Ghost Files: The Face of Guilt Review (smoothietown)
Ghost Files: The Face of Guilt is a Hidden Object game where it would really benefit from some couples therapy. I say this because while it's trying to be two distinctly different things; it ends up failing majorly on both concepts (supernatural aspects and cop thriller) that it ends up leaving the player with a bad taste in their mouth. This may sound harsh, however, this indecisive nature of the world building and unbelievable plot can be quite frustrating for the avid HOG/casual player.
Pros:
I won't sit here and say the entire game's bad of course. One of the things that really drew me to this HOG was definitely the interesting cover art and the designs for the world. I could really appreciate the level of detail that went into some of the scenes. But... The rendering for the characters kind of falls flat in the animation sequences, but especially when the plot twist is revealed. The voice acting is the endearingly bad sort, so I'd say it's standard fare like a lot of other HOG's.
Talking about the environment's, I thought some of the puzzles in the "Parallel World/Spirit Plane" were really enjoyable if a bit underdeveloped with the logic they use for the plot... Sure there's a police medium there and all, but it just gets a bit goofy when compared to titles who have a similar, "Paranormal detective" trope such as the Enigmatis series or Dreamwalker: Never Fall Asleep. These titles have a lot of other elements and little features to their names, but it's very clear on what the developers are trying to go for with this game- they just don't execute it as effectively as they could. And they could have made a great game if there was some more clarity.
Cons: (spoilers)
Now here's were there's a bit more of a spoiler warning. So if you'd rather go into the game totally blind like I did, I wouldn't read these paragraphs. So as I mentioned, my biggest gripe besides the weird line between supernatural and true crime thriller, would have to be the Plot Twist(tm). Some tropes can be overly obvious as we consume more and more media, but this one takes the cake for a cheesy wheesy, villain appearance given the release date. It's very similar to the Roger Rabbit movie regarding plot twists if anything (not trying to say that movie is bad or anything).
Sure, you have no indication in the beginning that your crime partner (I can't recall his name...) is the "Guilty Man,"- the baddie who kidnapped the true detective and used some sort of ritual to look like him. However, this can only be considered a plot twist because there is zero interaction with this guy. You meet him for a total of three (3) minutes and then you two or off doing your own thing. Then you basically die for a few minutes (no big deal) and finally learn his true identity along the way towards the end sequence where you find the true detective in a secret lair. Call me judgmental or overly critical, but I think these types of plot lines need actual foreshadowing and character development to be effective.
The ending sequences are fine since it brings the story to a decent close. It's the Bonus Chapter that really seals the deal for the annoying plot, so I'm not going to delve into that...
Also, right in the beginning, you let a poor old woman die right in front of you and then don't even secure the crime scene... Not to completely drag other games here, but I wasn't expecting Detective Meyer to follow the same proceedings as the law force in the early Ace Attorney Series.
TLDR: This game needed a few more brainstorming and editing sessions for sure. Especially given the standard $9.99 price tag. Given all of these criticisms, I would still recommend buying this game on the conditions of it either going on sale; if you really want to get your puzzles/HO scenes on; or in a bundle with some better games. It's unfortunate that I have a lot of negative talking points, because I really did like the art style and the general atmosphere of the game.