History Channel: Monster Quest

Game Category: Casual - Hidden Object, Puzzle, TV-Tie in
Developer / Distributor: Canopy Games / Activision
Release Date: 7 Jun 2008
Rating: ESRB - Everyone

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Care to try catching a couple of cryptids? But, don't know what they are, eh?

Allow me to explain: cryptids are the creatures and plants that we theorize exist simply because of the overwhelming evidence in the form of eyewitness accounts, photographs, footprint casts, etc. Take for example - the Loch Ness Monster. The spread of cryptids can sometimes be wide, with many witnesses found across the world identifying a creature that looks vaguely similar (as in the Yeti, Sasquatch, and Bigfoot).

How can it be possible that tens or even sometimes hundreds of people steadfastly insist on the existence of a cryptid based on their personal experiences? Surely there must be an inkling of truth to their claims... Scientists however remain ever so sceptical about the existence of cryptids; and if you ask me they probably don't care a whit about them - not without some convincing proof.

It's the mysteries of the unexplained

But what if you could be an investigator of cryptids? Well it seems like your wish has just come true! For with the History Channel: Monster Quest (HCMQ) game, you'll get to chance to personally handle half a dozen reported cases of cryptid sightings. Be on hand to take a closer look at each case (and hopefully) nab either Bigfoot (or if you insist - sasquatch), Nessie, Mothmen, werewolves, and the horrifying Kraken.

Or more possibly, you'll expose these claims to be nothing more than elaborate hoaxes by people who are either out to make a quick buck, or simply trying to get the attention of the media for their own nefarious purposes.

Let's take a closer look at the HCMQ casual game from Canopy Games.

Is the Kraken for real?

HCMQ is a game that challenges you to investigate five detailed cases about cryptids. Each case is divided into three stages: The Briefing, The Investigation, and The Lab.

In The Briefing, you are are introduced to a case and given several dossiers to read. It is imperative that you read up the dossier labelled as Monsterpedia. It gives you a valuable page or two of information about the cryptid you'll be investigating. It is usually accompanied with interesting drawings and photos. Don't think you can shirk away from the responsibility of reading though, that's because you must answer a multiple choice question about the cryptid correctly before you can begin your investigation in earnest.

Welcome to Norway!

The Investigation stage is by far the longest stage in the game. You are given a map of the area where the sighting of the cryptid occurred. You are then expected to conduct interviews with people who will pop up on the left and right side of the map. Based on your conversations with them, you will get leads that help to advance the story of your current case.

At the same time, you will usually have at least one location on the map that you can explore - this is clearly marked and labelled. To your right is a list of Critical Clues; this is your list of hidden objects that you must search. The catch here is that the items in this list are spread out among all the locations shown on the map.

Real-life photos employed as the hidden object scene

To complicate matters, you won't know in the game which objects on your list of Critical Clues can be found at a particular location. Exacerbating it all is that the objects you seek are usually small, obscure, and sometimes way too "well-hidden". Strangely, there are other occasions when the objects are placed in a ridiculously obvious position.

You may have noticed the hint dial shown at the bottom left of the screenshots. But (and it's a big and very important "BUT"), there's a super long wait for the hints feature to charge up in HCMQ - close to 2 minutes 15 seconds! Furthermore, you must not click the Map tab at the bottom right side of the screen to exit from the location, otherwise the hint dial will reset itself. Imagine the nightmare you'll have deciding whether to move on (because the search list is truly exhausted at a location) or to wait for the hint dial to charge up.

Exotic locations to investigate

Moving on, you should know that some of these objects you find will be usable in another location. For example, you might find a rusty key and it winds up in your inventory. You can drag your inventory item and use it somewhere else in your current investigation - no hints are given for these items, so happy hunting. At other times, you will find some incriminating evidence related to the case, these will wind up in the bottom centre of the screen.

Once you've collected enough evidence, you will return to the Lab to conduct the last stage of the game. Here you will face three types of puzzles - a jigsaw mini-game, another one that requires you to spot the differences between photos, or to find objects. The puzzles in stage 3 are generally larger and more complex, so you'll be spending quite some time here.

This puzzle is tricky since you must rotate your pieces

Pros:

The History Channel: Monster Quest game is based on the television series that aired on the History Channel for four seasons before the plug was pulled in 2010. If you're a fan, at least you can reminisce about your favourite episode while playing it.
The puzzles are arguably the best part of the game - look out for the puzzle involving a "faded" book, and another one involving fixing a DNA jigsaw puzzle.
The background information provided in the five cases is entertaining stuff to read.
There's a bunch of real-life location photos (usually retouched) featured in the game.

Can you spot the mothman?

Cons:

The idea of searching objects across several scenes is novel, but the implementation is not!
For the hidden object part of the game, you will wind up having to wait for ages before the hint dial has charged up and is ready for use. Worse still, moving to another location on your map resets the hint dial. Fancy waiting at least another two minutes?
The single greatest atrocity in History Channel: Monster Quest is that your game will only be saved when you complete an entire stage. Seeing that The Investigation chapter is the longest, make sure you've enough time invested so you can complete it in one sitting.
A multiple choice question in a game? Come on! And, I won't exactly call the investigation of cryptids educational fare.

Calamari for lunch anyone?

The game has one problematic bug - buttons remain on the screen if you click too fast.
There are only five cases to investigate, and it's a very short game.
Was that a boss key in the game? Just make sure you don't press the Escape key, or you'll wind up exiting the game.
The replayability for History Channel: Monster Quest is pathetic. If you've played once through, its unlikely you'd want to subject yourself to the agony all over again.
The photos of the people you interview are rather comical looking and so is the script. In fact, almost all the cases (but one) were hoaxes.
The game is a TV tie-in but yet there are no video cutscenes at all - a major disappointment.