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The Eyes of Ara, Teen Titans Go! Figure, Hidden my game by mom 3, Nishan Shaman, Pluck It, Escape Lala, Reigns: Her Majesty, Dawn Break -Origin- Premium

Hello my faithful readers and welcome back to another installment of My Week Unwrapped, where I regale you with details about all the gaming adventures I’ve been having over the last 10,080 minutes. Most of my week was spent engrossed in two games, so I won’t be covering as many as I did last week. Still, I’m excited to talk to you about them and help you decide which games to pick up. So without further ado, I bring you The Eyes of Ara, still my Game of the Week for the second week in a row. Yes, I can do that. I make the rules here.

The Eyes of Ara

I’m nearly through with 100 Stones Interactives’ immersive 3D adventure game, The Eyes of Ara. I made it through all three chapters and am now working on the epilogue. I’d be finished by now if not for a certain dastardly puzzle right near the end. Aside from a little help here and there when I missed some hidden collectibles, I haven’t used any hints or asked for help on any of the puzzles. I’ve been able to solve everything on my own using the clues scattered throughout the game. So I’m hesitant to ask for help on this one puzzle, but I may soon give in. Overall, though, this has been one of the best adventure games I’ve played. I especially like how all the clues are there as long as you pay close attention. The game doesn’t hit you over the head with them, but rather respects your intelligence. It took me a bit to get used to that because most games are not like that these days. But once I got into the groove, I just couldn’t put the game down. I hope to have a review ready in the next few days, so I don’t want to say much more here. But I did work hard on a thorough walkthrough guide for anyone who needs help.

Teen Titans Go! Figure – Teeny Titans 2

The original Teeny Titans – Teen Titans Go! released two years ago and I enjoyed it quite a bit. You play as Robin and run around collecting superhero battling figures and completing missions for different characters. It was fun to collect all the figures and mess around with them to see which ones were my favorites for battles. I even made a guide. So I was excited when the sequel, Teen Titans Go! Figure was announced. I’ve been spending a lot of time with it this week, mostly working on my guide and just completing missions. I’m finding that this time I’m less excited about the battles, mainly because they don’t feel much different — despite the addition of accessories — and it still comes down to just finding the best exploits and then grinding your team up. I should mention, though, that I was having trouble with the first two tournaments when I first started the game. I kept failing and decided to level up my figs more. But when I finally went back a few days later to fight in those tournaments again, they seemed much easier. So it’s possible the game was rebalanced to do away with the early grind. I also think the game could do a better job keeping the player focused, as I picked up twenty side missions in the first half hour or so. There was a time I had thirty missions going. I finally got a lot of them out of the way and focused on the main story and am enjoying things more. But I still can’t shake the feeling that I’m wasting a lot of time. Between traveling around the map, looking for figures, grinding for money or experience, it all feels like a time sink, especially when I’ve already done it once before. I almost wish I could just skip the battles and just experience the story. I am a bit of a Teen Titans fan, and may even go see the new movie. But I’d just like the game to waste less of my time. Anyway, if you haven’t played the first one, you should still get plenty of enjoyment from either one. But if you played the first, you may want to consider whether you would want to do it all over again with most of the same figures. You can also watch my gameplay videos below and see my guides here.

Hidden my game by mom 3

I’ve been a fan of hap inc’s absurd room escape series, Hidden my game by mom ever since the first one released. I have walkthroughs for both the original and the sequel and am working on one for the third game that just released. I’m still playing through it, this time at a bit slower pace because the ads seem more intrusive than usual. But I do plan to complete it, along with my walkthrough. And I don’t have video now but will make one later. If you haven’t played these games yet, I highly recommend all three. They’re quirky and weird and all sorts of bizarre things happen. Like a giraffe in your kitchen, or the cops coming to arrest you because you picked up a wallet you found in a drawer. There’s really nothing like it out there, unless you count all the copycat games. Anyway, check it out. It’s free and you have nothing to lose.

Nishan Shaman

Nishan Shaman is a short but stylish game that’s 100% free, no strings attached. I believe it’s because it’s by a group of students and not meant as a commercial release. In any case, it’s definitely worth trying out. My reflexes aren’t great, so it’s hard for me, but if you don’t do as well as you like, you can just replay the level and try for a better score. I absolutely adore the visuals, and the soundtrack isn’t half bad either. I wish I was better at it, but I can’t blame the developers for that. The controls are simple. It’s just a matter of tapping at the right times. You can see some gameplay video below or just download it and play for yourself.

Pluck It: hairs and emotions

When I first saw Pluck It featured in the App Store, my reaction was that of puzzlement. I wasn’t sure why anyone would make a game about plucking hairs, or why Apple would feature it. After playing it, I’m still puzzled. But it was a nice little weird diversion that I’m happy I didn’t ignore. Like Nishan Shaman, it’s completely free with no ads or IAPs that affect the game. The only IAP is an optional donation if you feel so inclined. It’s just a feel-good game that’s about pulling hairs and emotions. I don’t really want to say more. I think you should just play it for yourself and be as surprised as I was. These are the kinds of little treats that make iOS gaming so special. My only real complaint is how long it takes to get from one level to the next. I was getting a little impatient. Anyway, just play it!

Escape Lala

Last week, I tried playing Duckbear’s pixel art point-and-click adventure, Escape Lala, but the resolution was off and the exits between screens got cut off. So I couldn’t get past the second room. The developers quickly fixed it and I gave it another try. I made some good progress, but eventually got stuck. I want to go back and finish it, but I do wish there was a way to shut the background music and weird noises, as they were grating on my nerves a bit. Anyway, it’s an affordable and cute little game so far and there are hints included, though I haven’t used any yet. You can check out my gameplay video below to see what it’s like and I’ll try to finish the game and give more impressions next week.

Reigns: Her Majesty

Reigns: Her Majesty, the recent sequel to Nerial’s kingdom management game, Reigns, got an update this week that includes 200 new cards, 3 new characters, and 5 new deaths. I was enjoying it for a little while and liked new cards and characters, but the update wiped my progress again and I’m kind of tired of playing the same stuff over and over. I may got back to try and get the rest eventually, but at the moment I’m just not feeling it. I did add the new deaths and objectives I found to my walkthrough guide, though.

Dawn Break -Origin- Premium

And last, I gave the premium version of Dawn Break -Origin- a try. It has impressive graphics, but the battles feel way too similar to Darkness Rises. It even has you battling a dragon early on, which I appreciated. But I’ve already invested a lot of time into Darkness Rises, and I don’t really need a second game that’s so similar. There is a free version you can try, though, if you want to see how it plays before buying the premium version. You can also watch my gameplay video below. I apologize for any skipped dialogue — I touched the screen sometimes without realizing dialogue was about to appear.

And that’s everything! Excuse me while I get back to breaking my brain on this puzzle from The Eyes of Ara. Once again, if you enjoy these posts, please let me know in the comments section and share it with your friends! And I’ll see you back here next week with more of My Week Unwrapped!