Mystery Case Files: Huntsville

Developer: Big Fish Games
Released: April 2006
Hours Played: 13.1
Similar To: Amazing Adventures... / Gardenscapes / Letters From Nowhere / Midnight Mysteries
Rating: 4/5 Parsnips

GAMEPLAY
Hidden object games are not for everyone and if the thought of staring at a still picture while desperately locating hard-to-find objects under time-pressure doesn't appeal then you'll give this one a miss. Essentially, this jigsaw style of gaming is exactly what you're required to do here. After clicking the Investigate button of the case you're about to solve, you're taken to a map of Huntsville showing about 20 key locations. There is an enlarged number highlighted on some that shows how many objects are to be found in that area. Clicking on any will take you to a picture of that area which has around a hundred objects sprinkled around. Needless to say, your job is to find those listed objects before a timer runs down. You'll still need to complete a piece-swapping mini-game to play the case out - and all the while you race against time. 

BALANCE & PACE
This is a hardcore HOG: if you cannot close the case in time you have to go through and do the whole process again - same picture but with different items to find. This makes the repeat task easier though (both in the retry and in later cases when the picture appears again) because at the second attempt you'll find your subconscious memory has stored the location of those objects quite well. Although cases can normally be solved in time, brace yourself for tight moments where the prospect of having to do the whole thing again is good enough motivation to succeed. Over-use of random clicking will incur a time-penalty.  You may go back to the map and dive into another picture whenever you want but annoyingly enough don't expect that timer to pause while doing so.

PRESENTATION & DESIGN
The soundtrack is a slightly creepy, haunting affair with minimal percussion. There is a gentle harp and a few deep notes on the piano with the odd spooky sound effect. It's effective yet unobtrusive and fits neatly with the game. On clicking a found item you get treated to a twinkling animation along with a twinkly sound. The game unfortunately runs with fixed, low-resolution graphics which can make the picture look blurry - a shame in a game that requires screen-staring intensity. The start menu is extremely basic and you get a pointless leaderboard of fictitious names and times plus a link where Big Fish try to sell you more MCF games. On pressing Start you're taken to a screen containing 15 tabbed crime documents which are the unlockable cases that you need to solve.

PROGRESS SYSTEM
There are 15 cases to solve altogether with more objects to find in each one. With a case taking upwards of half an hour to solve, unlike the quick-fire rounds of Gardenscapes, the pace is more slow and ponderous than fast. You get treated to a full picture of the suspect getting caught red-handed and "busted" after completing the piece-swapping mini-game and then it's onto the next case. You can go back and have another go after completing each case if you wish but I see no reason whatsoever to do this. Really, the fun is in solving the cases and moving on not completing it in the best time. Much like re-doing a 100 piece jig-saw puzzle, would you really want to smash it up and immediately go back and do it all again?
 

CONCLUSION

When it comes to hidden object games, opinion is divided: for some they're a good work-out for the brain while others think they're a waste of time; some will be determined to complete all 15 cases here while others will give up after one or two tries: some won't like the time-pressure while others will thrive on it. Personally, I prefer the time-pressure challenge as opposed to the leisurely approach offered by titles such as the Midnight Mysteries series. This title definitely has the more difficult /  old-school approach. There are around 16 games in the Mystery Case Files series at the time of writing and while I have played just two of the five I own in my Steam library, I consider it a treat to know that I still have three more waiting to be savoured at a later date. Real fans will be pleased to know that all 16 will be available on Steam at a later date.