20151128:
After replaying Puzzle Agent, I went on and played Puzzle Agent 2.
Notes:
Monosaki Puzzle #320: I don't like this puzzle. To double-check my answer I used an in-game hint.
Say what!?!
Monosaki Puzzle #512: After looking up the answer to this one, I considered it a much better puzzle than #320.
Besides the in-game hint I used for Monosaki Puzzle #320, I also made a mistake for two of the puzzles. However, one of the mistakes came from a silly caveat.
Steam: 3.0 hours
20151129 AM hours:
Determined to unlock the last two achievements, I set out to replay the game.
To save time, I only clicked on the bare minimum to progress through the game and furiously clicked past all the dialogue. The replay took between one and one-and-a-half hours.
Important: During this run I used GameSave Manager to back up my save file in case I made a mistake. In hindsight, I should have done this during the first run.
After finishing all the puzzles without any hints or mistakes, the game rewards the player with a bonus puzzle - it absolutely stumped me.
What's the pattern?
Steam: 5.2 hours (total game time)
20151129 Noon:
This morning I decided I would consider the problem mathematically (there are ten objects and two actions which permute the objects). While somewhat helpful, the problem was still difficult and I didn't want to dwell on it so I just looked up the solution.
Interestingly, in addition to finding the solution, I learned that the two actions generate the permutation group (a someone listed the shortest way to switch any two objects).
Steam: 6.8 hours (total game time)
Thoughts: Pros:
+ A good variety of puzzles
+ Funny
+ Solid voice work
Neutral:
~ Not as mysterious as the first game.
Minor Cons:
- Lacks a 'Skip Scene' or 'Skip Dialogue' feature.
Impossible with a touchpad. Use a mouse.
- The game is a direct continuation of Puzzle Agent and players should play the first game before playing the sequel.
- The directions are occasionally unclear and the player runs the risk of making a mistake due to clarity as opposed to logic.
Recommendation:
Puzzle Agent 2 wraps up the mysterious left behind after Puzzle Agent and is a must play for anyone who enjoyed the first Puzzle Agent. Furthermore, I would recommend the Puzzle Agent series to anybody who enjoys casual puzzles and a bit of mystery. Players who seek hard and challenging puzzles should consider looking elsewhere.
King's Challenge is difficult from a logical point of view.
Overview: Hexcells is a puzzle game with similarities to Minesweeper. 20151126:
Looking for a decently rated game with a short 100% completion time, I came across Hexcells.
Remark 1: Making one mistake will still unlock all of a level's hex pieces. I'm not sure about two.
Remark 2: I learned from a Steam forum thread that levels with hex pieces still available (too many mistakes) are darker. See the picture below.
Steam Game Time: 2.2 hours Thoughts: Minor Pro:
+ Decently fun
Only 1-4 still has hex pieces available.
+ The game has sequels
Minor Cons:
- Would have been nice if there was a reminder on which mouse button places blue (left click) and which reveals a number (right click).
- Unevenly introduces new puzzle elements, requiring the player to adjust quickly
- Short game
Comparison:
A primary difference between Hexcells and Minesweepers, is that every level of Minesweepers is randomly generated and while there are some requirements, not every level of Minesweepers can be completed with logic alone. However, while ever level of Hexcells requires some logic, there are a limited number of levels.
Recommendation:
While Hexcells had good puzzle mechanics, the overall experience was underwhelming and I would sooner recommend other puzzle games like Splice (2012) or Cogs (2009). Hexcells (PC) (2014)
Overview:
Mirrormoon EP is a space-themed adventure puzzle game with retro graphics and limited controls.*
*The website describes it as follows: "MirrorMoon EP is a space adventure that begins on a red planet and its unique moon."
20151113:
Today I played MirrorMoon EP for half an hour. Unfortunately, while I expected a great game (I confused the title with To the Moon), instead I was given a game experience which was mildly interesting and slightly nauseating.
Setup:
Screen: 2560x1440; Graphics quality: Beautiful*
*Best possible choice, but the game isn't graphically intensive.
First Impressions (and Possibly the Last):
The restrictive controls felt strange and its unclear why the game lacks the option to free look.
Trying to ignore that aspect, the game has a pseudo-puzzle aspect to it. At times, the game feels more like a point-and-click adventure game that allows the player some freedom of movement.
Thoughts: Pro:
+ Some puzzle gameplay
Neutral:
~ Retro graphics.
Cons:
- I felt a little dizzy
- Restrictive controls
- Sometimes the game requires too much guesswork without motivation or incentive
Recommendation:
The discovery that occurs while exploring and playing MirronMoon EP is a good feeling, but that aspect of the game is shrouded by the game's strange controls. As such, a selection of players will like it, a selection of players will hate it, and most will probably lie somewhere in between.
Overview: Based on the short film of the same name, Fist of Jesus is a single-player brawler where the player plays as Jesus and Judas.
Cowboy zombies!
Backstory:
Judas: "Jesus, since Lazarus has returned to the living is converting everyone into a zombie."
Jesus: "Damn! We must do something before I am told off. Judas, I need your help."
20151118:
Today I played Fist of Jesus for the first time and for the most part I found it mildly amusing.
Steam: 3.6 hours on record
Jesus wields a cross (not as graphic as the short film)
20151204:
After making a bit of progress I decided to spend some time farming.
I read that level 20 was good for this and a comment proposed that level 2 was better. Comparing the two, I observed that level 2 was initially easier than level 20 and may be the ideal place to farm until the player is strong enough to use level 20 to farm instead.
In level 20, I always buy a shotgun* and go to the left first, clear some zombies, and get the big fish hidden in the crate. I then throw the fish to the right across the screen and follow it (picking up money as I go). Then I use the special powers for their area of effect damage and quickly clear the majority of zombies. At that point the level degenerates into zombies arriving on screen from the left and right.
*I made sure to equip a weapon to make the first 30-45 seconds go by quicker as well as making progress towards The Last Chance achievement: Equip a weapon at the beginning of 300 levels.
After about two hours, I was bored of the grinding and called it a night.
When an enemy is stunned a bar will appear.
Hit them when the arrow is in the red zone...
And the player character will perform a "Divine Punishment."
Various animations exist. Pulling out a heart is one of them.
Thoughts: Pro:
+ Funny.
Neutral:
~ Spelling and grammar errors.
~ Weird default keyboard layout (keys are spread out)
Cons:
- No multiplayer
- There was a time when "grinding" and "video games" meant "RPGs," but I've played a handful of brawlers now that implement a leveling system and it's a bit mundane
- Lacks an interesting story
Success!
Failure.
Recommendation:
Overall, Fist of Jesus is an average or below average brawler and fails to be worthy of a recommendation. I would instead recommend Castle Crashers (PC) (2012) which is a solid brawler that supports up to four-player cooperative gameplay.
Steam: 2.3 hours (5.9 hours on record Fist of Jesus (PC) (2014)
In any case, To the Moon did not let me down. In particular, the game's artwork immediately drew me in and the game's simple mechanics and intricate story telling kept me playing from beginning to end.
Thoughts: Pros:
+ Beyond excellent story (on par with, if not exceeds, those of Portal/Portal 2 and Braid)
+ Simple and clear controls.
Neutral:
~ Like an interactive story.
~ Plays like a point-and-click adventure.
Minor Cons:
- Linear gameplay
- A little rough around the edges (controls were occasionally unresponsive)
Recommendation:
If To The Moon were a movie, then it would win an Oscar for Best Picture.
While it may not have the best gameplay (e.g., Batman: Arkham Asylum) or special effects (e.g., Dead Space 3), it has one of the best stories I have ever encountered in a video game.
With that being said, part of what makes the story good is that the narrative is told in reverse (similar to the narrative in the movie Memento) and that sets the game apart from other games.
In any case, if you're in the mood for an Oscar, then check out To the Moon.
Some other games I love for their stories include the following:
(1) Portal - excellent novel gameplay makes it a top-notched video game
(2) Thomas Was Alone - this minimalistic platformer has both the story and the gameplay; why aren't more games like this one?
(3) Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons - this game is also visually stunning
(4) Braid - well... in some ways; though like Portal, gameplay drives this game home
(5) To the Moon - I would place To The Moon somewhere down here, which is still pretty high up, but not at the top.
Honorable Mention: Always Sometimes Monster - I've yet to finish this game, but the initial story was promising; like To The Moon, it was made using RPG Maker
20151116:
I'm not really into this type of game, but some online friends of mine were getting the game on sale and they convinced me to get a copy.
Setup: My video card was decent when I got it, but it barely met Call of Duty's lowest settings.
Steam Game Time: 2.3 hours Thoughts: Pros:
+ This was my first Call of Duty game and there seemed to be a lot of gameplay options and customization.
Neutral:
~ The game wasn't exactly easy to pick up, but the campaign mode was designed to slowly familiarize the player with the controls.
~ The game lacked detailed body customization choices, perhaps as a trade off for performance. 20151117:
Today I played the game a little more and played around with the settings. A the cost of pulling the frame rate down, I got a taste of how good the game could look, and I had decided to put off playing the game until I upgraded my graphics card (and power supply).
Steam Game Time: ~ 3 hours (total) Call of Duty: Black Ops III (PC) (2015)
20151111 AM Hours:
While trying to run an MS SQL-to-MySQL migration for the hundredth time, I decided to play Splice. However, it wasn't my first time playing, because I've previously played the Android version on my phone.
Activating the deletion cell (marked with an X) will complete this puzzle.
Setup: Screen: 2560x1440; Quality: Sexy (the only option)
Tips:
: Powers are used from inside out (see the white circle).
: Trial-and-error is important.
: For later levels, count the number of pieces that will be needed and compare it with how many pieces a trial gives.
: You don't always have to use all your moves (see Angelic Solutions).
The white segment is being placed. Other valid positions are seen in gray.
: Typically the first level of each sequence introduces a new mechanic and the second level reinforces it (though no new mechanic was introduced in the fifth sequence). The mechanics introduced are splicing (1), duplication cells (2), extension cells (3), deletion cells (4), none (5), segmentation (6), and none (7).
Gameplay Log:
: 307 was a bit challenging. The solution was more asymmetric than the previous levels.
: 407 was also a bit challenging.
: 501 was harder than 502.
: My solution to 503 was unexpected.
Close, but no cigar.
: Holy! 504 was super challenging!
: 605 was okay. Perhaps about the difficulty of 307.
: 706 was interesting.
: These first seven sequences were completed in under one hour and fifteen minutes.
Gameplay Log Continued:
: E101 was very clever!
: E103 was too hard. I skipped it.
Segmentation mechanic: pieces can be torn of and left floating around.
: I tried to return to E103 after completing E107, but it was no use. E103 has two duplication cells! And the number of possibilities increase by a lot. : Even if the solution was simple I was stuck in a box and so I skipped it for a second time.
: E203 was hard, but doable. The trick was to realize the right branch goes along the left.
: E301 took forever and I was not satisfied after completing it.
: E304, like E301, also took forever. Just a bunch of trial-and-error paired with pattern recognition.
: E306 was kind of neat. Though similar to E301 and E304, it was somehow more likeable - perhaps because it took less time to figure out.
Two right clicks away from solving the puzzle.
: My solution to E307, perhaps like my solution to 503, was unexpected. I spent the whole time boxed into a certain way of solving it and finally tried a path that I thought would lead to nowhere. Boy was I wrong!
: I liked this one, E402. It was difficult, but enjoyable.
: E406 went through this weird process where through a lot of trial-and-error I arrived at the solution, but it was so random that I wouldn't be able to reproduce it.
: E407 was too hard and I eventually skipped it.
: Addicted, I revisited the only other uncompleted level (E103) and by chance I got it.
Success!
: Then I revisited E407, but gave up on it after about eight minutes.
[20181218 Edit] 20151111 Evening:
Today I have one more puzzle to solve and it was a pain in the neck. At first I tried to count the deduce the number of movements I would have available to me.
At first I figured I could spend the six moves by using one for a swap, three to complete the remaining positions, one to copy a piece, and then one move four some unknown. Then I tried to come up with a different set of assumptions.
One of the more difficult levels.
After an hour (11:15PM-12:19AM) I got really excited because I had found the solution. But due to an unknown error on my part, an extra move was used and it gave me the impression that I didn't find the solution. After another twenty minutes, I was so frustrated that I went to YouTube and learned my solution was right after all.
Angelic Solutions:
Some puzzles have solutions which don't use all the possible moves - the game calls them Angelic Solutions (AS). A Splice icon appears in the lower left corner when a level loads to indicate an AS exists. Upon finding an AS, a Splice icon is displayed when hovering over the level during level selection.
Hovering over the level reveals I already found an Angelic Solution.
Because the game doesn't indicate if a level has an AS from the level select screen, I use a FAQ which lists all the levels with an AS (instead of tediously loading each level one-by-one).
In any case, I started with the AS's for Epilogue 1. I stopped at E106 to sleep early.
[20151111][20181218 Edit] 20151112:
Today I continued through the list of levels with AS's and tackled the ones for which I had not yet found an AS.
Solved with an Angelic Solution! (ANGELIC @ top)
(Remark: POTENTIALANGELIC @ bottom)
Gameplay Log:
: An AS to 505 was a bit tricky.
: An AS to 706 was tricky, but luckily didn't take long.
: Returning to E106, what previously seemed difficult went by quickly. Nice!
: I thought of an AS to E107 but it turned out there was a small trick in recycling a component.
: I'm having the hardest time with an AS to E301. Let me try all the combinations.
Length two:
: Quickly eliminated.
Definition: Splitr stands for a duplication cell and Length stands for an extension cell.
Length three:
: Splitr Splitr Splitr - Not possible
: Length Splitr Splitr - Doesn't seem like it
: Splitr Length Splitr - Unlikely
: Length Length Splitr - Definitely Not
: Splitr Splitr Length - Can get regular solution with it
: Length Splitr Length - Definitely Not
: Splitr Length Length - Definitely Not
: Length Length Length - Not Possible
Length four:
: Splitr Splitr Splitr Splitr - Not possible
: Length Splitr Splitr Splitr - Not possible
: Splitr Length Splitr Splitr - Not possible
: Length Length Splitr Splitr - Won't work, but seemed to suggest Length Length Splitr Length [Splitr]:
:: Length Length Splitr Length - Definitely Not
:: Length Length Splitr Length Splitr - Didn't seem to be promising.
: Splitr Splitr Length Splitr - Not Possible
: Length Length Length Splitr - Not Possible
: Splitr Splitr Splitr Length - Not possible
: Length Length Length Length - Not Possible
: Length Splitr Length Length - Definitely Not
: Splitr Length Length Length - Definitely Not
: Length Splitr Length Splitr - Doesn't seem like it, but maybe; comes close
: Splitr Length Length Splitr - What a mess! But realized that I can build non-linearly!
Non-linear:
: Splitr {1 Length {2 Length Splitr - Get regular solution
: Length {1 Length Splitr {2 Length Splitr - Not right, but leads to the solution:
:: Length {1 Length Splitr {2 Length Splitr Length - The silliness is in the simplicity (building the solution right off the bat); it also didn't help that I always tried to satisfy the upper portion with Length Splitr.
Skipped the following combinations of length four:
: Length Splitr Splitr Length
: Splitr Length Splitr Length
: Splitr Splitr Length Length
: After E301 I had two more Angelic Solutions to determine and they were easy.
Steam Gam Time: 10.3 hours (total game time)
Cool ripple effect.
Thoughts: Pros:
+ Casual, trial-and-error
+ Soothing music and color.
+ Good mix between easy and difficult puzzles. Some puzzles are much more visual for me.
Neutral:
~ Puzzles seldom can be worked backwards. Damn duplication cells!
~ Approximately 10 hours of gameplay (100%).
[20151111] Comparison to the Android Version:
The Android version of Splice is not as pretty as the PC version, but contains the same gameplay. In addition to liking the graphics more, I like using the mouse more than the touch controls, because the mouse feels more responsive.
[20151111][20181218 Edit] Recommendation:
I enjoyed Splice and would recommend it to anybody who enjoys playing puzzle games.
Activating the extension cells (left) and duplication cells (right) will complete this puzzle.
Overview:
Dreaming Sarah is an exploration-based video game where you play as Sarah, a girl who has awaken in a strange world and must figure out what's going on.
The ground is shaking... that can't be good.
20151106:
This game took a little under 2.5 hours to complete with 100% and I enjoyed playing it.
Setup: I started out playing with my keyboard, because for some reason my controller didn't work. But after saving and continuing, I played with my controller. While the key inputs and responsiveness are identical, I preferred the controller for the comfort. The lack of clicking was also a nice change.
This flower is weird.
First Half:
I initially took a break after 90 minutes of playing and completed 16/22 achievements. The six remaining were Secret 1, Secret 3, Heart-shaped key, Juice box, Watch, and The end.
Curious about one of the use items, The Pill, I went and looked at a guide. There I learned that The Pill doesn't reset the game, it merely teleports the character to the location where she starts the game.
Feeling a little tipsy.
Thoughts: Pros:
+ Atmospheric
+ Great artwork/art direction
+ Solid soundtrack
Comparison:
After completing the game, the first thought that came to mind was that it was more satisfying to play and finish than Potatoman Seeks the Troof (Online) (2012). Of course this game is exploration-based whereas Potatoman is difficulty-based.
Then I drew a comparison with Limbo (PC) (2011). Both games set up a nice atmosphere, with Limbo being all-around dark due to its black and white color scheme while Dreaming Sarah uses an array of colors but has the occasional morbid scene (e.g., dead cat, allusion of suicide, allusion of murder).
A beautiful sunset. (It could be a sunrise, but... whatever)
Recommendation:
Overall, Dreaming Sarah was a well-rounded game that was only slightly slower paced than I would have liked. Explicitly, every time I wished the game would progress, it would reveal the next level to me within the next two to five minutes. In any case, I would recommend this to any player who might enjoy a short and atmospheric video game. Dreaming Sarah (PC) (2015)
