2/21/2023 0 Comments Mystery house game publisher![]() ![]() ![]() On paper it may sound pretty gruesome and generally off-putting, but the execution, although technically interesting, is extremely goofy, full of ludicrous situations, weird plot turns, bizarre dialogue, and dated costume choices. And although they were made with all the production values of a B-movie, they can still pack quite a shock, even by today’s desensitised standards. “What was especially shocking was that these scenes of violence were shown using real actors with actual film-style special effects. A good puzzle or brain teaser is never a bad thing but the ones on display here vary so wildly in quality and overall coherence that they regularly dip into ‘you have to see it for yourself to believe it’ territory. Once the artifice of being technically impressive is gone, the end result (unfortunately for The 7th Guest), is a $4.95 book of horror-themed brain teasers you can pick up from your local newsagent. If it’s completing a series of brain teasers and puzzles while the ghost of a toy maker makes snide remarks - which are in no way scary or tense - then yes, yes it does. Well, this depends on what your definition of adventure is. After all, if you take even a great parser-based adventure game from the 1980s and give it a ‘90s CD-ROM sheen, surely the end result would stand the test of time. The 7th Guest is immersive from the get-go and as you navigate through each room, you wouldn’t be at fault for thinking that there’s a good adventure game in here somewhere. Unless that’s a, oh, it’s a ‘dead body.’ Right, gotcha.” ![]() “Okay so that looks like the arms and those things are the legs, then that must be, the head? But it looks so weird. The limitations of the era made it hard to make out exactly what a few jagged lines on the ground were supposed to represent and thus, the immediate shock value that horror thrives on, was almost entirely lost. It was also one of the first examples of a graphical adventure game, which although being primarily text based, used vector images drawn by the Apple II computer to display each scene – which included, (cue music) scenes of Murder. And in turn a new question was posed, ‘is this even a game?’ READ HISTORY BOOKAs the first entry in Sierra’s High-Res Adventure series of games, Mystery House (1980) was very much one of the first examples of a horror game. But, with the added glitz and glamour of low-resolution and heavily pixelated video, the cost usually came in the form of limited functionality. It was an optical-laser-storage-device-driven time when experienced and respected developers incorporated movie length scripts, actors, special effects, and film editing into their games. If you encourage kids to slow down, spend time on those features, and not expect clear rules, they're likely to find a much more rewarding play experience.The mid ‘90s were truly halcyon days for games trying to take advantage of the new CD-ROM drive. The alien area (up the disappearing stairs) will be particularly rewarding - or frustrating - for kids as they try things, so linear-minded kids looking for concrete solutions may feel stymied. It's less about figuring things out than poking around and trying things. Some of the rooms offer a really rich - and seemingly endless - set of "puzzles," though there's not always a set logic to them. (Hint: There's a map on the wall as you enter the house.) Then they can start digging into the fun "what does this do?" exploratory features that are more science, less spook. It may require a few play sessions before many kids will feel like they know their way around this dark, cavernous house. Toca Mystery House continues the free play and fun characters for which Toca Boca is known, but it has a darker vibe than other Toca apps. Familiar free play is aged up in this spooky exploration app. ![]()
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