Who Was William Shakespeare? Find Out In Midnight Mysteries: Devil On The Mississippi
Midnight Mysteries: Devil on the Mississippi ($6.99) by MumboJumbo is a must have murder mystery hidden object game by the same developers that brought you Midnight Mysteries: Salem Witch Trials.
In Midnight Mysteries: Salem Witch Trials, players investigated the death of Nathaniel Hawthorne and helped to free his trapped spirit. Devil on the Mississippi features a similar engrossing plot line, except this time, Mark Twain’s ghost is seeking help from a terrible evil that’s stalking him in the afterlife.
The goal this time is to retrace Twain’s life and discover the secrets behind what happened to him, a sordid tale that involves demons, pacts with the devil, and the true identity of William Shakespeare.
At its heart, this is a puzzle solving game. Often, the aim is to find objects that can be combined to create new devices, which are then used to unlock new areas, character dialogues, and plot elements. For example, in one of the first puzzles, players will hunt down a cup and some tea which are combined to create a relaxing beverage for a distraught Mark Twain.
Gathering objects is frequently done through several hidden object scenes, where multiple objects must be found before one key plot element is revealed. Hunting for objects is easily done thanks to great graphics and an ability to zoom in and out.
In addition to finding and creating objects to solve quests, players will also be expected to solve puzzles that range in difficulty from super simple to slightly frustrating. There are a number of these puzzles throughout the game, and no two are alike.
At one point, players will solve sudoku like squares to unlock a new area, while another puzzle involves a simple matching game, and yet another is a complex Battleship/Minefield game that takes some skill to figure out.
During the game, nearly every scene has a couple of special objects to find. Ravens will provide the player with hints, in case a puzzle becomes too frustrating, or it’s taking too long to find that last object. Clovers are used to unlock an endless hidden object game, and it will take a sharp eye to gather enough.
Devil on the Mississippi also features Game Center integration with several achievements to unlock, which will likely take more than one game to complete. The puzzles are certainly unique and interesting enough to make playing more than once an appealing prospect.
I’m a sucker for hidden object puzzle games, and I played this one all the way through before writing a review. I greatly enjoyed the first game in the series, Midnight Mysteries: Salem Witch Trials, and I found that Devil on the Mississippi was an even better game.
This is because of some extra creepy plot elements and a storyline that explores everywhere from Mississippi in the 1800s to London in the 1600s.
With tons of historical references, the involvement of several prominent historical figures, and tricky quests to solve, this was an immersive game that was hard to put down. If you’re a fan of the hidden object puzzle genre, this is a game that won’t disappoint.
My only complaint was that the screen was not as responsive as it should have been when trying to use items to solve puzzles. For example, when putting together a skeleton, I was dragging the bones to the correct spot on the screen, but it was not working properly, which was frustrating. Hopefully this issue will be solved in an update. Midnight Mysteries: Devil on the Mississippi is more expensive than your typical iPad game, but with hours of intriguing gameplay and a variety of puzzles that will have you wanting to play again and again, it’s well worth the price.
