Editor's Review
Cate West - The Vanishing Files
Good games are played every day, great games come by once in a lifetime, and Cate West - The Vanishing Files is one of them. This is one of the best hidden object games I have ever played, with a clever mystery scenes and its professional story line you couldn’t ask for more.
With Cate West sixth sense she helps law enforcement on a series of unusual crimes where the law needs all the help they can get to solve these mysteries. With her extra-sensory talent she can see people, places by holding them and is able to place at the scene of the crime.
This is one of the longer hidden object games, but that’s a good thing, most are too short and are over before you get started. Cate West - The Vanishing Files has 15 highly developed mystery cases that need to be solved, with 5 different phases giving you 75 scenarios to play. Some of the scenes are cluttered so you need to look very closely or you will miss the object you need.
Traveling with police, Cate helps with the investigation searching each location for the specific items that are need to solve the case. To move forward in the game you will need to locate most, but not all of the clues on the list before time runs out.
When all the clues have been collected, Cate uses her powers of perception to pinpoint the items that have particularly strong associations to the criminal and will serve as evidence in the trial. You must then search new scenes for bits of the evidence objects to piece them back together (such as the lens, body, flash and hand-grips of a camera).
During the game, you will search for many different items, such as:
- A Geisha girl
- Lipstick
- Roll of tickets
- Parts of a camera
- Flower
- Skates
- Musical instruments
- Signs, and many other items.
In the 2nd phase of the game, you will help Cate identify the subtle differences with 2 side-by-side photos. In the photo’s are the clues needed to locate the criminal’s hide-away. Cate is able to visualize in her mind the exact location of where the crooks are hiding. In the photos you will see a light is turned on in one photos and the other photo the light is off.
With Cate’s help the police and you are able to finger the crooks by the process of elimination. By examining the evidence, Cate is able to narrow down the exact location of the crooks. The police then present the vital information of each possible suspect to Cate, where she is able thumb through to conclude who the real crooks are.
After the police have arrested the right suspect, the case still isn't yet over. While in court you will need to drag and drop the appropriate items in the locations where they belong, all the while the detective is giving his testimony.
There are a total of 29 very impressing locations that you will be traveling throughout the game, revisiting time after time. But you won’t mind, because everything in each scene are so interesting that the game stays fresh. Places like a China town market place, alleyways plastered with posters and graffiti, an old metal subway car, and all visually appealing, where you won’t mind seeing them again during the game.
Cate West - The Vanishing Files has a truly unique scoring system that awards points for how well you play, such as completing a scene quickly, arresting the correct suspect on the first try, or finishing a scene without using any hints. (Hints themselves are unlimited after a short recharge period, but use too many and you'll sacrifice a lot of points.) Your score tally at the end of the game affects how good of an ending you get out of the game's multiple endings.
Cate West - The Vanishing Files is a prime example of a hidden object game done right - with thought, care and a few innovations to keep pushing the genre forward. It's not too short but has the good sense to end before overstaying its welcome. Enjoy this one while you can and stay tuned for the hinted-at sequel.
Cate West - The Vanishing Files is another hidden object game that will always be at the top of my favorite game list. When developers keep pushing the envelope, something good always comes out of it. With Cate West - The Vanishing Files they hit another home run. I’m sure there will be a sequel to this great game, so keep an eye out for it.
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