Shadowplay: Harrowstead Mystery Collector's Edition > iPad, iPhone, Android, Mac & PC Game

Overall rating

4 / 5

39 of 43 found this review helpful

It will draw you in

PostedJune 17, 2019

sullysdragons

fromRichland, Washington

Skill Level:Intermediate

Favorite Genre(s):Card & Board, Hidden Object

Current Favorite:

Shadowplay: Harrowstead Mystery Collector's Edition

(24)

Fun Factor

5 / 5

Visual/Sound Quality

4 / 5

Level of Challenge

4 / 5

Storyline

5 / 5

I don't really understand why others aren't enjoying this game! The only bad thing I have to say about it, is the bonus game is very short.

The graphics are good and I really enjoyed the story/plot of the game. The puzzles on the whole are pretty easy, but still enjoyable. I think there may have been fewer than the usual HO scenes, but I don't really keep close track of that. The game ran ...Show more

I don't really understand why others aren't enjoying this game! The only bad thing I have to say about it, is the bonus game is very short.

The graphics are good and I really enjoyed the story/plot of the game. The puzzles on the whole are pretty easy, but still enjoyable. I think there may have been fewer than the usual HO scenes, but I don't really keep close track of that. The game ran smoothly. One thing I really like about Mad Head, is they allow you (once the game is finished) to go back to the scenes and find the symbols and morphs you missed while playing. I tend to miss quite a few, as I am into the actual game play and forget to look for them. But I do like being able to go back and find them after the game is finished. Give it a try!! Show less

I recommend this game!

+35points

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Overall rating

4 / 5

15 of 16 found this review helpful

The Shadow plays.

PostedJune 18, 2019

RPgames

fromNM

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This "Key Contributor" plays, rates, and reviews a lot of games. We think you'll trust their thoughts and opinions about games.
Key Contributor

Favorite Genre(s):Hidden Object

Fun Factor

4 / 5

Visual/Sound Quality

4 / 5

Level of Challenge

4 / 5

Storyline

4 / 5

I like this game. As others said it seemed easy enough compared with the other games in this series.
I do like the main female voice it is just pleasant. She does other games also so I tend to get the games she does just for that reason.
Not sure why the negative reviews but I like the game with the story line good.
I choose a 4 star because the bonus game was short and the main game seemed a ...Show more

I like this game. As others said it seemed easy enough compared with the other games in this series.
I do like the main female voice it is just pleasant. She does other games also so I tend to get the games she does just for that reason.
Not sure why the negative reviews but I like the game with the story line good.
I choose a 4 star because the bonus game was short and the main game seemed a little short.
One does search for items but in this game not to many items need to be found and most are used right away.
After the bonus game is finished one can look for the collectors items and morpheme items so that is a bonus.
Try the Demo first if you like that you will like the rest I would think. Show less

I recommend this game!

+14points

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Overall rating

4 / 5

9 of 10 found this review helpful

Good transition game

PostedJune 15, 2019

JRNDSGMA

fromSan Dimas, Ca.

Skill Level:Intermediate

Favorite Genre(s):Hidden Object

Fun Factor

5 / 5

Visual/Sound Quality

4 / 5

Level of Challenge

4 / 5

Storyline

4 / 5

Looks like Big Fish is going after the younger game crowd. Pretty easy but fun and light hearted scary. Definitely think it would appeal to young players. Played in one sitting, but got my bang for my buck.

I recommend this game!

+8points

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Overall rating

4 / 5

16 of 22 found this review helpful

I'll wait for the SE on this one...

PostedJune 18, 2019

kerith90angel

fromNew England, USA

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Skill Level:Expert

Current Favorite:

Paranormal Pursuit: The Gifted One Collector's Edition

(74)

Fun Factor

4 / 5

Visual/Sound Quality

4 / 5

Level of Challenge

4 / 5

Storyline

4 / 5

Based on the completed demo only

The story held my interest long enough to get to the end of the demo. I still want to see what happens to the characters. It has a lot of different tasks keeping the player busy. I'll wait to purchase the SE because this CE doesn't offer screensavers.

I liked the final scene with the waterfall; very pretty. I love that you can turn off the "game effect" ...Show more

Based on the completed demo only

The story held my interest long enough to get to the end of the demo. I still want to see what happens to the characters. It has a lot of different tasks keeping the player busy. I'll wait to purchase the SE because this CE doesn't offer screensavers.

I liked the final scene with the waterfall; very pretty. I love that you can turn off the "game effect" sounds in the options menu and adjust aspect ratio to make the scene a little clearer there too.

It isn't MHG best game, imo, not as polished or involved as Beyond: Light Advent or Maze: Subject 360, but I suggest to try the demo, it's pretty good. Show less

I recommend this game!

+10points

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Overall rating

4 / 5

59 of 97 found this review helpful

DISCOVER WHAT HAPPENED IN HARROWSTEAD

PostedJune 15, 2019

biscuitsmama

fromDo I get to save the world again?

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Skill Level:Expert

Fun Factor

5 / 5

Visual/Sound Quality

3 / 5

Level of Challenge

5 / 5

Storyline

5 / 5

Shadowplay Harrowstead Mystery is a terrific game that kept me engaged from the very first scene. If you love games with a creep factor, then Harrowstead Mystery if a game you will surely enjoy. At least once in the game I felt like I was going to jump out of my chair when something unexpected occurred. Surprisingly, I enjoyed this game even though I am generally not a fan of scary or horror ...Show more

Shadowplay Harrowstead Mystery is a terrific game that kept me engaged from the very first scene. If you love games with a creep factor, then Harrowstead Mystery if a game you will surely enjoy. At least once in the game I felt like I was going to jump out of my chair when something unexpected occurred. Surprisingly, I enjoyed this game even though I am generally not a fan of scary or horror games.

In the game you play as Thea, part of a team that is researching and writing a book about the old mining town of Harrowstead that disappeared years ago. It seems that a case of writer’s block has slowed down the project but that is about to change after you receive an urgent call from Riley. With no time to spare you rush to Riley’s location only to find that he has disappeared.

Harrowstead Mystery is a creative game with some well-designed scenes, although many of them seemed familiar and were most likely “harvested” from some of the other Shadowplay games. The graphics were good and the voiceovers left a lot to be desired. At times I found Thea’s voice grating and more than a bit annoying as she seemed to constantly vocalize the obvious. Although there is a custom mode in the game the developer has basically set the lower time limit so we can’t truly customize our skip and hint times.

I thoroughly enjoyed the HOS and the Puzzles in the game. Some of the HOS were very creative and in a couple of instances I didn’t even realize that I was playing a HO scene until the lightbulb flashed in my brain. Those scenes caught me by surprise and had me using the hint button more than once because I found them vague and I wasn’t sure what to do. Although I found those “open” scenes creative, once I figured them out, they were not my favorites in the game.

Overall, this is an enjoyable game that I did purchase because I needed to find the answers to the Harrowstead Mystery and more importantly save my friends and myself from an unthinkable alternative. For me this Shadowplay is a keeper and one that I will play again, but please try the demo to see if it is a game you will like as well. Happy gaming! Show less

I recommend this game!

+21points

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Overall rating

4 / 5

8 of 12 found this review helpful

Mad Head always has Nice Extras

PostedJune 23, 2019

Majestyx12

fromWant More Hidden Object Games for PC

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Skill Level:Intermediate

Favorite Genre(s):Hidden Object

Current Favorite:

The Unseen Fears: Stories Untold Collector's Edition

(44)

Fun Factor

3 / 5

Visual/Sound Quality

5 / 5

Level of Challenge

5 / 5

Storyline

5 / 5

I thought the trial was ok but I bought this one on sale. I really started enjoying it. Mad head always has nice extras and that's why I always buy the CE of their games.

You have a morph and collectible in each scene. You have morphs in the hops. They have good indicators. You have replays of the hops. After you find everything you have a Treasure hunt which is like souvenirs. Then when you ...Show more

I thought the trial was ok but I bought this one on sale. I really started enjoying it. Mad head always has nice extras and that's why I always buy the CE of their games.

You have a morph and collectible in each scene. You have morphs in the hops. They have good indicators. You have replays of the hops. After you find everything you have a Treasure hunt which is like souvenirs. Then when you finish that you have a Ultimate hops. I keep their icons on my pc so I can play the Ultimate hops when I want to, as you can replay them.

I really enjoyed the Ice cream and greenhouse hops.
I didn't play it all in the same day but split it up between two days so I would enjoy it more.

Replay 17 hops. Find 33 collectibles and 50 morphs. ( The 17 hops morphs are included in the 50 morphs). Show less

I recommend this game!

+4points

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Overall rating

4 / 5

3 of 4 found this review helpful

Fun for a weekend afternoon

PostedJune 16, 2019

ushie15

fromWashington, DC

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This "Key Contributor" plays, rates, and reviews a lot of games. We think you'll trust their thoughts and opinions about games.
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Skill Level:Expert

Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Card & Board, Hidden Object, Large File, Match 3, Time Management

Fun Factor

5 / 5

Visual/Sound Quality

5 / 5

Level of Challenge

3 / 5

Storyline

5 / 5

It's a bit short, but I enjoyed the HOPs, especially the Ice Cream one. Morphs in the scenes and the HOPs. The art was interesting and otherworldly, even in the "real" world scenes. The characters were fun. I would like to see more of the Warrior-King's story, perhaps for a future game in this lineup.

I recommend this game!

+2points

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Overall rating

3 / 5

75 of 96 found this review helpful

THE MASTER OF NOTHINGNESS HAS RETURNED TO DEVOUR INNOCENT SOULS ONCE MORE

PostedJune 16, 2019

pennmom36

fromThere was only 1 road leading to Ashley, Kansas, population 700 accd. to the USGeological Survey 8-16-1952. After a massive 7.9 earthquake, authorithies failed to find a single man, woman, child or even a pet, dead or alive. the town just vanished!

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Skill Level:Expert

Fun Factor

3 / 5

Visual/Sound Quality

3 / 5

Level of Challenge

3 / 5

Storyline

3 / 5

Remember back in the day when Mad Head introduced their first game? Remember how amazing the graphics were, how fresh the storylines were? Remember Darkness Incarnate, and how modern, cutting~edge, and cool that game was? Remember the first a-MAZEing game that made you feel uncomfortable because you felt like you were actually trapped and didn't know how you got there? Remember how they went above ...Show more

Remember back in the day when Mad Head introduced their first game? Remember how amazing the graphics were, how fresh the storylines were? Remember Darkness Incarnate, and how modern, cutting~edge, and cool that game was? Remember the first a-MAZEing game that made you feel uncomfortable because you felt like you were actually trapped and didn't know how you got there? Remember how they went above and BEYOND expectations with one of the best sci-fi experiences in a game? Back then it was a Rite of Passage, playing a Mad Head Game was like going into The Heart of the Storm, like walking into TaleWorld. Back in the day, I couldn't wait for a new MH game, what happened guys?

I'm sure most of you know how I feel about cheesy Gadgets, but this particular gadget is the most worthless Gadge I've ever seen in a game! Once you discover the secret hiding place of Henry Bakeman's Lamp, you will use the gadget 6 times. BTW: they make no attempt to explain why it dispels dark magic, how Henry knew it would work on dark magic, where it came from, and most importantly, why it had to be hidden if it works on evil entities? To make matters worse, you have to play the most ridiculous mini-game in the history of HOPA gadget games. My 3-year-old grandson is perfectly capable of matching 2 different symbols, in fact, I asked him to find the two matching pairs of symbols and he nailed it in about 30 seconds. If a small child who can't yet read or write his name, can solve this game nearly instantaneously, why bother?

There are 14 Hidden Object Scenes and 1 Zoom Zone HOP (+4 CE BC) most are Interactive Listed Item Finds but there are also Multiples of each Object Finds, Keywords in Sentence Finds, Silhouetted Shapes, Matching Symbol Finds, Pictured Item Finds, Missing Related Animal Finds, and a colorful scene where you find several Flowers that match Picture Swatches. In this Collector's Edition version, each Hidden Object Scene has a Morphing Object, if you miss one of the HOP morphs you can pick them up in the replayable extras.

There are 24 Mini-Games (+4 CE BC) including 6 worthless, pointless, repetitive Lamp Gadget games where you use a lens to find 2 matching symbol pairs. For the life of me, I can't understand why they even bothered to include a game where all you have to do is scan the lens across 4 circles? Most of the Mini-Games are rehashed from Mad Head's other series games, they aren't horrible, but they just aren't very challenging. Here are a few of my personal favorites:

1~Guide the frog to the exit by swapping directional arrow square tiles.
2~Press buttons to change the color of pie-shaped tiles to match the clues. ღღ
3~Push 4 keys into the central grid, columns & rows have specified number of moves.

The Collector's Edition Bonus Chapter takes place a month after the incident. You will play as Riley the investigator and Kevin the missing person. There are 4 Mini-Games, and 4 Hidden Object Scenes, 10 Spirals, 10 Scene Morphing Objects and 4 Hidden Object Morphs remaining in this somewhat short Bonus Chapter which takes place over 10 new scene locations.

This Collector's Edition has 11 Wallpapers (not 4) 9 Concept Art pictures, 10 Music Soundtracks, 12 Cover Pictures, 32 Profile Pictures, 10 Achievements (5 achievements have 3 categories each) 17 Replayable Hidden Object Scenes, 33 Mad Head Spirals (23 Main Chapter~10 in CE Bonus Chapter) 50 Morphing Objects (33 Scene Location Morphs, 17 Hidden Object Scene Morphs) 5 Main Chapters +Bonus Chapter and a Built-in Strategy Guide.

SHADOWPLAY SERIES LIST
Title***Collector's Edition Release Date***Average Rating

1-Darkness Incarnate (August 20-2016) 4.1
2-Whispers of the Past (July 27-2017) 3.4
3-The Forsaken Island (February 1-2018) 3.8
4-Harrowstead Mystery (June 15-2019) n/a

by: Mad Head Games Show less

+54points

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Overall rating

3 / 5

8 of 9 found this review helpful

DEFEAT THE SHADOW REALM MONSTER

PostedJuly 6, 2019

charlene_lane

fromWellington, New Zealand

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This "Key Contributor" plays, rates, and reviews a lot of games. We think you'll trust their thoughts and opinions about games.
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Skill Level:Expert

Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Hidden Object, Large File, Match 3

Current Favorite:

Mystery of the Ancients: Black Dagger Collector's Edition

(38)

Fun Factor

3 / 5

Visual/Sound Quality

4 / 5

Level of Challenge

2 / 5

Storyline

3 / 5

REVIEW OF COMPLETED GAME AND BONUS

This game was okay, although it was a little on the short side. There is:

* Voiceovers (with dialogue);
* Dusk, Twilight, Night, Pitch Black and Custom modes;
* Interactive map;
* Journal;
* Find 33 collectibles in game and bonus;
* Find 50 morphs in game and bonus (including HOPs).

The graphics are very good. There is plenty of colour, each scene is well ...Show more

REVIEW OF COMPLETED GAME AND BONUS

This game was okay, although it was a little on the short side. There is:

* Voiceovers (with dialogue);
* Dusk, Twilight, Night, Pitch Black and Custom modes;
* Interactive map;
* Journal;
* Find 33 collectibles in game and bonus;
* Find 50 morphs in game and bonus (including HOPs).

The graphics are very good. There is plenty of colour, each scene is well defined and items you need to find are easy to spot. Sound is good and the music is mainly orchestral and creepy sounds.

The hidden object games are mainly straightforward, silhouette, finding pairs and symbols and flower pots. These are all very easy to do. You can do these again in the extras to get 3 stars.

The mini-games are all incredibly easy and quick to do. I didn't spend more than a few minutes on each. I was quite disappointed because I wanted at least a few of them to get my brain into gear, which never happened.

All up the game and bonus (no extras in this game) took me about 4 hours to complete - so a very short game.

Overall, if you feel like an afternoon just chilling out, then this game is for you. Show less

+7points

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Overall rating

3 / 5

9 of 12 found this review helpful

Started Out Good, but...

PostedJune 17, 2019

NazNomad

fromNorth Carolina, USA

Skill Level:Intermediate

Favorite Genre(s):Hidden Object, Puzzle

Fun Factor

4 / 5

Visual/Sound Quality

4 / 5

Level of Challenge

2 / 5

Storyline

3 / 5

I enjoyed the demo of this game quite a bit, so I went ahead and bought it. I can't say that I can recommend it, though. The HOP games were too short and easy, as were a lot of the puzzles. And the game was WAY too short. It seemed like it ended abruptly, and while I don't feel like I absolutely NEED a super-hard boss fight at the end of every game, this one just sort of petered out. And the Bonus ...Show more

I enjoyed the demo of this game quite a bit, so I went ahead and bought it. I can't say that I can recommend it, though. The HOP games were too short and easy, as were a lot of the puzzles. And the game was WAY too short. It seemed like it ended abruptly, and while I don't feel like I absolutely NEED a super-hard boss fight at the end of every game, this one just sort of petered out. And the Bonus Chapter is super short. All in all, not good value for the money. It's shame, too, because it had a lot of potential. Show less

I don't recommend this game.

+6points

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