Pirateville is a hidden object game for the PC. It will play on computers using Windows 2000, XP and Vista.
From the website – “161 levels to play! Gorgeous graphics. Intriguing pirate story. Take on the role of Jack the Sharpshooter, a handsome pirate with a penchant for gold. When Jack stumbles upon an ancient casket, his curiosity is piqued and he sets out on an adventure full of magic, love, gold, weapons and a Cursed Ghost. Unravel the secrets of the ancient casket by finding Hidden Objects and get ready for the most astonishing ending! ”
I love hidden object games so I’m always up to try a new one. I tried a one hour demo of this game. The first thing I noticed about Pirateville is that the game shows conversations on the screen. I’m not a fan of then, they tend to waste too much time. Fortunately there was a link to skip the conversations.
In each level you’re asked to find a number of hidden objects. There is a list shown on one side of the screen that shows the name of several of the items you’re looking for. I prefer one big list of items to find rather than this type of list. This type of list may contain an item you see but you can’t click to find it until the item actually appears on the list. Throughout the game you will be presented with other mini games and challenges. At the top of each screen there is a timer and whatever your current goal is. If you need help finding something you can get a hint by clicking the Tip button You must wait at least 90 seconds between tips. There is a penalty for clicking too much, 20 seconds will be subtracted from your timer. After completing each level you’ll see a screen showing you the character you encountered in that level.
At times you’ll be asked to find objects in the dark. I didn’t like this particular type of board. Some of the items do not appear clearly because the screen is so dark, making some objects hard to find. I’ve circled a pair of gloves that I had to get a hint to find.
At times you’ll be given a list of silhouettes rather than words, and you’ll have to find objects by their outline. These weren’t horrible but some of the outlines weren’t very clear.
At one point I was asked to rearrange a screen. I expected to have to rearrange the pieces by moving them as in numerous other games. As it turned out the piece was already in the correct position, all you needed to do was click the piece to rotate it into the correct direction. I thought that was far too easy.
At the end of most levels I was presented with a Spot the Difference challenge. One of the differences I was supposed to find didn’t even appear on the screen. That didn’t seem fair to me. Another difference I was supposed to find looked like a black dot on both sides. I don’t use hints easily. I needed three hints to complete one of these boards.
I was not impressed enough with Pirateville to buy the full version. Big Fish sells Pirateville for $19.99, or as low as $6.99 if you’re a member of the game club.