Recent reviews by mcquigan

Go in blind:. There are too many spoilers out there and it would be a shame to miss out firsthand on this. There are no puzzles to stump you; a walk-through is not needed.

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Loved:

• Game mechanics
  
• Sumptuous artwork
  
• Voice overs
  
• Music
  
• Engaging story
  
  What a unique way to play a game! The “blink” worked perfectly for me. You allow access to your webcam (nothing is being recorded so rest assured).
  Instead of using the enter key or clicking a mouse, you blink.
  Or not.
  If you do not have a webcam or prefer not to use it, you can set up the game to use the space-bar instead of the webcam.
  You will occasionally connect dots or turn a page by clicking, the rest of the time you will blink.
  
  Game options are:
  
  
• Fullscreen
  
• Vsync
  
• Graphics quality
  
• Resolution
  
• Subtitles
  
• Limited subtitles
  *Some gameplay features will be limited with that; I do not know what those are. I replayed a chapter and did not notice a difference.
  
  The game saves when you exit. There is a chapter select so you can go back and select different options. I will update this after my next run through.
  
  Yes, I liked this game enough to replay it.
  
  My play time was about two hours; I felt like I got my monies worth.
  
  And no, I did not receive a curator key. I bought it because it looked so good!

READ THE WHOLE REVIEW


The Wild Case is a Point and Click game that sits right in the middle of a Hidden Object and a Point and Click game.

This is a game that I would recommend HOPA or Hidden Object fans play as a bridge for learning to play Adventure and Point and Click games.


It sits in the middle because there are no hidden object scenes and there are no puzzles that require much thought.

You will spend your time going from point A to point B; you acquire the item you need to take to point C or back to A or B.

When you have what you need the puzzle will solve itself most of the time. There is no careful measuring of items you attained to create something.

The exception was one puzzle that required note taking. It was a simple directional puzzle, but after you are given the instructions, it is not recorded in the Notebook.

The English translation is still a bit rough; I believe that will be improved with future patches.

The graphics are very nicely done, but one look and my mind screamed HOPA.

Game Play:
You access everything by hovering at the top of the screen: Notebook, Inventory, Jump Map. Access the main menu there or with the escape key.

You know your objective and how to proceed by looking at the Notebook. There were a couple of times I needed to go back and hover around a screen to see an item I missed. It was easy to use the map to go back and gather items.

The game uses an autosave that has very frequent check points.

I suffered no crashes; it ran great for me and was pretty on the eyes. 😊 Your set-up options to tweak: resolution, SFX, full screen.

My play time was about five hours.

There are excellent reviews written about this game already that cover the things I usually have to say so I will not reiterate them here.

How about this? I loved this game.

New mechanics are introduced; it still feels like a “good old point and click”.

There are some clever and unique puzzles that you solve with your new tool: an excellent hacker device! I had a lot of fun with this and extended my game-play by doing many unnecessary, but fun things with it.

Game Play:
You access your inventory and game options by the escape key or “I”.
You almost always know your objective and how to proceed. If not, there is a hint function if you get stuck that provides one nudge at a time rather than the solution.

You have many set-up options so tweak away to your hearts content.

The game autosaves after a chapter/memory. You also have a manual save option (thank you!).

Traditional WASD movement. A right click flips you around; that was a nice addition.

Story, story, story, that is where it’s at for me and this was well written and engaging.

I suffered no crashes, and it ran great for me.

This was the best game I have played in a long time. I cannot wait to find out what those pesky humans and androids get up to next!

My play time was about 14 hours.

It was a boring Friday night …
I could find nothing to watch on TV.
A friend told me about this so I peeked and then purchased.
I launched it only to make sure it ran properly :-) – it did. Then I looked up, it was two hours later, I was almost halfway through. I was hooked and quite immersed in the story.

Your children are missing:
What would you do and who would you trust?
The game page description is accurate so I won't repeat it.

GAMEPLAY:
This reminded me of Carol Reed games, but instead of conventional movement you easily click a box to move.
Like all interactive FMV games you only have so many choices on the path you will follow. There are five possible endings.

HOW TO PROGRESS:
There are no head-banging difficult puzzles; this is all about the story.
You are provided a little round box on the lower right of the screen with which you interact with the inventory items.
Need to get those keys off the wall? There it is, click that circle.
There are few puzzles, they are not difficult, you are provided the information to solve them.
I completed my first run through in about five hours. I stubbornly looked at everything twice.
The game ran quite nicely. No lag. No screen tear etc.

On playthroughs, press the spacebar to skip scenes and conversations you remember.

Kudos to all actors involved. The actors are all great, and boy is Rupert something! He scared me silly on one of my endings!
Rupert Booth is terrifying and emanates evil. As Possible Psycho pointed out "he is so charismatic" The dev and his family play as themselves; I found that so appealing. It was a family affair and they really did a great job.

The music was also well done. It was complimentary, not distracting.

I'm heading back in to see a different version of the game.

Update. The developer informed me that:
There were six family members involved:
Himself: as Dean, his wife and children play as themselves. Julian is played by his brother in law, and Bexley is played his sister in law.

"It was an absolute blast making this game. It never takes itself too seriously and hopefully brings a lot of fun.

They'll be a behind the scenes documentary coming soon as we shot lots of behind the scenes footage and interviews during the production."

While the story Is not new or earthshattering, the presentation, acting and narration are so well presented! It is beautifully done.

The game lulls you onto "movie mode" and I was unprepared to react quick enough when I needed to more than a few times so don’t get too comfortable.

The opening and ending "Oh Death" song, made popular by bluegrass legend Ralph Stanley was certainly appropriate for my characters!

You always know what your objective is; you always know beforehand if there is a menace nearby.

The game autosaves at checkpoints. The checkpoints are generous occurring after a major event or decision has been made.

You can play WASD, Point and Click, or with a controller, you can play solo or with a partner.

I suffered no crashes or screen tearing. I had a very slight lag just a couple of times

I finished the game in solo mode in about 6.5 hours. I missed half the achievements in this play through using WASD controls. There are 50 secrets you can reveal that connect this group, I only found 30 on this playthrough.

When I started a new game, I see my old “secrets” are still there, so you can continue to build on what you have already discovered.

Slight annoyances:
The controls were unwieldy at times. You have to get your mouse to a target area and click in a circle or press the “A” or “S” key within a certain amount of time. It was slow enough that I would not call it a timed event, but I was unable to get zeroed in where I needed to be several times.

Extra clicking…if I click and pick something up why do I need to do anything else to examine it?

After completion I wanted to try a different outcome. There is no chapter select. I will have to replay the game to see the other outcomes. Is the story arc so far-reaching that it justifies not having a chapter select? I don't know yet, but I'm interested enough to play it again.

After about seven hours of play I was asking myself the same thing so read the entire review.

I disliked this game when I started it – and yet, I kept playing. I wanted to know more, the art and stunning visuals kept me going. Stiles kept me playing.

The game opens with a teenager in high school dropping acid. Then he gets a swirly and is beaten up. So yes, the subject matter is very dark: suicide, bullying, depression, drugs. Just being a teenager is hard enough. Add all those things together and it is not going to be an easy comfortable play.

The game takes you on a bad trip from the perspective of a depressed teen. He has had a very good run of bad luck.
Some scenes are tortuous. You see how mean kids can be in high school; hopefully actions you see are no longer tolerated. I really felt for Stiles, the teen.

This is an Objet d'art in so many ways. You are forced to go slowly at times and see… what did I see? You will ask yourself that too.
You are forced to experience hallucinogenic effects. Synapses on drugs are misfiring and taking you deeper into his mind and witnessing the things he has been going through.

At some point in the game you are told the outcome of the game is dependent on how well you “treat Stiles”. I guess I missed the memo on how you control that. You do not click a dialogue choice or select an action.

Was it bad when I didn’t run fast enough through the burning forest and dodge a tree that fell? Is it bad because I still have not managed to out-swim the shark and make to the safety of a classroom I have to find only by trial and error?

There is a lot of trial and error in the game. You are lacking clear direction in where you will find what. You must enter every room you have access to in the high school over and over and trigger memories. That does get tedious, but the amazing visuals kept me plodding along

There are some clever unique puzzles, they may feel overused after a while. There are notes to read, items that will jog a memory. Some memories are good; some are not. You question if what you saw was even the real memory.

Game Play:
There is an utterly unique way you access menu features. That is a hint on how you will proceed at times. The start feature is so appropriate. Perfect for this game.

You have the usual set-up options, the game autosaves after a chapter/memory. You will know when you have completed it.

Traditional WASD movement. A right click flips you around; that was a nice addition.

I doubt I will be able to progress because I am not good at action and speed. In fact, I just received an achievement for being eaten by a shark 20 times.

I wish I could though...

I had no screen tearing, no lag. no problems running it.

A unique fantasy visual novel

+ Story
+ Characters
+ Graphics
+ Game length, many hours of replay value
+ It is a smart game, requires a mature vocabulary.

“You are a hunter of beasts and monsters”. So begins our next quest in the “Hunter’s Journals” series.
But, this one changes it up quite bit as you now have “Heirloom” weapons or armor you can take along.

You can only select one, you can however change your selection and see it will affect your outcome.

It is all about choice; you determine your own fate. My fate was to die pretty quickly because I launched right into expert mode. It sounded easy enough. Right? Wrong. This is a maze through a cornfield, you need to be strategic and think about your options.

Luckily it was an easy reload and selection of a new story arc. I opted to die many times just to see how it would play out.

Like its predecessors “The Hunter's Journals - Red Ripper” is another rich absorbing story. You have a new basket of skill-sets and weapons at your disposal. You will see no violence, blood or gore; combat is done by throwing the dice.

This is a game you can take a break from and come back knowing where you are and what you need to do if you can’t play for a few days.

The game mechanics and the world you enter are very clearly explained. Do take the time to read it all including the encyclopedia of monsters. Everything you need to know to play the game is explained; thank you for that!

You have the usual set-up options. You can play in easy, intermediate, or hard mode. The game has an auto save feature or you can save manually. I like having both options available.

I can’t even begin to guess on the hours of play. My forte is dying :-)) and I do it so well; I enjoy it none the less because it’s an easy reload

The game ran seamlessly, and I suffered no crashes, despite my alt+tabbing, checking Discord and Steam.
Thank you for yet another interesting read

This is a narrative rich, atmospheric, psychological horror game.

Sept 2022: Updated to ask if anyone has played the alternate ending? In the old version (the non-digital) requires that you doing something cunning that Agustin thought no one would figure out so he implemented a short-cut in the digital versions

You will compare all others in the genre to this game.

The story:
You are a writer that moves into the empty Blackwood mansion to continue writing your novel.
Or is it empty?
This is one of the many questions you will ask yourself.

It is a huge house with many outdoor areas; every area has something to explore that adds to the story.

There is a lot of reading here that tells the tale of the former inhabitants. Don’t miss a bit of it and you will be rewarded with a story that builds in suspense and slowly, logically unfolds.

Wait until dark, be prepared to lose some sleep and click “play”.

The puzzles are not random; you are given all the info you need to solve the mysteries here, but you must read everything!


With hints enabled Jerry will give you more information when you call. Also, you can track your progress by looking at the time of the grandfather clock. When it has changed, you've reached a milestone.

Gameplay/Fixes:
This is a traditional point and click game.
Note that it is an older game and some players with WIN10 may have wonky mouse or movement problems. The mouse speed is too fast or you are bouncing/spinning around:

Use the XP compatibility troubleshooter selecting XP svc pack three.

• Camera speed slow
  
• Slideshow off
  
• Alternate control disabled
  
• NVIDIA control panel:
  
• Change “Vertical Sync" setting from "Application Controlled" to "Off"

The game does not run in Widescreen with 16:9 resolution. It is configured to 1024 x 768 with an aspect ratio of 4:3, so there will be black bars surrounding the image on your standard 1920 x 1080 screens. Editing the SCREAM.CFG file to custom resolutions (Height and Width) is NOT recommended as it can cause major issues.

The Function keys are assigned by the game, You must re-bind the F12 key to F3, F6, or F11 to take a screenshot in Steam:

F1--HINTS ON/OFF The hints lie in Michael's dialogue. When turned on he will tell you more information.
F2--SURROUND MUSIC ON/OFF
F3--
F4--LOOK DOWN
F5--SAVE GAME
F6--
F7--LOAD GAME
F8--LOOK UP
F9--CAMERA SPEED SLOW/NORMAL/FAST
F10--TEXT SPEED SLOW/NORMAL/FAST
F11--
F12--GAMMA CORRECTION LOW/NORMAL/HIGH/DISABLED
ESC Key: Exit to Main menu to load, save, go to settings. Also skips cut-scenes, intro and credits.

Manually quick-save at anytime with the F5 key. Message me if you need information on getting a Steam Key.
Join us here: https://discord.gg/senscape

Time to take a break from murder, mayhem, action and mind-numbing adventure puzzles? Do a jigsaw; kick back and relax with it.

Cold Coffee Studios has released another family friendly, very polished game with hand drawn art. This takes place in space, and then on to a post-apocalyptic Earth.

Music was quite good, fitting of the scene it was in.

With each puzzle you play more of the story is unlocked. The locations are interesting and different. Each jigsaw is tailored to the part of the story you are in.

You can make this as easy or difficult as you like: Timed or un-timed challenges, you can vary the background, the number of pieces you play with (28-1000), even the shape of the pieces! If you really want a challenge go into mosaic mode!
This game has great options, including:

Puzzle shape can be traditional, mosaic, or arrow
Timed or untimed
Windowed/Fullscreen
Music: on/off
28, 112, 220. 500, 1000 pieces!
Zooming! You can zoom with the mouse wheel, very handy in the bigger puzzle modes.
33 Achievements
33 puzzles!
The game autosaves quite nicely, you can exit mid-puzzle and when you restart your pieces will be as you left them.

This review is based on four hours of play.

I marked this as "Informational" on Senscape.

This is such an interesting game. So many story telling techniques are utilized. You arrive on an island called Elk. Elk is an island of the dead you are told. You may be a cartoon character dancing one minute, helping to carry a body the next. You will hear the stories of how they died. Real people that submitted stories contributed to this and are shown telling the stories.

This is not a family friendly game because of language and adult themes.

There are a few easy mini games that are quick to get through. We found ourselves wanting to skip them and get on with the story. A good amount of the game is watching the game unfold, be it in a dream, or on a drunken evening…If you are looking for action or a quick moving game, this is not it.

Game mechanics:
There is no mouse support. You will be using the spacebar or enter key to progress the dialogue. We recommend using a controller if you have one. Movement is WASD or arrow keys.

There is an autosave function only. Do not quit playing unless you’ve accomplished something, or you will be replaying portions of the game.

Playtime thus far is around three hours. I would guess this is at least four hours of game play for many. It depends on how many times you wander around instead of doing your quest.

It can get boring, but I keep playing. At this point, I am curious see if I am dead; I guess I will have to report back after more play.

I would really encourage the devs to add mouse support.