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Friday, April 10, 2009
Amazon Sale on Downloadable Casual Games - Buy one, get one free!
Until April 11th, Amazon is offering a buy one, get one free sale on 318 different titles of downloadable casual games. With prices between $6.99-$9.99, it's a better deal than even being a member of a games club!Click here to go to the downloadable game site.
Games are mostly puzzle, but there are a few action ones as well. Again, with 318 titles to choose from, there is something for everyone.
Details: download the first game from Amazon. You will receive an e-mail with a code to redeem for your free game. The e-mail coupon will expire 5/31/09.
Happy bargain hunting!
Saturday, March 28, 2009
Spa Mania sale
For a limited time, get Spa Mania, a time management game, for $.99 from Big Fish Games! Use code: SPA99MANIA.
Sunday, March 8, 2009
Big Fish Games: Special Pricing for Bigfishgames.es
Big Fish Games is pleased to announce that we're running a special promotion to celebrate a wonderful anniversary. Our Spanish portal was launched one year ago and we want to share our happiness with our users by offering 40% off all games on Bigfishgames.es!Click here to be transported to the Spanish-language website. Use the coupon code ANIVERSARIO to receive the discount. (Discount is good through March 14, 09)
Happy Gaming!
--------------------------
En español (lo siento para la traducción; Todavía estoy trabajando en mi español):
¡Hola! Big Fish Games (Los juegos grandes de los pescados?) están satisfechos anunciar que funcionamiento una promoción especial para celebrar un aniversario maravilloso. ¡Nuestro portal español fue lanzado hace un año y queremos compartir nuestra felicidad con nuestros usuarios ofreciendo el 40% de todos los juegos en Bigfishgames.es!
Chasque aquí para conectar con el Web site. Utilice el código ANIVERSARIO de la cupón para recibir el descuento.
Esta oferta expira 14/03/2009.
Sunday, March 1, 2009
Mystery Case Files: Return to Ravenhearts Walkthrough, Part 2
Part 2; this is a continuation of the earlier post fo Mystery Case Files: Return to Ravenhearst™. A link to the earlier post can be found hereBase of well:
The door opens to the base of the well. There is a bucket; use the long stick to unhook it. Time to leave. Don't worry about the ring in the floor for now.
Path in front of the manor:
Head back to the well in front of the manor. Turn the crank and raise the bucket; take the rusty knife that is inside.
School house:
-Head back to the schoolhouse. Look at the cellar door; there is a temperature carved into the front of the door. You'll return in the next steps to solve the disk pattern; don't worry about it now. The dripping gas tank can't be fixed yet either.
-Go back to the toy store, where there is a hot stove.
Toy Store:
Find a potholder and turn the knobs until the temperature is correctly set to the one on the cellar door by the schoolhouse. There is a pattern on top of the stove.
-Head back out to the school house cellar door.
School house:
-Turn the disks to match the pattern from the toy store stove. Once the disk combination is correct, pressing the button will open the doors and take you into the cellar.
Cellar:
-Finally, the machine belt comes in handy. Notice the sharpening stone: the machine belt will fix that.
-Sharpen the rusty knife (and hope you had your tetanus shot recently!)
-Back to the toy store.
Toy store:
-In the basement, use the knife on the bear. A box of matches will be excised.
-Head to the gingerbread house.
Gingerbread house:
-All you need here is the empty jar.
Cellar:
-Use the jar to collect gas from the tank.
-Go through the toy store and through the new door to the base of the well.
Base of well:
-Click on the rope from your inventory to attach it to the ring on the floor. Head down the rope into the well.
-You'll come across a puzzle on a door. Match the symbols that appear. In this game, speed is of the essence: if you take too long, you fail and the puzzle resets. I haven't yet been able to count the number of correct matches open the door, but it's more than I expected.
Well:
-Using the matches and the tinder stone, light the room. It will have 3 puzzles.
-Hint for the crest with the holes and lines puzzle: With the mouse, trace a continous line through all the lines without backtracking (mousing over an area where you've traced before).
-After the cutscene, go back to the toy store.
Toy store:
-Search the display case again. Find the letter "R".
-Back to the room with the three puzzle doors.
Puzzle room:
-The door on the right has a typewriter. Type "Victor" (the anagram for the typewriter letters you've been collecting throughout the game) for the door to open.
Tram room:
-Notice the stuck fuel box. Use the screwdriver to to open the fuel box; pour the gas from the jar into the tank.
-Search the trestle above and find a putty knife.
-Head into the tram and pull the lever. Down you go!
Beach:
-The tram will take you down to a beach. Search the shipwreck; you'll find a key among the hidden objects.
-Go towards the stairs.
Stairs:
-Look at the steps and use the putty knife to scrape away barnacles. There will be a group of raven symbols. Write down the order and head back up the stairs.
Upstairs:
-Like the Grand stairs in Moria, this is an impassable chasm. But wait! There is a panel west of the waterfall.
-Slide the tiles around - they will always slide in the direction of the beak. Match the raven pattern with what was in the base of the stairs.
-Voila - a bridge rises. Now, cross the bridge (over troubled waters) to continue climbing the stairs.
Cottage:
-At the top of the stairs will be a cottage. Use the key to enter.
-Turns out Victor is home. Perhaps you should've knocked or brought cookies!
Attic:
-Well, now you're tied up and in the attic! Time to get MacGyver. Search the pram (baby carriage) for a bobby pin and pick the lock on the trap door.
-Climb down the ladder, then go to the library to the east.
Library:
-Look at the book on the desk and take the knob.
-Make sure to search the bookcase and find a film reel.
-The Victrola doesn't work yet.
-Go back to the hall and enter the left room.
Theatre:
-Put the reel on the projector.
-Place the knob on the projector. Turn it to activate the movie.
-Watch the movie and note the symbols on the book jackets behind him.
-Notice the boarded window. You'll be back for this.
-Back to the attic.
Attic:
-Search the carriage/pram again for a record.
-Back to the library.
Library:
-Play the record on the Victrola.
-Rearrange the books on the bookshelf to match the order of the symbols from the film.
-Once the symbols are correct, the bookshelf moves and opens a secret area.
-Pick up the axe and go back to the theatre.
Theatre:
-Use the axe to bust through the boards on the window and escape.
-Head back to the cottage via the well and tram.
Cottage:
-Click on the shed door. A dominoes puzzle will block progress. Match each domino combination to solve the puzzle and open the door.
Shed:
-Search the shelves; find a jeweled heart. Back to the cottage.
Inside cottage:
-Go to Victor's bedroom (upstairs). Examine the dirty frame on the wall. Clean it with the cloth. You can other items here right now.
-Note the symbols at the bottom of the admission letter.
-Downstairs, use those symbols to open the door on the right. You need to click on each skull in the order it appears on the bottom of the letter.
-Study: Search the table; take the skull key. Use the key on the chest, which gives you another puzzle. Rotate the stars until you get an image of a peacock. Take the telescope.
-Back to upstairs bedroom. Put the telescope on the tripod. It will focus in on the weathervane on the mansion roof. The code will be important later.
-Head back to the tram and return to the general store.
General Store:
-Go straight to the elevator. Use the skull key on the locked box. Use your casebook to compare the shapes to the playing cards. You will need four 3 digit codes.
-Elevator locked compartment puzzle solutions: club (from weathervane): 300; diamond (from school house board): 006; hearts (from plaque in front of Manor): 076; spade (from the buoy): 005.
-Enter the correct code and the elevator will descend to the bottom.
Hallway:
-The room to the east has a statue. Take the locket from the statue of Emma.
-The door on the left has a place for ten jeweled hearts. Put the locket in the door, then explore the mansion, finding all 10 hearts. (hint: search all the sparkly areas). This step took me quite a bit of time. From what I understand, the heart locations are completely random.
-Once you have all the hearts, return to this area and place them in the door. The door will open.
Final room:
-The control panel! This is what is supposed to end Charles' reign. Hint: you want to have a numerical sequence from 1-17. Sometimes moving to the other side may be the best way to get things in order.
Enjoy, and please feel free to share other hints and tips in the comments!
Thursday, February 12, 2009
Mystery Case Files: Return to Ravenhearst Walkthrough
Mystery Case Files: Return to Ravenhearst™ hidden object game and puzzle hints:Overall hints:
Sparkling areas mean there is an item to be found, so search the entire areas for scene or a light glinting off an object
This game has unlimited time - therefore, you also have unlimited hints if you're patient enough to wait for the crime computer to reset! When stuck, you can drag and drop objects onto the crime computer and it will give you a hint of what it might be used to do.
You can't come back to puzzles you've skipped, so make sure you don't want to do them before you skip them!
Any time you come across a significant item, it is entered into your casebook. When you're in an area that is lacking an item, always check your case files to see if you have the object already.
Walkthrough (with spoilers) begins here. This flow is what makes the most streamlined sense; you are free to wander about discover these areas in a different order.
Outside the Manor:
-Read the plaque on the left of the gate. Notice the series of numbers.
-Click the bush on the right to activate the hidden objects.
-Once you find all the objects, a wrench will be added to your inventory.
-Click on the black speaker box. Of course it doesn't work, so you must hot wire it. Open your inventory and use the wrench (thank goodness it was just lying outside the gate!) to remove the bolts from the box.
-Connect each plug to its correct socket. The numbers above the plug correspond to a column and row to tell you where to connect the wires. You must connect a red, green, and blue wire. For example, the blue wire has a 2,2 above it. Connect it from two columns over and two rows down.
-A key will appear when the wires are correctly reconnected. Use the key on the gate, and open the gate with the gate handle.
Front porch:
-Click the front door to open a hidden object scene. Look at the crescent moon symbol.
-Once the items have been added to your inventory, you will get a "V" key from a typewriter (link to help out some younger folk) .
-There is a sparkle above the porch that you can't access yet.
-Head to the left porch. Click on the trunk for more hidden objects.
-Once you've found all the items, you'll get a brick.
-Go back to the front door, and head to the right.
-Grab the ladder, and head towards the statue and pool area.
Pool:
-Search the rosebush for objects.
-The eye will be added to your inventory.
-Return to the front porch.
-Click the area above the porch. Put the ladder on the steps and click on the bird nest. Lucky you, there is another eyeball.
-Go to the right and use the brick to break the window.
Inside the manor:
-Get the crowbar (beneath the chair) and head back outside.
Porch:
-Use the crowbar on loose board (left porch).
-Hmm. A third eyeball.
-Use the chest; find the items and get a machine belt added to your inventory.
-Time to head back inside via the broken window!
Inside:
-Click the door. Place an eye in each space, and then press the level to adjust the opening. This will bring the picture into focus much the same way that a camera lens works. Once the picture is sharp, the door will open.
Kitchen:
-Maggots galore! Move the note on the wall and find the stick-bird sketch.
-Search the shelf for objects.
-You will get a cheese wedge when you've located all the items. (I don't recommend that vintage!)
-Back to the porch.
Porch:
-Look towards the ground and place the cheese on the ground to entice the mouse out. Click on him to add him to your inventory. Go back to the left.
-Front door.
-Sadly, you use the mouse as bait for the cat to get him to move.
-Take the key, open the door, and return to the kitchen.
Kitchen:
-Open the cabinet under the sink and take the shears and moist cloth.
-Use the key that you just obtained from under the cat to open the lock on the stove. Take the glove.
-Use the clippers to cut the rose, and the glove to pick up the rose.
-Time to go back outside.
Pool:
-Search the rose bush again, and take the horn.
-Give the rose to the woman statute. A crescent moon appears - compare it to your case book. Move the moon on the door to match the position in the book, and the door will unlock.
Graveyard:
-Find all the objects and get a pickaxe.
-Use the shears to cut the bushes on the right side, and work the puzzle there.
-Puzzle hints: the goal is to activate all the lights by connecting them. Rotate the layers, starting with the outer most ring, until the lights are connected. Move to the next inner ring. You will receive a sun symbol. Back to the mansion!
Living room:
-Click the mantle above the fireplace to access the puzzle. Use both the sun and moon symbols - your casebook will have the symbols. Once the correct signs are in the hands, you can pull the lever at the top of the screen.
-The fireplace moves, showing stairs that lead downstairs. (interestingly, secret passageways never seem to start out with stairs that lead up.)
Downstairs:
-When you reach the room with 3 doors, click the middle door. Flip the switch to activate the machines and start the puzzle.
-Puzzle hints: goal is to get the total on the right. You must add or subtract numbers. Once the puzzle is solved, the door will open.
Middle room:
-Search the window. You'll get a stick.
-Head out to the street.
Street:
-Take the shovel (near a beauty salon), and click on the salon door.
-Puzzle hints: arrange the columns of tiles to match the colors shown at the top. Clicking a tile slides it to an empty space.
Salon:
-Search the privacy screen. You'll find a red marble. (Thank goodness it isn't another eye!)
-Further in the salon, find the staircase banister. Rotate the heads to face the stair landing.
-This will show a painting of Rose's twin girls. Look at it closely; an angel symbol will be added to your case book.
-Head upstairs, and look under the bed. You'll locate a "C" key for the typewriter.
-The nightstand will not open yet.
-Click on the door to activate the next puzzle.
-Puzzle hints: there aren't a lot of good hints for this one. You have to rotate the board to get the steel ball into the hole. One chain turns the board clockwise; the other turns it counterclockwise.
-When the puzzle is solved, you can enter the bathroom.
Bathroom:
-Search the tub (I know you won't want to, because it's pretty dirty!), and you'll receive a lever.
-The medicine cabinet is locked.
-Head back out to the street! Apparently, washing up is optional.
Street:
-Go to the general store. Search all the shelves and find another red marble.
-Activate the cash register puzzle.
-Puzzle hints: swap the keys to that the column and row totals add up to 15. You'll get two things upon solving the puzzle: another red marble and four numbers.
-Use the code on the fuse box on the back wall. Surprise; there is a fuse missing!
-Enter the elevator. Use the lever from the dirty bathroom on the elevator control box, and click it to go down a level. (Apparently the fuse went to something other than the elevator?)
Cavern:
-Search the boat for objects, and receive a gold key.
-The grate will be too rusty to move.
-Go back to the elevator; click the lever to pull it and go back to the general store - then back to the beauty salon's bathroom.
Salon:
-Use the key on the locked medicine cabinet. Take the rust remover.
-Search the bathtub again - and find electrical tape. Back to the general store and the mysterious cavern.
Cavern:
-Use the rust remover on the grate bolts; then use the wrench to loosen them.
-Head through the tunnel to the bats!
-Use the horn to wake the bats so you can go further.
-At the end of the cavern, you'll find a body in a machine.
-Solving the puzzle frees Rose. Examine the coffin and find yet another red marble (#4).
-Head back to the pool and statue areas of the manor.
Pool:
-There are still things left in the rosebush. Inspector, you may need to work on your powers of observation. Take the screwdriver; open the door and head down the path.
Garden:
-Find the X and dig with your shovel. You'll find a missing piece of the painting. Back to the beauty salon!
Salon:
-Place the torn piece back on the painting. It will show the twins underneath colored marbles - which you may remember appears on a door puzzle in the room after the secret passageway. Head back there.
Secret passageway room:
-Puzzle (door on the left): Place the red marbles into the empty spaces. Using the two buttons, rotate the marbles until you have them lined up: orange on top, four reds in the middle; three blues on bottom.
-Head into the playground.
Playground:
-Search the sandbox. Take the funnel.
-There is a school without power.
Toy store:
-Search the display. Take the fuse, and go through the back door.
-Search the workbench; find the hammer and go downstairs.
-Click on the cloth-covered heap to reveal a game.
-Puzzle hint: click on the green or purple trolls to get a score of 100. Hitting a red troll will subtract points. Once solved, you will receive a coin.
-A fuse box has a lot of bugs.
-Back to the beauty salon and bedroom!
Salon:-Nails are hammered into the drawer to keep it shut - use the hammer
to open it. Take the paint remover.
-Head back to the front room and privacy screen. Find the hidden objects, including the "M" key.
-Back to the general store!
Store:
-Take the fuse from the toy store and place it into the fuse slot. This will activate the electricity for the school room.
-Head down in the elevator to the tunnel.
Tunnel:
-Use the telescope in the tunnel - the red button will reveal a slot for a coin. Put the coin in to activate the telescope.
-Adjust the knobs and use the eyepiece - focus on the buoy. The pattern on the side will be added to your case files.
-Search the boat again, and collect the "T" key.
-Use the elevator to go back to the general store.
Store:
-Search the shelf and find the "X" key. Back to the playground.
Playground:
-Enter the school and take the bug spray from the desk.
-Use the paint remover on the chalkboard.
-Numbers will be underneath and will be added to your case file.
-Gingerbread house puzzle: rotate the circles until the painting is aligned and oriented properly (upright).
Gingerbread house:
-Take the potholder.
-Click the box on the right wall - use the electrical tape to fix the damaged wiring.
-Press the red button and the dumbwaiter will activate - when it gets to you, it will have some rope. Take the rope.
-The door at the end of the hall has a memory match puzzle.
-Search the house to find the "S" key.
-The door in this room needs a knob.
-Back to the toy store.
Toy store: search the display case - get the doorknob. Back to the
gingerbread house.
Gingerbread house:
-Use the doorknob.
-Click on the flower picture. You'll find a number on the back. Record it.
-Back to the toy store
Toy store:
-Head to the basement. Use the bug spray to kill the bugs on the box.
-Repair the phones by lighting every point on the circuits. You can reset as many times as necessary.
-Once repaired, go to the workshop and call the number from the back of the poster; the workshop door will open.
For the rest of the walkthrough, click
here.
Shop-n-Spree
Shop-n-$pree is a hidden object game. While the company bills it as a time management game, the time management is similar to most hidden object games, where one must find all the objects within a certain amount of time.The backstory: Your long-time family department store has seen better days. A shopping super-center comes into town and tries to buy up your lot for additional parking, you enter with your buisness degree to the ailing family business.
Game play: You find the objects that the customers order. You will have a maximum of 3 customers at a time. Some of them will have text (red pillow, blue slippers), some will show you a picture of what they want, some will have a a request and timer (i.e. Give me all the globes you have, and the timer starts running - you have until the timer runs out before the customer gets angry and leaves); some have a "riddle" (My nephew wants 3 green stuffed animals).
What they did well: As the different levels load (bathroom, sporting goods, boy toys, etc), there is a box that lists a bunch of items with their prices and pictures. The items don't vary from this list, so if you don't know what something is (for example, you've never done rock climbing and don't know what a carabiner looks like), this could help out.
What could have been better: Sometimes the photographer customers had a picture of what they wanted that was not the same as the actual item! There was no reward for finishing a level early. Upgrades are not choices, but given after a certain number of levels. The upgrades don't affect gameplay. It gets tiresome to listen to the customers says "Okay" and "Thanks" over and over.
Overall: This was not a game that I found very compelling, but think it's best targeted to younger players.
Friday, January 30, 2009
Cassandra's Journey: The Legacy of Nostradamus
Cassandra's Journey: The Legacy of Nostradamus is a hidden object game, created by Joybits. You are the granddaughter of a famous fortune teller, and it seems you have inherited some of her talents.Gameplay: It's a standard hidden object game. There are hints (that don't always work correctly; see below) that highlight items if you can't find them. You can purchase additional hints after finding enough gems. When looking for differences in some of the pictures, consider things like color, shape, size, and location. On one, I could not spot the sandwich on the table. :)
Mini-puzzles:
1) Prophecies: Hangman. There is a random quatrain that you must decode in less than 10 errors.
2) Jigsaw: It's really a switch place, not as much a jigsaw. You click a piece, then select another piece where you want to place it, and the two tiles will switch places.
3) Rune Concentration: Memory match. Flip two cards; if they match, they will disappear.
4) Rune Match: Find an adjacent combination of 2 (or more runes). Once a combo of tiles are selected, the tiles will turn from red to green to complete the puzzle. You can shuffle the tiles 3 times.
5) Tarot: You must unscramble 4 Tarot cards from the moving ones in the frame. This is how I solved it: I placed the cursor in the middle of the large left frame until a card fragment appeared. I then moved my mouse slowly, and a card started to take shape, sort of like a jigsaw. It will look like a central part joined by 4 other pieces - then click and drag it out of the frame.
6) Lock: You direct fire balls at the locks, using the fleur de lis tiles. As an additional hint, the flower tiles teleport the fireball to another location.
What they did well: there is a nice mix to the type of hidden object games. The mini-games were relatively fun. The art was good.
What could have been better: The story. Frankly, the story was terrible. There were spelling errors and sometimes it made no sense. Clicking through the text was painful at times. I found several bugs: sometimes there would be something that would fit the item description, but only one was correct. The hint button did not always work correctly, especially when down to the last two objects. It consistently would not highlight the object, which was very frustrating. The "divinations", which unlock as you progress along the story, were disappointing.
Overall: It's a decent game, one that fans of astrology and hidden object games might like. If you like a good backstory, this would not be a game for you.
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