Dark Parables: The Red Riding Hood Sisters (Collector's Edition)

The Good
This is a pretty standard hidden object game. As such it has a flimsy but workable plot, lots of things to find which become keys/tokens that unlock other things which progress the story. Nothing really new there and it all "just works". The artwork was good, the music was pleasant and the voice acting was a little 'hammy' but OK.

The things I liked about this game were the little things like the Red Riding sisterhood of kick-ass vigilantes, true they did need my help to get them out of trouble but if they didn't there would have been no story.
All the hidden object scenes used the same format, which was a pleasant change, and all the items were hidden in plain sight and they were sometimes very well hidden. I did not have to combine two or more items to create an object and I did not have to move anything aside. These scenes were all well done and a pleasure to play.
Another nice touch was the use of paw prints rather than the usual sparkles to identify an area of interest.

The Bad
There truly was nothing here that I thought was badly done, nothing that grated or caused me problems. If I was being ultra picky I'd say that some of the puzzles could have been better explained. I like messing around and working out just what puzzle I am trying to solve plus this version has a strategy guide so, apart from one puzzle where I was pressed for time, I solved them all. In the base game with no guide some may struggle and have to use the SKIP button.

The Bottom Line
I played the FOCUS Essentials release. It installed via the Big Fish Games' game manager and it played flawlessly. I split the game over two evenings and in all it probably took me a leisurely five or six hours or so complete. It is not groundbreaking and I will have forgotten it in a few days but it was good while it lasted.

Recommended.