn't believe the number of outcomes this game presents the player with! The replayability is enormous. The artwork is absolutely gorgeous. The music is beautiful. I applaud how the devs implemented the 'fast forward scene' ability within the game as even though this is a VN, thus a lot of reading, it allows the player to choose whether to read through a scene over and over if they wish OR fast forward through a scene that they have previously experienced. Please remember, there are NUMEROUS outcomes to this game and over 300 different possible decisions to be made (at minimum)! The player can also choose the rate of speed that the dialogue is presented, which gives the player a chance to choose either the slower paced dialogue which visually allows 'emphasis' placed on certain words or phrases 'spoken' by each character OR to speed it up and read at the players pace. I literally just finished the very last outcome for this game before writing this review. I sat back and just said "WOW!" (yes, it's that good!) I highly recommend this game to any VN lover --- and would really like to see others at least give it a shot. It truly is a very well thought out game!!!

Really enjoyed this adventure game!! It's different than the average point-and-click adventure game in that the decisions made by the player will change how the story unfolds. Which, in turn, affects your scoring at games end. You play as Mata Hari and are recruited as a spy. As story progresses, you end up becoming a double agent. As with point-and-click adventure games, it is somewhat linear. However ... the key is to strategize. You're a spy. Stop and think. Even though some characters may suggest you go to one country, try going a different route via a different country first. There are side 'missions' that are at play while completing primary missions at hand. With my first playthrough, I pretty much did what I thought I was 'supposed' to do per the character interactions to get what I needed to further the story. My score was pretty sad at games end and I didn't understand why. On my second playthrough, I took more time, chose different routes than suggested by characters, tried to avoid interaction with certain characters until necessary, and was delightfully surprised that I could do much more than I thought. Any adventure gamer will really enjoy this game!!!!
(I would love to see achievements and cards added to this game!!!!)

Rosangela Blackwell is a struggling author living in New York, and a medium. Enter Joey Mallone, a ghost and spirit guide tied to the female members of the Blackwell family. When Rosa's aunt, Lauren Blackwell, passes after being in a coma for decades, Joey is 'released' from Lauren and enters Rosa's life. Details are revealed throughout the five installments of the Blackwell series regarding the female members of the Blackwell family, how Joey came to be, what happened to Aunt Lauren to trap her in a comatose state, etc. Together, Rosa and Joey seek out and help tormented ghosts trapped in the physical world cross over to "the other side" throughout the series.

In BLACKWELL DECEPTION, this installment takes place some time after Convergence. Rosa is contacted by her former employer asking her to investigate a case for him. Rosa and Joey soon find out that he has been murdered while investigating a contact he was given by a psychic. Rosa and Joey proceed to solve two more murder cases when the unspeakable happens. Rosa is brainwashed, Joey gets trapped, and the person behind all has a ritual of 'feeding on people's energy' to remain immortal. Rosa, confused by her purpose in life, decides to track down the organization that is behind the ritualistic 'feeder of people's energy' to find something very intriguing.
Note: DECEPTION was originally released in 2011. An updated version was released in 2013 which changed the original comic-style character portraits to a more realistic style to match the other games in the series.

To enjoy the story at it's best, the games should be played in order of creation. 1st 'LEGACY' -- 2nd 'UNBOUND' which explores the events and time that Lauren Blackwell and Joey were working together in the 1970s (while Unbound turned out, unintentionally, to be a prequel to Legacy, it should be played after Legacy to not only help enlighten the player as to what happened in the first installment, but also gives the player clues as to what is coming in future installments) -- 3rd 'CONVERGENCE' which takes place about six months after the events in Legacy -- 4th 'DECEPTION' which takes place some time after Convergence -- and 5th 'EPIPHANY', which is the final installment in the Blackwell game series.

Rosangela Blackwell is a struggling author living in New York, and a medium of which she has yet to realize. Enter Joey Mallone, a ghost and spirit guide tied to the female members of the Blackwell family. When Rosa's aunt, Lauren Blackwell, passes after being in a coma for decades, Joey is 'released' from Lauren and enters Rosa's life. Details are revealed throughout the five installments of the Blackwell series regarding the female members of the Blackwell family, how Joey came to be, what happened to Aunt Lauren to trap her in a comatose state, etc. Together, Rosa and Joey seek out and help tormented ghosts trapped in the physical world cross over to "the other side" throughout the series.

In BLACKWELL LEGACY, the focus is on the suicides of students at a local university whereby something 'unnatural' has forced these students to kill themselves. Rosa and Joey must not only solve the mystery surrounding the suicides, but also convince the ghosts that they are, in fact, dead and to help them move on.
Note: LEGACY was originally known as "Bestowers of Eternity" which was released as free software in 2003. It became so popular, that the decision was made to extend and redo the game into a commercial product --- thus, BLACKWELL LEGACY was born.

To enjoy the story at it's best, the games should be played in order of creation. 1st 'LEGACY' -- 2nd 'UNBOUND' which explores the events and time that Lauren Blackwell and Joey were working together in the 1970s (while Unbound turned out, unintentionally, to be a prequel to Legacy, it should be played after Legacy to not only help enlighten the player as to what happened in the first installment, but also gives the player clues as to what is coming in future installments) -- 3rd 'CONVERGENCE' which takes place about six months after the events in Legacy -- 4th 'DECEPTION' which takes place some time after Convergence -- and 5th 'EPIPHANY', which is the final installment in the Blackwell game series.

Rosangela Blackwell is a struggling author living in New York, and a medium. Enter Joey Mallone, a ghost and spirit guide tied to the female members of the Blackwell family. When Rosa's aunt, Lauren Blackwell, passes after being in a coma for decades, Joey is 'released' from Lauren and enters Rosa's life. Details are revealed throughout the five installments of the Blackwell series regarding the female members of the Blackwell family, how Joey came to be, what happened to Aunt Lauren to trap her in a comatose state, etc. Together, Rosa and Joey seek out and help tormented ghosts trapped in the physical world cross over to "the other side" throughout the series.

In BLACKWELL UNBOUND, the player is taken back to the 1970s. Here you get a glimpse of how Lauren Blackwell (Rosa's aunt) and Joey Mallone, a ghost/spirit guide, lived and worked together. The focus in this installment is on two separate murders whose ghosts are trapped in the physical world. Without revealing too much, Lauren and Joey come to find that both people were murdered by the same person, who is completely insane. This insane person will appear again, although in a different form, in the remaining installments. Originally, 'UNBOUND' was supposed to be a flashback sequence within the next installment, 'CONVERGENCE.' However, it became so large that it became a game in its own right.
Note: UNBOUND features a real person as a character. Namely, writer Joseph Mitchell of The New Yorker.


To enjoy the story at it's best, the games should be played in order of creation. 1st 'LEGACY' -- 2nd 'UNBOUND' which explores the events and time that Lauren Blackwell and Joey were working together in the 1970s (while Unbound turned out, unintentionally, to be a prequel to Legacy, it should be played after Legacy to not only help enlighten the player as to what happened in the first installment, but also gives the player clues as to what is coming in future installments) -- 3rd 'CONVERGENCE' which takes place about six months after the events in Legacy -- 4th 'DECEPTION' which takes place some time after Convergence -- and 5th 'EPIPHANY', which is the final installment in the Blackwell game series.

Rosangela Blackwell is a struggling author living in New York, and a medium. Enter Joey Mallone, a ghost and spirit guide tied to the female members of the Blackwell family. When Rosa's aunt, Lauren Blackwell, passes after being in a coma for decades, Joey is 'released' from Lauren and enters Rosa's life. Details are revealed throughout the five installments of the Blackwell series regarding the female members of the Blackwell family, how Joey came to be, what happened to Aunt Lauren to trap her in a comatose state, etc. Together, Rosa and Joey seek out and help tormented ghosts trapped in the physical world cross over to "the other side" throughout the series.

In BLACKWELL CONVERGENCE, this installment takes place about six months after the events in Legacy. Rosa's neighbor, Nishanthi Sharma, convinces Rosa to visit an art gallery viewing. There, Rosa and Joey meet a film company director who later reveals that an actor in a recent film died. Murdered is a more accurate statement, they come to find. While working on the mystery, they stumble upon an old murder case whereby the victim's research work was stolen to benefit a rival company. Finally, on the art gallery's opening night, a familiar 'person' makes an appearance and murders the artist. In all three cases, Rosa and Joey learn that the same venture capitalist foundation funded the three separate companies. Rosa and Joey have their work cut out for them to solve the mysteries, help set the tormented ghosts free, and live to tell about it ... well, Rosa, anyway.
Note: CONVERGENCE features two real people included in the cast of characters: writer Joseph Mitchell returns, as well as New York eccentric Joe Gould.

To enjoy the story at it's best, the games should be played in order of creation. 1st 'LEGACY' -- 2nd 'UNBOUND' which explores the events and time that Lauren Blackwell and Joey were working together in the 1970s (while Unbound turned out, unintentionally, to be a prequel to Legacy, it should be played after Legacy to not only help enlighten the player as to what happened in the first installment, but also gives the player clues as to what is coming in future installments) -- 3rd 'CONVERGENCE' which takes place about six months after the events in Legacy -- 4th 'DECEPTION' which takes place some time after Convergence -- and 5th 'EPIPHANY', which is the final installment in the Blackwell game series.