Description: Ravenhill Asylum is a hidden-object game, that like many others, has you searching each area for items you need in order to progress to the next one. However, there’s more to it than that, as Ravenhill Asylum is a scary place that’s full of mysteries you need to solve and spooky-happenings that you don’t always see in these types of games. It’s free-to-play and there’s a lot to do in the game. Combining items and more makes the object-finding a little more exciting than it has been in similar games. With spooky music, various characters and quests Ravenhill Asylum is a hidden-object game with its unique flavor that should spook some players.
How it Works: To start your own sinister adventure in Ravenhill Asylum, you’ve got to go and download the app from the Play Store. After that, you’ll be greeted with the intro to the game:
Once you’ve watched the intro, you can start with the tutorial, in which a frightened inmate of the Asylum will ask you for his help.
To help your new “friend”, you’ll have to find all of the objects in the room and get a knife:
The tutorial will help you the first time that you play. It’s pretty straightforward: just find all of the items and touch them in the main play area. As you progress, you can unlock different areas, by paying for them with in-game currency. However, you’ll need to level-up a few times before then.
To gain experience, you can revisit levels you’ve already been to. This can also lead to new item discoveries.
Items and such can be bought from the Shop, and they also have different effects.
You should spend quite a bit of time exploring items in the shop, as they could help you on your journey through the asylum.
Opinion: I’ve played and reviewed a number of hidden-object games in the past and Ravenhill Asylum is right up there with the best of them. It has its problems, as most games do, but it’s got a unique look and feel to it. With the addition of the levelling scheme and having to reach certain targets to move on, it adds new dynamics to the genre. Sometimes finding items over and over again gets a little tedious, thankfully Ravenhill Asylum breaks that mold. While visiting the same room for many times can become somewhat tiresome, it is nice to have to achieve something before reaching the next area. The font can be very difficult at times to read but, once you get used to it it’s fine. The theme is macabre but, nothing too scary allowing people to enjoy the dark theme, even if they’re not big fans of the horror genre.
Ratings
- Speed (4/5) – The game runs fine on different hardware and the pacing of the levels is decent, too.
- Features (4/5) – At its heart, Ravenhill Asylum is still a hidden-object game however with some additions it manages to break out of the cliche shrouding the genre.
- Theme (5/5) – With good artwork, decent music and a dark theme without taking things too far, the Asylum looks spooky and fun at the same time.
- Overall (4/5) – Ravenhill Asylum has a lot going for it, in spite of the font issues and some other issues. Overall, this is a solid hidden-object game that takes you on an adventure.
Pros
- Good-looking artwork and good music helps paint a macabre scene while playing.
- The object-finding at the heart of it all is a lot of fun and fans of the genre will love it.
- Added features like potions and power-ups work well, as does the levelling system.
- Great game to relax with.
Cons
- Font can be very small and difficult to read.
- Can take quite a while to get to the next area.
Conclusion: Ravenhill Asylum is a hidden-object game, through and through. However, with some added modes and features, it manages to escape the cliches associated with the genre. There’s something to be said of the shop mechanic, and the necessary revisits to previous areas in order to progress. Unlike other hidden-object games which would see you going from area to the next in quick succession, Ravenhill Asylum forces you to achieve something before you can progress with the adventure. The tutorial isn’t too long either, which is a nice breath of fresh air compared to other games of this genre. Overall, this is a great game that should appeal to a lot of people, maybe those of the mature audience but still, a good game to relax with.