Secrets of the Dragon Wheel Review
Mac Hidden Object Adventure game Secrets of the Dragon Wheel is a new game starring Epiphany O’Day (must be a daughter of a movie star with that name), a researcher fired from the University for her outlandish study of the Dragon Wheel. To the upper crust of the academia society, there is no such thing as a Dragon Wheel and 
anyone associated with that project is foolish and unworthy of their time.
The unbelievable story of a mysterious wheel, although typical of a lot of these games, is voiced by Epiphany throughout the game. She must prove the existence of this relic to clear her name. She is on a train on her way to see her mentor, Professor Lunn, when someone gets murdered and she sees the murderer. She cannot wait around for the police or the murderer will get away. Of course, this is a suspicious move on her part and the police may suspect her as the murderer. She’ll deal with it later. Throughout her adventure you will be playing as Epiphany and will encounter many hidden object games and other puzzles. The sparkles will direct you to hidden object games where you will need to click on the items listed at the bottom of the screen. The games are all very straightforward except the dark areas of the screen where you cannot make out the object. It is easier to just click on the dark and questionable areas to find the items. The hint button is extremely 
helpful with a fast recharging time. After finishing the HOG, you will get 1 or more items to put in your inventory to use later in the game. Be sure to click on these items to place them in your inventory. This is a little annoying but it’s set up like this. The other puzzles will be displayed when your cursor changes to a magnifying glass. The puzzles are your standard connect the lines, take fuses out of a firecracker vending machine, buy train tickets, place the right shaped peg in its proper place and travel through a dark maze to get to the other side.
Epiphany’s mentor is murdered by the same man she saw escaping the train, and now her trail leaves 2 murdered men. Before the professor died he told her to contact Chang at the bazaar for help. Chang turns out to be a strange, little wrinkled man in a birdcage who, after verifying she is who she claims to be, gives her advice and information on how to retrieve the Dragon Wheel before anyone else.
The story is bizarre but works to solve many puzzles and gets clues in order to solve the mystery of the Dragon Wheel. The game is solid with good artwork and sound effects. When you are on the train you hear noises as if you are traveling on a train. I give it a 3 out of 5 for a good hidden object adventure game.
Features of Secrets of the Dragon Wheel:
-Unusual, Exotic Tale with Creepy Characters
-Many Hidden Object Games and Puzzles
-Bonus Items
Rating: 
Gemini Lost Review
A group of friends come across an ancient zodiac wheel on their way home and were transported through some teleporter to a strange land in Mac sim game Gemini Lost. Unfortunately for these 6 people the wheel exploded and spewed the zodiac signs across this mysterious region.
In order to return home, they must find all the keys to repair the wheel. However, life goes on and the 6 must start a village of sorts in order to survive. They must gather and grow foods, find wood and stones for building shelter, increase their knowledge to be able to perform many tasks, they must marry to increase and sustain their population and find all the zodiac keys to transport them back.
In addition to all that, there are puzzles and tasks to complete in order to teleport back home. In order to get across a river, someone needs to have the skills to build a bridge spanning the distance from your end to where the key is located. Labs will increase your 
knowledge level, working on the garden will increase your farming skills and the chapel will marry your couples so you can increase your village. Also after a time the older people will die off so raising the children is important. The kids however do not work until they are grown, but can pick up items for potions. The game is very good about giving you vital information and stats on each person. If someone is sick, they will be moving around slowly and will need to be healed. Potions can be made and the recipes are available in the log.
The game will allow you to choose how you want your villagers to proceed when you leave the game. If you want to be involved at all times you are on, you can do so or you can have the people go about their tasks even when you are not on the computer. This part of the game is different from other games of this nature.
The tutorial is easy to follow and will get you started on your village without any trouble. I did find it curious when I left the game with 2 skilled people building a bridge, and when I got back, no progress was made and the 2, nowhere to be found. I suggest you keep track of your people’s names because when they grow up while you are gone, they are like strange new person you’ve forgotten. It gets a little confusing.
For the most part I liked this sim develop your own village type game. This one seemed easier to train people, and they didn’t mind working very hard each day. When they get tired, they will rest in the hut, and when they get hungry they will feed themselves so you just need to watch the upper part of the screen to see how much supplies you have and will need. The computer will announce any changes such as a baby being born or someone who passes away. This game is appropriate for children because they take care of birth and dying in a discreet manner.
So create your own village full of people to your specifications and search for all the zodiac keys for your ticket back to civilization.
Features of Gemini Lost:
-Puzzles and Mini Games
-Zodiac Signs
-Your Own World
Similar games: My Tribe, Wild Tribe, Virtual Villagers 1 and 2
Rating: 
-
Mystery Legends: Beauty and the Beast Collector’s Edition Review
Everyone knows by now the story about the Beauty and the Beast from the wonderful Disney animation, the Broadway play, the hundreds of toys and books but Mac adventure game Mystery Legends: Beauty and the Beast Collector’s Edition continues the tale from when Belle saves the prince from certain doom to once again being entombed in 
stone by the evil enchantress. She said she would keep the prince imprisoned until he is willing to make her his queen.
A woman scorned once is bad enough but an evil enchantress scorned again may not be willing to negotiate or compromise. It is up to beautiful Belle to find soul shards to help her “Beast” escape the enchantress’ wicked grasp.
This game has 3 different modes for the different abilities of each gamer (Easy has sparkles, fast recharging hints and skip buttons for hidden object and other puzzles, and also when you put your cursor over an inventory item, it will glow. The Normal mode will have sparkles for active areas for HOGs and Puzzles only, and there are 
silhouettes for the hidden objects. The Expert mode you are on your own.) There is a journal for notes and clues for puzzles. In the Collector’s Edition there is a in-game strategy guide to assist you if you need it. The map in the journal is also helpful when you need guidance. It will tell you where you need to go and where to go to complete a task. There are many locations to explore and find puzzles and clues from the cottage, forest, town and castle. In addition there is a bonus section.
There are many diverse puzzles to play like putting the Robo dog back together to the standard jigsaws. However there are many interesting games to play and many can be finished quickly. There are not a lot of hidden objects games but it concentrates on a point and click adventure with a lot of puzzles to solve. Riddles will help you along on the game. Be sure not to click on wrong items too many times or you will get a surprise. Most of the written items are easy to find but if you do not know what an item looks like, you may need help. Fortunately, I’ve seen red pandas at the Edinburgh Zoo in Scotland and could easily find it in the HOG but if you’ve never seen one, it could be difficult. There are items and people engulfed in purple glow and you must figure out how to release them from the curse. This will occur in many places throughout the village. In addition, different people and animals like the talking owl will help you in your tasks.
The HOGs are easy but some of the items are proportionally incorrect making some objects harder to find, but most people will find these games manageable. The story is good and artwork is great, and both will make you want to search for answers and the shards. It is one of the better games with voice acting throughout and the music did not interfere with your game. It’ll take a few hours (from 3-5 on the average) to solve depending on your level of expertise. Save the Beast from a life of misery and outwit the evil enchantress at her own game.
Features of Mystery Legends: Beauty and the Beast Collector’s Edition:
-Fantastic Tale
-Point and Click Adventure with Mini games
-Collector’s Edition: In-game Strategy Guide, Bonus Chapter and more.
Rating:
Voodoo Whisperer: Curse of a Legend Collector’s Edition Review
The last time I was in New Orleans there was a shop called Marie Leveau’s House of Voodoo on Bourbon Street. Even during the daylight hours, this place looked mysterious and spooky with no one on that side of the street. Needless to say I didn’t go in. Maybe on another visit I’ll explore that shop. The entire city is full of mystery and charm and is still recovering from the ravaging rains of Hurricane Katrina. Many wonderful stories are about this original city. Voodoo Whisperer: Curse of a Legend Collector’s Edition is based in this incredible city in the early 19th century.
The story is about young Lillian who is studying the secrets and spells of Voodoo with Madame Leveau a well known (even to this day) high priestess with more knowledge 
and skills than anyone at that time. You play as Lillian who displays a strong spirit for someone so young. Nanna, her grandmother, had the talent and knew Lillian had the same power. Unfortunately a dark force fell over the entire city and everyone, including your teacher Madame Leveau, is cursed. You are the only one who can restore normalcy back to your friends, family and teacher before it is too late.
This point and click adventure is full of hidden object games and puzzles to solve in order to free each person of the terrible curse. Keep an eye out on your cursor for changes: an eye will have you looking closer at an area, a hand will grab and put items in your inventory, and moving feet will take you to another location. You’ll also get inventory items from the hidden object locations. In fact, sometimes you can get more than 1 useful item to use later in the game. The HOGs are beautifully detailed and drawn. The play itself is easy and you can find the objects without any problems. In addition, most of the items should be in that era and location. You will not find a sports car neatly tucked away in a cupboard. You will be going back and forth from one location to another but once everything have been cleared in that location, it will post it at the top so you do not have to waste time searching for more things.
There are 2 modes of play in game: Regular and Advanced. The Regular mode has sparkles and faster recharging hint and skip buttons. The Advanced for the experienced player does not have sparkles and the buttons take a longer time to recharge.
Most of the game is the usual or standard type of play like the jigsaws, match and unlocking rotating wheels. You point and click your way through many scenes for clues and items to pick up. The HOGs are your basic find the item and click on it game. The difference in this game comes from reviewing the Grimoire at the bottom right for spells, recipes and more. Opposite of the Grimoire you’ll find the mortar and pestle so you can combine found items to mix your potions. You must get information from both alive and dead people. You’ll also need to make allies of some of the people to help you on your adventure through New Orleans (hotel, banks, saloon, and the mayor’s home).
Some of the cons of this game are that the HOGs are fairly easy, the overall game is short (5 chapters), and the usual cliffhanger for a sequel to come. However, that’s just being picky because this game is good and fun to play. Try it out and see for yourself if you dare to speak to the dead.
Features of Voodoo Whisperer: Curse of a Legend Collector’s Edition:
-5 Chapters of a Fascinating Tale
-Hidden Objects, Mini Games and Puzzles
-Collector’s Edition (extra chapter with more hidden object games, wallpapers and in-game strategy guide)
Rating:
Hidden Object Show Review
Another spin on the hidden object Mac game is the Hidden Object Show. It is in a form of a TV game show complete with $5,000,000! In this game you are a contestant in a TV game show. You need to find the hidden object in a scene to complete the round. There are hint chips throughout the screen to find and then use if needed. The round after completion is tallied for Time Bonus, Combo Bonus, Bonus Cash and overall time. The Prize Standings show you where you are in your winnings.
Between rounds you get to spin the Wheel of Puzzles. Where it lands you play that game. Some of the puzzles are locked until you reach a certain level. Some of the puzzles are the 2 scenes with 10 differences, solve the riddle and find that object, find the silhouette and place pieces of a picture on the complete scene. If you are lucky enough to get a bonus, you can opt out of some of the games.
The Hidden Object Show has a lot more than an I Spy play. It has plenty of options you can find to engage in. I think that makes it more interesting of a Mac game. I just started playing hidden object games and found that even though the play is similar there is a different feel to the game with the story line involved and the extra mini puzzles. Some are better than others and the Hidden Object Show is one of them. I found it to be quite entertaining.
Features of Hidden Object Show:
-Become a Millionaire
-330 Object Rounds
-Prizes
-30 Scenes
Rating:
Pages
Categories
- Action
- Adventure
- Aquarium
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- Hidden Object/I Spy
- Line Drawing
- Mah Jong
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- Pinball
- Platform
- Puzzle
- RPG
- RTS
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- Shooter
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- slots
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- Uncategorized
- Visual Novel
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