Customer Reviews

The Curse of Midnight Manor

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

So a lot of games claim to be scary. But most of the time they aren't. But let me just tell you, after playing Delaware St. John, I can tell you that it WILL scare you. Creepy apparitions, creaky doors, ferocious monsters, a frightening soundtrack.... This game has it all. Delaware and Kelly make a great team and are very fun to interact with. Game play is very gamer-friendly. The stories are full of intrigue and suspense and the chracters actually have great depth. There are two parts to this game and each one is as equally excellent. Kudos to Big Time Games for making such an all around great interactive game. I can't wait for Volume Two!

I recently purchased The Curse of Midnight Manor and I really didn't know what to expect. At first I thought it would be like Nancy Drew but about twenty minutes into the game I realized it wasn't so much a caper I was here to solve, but the existence of real ghosts! There's two full stories in the game, the second being my favorite that involves the "accidental" death of a magician.

Delaware is a very likeable character who is also psychic so he picks up clues normal people couldn't. The atmosphere is creepy with some wonderful music throughout the game. I give this game a 4 for only the reason I wish it was longer! I didn't want it to end luckily the sequel is already out and I have that on order too!

It's been a while since I've encountered a that has been able to keep my interest for more than an hour. Then along comes Delaware St. John. This breath of fresh air in the pc gaming genre is mysterious, exciting and thought-provoking. The puzzles make you think, the music keeps the mood spooky and the story moves along at a great pace. Delaware St. John is a must have. I can't wait to get Volume 2.

Because I have always enjoyed playing the Nancy Drew games, I thought it would be interesting to begin playing the Delaware St. John series - as it's basically Nancy Drew with 1 Hardy Boy. And, although I really enjoyed playing "The Curse of Midnight Manor", I was greatly disappointed when the game was over after less than 5 hours of game play (and that included 2 different parts of the game, plus I'm no master gamer). For $19.99, I would expect to be able to play for at least 10 to 15 hours! If I hadn't enjoyed this short game as much as I did, I would have given it 2 to 3 stars because of the length issue.

In this series, you play Delaware St. John - a man who has begun to hear voices & see apparitions that guide you to various haunted places. Your job in this game is to use your psychic abilities (along with some help from a psychic investigator sidekick - Kelly) to find out what happened to the many people who have disappeared from "Midnight Manor" - a hotel & lounge that has been closed for quite some time now.

By following the clues through the gathering of "evidence", listening to ghosts, taking pictures & recording EVP (electronic voice phenomenon), you will find out the truth of Midnight Manor.

Overall, this is a really fun concept. The story line was great - although it really did need to be longer, and the graphics were about the same as one would get in the Nancy Drew series. If you like these sorts of games, you may want to give it a try - but you might want to wait until the price goes down (It is available as a download from several sites, with the current price being $19.99).

Being a long-time fan of adventure games, I love to see more popping up at every twist and turn. I especially love games made by small or independant groups who are moe interested in producing a good story than a high-selling shoot-em-up game.

The fist volume introduces the characters and provides a decent adventure that I completed in an evening. Its a good game for people new to the genre as the puzzles are fairly simple. Unfortunately the game also includes a couple of slow-paced chase sequences that are annoying at best, but can be difficult for someone who is not used to the "myst" style of manuvering through the world.

The graphics are pretty good and the music is very good, considering the type of production company that produced it.

All in all, its a decent game for the price. Hopefully the next games in the sequence will have some of kinks worked out.

A strangely incomplete little (and I mean that literally) game, this, in what appears to be an attempt to do what the Nancy Drew games do, only with ghosts. Are you fascinated yet? No, me either.

The game is a teen mystery adventure, wandering through a decrepit old hotel helping ghosts find themselves and avoiding demon-types. It's innocuous enough, in that there's no blood, no horrible slaughter, nothing objectionable -- in short, nothing to give the kids nightmares. Unfortunately, that also means there's nothing to keep adults awake.

Graphics are good enough (well, almost), and gameplay is intuitive and smooth. Acting is a little better than it has to be. The music is surprisingly good and professional, more so than the rest of the package. The writing is fine, though nothing glorious. Puzzles aren't difficult and mostly a matter of pixel-hunting.

The game as a whole reminds me of a student project. If that's what it is, it's really impressive -- but as a commercial offering, I'd like to see them try a little harder next time. Come on, guys, get your act together.

What I expected with "Delaware St. John: The Curse of Midnight Manor" was a little bit different from what I got. I expected to be terrified the entire game and have an OK story with some OK puzzles. However, the story turned out to be fantastic, the game not that scary, and the puzzles almost nonexistent.

STORY - Delaware St. John is a psychic; a psychic that often encounters nightmares or visions which require him to go release ghost's tormented spirits. When he goes alone to Midnight Manor one night he expects it to be just like any other ghost experience, but it turns out to be much, much more. Armed with only a device that allows him to communicate with his partner, ghost hunter Kelly Bradford, Delaware sets out to end the Curse of Midnight Manor one last time. The story really takes off from there and is fascinating while not being overly complex.

Let me note that there are technically two stories to choose from, the second one only being playable after the first one is completed. Basically, it's just like one game since the second story takes place at the same location, continuing right where the first story left off. However, there are two different story lines which makes the game seem a little bit longer than it actually is.

GAMEPLAY - "The Curse of Midnight Manor" is a first person, point and click adventure game that is supposed to have a horror twist. You pretty much walk around the 5 floors of the hotel following the story line by having flashbacks/visions. Occasionally, you will encounter a puzzle, and these puzzles will either be inventory based, which are always very simple, or logic based, which are usually easy. If you ever do happen to get stuck, just simply talk to Kelly for hints. However, it's pretty simplistic to figure out what to do next and how to do it. There are also timed puzzles in the game that I won't discuss in detail in an attempt to limit spoilers.

There's no real interaction with other characters (except for Kelly); although, like I said earlier, you can witness flashbacks, which are basically cutscenes with ghosts acting out what happened in the past. They're not really creepy at all; they're more cheesy. The length of the game is another slight downfall; I finished the entire game (both stories) in about 2 hours and 30 minutes. Really short.

GRAPHICS/SOUND - The backgrounds aren't that great for a 2005 game, although I do realize that this is an indie game. The objects in the foreground are OK but not outstanding. The ghosts are really strange looking: oddly clear with just a touch of awkwardness since they are shown one still scene at a time.

The music in the background is fantastic! The songs fit each location or mood perfectly and really add to the overall atmosphere. The voice acting seems to be something that everyone loves, but to be honest, I liked it but didn't find it to be particularly spectacular. Finally, the background noises are very well done.

OVERALL - The story and music may be absolutely fantastic in this game, but it's far too short a game with a few too many flaws to be an amazing game. Also, although this game probably won't terrify you since you're given a warning before anything scary happens, it does still have a fun, supernatural element that adds to the overall feel of the game. It's a very easy game to play, perfect for beginning adventure gamers; and although I can't say that this is the best game ever, I can still highly recommend it to all who like a good, entertaining ghost story.

I was really surprised at how much I liked this game. I played a 30 minute demo and then ended up buying the entire game.

The story was interesting and the puzzles were well-placed and made sense to the story.

My only complaint is that this volume was TOO short for my liking.