Saturday, February 11, 2012

What I Like About Haunted Manor HD: Lord of Mirrors - A Quiet Horror Game For iPad

A lot of hidden object games exist for the iPad and tablet universe. I've picked that up even though I'm fairly new to this magical land.

They seem perfectly suited for the devices since they lend themselves to tapping the screen a lot and require a time-killing level of engagement by the brain.

I've become a bit enamored with one of the many games offered by Big Fish Games.

Haunted Manor HD: Lord of Mirrors has the same impressive and eerie graphics found in other Big Fish Games. Unlike some titles from other companies, it also features something beyond spotting things mingled among other things: a story.

Poor Stan Riddle
The tale focuses on Stan Riddle, catchy surname, who has the misfortune of running afoul of the title villain. Stan's image is captured in a mirror, and he's forced to travel through a number of rooms and puzzles in order to reassemble the shattered shards of his image and escape.

That means a series of beautifully realized graphics plus encounters with a host of spooky characters also trapped in the manor. Think of this as a participatory Hammer Film.

I find it superior to some other found object games in another way. The business model seems to be toward unit sales, so you can play a level or two for free to decide if you want to spring for the full game.

Some other hidden object games rely on sales of in-game currencies and totems with play becoming increasingly difficult or unsatisfying without some sort of purchase.

The flat-rate theory
I like the flat rate approach, and I'm sure after I've found my way through the manor, I'll be making some other purchases from Big Fish. That's a nice way to earn repeat business. It's available for PC and Mac as well as the iPad, by the way.

It's not as immersive as the old Infocom games, which had no graphics, but it still draws you in. Can you escape?




6 comments:

Rick said...

I've never actually played a video game- don't tell anyone. But this does sound fun. I like the idea of it having a story.

Sidney said...

Yeah, story really makes it more engaging than just looking for objects inside a picture. I wonder if there is a study about the aspects of our thought processes these things engage.

Charles Gramlich said...

I've got to be very careful to limit my exposure to video games since I can get pretty obsessive. I enjoy them alot.

Charles Gramlich said...

I've got to be very careful to limit my exposure to video games since I can get pretty obsessive. I enjoy them alot.

Snowbrush said...

Hello from an INFP. I'm here from Charles' blog. I know nothing about video games. The last one I played was Pac Man.

Sidney said...

lol, it has a little less movement than Pac Man, I guess.

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