Mystery Case Files: Ravenhearst

Mystery Case Files: Ravenhearst
Developer(s)	Big Fish Studios
Publisher(s)	Big Fish Games
Series	Mystery Case Files
Engine	Director
Platform(s)	Windows / Mac OS X
Release date(s)	NA December 15, 2006
Genre(s)	Adventure/Puzzle
Mode(s)	Single player
Rating(s)	ESRB: Everyone (E)
Media/distribution	Download
System requirements Windows OS: Windows 2000/XP/Vista CPU: 600 Mhz RAM: 128 MB DirectX: 6.0 Hard Drive: 91 MB Mac OS X OS: 10.4, 10.5 (Recommended) CPU: 1.83GHz RAM: 512 MB

Mystery Case Files: Ravenhearst is an adventure-puzzle casual game developed by Big Fish Studios, and distributed by Big Fish Games. It is the third installment in the Mystery Case Files series. The game is available exclusively at Big Fish Games website. The Mystery Case Files franchise is the number one brand in casual games and has sold more than 2.5 million units to date.^[1]

Story

Rumors surrounding the Ravenhearst manor in Blackpool have circulated for decades. The Queen of England has enlisted your help to solve the mystery behind the ghostly apparitions in and around Ravenhearst manor. You are provided with the recently acquired diary belonging to Emma Ravenhearst which holds the key to unraveling the history of this unsettling place, yet some pages are missing. You must venture into Ravenhearst, find the missing pages, and solve the mystery.

As the player collects the pages of the diary, the story reveals itself. Emma Ravenhearst, a young girl from Iowa, arrived in Blackpool, England on August 24, 1894 after having been graduated from a teacher's college. She is hired at a local school and boards with the schoolmistress, also helping with household taks.

At a community autumn party on September 10, 1894, Emma meets a handsome, wealthy young man named Charles Dalimar. He is smitten by Emma. Several months later, on March 16, 1895 he proposes to Emma.

After thinking about the fact that she has, as she says in her diary, just begun her life, she declines the proposal. Charles is hurt, but two weeks later on April 5, 1895 he visits Emma again, carrying roses. He tells her that he has purchased a tract of land and is building a manor.

A workman, Frank Williams, falls while working on the house in May 1895.. He leaves behind a wife and two children. At the funeral, Charles mutters to Emma something about being forever alone at his "bedevilled" manor.

On May 23, Emma gets a letter from her sister back in America telling her that their father is seriously ill. She makes plans to leave, but then falls ill. As she worsens, Charles moves her into the manor and cares for her.

He hires a woman named Rose Somerset to take care of Emma. Emma, despite her condition, continues to write in her diary and she and Rose become friends. (Note: source for edits to this point come directly from the diary in the Ravenhearst game.)

Unfortunately, Emma's health keeps on failing. She starts having nightmares where she is wearing a white bridal dress. She has not heard anything from her family. Charles behaviour has become suspicious & he has taken to reading the books of black magic & necromancy. Rose is finding the situation creepy. When Rose discovers a dress similar to the one Emma wore in her nightmare, the duo believe that Charles is trying to harm them. This also happens to be the second last entry in Emma's diary.

The last entry to the diary is dated "Today", and is written by the ghost of Emma, who haunts the manor. It urges the player to find seven skeleton keys hidden throughout the manor, and visit the cellar to open the cellar door with them. When the player accomplishes this, an upright casket is found, which, when opened, reveals the remains of Emma, dressed in the wedding gown. It is heavily implied that Charles has murdered Emma in fear of abandonment. The skeleton dissolves as Emma's spirit is freed from the manor.

Gameplay

Like the Mystery Case Files titles that came before, Ravenhearst relies heavily on the hidden object puzzle. However, players will also run into strange locks, reminiscent of Rube Goldberg contraptions. An unfortunate glitch found only in the retail version of the game (as opposed to the downloadable version) occurs during the door puzzle in the third mission. Solving the puzzle requires a game of Tic Tac Toe to be won; the glitch prevents you from seeing Xs or Os as they are drawn on the board although it is still possible to win.

Reception

According to independent tracking site game-sales-charts.com, following its release on December 5, 2006, MCF: Ravenhearst held the #1 sales spot on nearly all casual game distribution sites including its home distribution channel, Big Fish Games, where it has remained in their top 20 since.^[2]

Mystery Case Files: Ravenhearst was "the third-best-selling PC title in the United States for the week ending in the annual Black Friday shopping splurge" selling 100,000 copies in six weeks.^[3]

Sequel

During the Game, Mystery Case Files: Madame Fate, at the last part of the Game, Charles Dalimar kills Madame Fate and you, the Detective, talks to the Queen of England. You must then return to the Manor to discover more mysteries that lies within.

On October 22, 2008, Big Fish Games announced at their blog that there will be a second game for the story-arc of Ravenhearst entitled, Mystery Case Files: Return to Ravenhearst. Return to Ravenhearst was released on November 27, 2008 exclusively at Big Fish Games.

Mystery Case Files: Return to Ravenhearst

Main article: Mystery Case Files: Return to Ravenhearst

After the events in Madame Fate, you soon discover that the spirit of Charles Dalimar, Emma Ravenhearst's murderer, is on the loose and desperate because Emma is now free of the Manor's curse. He is actually the one responsible for Madame Fate's death stating that your rescue of Emma was pointless, for Rose Somerset, Emma's nursemaid in the first game, was his "true love".

You again return to the manor, but then you soon discover that there are more to the mansion than meets the eye: there is still a section of the manor unexplored, and some parts that you have already explored has been refurbished by Charles' tormented spirit. You must now uncover the secret of what happened to Charles after he murdered Emma, and put a stop to his psychotic obsession.

References

1. ^ http://www.bigfishgames.com/download-games/1305/mystery-case-files-ravenhearst/index.html
2. ^ "Mystery Case Files: Ravenhearst Sales Data". GameSalesCharts.com. 2008-01-02. http://www.game-sales-charts.com/cms/index.php?option=com_dbquery&Itemid=33&task=ExecuteQuery&qid=20&cqo_game=Mystery%20Case%20Files%3A%20Ravenhearst. Retrieved 2008-01-02. 
3. ^ ""Hidden Object" Series Hit for Holidays". Reuters. 2007-12-20. http://www.reuters.com/article/sphereNews/idUSN1851179620071220?sp=true&view=sphere. Retrieved 2008-01-02. 

External links

• Official Site