Wow, what a busy, busy month we’ve had. Nearly everyday there is a new HOG! Here is a list of all the one that have been released in the last month or so and my reviews. Please remember that these are solely my opinion and before you purchase a game or don’t purchase a game, please locate the game on our site and download the demo. You have a full hour to try all these games which is plenty of time to decide if you want to buy it. Now, if you disagree with my review, you like one I don’t or vice versa, tell us why.
Now, good news HOG fans! I’ve been hearing that there are sequels coming out to several games that have been favorites of mine. Women’s Murder Club and Natalie Brooks both have upcoming sequels, yay! I am still working on Nancy Drew: Lights, Camera, and Cruses but with the holidays and finals I have been very, very busy. I should have that done sometime after Christmas though. Until next time, have a happy holiday and be safe!
Note: Any HOG’s who’s names have *** next to them are highly recommend!
Gourmania
This is a HOG meets Time Management. Is it fun, eh. I supposed if you liked both genres it might be fun but I thought it was slow and tedious. We’ve seen this concept before with an older HOG game that had to do with yard sales (I forget the name). You have to make food for customers by finding the ingredients hidden in the scene. Then you have to drag them to cutting boards, frying pans, etc. to finish the order. On the up side, it has great graphics!
Alabama Smith: Escape from Pomeii
This game is so-so. It’s sort of an adventure meets hidden object. You have to find items and then put them with other items to accomplish tasks. My problem is the screen is very small and the text is even smaller. I also thought it was very easy. The story didn’t grab me either. I guess if I were really bored it would be okay.
Amazing Finds
This game is not such an amazing find. It’s a basic HOG with a zany uncle who pops up and gets really annoying. The scenes are really cluttered and if you’ve read any of my other reviews, you’ll know I hate cluttered.
Detective Stories: Hollywood
What can I say about this game? Bleh. Didn’t like the storyline, didn’t like the mini games… graphics aren’t too bad. I would definitely pass on this one.
Mystery Legends: Sleep Hollow
The game is based on the Legend of Sleepy Hollow. The graphics aren’t too bad but once again, cluttered. The story is intriguing but it’s a dark, dreary game. The mini games were very easy. The hint system is tricky, if you click an on an item/word it will use up a hint, if you just want to see the shape of the item you have to hover over the word, not click it. Not quite interesting enough for me.
Mystery Stories: Berlin Nights
This game isn’t bad at all. The storyline isn’t the most intriguing but it has nice graphics, a unique hint system and ways to find items I’ve never encountered before. The few mini-puzzles I did during the demo seemed pretty easy as was finding the objects themselves.
National Geographic Presents: Herod’s Lost Tomb
To be honest, I didn’t like the first game in this series so I figured I wouldn’t like the second one, I was right. I found the screens and objects to be very small and you had to be very precise when clicking, this gets frustrating fast. Therefore, I didn’t actually get to any mini games but I did click the “mini games” button and you can see what they are. They appeared to vary from easy to difficult. The graphics weren’t bad and at least they weren’t cluttered.
Neptune’s Secret
The storyline started out intriguing but the voiceover sounded like bad movie preview. The game is based on the story of Neptune (or Poseidon), god of the sea. However, they have made it “modern” by giving the amulet to a girl named Hannah and she goes to the lost world of Atlantis. I didn’t like the graphics in this game at all. Cluttered scenes, to too dark in some places, etc. You find hidden objects by silhouette, which we’ve seen before, not words. I’ll pass.
Nocturnal: Boston Nightfall
This is another “paranormal” type game. You are lying in a pool of your own blood and if you do not find enough objects to form an essence you will be stuck feeding off humans. Now, right there that got me going ewww. Aside from the weird storyline…the graphics are so-so. The scenes are often dark and slightly cluttered. The objects are pretty easy to find and the puzzles (like Mastermind) to open doors are super easy. Not sure if they get harder as the game progresses or not.
Paranormal Agency
I can some up this game pretty easily. Who ya gonna call? GHOSTBUSTERS! That’s basically it, you are out hunting ghosts, talking to them, getting rid of them all by finding hidden objects in rooms with not so spectacular graphics.
Pictureka! Museum Mayhem ***
This game was intriguing. I think either kids or adults could play this, but definitely educational for kids. Unlike most HOG’s this one is gives you cards that tell you to find in the image “things found in a kitchen” or “things with hair”, etc. The pictures are all hand drawn (thing bad Pictionary). There is storyline to go with a museum and a dog and a bandit. While I don’t like the graphics, its very unique.
Secret Missions: Mata Hari and the Kaiser’s Submarines ***
I only had to play a few minutes of this game to know it’s a winner! This game is by the same people who created Sherlock Holmes and the Mystery of the Persian Carpet. If you liked that game, you’ll like this one too. This is definitely a game I’ll be playing in the near future!
Steve the Sheriff ***
This is a cute game with hand drawn graphics. You get to navigate through an underwater world looking for hidden objects and solving fun mini puzzles along the way. You have to use some found items on other items in the room to find things (ie dark spot, use the flashlight you found, etc.). The storyline isn’t that captivating if you like cute, you’ll enjoy this.
The Hidden Prophecies of Nostradamus
To be honest, I only played this game for a few minutes before deleting it. The scenes were cluttered and everything was difficult to find (or maybe it’s just too early in the morning). Even random clicking did not find the items. I was also put off by the fact that the very first scene asked you to find 36 items! It looked like it has some unique features, wheel of fortune, tarot cards, etc. but I found it frustrating right away and so-so graphics.
Treasure Seekers: Visions of Gold ***
This is a unique approach to a HOG. Instead of having a list or silhouettes, you have to find “locked” locations and find the appropriate items to go in them. Don’t worry, they show you exact pictures; you just have to find them. The graphics are great and the storyline is cute. There are mini-puzzles which are super hard but not easy either. Fun game!
Adventure Chronicles: Search for the Lost Treasure ***
(Escape the Museum sequel)
The game play has changed a bit and I must say I liked the first one better but this is a good game too. It will take a bit of time to get used to the new layout and how the game works but I think it will make a worthy sequel. I don’t know why game developers feel the need to change the way a game is played with its predecessor was such a hit. Either way, if you liked the first, be sure to continue the story!
I hope my review helped you pick out your next game or at least gave you a reason to demo a few. I always wonder if game developers are churning out too many HOG's at one time. So many seem mediocre or just plain boring or annoying. I'd prefer to see less HOG's with great play.
