I Can't "Veil" My Disappointment! Not the Best MCF! – Mystery Case Files: Black Veil Review

I always loved the MCF series, as it is known for its more interesting and sometimes complex story lines, intricately rendered puzzles, and creative hidden object scenes. However, I enjoyed the storyline in "Broken Hour" better than this storyline, due to its unique concept and well-evolved characters. I find the characters in this game to be uninteresting, and the poorly constructed dialogue fails to showcase their personalities. The quality of the graphics is unremarkable; I think the visuals could be sharpened up to clarify the details. I'm tickled pink that I get to follow the storyline by reading a rarely given journal. You can customize your settings. The inventory is labeled and interactive; items require assembly. Transition between scenes is smooth and quick; no glitches. The teleport map was most surprising; at first glance, I did not even recognize it as a map. My first reaction was, "what the heck is this?" However, it was not hard to figure out; it was just uniquely presented in both its layout and the design of the task indicators. It does enable smooth travel to desired locations. I think that the HOSs are creatively executed throughout the first half of the game; one memorable type was where you move back and forth between three interactive areas while engaging in a "Find and Use" fashion. For example, you will find an item within one interactive area and apply that item to one of the other two interactive areas. Unfortunately, creativity diminishes as one progresses; and the formats become heavy on the traditional word lists. The main reason why I look forward to this series has to be the compound super puzzles -- those that are composed of a network of individual micro-puzzles in which the solutions of such in consecutive order are weaved together cohesively to complete the puzzle as a whole. The only downside is that these super puzzles are not as super difficult as they were in this game's predecessors. I'm referring to "Dire Grove, Sacred Grove" and "Fates Carnival"; some of the super puzzles in those two games were mind-bending. The puzzles in this series are more conceptually innovative than in other series; however, too many in this game were on the simple side. I came across a singular collectible; but I appreciate the collectible indicator since the scenes are very dark, making finding the collectibles a bit hard on the eyeballs. This is, by far, one of my least favorite MCF games. The storyline and the gameplay lack a "wow" factor, failing to draw me into the plot. I'm a little bored. My true rating is 3.5 stars; however, I've lowered my rating to 3 stars.
Review by KimTwilight69 on Mystery Case Files: Black Veil.