Customer Reviews

Mystery Case Files: Madame Fate

5 star:		(22)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

Renowned psychic, Madame Fate, has foreseen her own death in her crystal ball--and you, the super-sleuth, must investigate every carnival worker to know where they will be at midnight, the supposed time of death. In this lavish hidden-object game, you'll find weird side-show employees and a bored carny...but, above all, you'll find hours of engaging puzzles and tricky games!

I have all of the Mystery Case Files games (Huntsville, Prime Suspects, Ravenhearst and Madame Fate), but it was Madame Fate that was my introduction to the Hidden Object game. Briefly, for those who are unfamiliar, the idea behind the MCF games is pretty straightforward: you visit different "scenes" of possible crimes and find the hidden objects listed on the right side of the screen. In the case of Madame Fate, it's different places around Madame Fate's carnival--the Insane-erator Roller Coaster, concession stand, mermaid dunk, merry-go-round and so on. (If your child has the I Spy games, these are a lot like them...but better!)

Of all the Hidden Object games out there, Madame Fate is, in my opinion, the most fun and the most challenging (especially compared to the other MCF games). While Madame Fate features the Hidden Object games you'd expect (e.g. find the ten items listed), there are also loads of tricky mini-games throughout.

For example, there are mysterious changing items throughout the game that, if you spot and click on them, will lead you to other hidden areas. Also, some of the hidden object clues aren't straightforward. One of the clues is "Fighter in the Ring", BUT, in order to complete this "find", you have to "grab" the hand drawn fighter that is at the bottom right side of the scene and place him onto the fighter that is in the ring on the left side of the scene.

In addition to the straightforward (but not necessarily easy!) crystal ball games, other mini-games include:

TEN FROM SEVEN - Form 10 four letter words from the letters that you are given

SIX 2 WIN - Form 6 words that are related to each other in some kind of way by swapping letters around until you spell the correct word.

OPPOSITE ATTRACTION - Form 2 words that have opposite meaning but that share the same letter in the center tile.

SIX WORDS TO WIN - The goal here is to form six- 3 letter words on the puzzle grid (3 vertical and 3 horizontal). The words cannot be formed diagonally or backwards.

(My personal favorite) ROCKET DOG - Unravel 3 mysterious words to gain access to the shady carnival worker. Each carnival worker has various items hidden on or around them and you must find them before time runs out. For example, you may have to find rockets or matches at Bianca the Daredevil Diva, claw scratches or crowns at Tabitha the Lion Tamer, razors, butterflies or combs at Lucy the Bearded Beauty, jelly beans or pies at Franco the Excessive, hooks, stars or M's at Marlena the Mermaid, pills or snakes at Dr. Goodwell's and so on.

In between each of the characters is a thrilling--and sometimes mind boggling--puzzle. Don't worry if you get stuck, though: you can always click on a hint OR click on the black phone to skip the puzzle. However, if you do the latter, there will be time taken off the NEXT hidden object game. (I've only had to skip one the entire game. I'm entirely through Madame Fate EXCEPT for the last puzzle...still can't get it!)

Thankfully, the jigsaw puzzle games from the other MCF games are gone from Madame Fate (never liked those--too simple and too boring), but are replaced by visually stunning, thought-provoking and amusing games and puzzles.

I've owned game systems as far back as Atari and now own several hidden object games (including Poirot, Expedition Everest, etc.), and Madame Fate is BY FAR my absolute favorite game ever! As soon as I figure out the last puzzle, I'm going to play it all over again. The hidden objects are cleverly hidden (much more difficult than previous MCF games), the scenes are a riot of color, and the sound effects of the carnival hubub (carnies yelling, night sounds, distant carny music, etc.) are truly absorbing, you'll feel like you're at a spooky carnival with a wild mix of characters!

If you enjoy hidden object games you MUST get Madame Fate. I know you'll love it! If you're new to the hidden object game genre, give this one a try. It was my very first one, and now I'm a huge MCF and hidden-object game enthusiast. It's a great way to relax (well, not so much THIS particular game!), providing you hours of eye candy, brain teasers and enjoyment.

Highly recommended!

Janet Boyer, author of The Back in Time Tarot Book: Picture the Past, Experience the Cards, Understand the Present (coming Fall 2008 from Hampton Roads Publishing)

I got this game to play with my youngest daughter while my oldest and Dad play Warcraft. While my 8 year old has ebbed and flowed in her interest, she cannot resist looking over my shoulder when I pull this game up for a quick break.

Brief synopsis: Madame Fate wants you to investigate 15 different "cronies" from the Carnival, some of them being the Bearded Lady, Art the Carnie, The Acrobats, The Fat Man, and the Tatooed Man. You are investigating which of these will murder Madame Fate at the stroke of midnight which she has predicted.

The investigation involves a timed (or not it is your choice) search for a specific number of hidden items Some areas have a secret changing item that morphs slowly into another item such as a green apple turning red or a frog changing to a tiger. You know if there is a secret item in an area if a purple question mark appears by the number of hidden items for that area on the map. Once you find the required number of items for cronie,there is a big puzzle to solve before you move on to the next cronie to investigate. The last puzzle is the hardest of course.

I think the story line isn't very important and rather weak but it gets you through the game.

BEWARE there are some slightly scary things in here for some kids such as a severed hand, a bloody leg, spiders, snakes, a three headed beast with what appears to be a dead clown in his cage but it wasn't to disturbing for my 8 year old but I wouldn't play this with a child much younger only because of the these things.

This is a very well executed and entertaining hidden game compared to Mt Everest, which is good but not as good and Abra Academy which is mediocre/very simple. This one has great pictures and requires thinking and even spelling, Sometimes a "B" is a bee.

If you want a game with many levels and a wide variety of challenges, you'll enjoy this. Don't forget that the kids can help. In fact, they are better at finding the hidden item while I seem to master the puzzles. I have been through this more than twice and still find some of the puzzles quite challenging.

I wish they would do more like this one!!!

The Mystery Case Files series continues to deliver with their newest installment, Madame Fate. Madame Fate is very similiar to the other MCF games (hide and seek), but has more complex mini games at the end of each chapter, like you would find in the Ravenhearst game. Graphics were amazing, storyline was great, and I really can't wait for the next one! Keep'um coming!

I have gone through all the Mystery Caes Files and this is the best one so far. I love the challenge of finding the secret changing object and the fact that if you get 3 objects quickly it gives you bonus time. I racked up over 117 minutes. The puzzles are harder at the end of each hunt but are definetly solveable. I can't wait for the next one to be released.

I have loved every Mystery Case Files ever made, and get very excited when a new one comes out. I purchased Madame Fate, and although I think it is designed well, and is fun to play, I was TOTALLY CREEPED OUT by the the dead, bloody clown in the cage, the comments from the Madame, and the overall vengeful serial killing spree theme. Halfway through the game I had to delete it from my computer because it was just too creepy. I didn't want it in my house! And I've never deleted a game before that I had paid for.

I would like to share with the creator to PLEASE not make the next MCF so evil and creepy. I know some people probably like that, but in order for it to have more overall appeal, I don't think it's necessary to get so DARK. For example, Dire Grove was great! Thanks for the great games!

I had a lot of trouble when I tried to download this game so I decided to buy it instead. It is really challenging. The objects are hard to find. The graphic are great which also makes it hard to find the objects.

I can't stop playing this game. The background music is permanently playing in my ears. I showed it to a friend at a party that I had and she literally stayed and played the game--I didn't even see her until it was time for her to go home. She told me she went out the next day and bought it for herself. This game has a great storyline and the best puzzles that keep you thinking and analyzing. Though this is predominantly a seek and find game, there's so much diversity that it will keep you captivated. I highly recommend it for ALL ages.

This hidden object game is one of the few that I have thrown away, and the first I've done so before I clicked on the final suspect.

The game is a murder mystery, which I normally like to solve, but this one was depressing, dark and Satanic.

The characters are creepy, with skimpy costumes, multiple tattoos, body and face piercings, and stretched, bloated, cartoonish features. There was the body of a murdered clown in one ominous scene, and a dog in a scene and a pig in another that were eating humans! A crow was drinking from a pool of blood in another scene. There was blood and instruments of death throughout the game.

The main character, who's life you are 'hired to save,' is a horrible hag that laughs and jokes as the others die horrible deaths. When her son dies, she cackles with glee and says, "No great loss; I can always have another one."

I've never given such a negative review before, but this game totally creeped me out. I'm sorry I wasted my money on it.

The Hallmark for Hidden Object games...Madame Fate is as good as this type of game gets. Since the other reviewers have very adequately outlined the manner in which the game is put together, I am just going to mention the ways in which I was especially delighted.

1. The game is never static-the "hunting" scenes abound in special effects such as flying flags, clouds scudding by, lights blinking, little animals twitching their ears. There's one little creature with a ringtail who shakes his ears, blinks his eyes and snarls as he reaches for what looks like a fried onion ring. He's a marvel. Falling leaves, laser beams shooting..the special effects will delight you. There's a wonderful rink of performing kitties, too.

2. Besides plain hunting, you have hot spots to look for which will give you extra hints and you often have to combine two objects, such as kisses to go on a girlfriend's picture. These "combos" are very amusing and fun to figure out.

3. The mini-games are top-notch and they are not all that easy. Most Hidden Object games flesh out the CD with boring repetitive games aimed at young children. Madame Fate is not for children -savvy teenagers could handle it, but this is a very sophisticated game. Luckily for this old lady, the mini-games you can't or don't want to do can be by-passed.Two I couldn't figure out and will tackle them when I play the game through again.

4. The atmosphere of a seedy, grubby carnival of perhaps 1906 will grab you right away. You're going to really be a part of that scene with your nose two inches from the monitor...some of the hidden objects are miniscule. And you may, like me, learn something, too! For instance, when you're asked to look for a nunchaku would you know you need to look for an oriental hand weapon? Not me! I should have known what a baguette was (a gem cut into a rectangular shape) but was idiotically looking for a small purse.

5. If you like Hidden Object scenarios, go for Madame Fate! You'll love it, trust me!

I really enjoyed playing the free demo on this game so decided to purchase it. I am one of those many senior citizens that AARP has written about that enjoys playing games on the computer.
This particular game is really a lot of fun as it is challenging enough but not so difficult that I completely give up. The extra little puzzles are fun also, however I sometimes think some 10 to 14 year olds would do better than I do on these. I find myself "skipping" these at times.
Overall tho, I enjoy it and I like that Amazon has a nice selection of games to choose from.