Whispered Secrets: Into the Beyond - A Hidden Object Adventure 9+

Had trouble loading it, but loaded fine with the second try. I only played the free trial, but I liked it. I didn't need the hint or map, so I have no idea if they're any good. The trial was over very quickly, which suggest that the game is short, too. The HO scene was repeated, and there was only one in the trial version. If you don't like HO scenes, you have the option of switching to a match three game. The HO scene isn't very clear, but, for the most part, items were easy to identify. There are "observers" in each scene for you to find. For now, it's in my "might buy" list.

Update: Went back and reset the progress to try out the hint and map. The hint worked fine, but there is no map. Perhaps it's introduced farther into the game? It's hard to believe it wouldn't have one. The pinch screen works fine, and you can turn the sound off.

BTW, I find it very annoying that when BF has a new game now it offers it at $3.99 if you buy without trying, then ups the price to $4.99 for people who want to try before they buy. I really dislike these policies that were introduced when the company was bought by new owners! I won't pay more, and I won't buy without trying!

This was enjoyable to play. Got a kick out of collecting the "observers". Inventory was relatively easy to figure out the use of and the quantity of items stayed at a easy play level. Had 5-7 times things got glitchy. Ex. One puzzle I was able to rotate triangle/square pieces but not grab them to drag into place. Liked that you could zoom in on hidden object scenes. All together, well worth playing.

Artifex Mundi game - neat story about an invention with a bit a sci if in it. Pretty good voice overs. A bunch of repeated HOs. Good mini games. I finished it and it has been very enjoyable for perhaps seven hours of high quality art work and an adventure game. I have a iPad 2 and haven't had any issues. There's a touch of horror with some big monster and these one-eyed bats and spiders you are supposed to find in each scene (I missed a few). Definitely not the crazy demonology like normal big fish games though. A sort of murder mystery and track down the mad-scientist game. Nice! For $2.99 it's a great deal! Probably worth the normal $6.99 as well. Some achievements are a bit challenging and I missed some observers and didn't save the cat in the lab or get out of the boat. I skipped two mini-puzzles. So I have work to do yet if I want, although the strategy manual gives you the answers if you want them. And I need to finish the bonus game!:)