Edward Scruff just got laid off. Despite his upbeat personality and love of movie quotes, he must now sell his house in order to make ends meet. Luckily for Mr. Scruff, his helpful but messy family is around to help him in his quest to save the family home. Grandpa Scruff has a secret that he says could save the home, but he cannot remember what it is exactly. With the help of the rest, including the dog Scruffy, the family can find clues around their cluttered home to help reveal the mystery and make some money to save the house.
The Scruffs is a hidden object game that incorporates a hidden family secret into the plot. After completing the first two levels, you discover a cryptic, like the one in the Da Vinci Code, and each subsequent chapter discovers a new number on the device. To discover what is going to happen, you must complete the entire game, which can take awhile if you are not quick. Luckily for those who want a stress-free challenge, there is a timeless mode in addition to the regular game, so you can enjoy the puzzles at your leisure.
Within the game, there are other mini-games that keep you entertained. One that I came across was the scribble challenge, where you have to pick out the new scribble drawn on family pictures to earn a gold star. Once you beat twenty of these challenges, you learn another family secret (what kind of mysterious family is this?). Another challenge that was enjoyable was the scrambled picture challenge. This challenge is self-explanatory, as all you have to do is piece together an old picture to discover new clues.
Overall, this was a pretty good game. The graphics were cartoonish, but worked well in the grand scheme of the game. I did like the dialogue as well, maybe it was just the British accents that I liked, but I thought it added a charming quality (like Mary Poppins) to the game. Also, being a movie buff, I really liked the dad’s constant movie quotes, which were funny and timely. Gameplay was consistent with other hidden object games that I have played in the past and the help feature was good because it provided a hint without giving away the object completely. I would give this game four out of five stars.
Features of The Scruffs:
- Meet the zany Scruff family!
- Inviting story line with witty banter
- Unique Hint Mechanism
- Mini Games
Rating: 
