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    Unsolved Mystery Club 2: Ancient Astronauts

    genkicoll
    genkicoll


    Posts : 8426
    Join date : 2011-12-28
    Age : 50
    Location : Pacific Northwest

    Unsolved Mystery Club 2: Ancient Astronauts Empty Unsolved Mystery Club 2: Ancient Astronauts

    Post by genkicoll Sun Sep 09, 2012 1:44 pm

    Unsolved Mystery Club: Ancient Astronauts
    by Freeze Tag, Inc.

    Available at:
    Big Fish as Collector's Edition / Standard Edition
    GameHouse Premium Edition / Standard Edition
    iWin Collector's Edition / Standard Edition
    Steam as Collector's Edition

    Unsolved Mystery Club 2: Ancient Astronauts Unsolved-mystery-club-ancient-astronauts-ce_feature

    Five explorers have disappeared while searching for evidence of Ancient  Astronauts! Join the Unsolved Mystery Club in the hunt for the missing  explorers and unlock ancient secrets of the past. Explore exotic  locations around the world and uncover artifacts supporting the  existence of visitors from other worlds in Unsolved Mystery Club:  Ancient Astronauts!  

    The Collector’s Edition includes:  

    • Bonus gameplay
    • Integrated Strategy Guide
    • Wonderful Wallpapers
    • Walkthrough (Gamezebo)

    Unsolved Mystery Club 2: Ancient Astronauts Screen1Unsolved Mystery Club 2: Ancient Astronauts Screen2
    Unsolved Mystery Club 2: Ancient Astronauts Screen3


    Last edited by genkicoll on Mon Jul 08, 2019 2:13 am; edited 2 times in total
    genkicoll
    genkicoll


    Posts : 8426
    Join date : 2011-12-28
    Age : 50
    Location : Pacific Northwest

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    Post by genkicoll Sat Sep 15, 2012 10:47 am

    Unsolved Mystery Club: Ancient Astronauts (IHOG)

    What a beautiful game this is. I got thirteen images from the game that will make good banners at some point, and one of my favorites was taken from a HOG scene!

    Options include sliders for Music and Sound, but there is also a MUTE button. You can choose custom cursor, widescreen, full screen or windowed.

    When you start your profile, you have two choices for difficulty, Casual and Expert. The only difference is how long it takes the hint button and skip button to charge. I played in Expert mode, and I wish I hadn't, because the few times I wanted to skip a puzzle, it took forever to load!

    You start the game out at the Unsolved Mystery Club headquarters, but it's not long before you're off on your first journey, which lands you in Mali, Africa. From there, you will visit Cairo, Egypt; the Palenque Jungle in Chiapas, Mexico; the Nazca Desert in Palpa, Peru; and New Swabia, Antarctica. The graphics for each section are stunning in their own way, looking nothing like the previous sections (as it should be, considering we're in entirely different regions each time!)

    Peru and Antarctica seemed a bit short, as compared to the first three sections, but then, those first three seemed to be really long, so it all evens out. Big smile

    The CE content gives you one more chapter, which was located in the Andes in Tiwanku, Bolivia. This section didn't really expand on the story, and it seemed kind of short to me. That and the puzzles were all the same, with varying difficulties. If you buy CE's just for the bonus chapter, you probably wouldn't find it to be worth the extra price.

    For me, though I generally don't use strategy guides, I found this one particularly helpful. Maybe it's because I just wasn't as observant as I should have been, but I really needed it a few times. Silly face

    There are six sound tracks to listen to in the Extras section, and the wallpapers (alas!) are not from gameplay. Instead, you have 12 wallpapers consisting of concept art. Don't get me wrong, some of the concept art is definitely wallpaper-worthy, it's just that the graphics in the game are so beautiful that I was hoping for some walls from the finalized artwork.

    The game is, overall, incredibly good, and I definitely don't regret getting the Collector's Edition. I enjoyed every minute of the game, and highly recommend it to any IHOG-adventure-lover.
    luvtoread
    luvtoread


    Posts : 1171
    Join date : 2012-09-06
    Age : 63
    Location : Johnstown, NY

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    Post by luvtoread Sun Sep 16, 2012 3:14 am

    I bought this game quite awhile back. It is quite different from the first one about Amelia Earhart. That one was pure H. O. For some reason I never finished this second one, just got real close to the end and never touched the bonus.
    Wonder if they'll continue on with this series
    genkicoll
    genkicoll


    Posts : 8426
    Join date : 2011-12-28
    Age : 50
    Location : Pacific Northwest

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    Post by genkicoll Fri Jul 12, 2019 1:46 pm

    Unsolved Mystery Club: Ancient Astronauts (IHOG)
    2012 review updated after playing Steam version in 2019

    This one was a personal favorite back when it came out.  So how does it hold up 7 years later?  Read on to find out~!

    Options include sliders for Music and Sound, Custom Cursor, Widescreen, Full-screen or Windowed.  Choice of Casual or Expert mode, the only difference being how long it takes the hint and skip buttons to charge.

    Story:

    "This game is a fictional dramatization based on a true story and real events." 

    Five members of the Unsolved Mystery Club organization have gone missing in different parts of the world whilst researching theories about ancient astronauts, and you have been tasked with finding them.  The game starts out at the UMC headquarters, but it's not long before you're off on your first journey.

    Our Journal is a communication device that we use to keep in contact with UMC.  Here you can see brief overviews of the clues you've found in each part of the world, as well as the ability to replay cutscenes.  Be sure to read any articles you find before closing them, as you won't get to see them at a readable size from the device.

    Gameplay:

    There is no MAP, but each part of the world we visit has a limited number of locations, so it never feels like we're doing too much backtracking.

    Be on the lookout for usable items.  Sure, we're always looking for something we can use, but to me a lot of these items seemed such a natural part of the landscape that I had trouble spotting them. lol~ In other words, you'll find helpful items in places other than HO scenes.

    During the adventure portion of the game, we have tiered hint system.  When you click on the HELP button, you'll get a list of objectives you can get assistance with.
    Unsolved Mystery Club 2: Ancient Astronauts 7AED153688553096D33E7529D34A233A1FE96480
    Some of the answers are tiered, and you'll have to wait for the help button to recharge before you can ask another question.

    The Hidden Object Scenes are very lightly interactive, and all are the standard find-by-list type.  HINTS are available during the HOS, but both hints and skips take a long time to charge regardless of which game mode you've chosen.  You will get multiple items from each completed scene.

    The misclick penalty engages when you make five wrong clicks in a row.

    Sights and Sounds:

    During the course of our adventure, we'll visit Africa, Egypt, Mexico, Peru and Antarctica, each with its own kind of beauty. The graphics, by today's standards, are nice, but at the time of release they were really something special. 

    Each time there was dialogue I had to turn the sound WAY up in order to hear what was being said, so a separate slider for voices would have been much-appreciated.  Still, the voice acting is good and the music is fitting.

    The greatest strength of Ancient Astronauts is the design of the HOS.  They're beautiful and challenging, and the theming to them is very well done. 
    Unsolved Mystery Club 2: Ancient Astronauts FD2D0CE14BC505F206052BB1775AFD576416BA18

    CE Content:

    • Integrated Strategy Guide (look for it at the top right of the retractable toolbar)
    • Bonus Chapter
    • 12 Concept Art (Locations)
    • 12 Character Concept Art
    • 6 Music Tracks (cannot be saved)

    Bonus Chapter:

    The extra chapter takes us to the Andes in Tiwanku, Bolivia to see if we can find a UMC member's missing father.  There is a matching puzzle that we'll have to do in three separate places, each harder than the last due to the quantity of items to match and the fact that they move if you don't find the identical piece.

    This chapter doesn't really add anything to the story, but it does address something that was mentioned in one of the UMC's bios (the missing father).

    Once you finish the bonus, you can go back into the game to review character bios or to re-watch cutscenes from your communication device.

    Verdict:

    Although this was not the amazing experience that I remember from way back when, it's still a good game. This is a nicely-balanced IHOG with challenging but beautifully-designed HOS.  Recommended for lovers of the genre!

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