I Spy meets Where's Waldo in Mystery Case Files: Prime Suspects, a point-and-click search for clues that reveal the culprit of a jewel heist. The game begins as you are asked to investigate the theft of the Queen's Hope Diamond. Clues to finding the thief can be found throughout 29 environments that you must search to determine which of the 20 suspects is the real burglar. A timer is ticking while you investigate the various scenes, creating a sense of urgency to complete your task before time runs out. The first few levels start with plenty of minutes on the clock, but as the game progresses you are given less time to locate clues and solve the puzzles that allow you to advance to another stage.
When searching for clues among the scattered junk in each area, you may need to solve a problem before you can continue your quest for the culprit. For example, some levels are dark and require the use of your flashlight, but you might first have to find some batteries located in previous areas to power it before you can continue. Other tools that can come in handy are your magnifying glass and x-ray machine that can be used to zoom in on items or see right through them. Once you find all the pieces of the puzzle, you must assemble them to get a photo of the crime in progress, ultimately showing the face of the thief and where the diamond is located.
Let the super-sleuthing begin in this sequel to the Mystery Case Files smash hit series! The Queen's Hope Diamond has been stolen! It's up to you to search for clues, find the offending culprit, and recover the stolen gem.
Expand your investigations through the game's 29 unique locations by finding items that will unlock subsequent levels. Thousands of clues are cleverly hidden within the beautiful illustrations, creating a new game experience each time you step into this visual masterpiece!
Creating a successful sequel is a difficult thing, whether following up a hit album, making a movie, or creating a casual game. Simply putting a new look on the original won't work, but straying too far from what made the original successful risks alienating your core fanbase. I'm pleased to report that while the folks at Big Fish Games moved VERY quickly in releasing their sequel to the successful Mystery Case Files: Huntsville, they got nearly everything right in this sequel, Mystery Case Files: Prime Suspects.
MCF: Prime Suspects takes you to Capital City, where the Queen's Hope, the world's largest diamond, has vanished. You have been selected to analyze the whereabouts of each of 20 suspects when the crime occurred. Only through this process of deductive elimination will you be able to determine the Prime Suspects, and find the missing 800-carat gem.
The basic gameplay is similar to the original MCF game: Find common objects hidden in a room. For each level of the game, you'll be assigned a suspect, and visit various locations within Capital City (there are 29 in total), to find items hidden within the location's picture. The hidden items represent clues to determine the whereabouts of the suspect during the crime. The clues for each suspect are scattered among several locations.
Once you've found the requisite number of items for a suspect, it's time to visit the Crime Computer, a series of mini-games that is one of the great features of MCF: Prime Suspects. These games are simple and fun ways to finish each suspect/level: The game may be a word jumbles, a slider puzzle (swap pieces to reproduce a photo showing the suspect's location) or a memory game (find matches among different tiles to remove them). Each mini-game, when completed, reveals a photo showing the whereabouts of the suspect at the time of the theft, thereby proving his or her innocence. Or, if the suspect's location at the time of the theft can't be verified, they'll be identified as one of the five "Prime Suspects". Mind the clock though; you've got a limited amount of time to solve each suspect's mystery!
One of the game's greatest mysteries is in trying to figure out why it's so compelling! Finding simple objects in a photograph shouldn't be this much fun, or this addictive. The folks at Big Fish Games have done a great job of cleverly hiding everyday objects in interesting (and at times confounding) ways. After the first suspect or two, the game actually gets a bit easier as you become accustomed to finding the various objects. Advance, however, and you'll find the objects hidden more deeply. The fact that the same items appear in multiple locations is actually useful - you might see a ruler in one scene, but you might have to find it again in a different scene.
The mini-games are brilliant and represent a great differentiator from other casual games: Most games present you with a single challenge that just gets harder as you progress. These mini games give you a welcome breath of fresh air from the room searches. Making them relatively easy provides a terrific way to finish a "level" and keep you focused on the next challenge. Another great twist is the locked or dark rooms that require you to find keys, flashlight batteries and other tools to fully explore.
One final cool feature is the randomization of the game upon subsequent plays. Once you've finished the game, you can play again and you'll experience different Prime Suspects and a different thief.
One thing I would have liked to see is an expansion of the game as you progress. While it is rewarding to work through the various characters to identify the Prime Suspects, and there are lots of unique locations to explore, it would be nice to see additional gameplay elements introduced - surprise characters, new mini games, bonuses for quick play, etc...
But that's a minor complaint. MCF: Prime Suspects retains all of the elements that made the original such a hit: a fun and simple premise, an amusing storyline and characters, and clever level design, while providing much better artwork, more locations to explore and tighter writing. In other words, it's a perfect recipe for a very successful sequel.
People who downloaded Mystery Case Files: Prime Suspects have also downloaded:
Mystery Case Files: Huntsville, Mystery Case Files: Ravenhearst, Mystery Case Files: Madame Fate, Mystery Case Files: Dire Grove, Mystery Case Files: Return to Ravenhearst, Mystery Case Files: Shadow Lake, Mystery Case Files: 13th Skull, Mystery Case Files: Escape from Ravenhearst
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