: Well, well, well. Look what the cat dragged in.
: I’m pretty sure that this game was downloaded from Reflexive Arcade, not dragged in by a cat.
: I’m not talking about the one without the feathers, you feather-brain.
: Oooo, who’s a grumpy devil this morning? Who is? Whooooo is?
: Smart-Alec.
: A grumpy devil and out of quips. Are you feeling alright?
: No, I’ve just spend 8 hours non-stop on a hidden-objects game I haven’t stopped yet.
: And before that was 8 hours of trying come up with a decent literature review report for your system. Time’s running out, Coffee-Fish.
: Coffee-Fish?
: It’s the way you drink Nescafe Mild coffee. You know, like a fish drink water.
: Look’s like I’m not the only one with brain-melty syndrome today.
: I guess we can banter till this blogger get a severe case of smiley-split personality-,
: -but pretty smileys!
: ... But, I’m sure readers would prefer what’s the game that’s been long over due since our, my, last review.
![](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/blogger_img_proxy/AEn0k_shLf9PQmNIgYGaO3RldeGY-_iUk5QkYfWnzoAq1I1k2zQQv7CKkeXYhNgn3fU2p-6MhplPptc-43VXqqLdVUgTbvS85DAP3vpch5-rmRUTMW6Q5avh1eTpj5pyGAtgU1NACMUUJw=s0-d)
Cate West - The Vanishing Files![](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/blogger_img_proxy/AEn0k_taXce9wo1MEgmHYa_q9-LZ6q5t0BMnqZtgjBmTZGw50Ubk45Nrrhn0nGOm1sc3m-gEgf7CWqit4eiuCwwxsEFS84E95zdPd14onFogOXmFvnGQDNYAhM-W-1fbFleV9H6b5WSzmA=s0-d)
At the policestation: “Not yet, Cate. Oooo, look! Donuts!!”![](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/blogger_img_proxy/AEn0k_u6kofZSfIdAoDxclXDh9IwQfB7TeWDqCL5PRFIYduWc7T1jA4jD-rE_LjcgNkPD4suQ7tCrnW921oduLnH7kCnO5IoNDFYfjWiC52KCy99LE3wO-Nm8eDOJzPeBepdUw=s0-d)
: Hold it, why is the blogger letting
us review this game? We’re just metaphorical entities of her fervent imaginings.
![](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/blogger_img_proxy/AEn0k_vfkMuMTwTsSGrPdshB21h5m8QKKmqJEXvTamfSGIMA8pCJRnr3BdVxP3g4ypDdhMfHuXtUKq-egY2gUoNZGkJdBa1UN-1wtCICrE11VNi5PQ3HHsroFa5WaH5DWg6TMO4=s0-d)
: Suppressed imaginings. This is her night hour window to make sure she won’t wake up a dried prune of clichés when she posts her blog.
![](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/blogger_img_proxy/AEn0k_u6kofZSfIdAoDxclXDh9IwQfB7TeWDqCL5PRFIYduWc7T1jA4jD-rE_LjcgNkPD4suQ7tCrnW921oduLnH7kCnO5IoNDFYfjWiC52KCy99LE3wO-Nm8eDOJzPeBepdUw=s0-d)
: More like a dried prune of mindless puk-,
![](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/blogger_img_proxy/AEn0k_vfkMuMTwTsSGrPdshB21h5m8QKKmqJEXvTamfSGIMA8pCJRnr3BdVxP3g4ypDdhMfHuXtUKq-egY2gUoNZGkJdBa1UN-1wtCICrE11VNi5PQ3HHsroFa5WaH5DWg6TMO4=s0-d)
:
Anyway, the storyline play with Cate West, an author in a middle of a book signing tour that suddenly got caught in a wave of crime spree against religious-themed events, locations and artefacts. Churches burned, temples desecrated and praying people terrorized.
![](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/blogger_img_proxy/AEn0k_u6kofZSfIdAoDxclXDh9IwQfB7TeWDqCL5PRFIYduWc7T1jA4jD-rE_LjcgNkPD4suQ7tCrnW921oduLnH7kCnO5IoNDFYfjWiC52KCy99LE3wO-Nm8eDOJzPeBepdUw=s0-d)
: My kind of paradise.
![](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/blogger_img_proxy/AEn0k_vfkMuMTwTsSGrPdshB21h5m8QKKmqJEXvTamfSGIMA8pCJRnr3BdVxP3g4ypDdhMfHuXtUKq-egY2gUoNZGkJdBa1UN-1wtCICrE11VNi5PQ3HHsroFa5WaH5DWg6TMO4=s0-d)
: Volunteering to use her psychic ability to stop the crimes, Cate joins the investigative team of the city’s police force. She soon realized that the mastermind had a personal issue with her and the unsolved murder of her father years ago.
![](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/blogger_img_proxy/AEn0k_u6kofZSfIdAoDxclXDh9IwQfB7TeWDqCL5PRFIYduWc7T1jA4jD-rE_LjcgNkPD4suQ7tCrnW921oduLnH7kCnO5IoNDFYfjWiC52KCy99LE3wO-Nm8eDOJzPeBepdUw=s0-d)
: All the trappings of a most unoriginal hidden objects plot. But what makes this game stand out is more than my personal bias towards point-and-click gameplay.
![](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/blogger_img_proxy/AEn0k_vPeZu8EtazNdyKdN_hJBX62KRZzrbJXMKdRg75qMX4wjlF9DxA55YW79LBvrGlzFqsVDvAgQbfWIuS3t8vlifEzMeL9DlfQR_79SUiz_gjHOyiYOgsg0I7OxmezZQM8P27qQasQw=s0-d)
The typewriter holds may keys... and spiders, trinkets, veggies, baseballs, bowling trophys...![](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/blogger_img_proxy/AEn0k_tkCNOz015EWNFHZU1UJFSBMoxKoj-nGs3FMWGqlnLw-45o5mPPxerk1CMTMFd324nP0qMM8qRblKWD9z_qQu6i-EcoknohO0ZevTimE12RfJmi02Fnuend0inSxGyt4YYJtMJ1tw=s0-d)
Even the CSI team gets baffled on this much of criminal evidence. You just got to look for the right ones![](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/blogger_img_proxy/AEn0k_u6kofZSfIdAoDxclXDh9IwQfB7TeWDqCL5PRFIYduWc7T1jA4jD-rE_LjcgNkPD4suQ7tCrnW921oduLnH7kCnO5IoNDFYfjWiC52KCy99LE3wO-Nm8eDOJzPeBepdUw=s0-d)
: Hidden objects is a game genre in which you look for the specific item, - based on a list - , within a jumbled-up scene messier than a cross between a recycling plant and my bedroom on weekends.
![](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/blogger_img_proxy/AEn0k_vfkMuMTwTsSGrPdshB21h5m8QKKmqJEXvTamfSGIMA8pCJRnr3BdVxP3g4ypDdhMfHuXtUKq-egY2gUoNZGkJdBa1UN-1wtCICrE11VNi5PQ3HHsroFa5WaH5DWg6TMO4=s0-d)
: Each of these miscellaneous objects, - ranging between a rare steak to the names of Jupiter’s moons - , carries a clue for Cate’s psychic ability to focus on the criminal’s whereabouts.
![](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/blogger_img_proxy/AEn0k_u6kofZSfIdAoDxclXDh9IwQfB7TeWDqCL5PRFIYduWc7T1jA4jD-rE_LjcgNkPD4suQ7tCrnW921oduLnH7kCnO5IoNDFYfjWiC52KCy99LE3wO-Nm8eDOJzPeBepdUw=s0-d)
: Sounds like a very, very average hidden objects game to me. Based on these screenshots, I’d say the
Mystery in London game is much better with its 360’degrees imagery.
![](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/blogger_img_proxy/AEn0k_vfkMuMTwTsSGrPdshB21h5m8QKKmqJEXvTamfSGIMA8pCJRnr3BdVxP3g4ypDdhMfHuXtUKq-egY2gUoNZGkJdBa1UN-1wtCICrE11VNi5PQ3HHsroFa5WaH5DWg6TMO4=s0-d)
: If we’re mostly leaning on visuals, the Nobel prize still goes to
Dream Chronicles 2. But we’re not. And there’s some new twist in
CWTVF I liked about.
![](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/blogger_img_proxy/AEn0k_tYJS369nEV-cbTdzLnCNjVTpvLknj7MR-ECP1qOhQrU5LAK4pZokbSpUj14nLrJrjf58zMnXsX26YYoPkg7iHk08nSAi1P_WHqsws_aVKG1TwjulJNSwdLYVE0ZipfHs7eg6u9nQ=s0-d)
The b-b-bookstore?! Okay, now it's personal!![](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/blogger_img_proxy/AEn0k_v6iB08LIwhg7vn499q2Oqz_tPY7gicPvBr0x8ysZvW-xYaEMYjk19nh_DGZEiT31iGe_ReZsRP1ReP0n5ihVeQv_XuwCg7LRr-t-ETeSH16vdwUaFJCWiUg0l-e9qvH8jkj34GZA=s0-d)
You revist the crime scenes and match them in your testimony.![](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/blogger_img_proxy/AEn0k_vfkMuMTwTsSGrPdshB21h5m8QKKmqJEXvTamfSGIMA8pCJRnr3BdVxP3g4ypDdhMfHuXtUKq-egY2gUoNZGkJdBa1UN-1wtCICrE11VNi5PQ3HHsroFa5WaH5DWg6TMO4=s0-d)
: The very detailed plotline?
![](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/blogger_img_proxy/AEn0k_u6kofZSfIdAoDxclXDh9IwQfB7TeWDqCL5PRFIYduWc7T1jA4jD-rE_LjcgNkPD4suQ7tCrnW921oduLnH7kCnO5IoNDFYfjWiC52KCy99LE3wO-Nm8eDOJzPeBepdUw=s0-d)
: Yup!
![](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/blogger_img_proxy/AEn0k_vfkMuMTwTsSGrPdshB21h5m8QKKmqJEXvTamfSGIMA8pCJRnr3BdVxP3g4ypDdhMfHuXtUKq-egY2gUoNZGkJdBa1UN-1wtCICrE11VNi5PQ3HHsroFa5WaH5DWg6TMO4=s0-d)
: Detailed plotline says, - and I quote - , “about 75 levels of hidden objects, match-the-difference and puzzle-solving”.
![](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/blogger_img_proxy/AEn0k_u6kofZSfIdAoDxclXDh9IwQfB7TeWDqCL5PRFIYduWc7T1jA4jD-rE_LjcgNkPD4suQ7tCrnW921oduLnH7kCnO5IoNDFYfjWiC52KCy99LE3wO-Nm8eDOJzPeBepdUw=s0-d)
: Most game folks don’t understand the benefits of a real story-based game.
KingMania had nothing but potatoes in it.
![](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/blogger_img_proxy/AEn0k_vfkMuMTwTsSGrPdshB21h5m8QKKmqJEXvTamfSGIMA8pCJRnr3BdVxP3g4ypDdhMfHuXtUKq-egY2gUoNZGkJdBa1UN-1wtCICrE11VNi5PQ3HHsroFa5WaH5DWg6TMO4=s0-d)
: But thankfully,
CWTVF had a really nice feel to it’s script design.
![](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/blogger_img_proxy/AEn0k_u6kofZSfIdAoDxclXDh9IwQfB7TeWDqCL5PRFIYduWc7T1jA4jD-rE_LjcgNkPD4suQ7tCrnW921oduLnH7kCnO5IoNDFYfjWiC52KCy99LE3wO-Nm8eDOJzPeBepdUw=s0-d)
: They had to. Otherwise it’s just 75 level of pure repetitiveness.
![](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/blogger_img_proxy/AEn0k_vfkMuMTwTsSGrPdshB21h5m8QKKmqJEXvTamfSGIMA8pCJRnr3BdVxP3g4ypDdhMfHuXtUKq-egY2gUoNZGkJdBa1UN-1wtCICrE11VNi5PQ3HHsroFa5WaH5DWg6TMO4=s0-d)
: Add to that, based on your scoring, there are multiple endings to the game.
![](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/blogger_img_proxy/AEn0k_u6kofZSfIdAoDxclXDh9IwQfB7TeWDqCL5PRFIYduWc7T1jA4jD-rE_LjcgNkPD4suQ7tCrnW921oduLnH7kCnO5IoNDFYfjWiC52KCy99LE3wO-Nm8eDOJzPeBepdUw=s0-d)
: Multiple endings, huh? What kind of ending did you get?
![](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/blogger_img_proxy/AEn0k_vfkMuMTwTsSGrPdshB21h5m8QKKmqJEXvTamfSGIMA8pCJRnr3BdVxP3g4ypDdhMfHuXtUKq-egY2gUoNZGkJdBa1UN-1wtCICrE11VNi5PQ3HHsroFa5WaH5DWg6TMO4=s0-d)
: I don’t know because I haven’t finished it yet!
*hehehe*![](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/blogger_img_proxy/AEn0k_vu65PACAK5I27W4CKjhPKM118Csws-TnaonHPUBeT7drXneg8ngtvKTgnfqk_HHSVVT2NzFtX4L1GXM-ifFX5jnXwX2P4R-4Wo4MH4IcCliRJUpDUSp2EDMZ7exyAnOqIcQ9ISbg=s0-d)
Evidence never stays in one piece...![](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/blogger_img_proxy/AEn0k_t6PnKyF8fYDIgImhFEY1kUbmgoZ2KaLsLHP7gonYu5R7ZUfcS8ndsmauqqfe8BtxsmvMPZASFshSKghtd1Pz-IiaY06PmW2PngjUXg7BaTunyFQtymE9_L0yBkE8xP6yhzLp-3=s0-d)
Cate sense the clues and match them to the correct ugly face.![](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/blogger_img_proxy/AEn0k_u6kofZSfIdAoDxclXDh9IwQfB7TeWDqCL5PRFIYduWc7T1jA4jD-rE_LjcgNkPD4suQ7tCrnW921oduLnH7kCnO5IoNDFYfjWiC52KCy99LE3wO-Nm8eDOJzPeBepdUw=s0-d)
: So what’s the final analysis on this game?
![](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/blogger_img_proxy/AEn0k_vfkMuMTwTsSGrPdshB21h5m8QKKmqJEXvTamfSGIMA8pCJRnr3BdVxP3g4ypDdhMfHuXtUKq-egY2gUoNZGkJdBa1UN-1wtCICrE11VNi5PQ3HHsroFa5WaH5DWg6TMO4=s0-d)
: Well, after the fit-criminal-to-description puzzle, I also liked the not-so-heavily-laden visual design of the gameplay. It’s easier to find the missing objects in here as compared to other similar games like
Dream Day Wedding.
![](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/blogger_img_proxy/AEn0k_u6kofZSfIdAoDxclXDh9IwQfB7TeWDqCL5PRFIYduWc7T1jA4jD-rE_LjcgNkPD4suQ7tCrnW921oduLnH7kCnO5IoNDFYfjWiC52KCy99LE3wO-Nm8eDOJzPeBepdUw=s0-d)
: Or maybe you just got better at finding objects.
![](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/blogger_img_proxy/AEn0k_vfkMuMTwTsSGrPdshB21h5m8QKKmqJEXvTamfSGIMA8pCJRnr3BdVxP3g4ypDdhMfHuXtUKq-egY2gUoNZGkJdBa1UN-1wtCICrE11VNi5PQ3HHsroFa5WaH5DWg6TMO4=s0-d)
: That goes too. So I’d say this is a good game for the veterans/jaded of this genre.
![](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/blogger_img_proxy/AEn0k_u6kofZSfIdAoDxclXDh9IwQfB7TeWDqCL5PRFIYduWc7T1jA4jD-rE_LjcgNkPD4suQ7tCrnW921oduLnH7kCnO5IoNDFYfjWiC52KCy99LE3wO-Nm8eDOJzPeBepdUw=s0-d)
: And not bad for the newbies too.
![](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/blogger_img_proxy/AEn0k_vfkMuMTwTsSGrPdshB21h5m8QKKmqJEXvTamfSGIMA8pCJRnr3BdVxP3g4ypDdhMfHuXtUKq-egY2gUoNZGkJdBa1UN-1wtCICrE11VNi5PQ3HHsroFa5WaH5DWg6TMO4=s0-d)
: It’s not spectacular in anyway, but it’s a great game for a weekend afternoon.
![](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/blogger_img_proxy/AEn0k_u6kofZSfIdAoDxclXDh9IwQfB7TeWDqCL5PRFIYduWc7T1jA4jD-rE_LjcgNkPD4suQ7tCrnW921oduLnH7kCnO5IoNDFYfjWiC52KCy99LE3wO-Nm8eDOJzPeBepdUw=s0-d)
: Your weekend afternoons are supposed to be for cleaning your room, not playing games.
![](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/blogger_img_proxy/AEn0k_vfkMuMTwTsSGrPdshB21h5m8QKKmqJEXvTamfSGIMA8pCJRnr3BdVxP3g4ypDdhMfHuXtUKq-egY2gUoNZGkJdBa1UN-1wtCICrE11VNi5PQ3HHsroFa5WaH5DWg6TMO4=s0-d)
: Don’t be a hypocrite. You enjoy hidden objects tremendously.
![](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/blogger_img_proxy/AEn0k_u6kofZSfIdAoDxclXDh9IwQfB7TeWDqCL5PRFIYduWc7T1jA4jD-rE_LjcgNkPD4suQ7tCrnW921oduLnH7kCnO5IoNDFYfjWiC52KCy99LE3wO-Nm8eDOJzPeBepdUw=s0-d)
: Me?
I’m the hypocrite?! You’re cleaning up small knick-knacks in a very messy picture... while playing in your own
very messy room.
![](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/blogger_img_proxy/AEn0k_vfkMuMTwTsSGrPdshB21h5m8QKKmqJEXvTamfSGIMA8pCJRnr3BdVxP3g4ypDdhMfHuXtUKq-egY2gUoNZGkJdBa1UN-1wtCICrE11VNi5PQ3HHsroFa5WaH5DWg6TMO4=s0-d)
: Awww, who’s the Baddie conscience? Who is? Whooooo is?
![](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/blogger_img_proxy/AEn0k_u6kofZSfIdAoDxclXDh9IwQfB7TeWDqCL5PRFIYduWc7T1jA4jD-rE_LjcgNkPD4suQ7tCrnW921oduLnH7kCnO5IoNDFYfjWiC52KCy99LE3wO-Nm8eDOJzPeBepdUw=s0-d)
: You’re going to keep playing until you find out your special ending, aren’t you?
![](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/blogger_img_proxy/AEn0k_vfkMuMTwTsSGrPdshB21h5m8QKKmqJEXvTamfSGIMA8pCJRnr3BdVxP3g4ypDdhMfHuXtUKq-egY2gUoNZGkJdBa1UN-1wtCICrE11VNi5PQ3HHsroFa5WaH5DWg6TMO4=s0-d)
: Correct! And the devil wins a cookie.
PS:Downloads for this game can be found in Reflexive Arcade. If you want the cracked version, ask my two little shoulder-mates nicely.