Don't Pass This One - Tidal Wave of Greatness! – Rite of Passage: The Lost Tides HD - A Mystery Hidden Object Adventure (Full) Review

A great game from my favorite developer. As a young girl, you are vacationing with your family on board the cruise ship, Everlast. During a terrible storm, your father makes you and your brother get into a lifeboat while he tries to save your mother; but they both magically disappear along with the ship. Now 20 years later, your father's compass starts to glow; and unbelievably so, the Everlast reappears out of nowhere. Also, who is this mermaid with the hauntingly beautiful singing voice? You get to use your compass amulet to dispel energy to clear and explore certain areas throughout your journey. I love the music in this game, with some parts consisting of symphonic overtones leading to crescendos to add suspense. The graphics are beautiful and clear with emphasis on darker colors, such as shades of blue and gray. The voiceovers are not well done since the lips do not move. Some of the acting is comical; when you let your brother know that the Everlast is back, he casually responds, "That's wonderful! Do you think mom and dad are alive"? I mean, come on! Be a little more shocked! There are four modes of difficulty including the option to customize your settings. I had an uncharacteristic minor tapping penalty in custom settings. The inventory is labeled and does require assembly of items. The map has fast teleport and shows objectives but not available actions; another uncharacteristic aspect for custom settings. The scenes are labeled between locations, and transition has been smooth and quick. There is a journal, which actually consists mainly of objectives along with minor snippets of info on the story; it's not a traditional one and lacks enough reading material as you progress. There is also a back button, which is very appreciated. The HOS are varied and fun. Some types are word lists, in which you collect parts to complete a full object and "finding matching pairs of items" with some twists. There was a very innovative, unique, and almost puzzle oriented type where you use blueprints to assemble gliding gears in multiple parts with numerous procedures. That's creativity! The puzzles were interesting as well. An example was a typical one from this developer where you find a scroll and a storybook puzzle initiates with narration; and you solve minor puzzles, such as rotating and moving tiles to assemble an image. You are collecting well-hidden seashells in the locations, as well as morphing objects in the HOS. You have a seashell indicator to the right of the inventory bar. The extras include a collectibles hunt, achievements, and a Forgotten Treasure HOS. One minor, negative aspect from this developer is that the map, journal, etc., are always located through the menu. It's a nuisance to have to complete several steps to access these functions. Other than that, and maybe a less than par map lacking available actions, I have no complaints. Great creativity and implementation of advanced game mechanics make this game a hot ticket!
Review by KimTwilight69 on Rite of Passage: The Lost Tides HD - A Mystery Hidden Object Adventure (Full).