SEASON OF MYSTERY: The Cherry Blossom Murders
- February 3, 2010
- Square Enix
- 4h median play time
Get on Steam"Season of Mystery: The Cherry Blossom Murders" is a hidden object adventure game set in Japan. You play as a detective tasked with solving a series of murders that take place during the cherry blossom season. The game features unique puzzles, beautiful artwork, and an intriguing storyline filled with suspense and mystery.
PC
Windows
Reviews
- The game features beautiful artwork and charming hidden object scenes that enhance the overall experience.
- The storyline is engaging, providing a decent murder mystery that keeps players interested throughout the game.
- The hint system is helpful, allowing players to get silhouettes of items, making it easier to find hidden objects without feeling overly frustrated.
- Many hidden object scenes are repetitive, requiring players to revisit the same locations multiple times, which can diminish the challenge and excitement.
- The graphics can be blurry and some objects are poorly scaled, making it difficult to identify them, leading to frustration.
- The game lacks depth in its puzzles, with most being overly simplistic and not providing a significant challenge for experienced players.
- story132 mentions
- 42 % positive mentions
- 53 % neutral mentions
- 5 % negative mentions
The story aspect of the game receives mixed reviews, with some players appreciating its charm and engaging mystery set in late 19th century Japan, while others criticize it for being predictable and lacking depth. Many find the narrative enjoyable enough to carry the gameplay, despite its linear progression and occasional repetition of hidden object scenes. Overall, while the story has its merits, it often falls into familiar tropes typical of the hidden object genre.
“A great little detective story with some cute Sherlock Holmes references; this is well worth the price.”
“The story was engaging enough, and they did an excellent job of keeping you guessing.”
“It's a beautiful game with a captivating story.”
“The story itself is terrible and far-fetched, but playing on stream and laughing at Irene with the rest of the chat and cheering on Fujikawa as he tackles a man is worth the entertainment value.”
“Game was repetitive for no reason and the story was all over the place and not in a good way.”
“The story is weak too, and although the story presumably takes place over the course of several days, the woman never changes her clothes.”
- music59 mentions
- 51 % positive mentions
- 44 % neutral mentions
- 5 % negative mentions
The music in the game is generally described as pleasant and atmospheric, enhancing the overall experience with its relaxing and beautiful soundtracks. However, many reviewers noted that the music can be repetitive, lacking variety and sometimes not fitting the themes of the scenes. While it contributes positively to the game's charm, some players wished for a broader selection of tracks to maintain engagement throughout gameplay.
“I love the setting in terms of both time and place, and both feel evident throughout the game, with the lovely music adding to the mood of each scene.”
“The scenes are stunningly beautiful and the music is amazing.”
“Awesome passive hidden object game, with a gripping story, relaxing soundtrack and stunning visuals.”
“The music is appropriate, but not quite varied enough.”
“The music is competent but repetitive and the artwork stills are quite attractive.”
“Don't get me wrong - there are beautiful images and the soundtrack, while repetitive, is eerily calming.”
- graphics36 mentions
- 44 % positive mentions
- 42 % neutral mentions
- 14 % negative mentions
The graphics of the game are a mixed bag, with many users noting their outdated, pixelated quality that can hinder gameplay, particularly in hidden object scenes. While some appreciate the nostalgic "old style" artwork and find the visuals pleasant, others criticize the low resolution and lack of detail, leading to frustration in object identification. Overall, the graphics are described as decent but not impressive, with a blend of beautiful artwork and mediocre execution.
“Awesome passive hidden object game, with a gripping story, relaxing soundtrack and stunning visuals.”
“The graphics are beautiful, the hidden object scenes are not overly cluttered, and they are actually enjoyable as far as hidden object scenes can go.”
“Graphics: I admit the graphics are beautiful and capture the feel of traditional Japan.”
“Being a 12-year-old game predating Windows 10, the graphics are a bit messy and pixelated and can hamper your searching, but other than that the challenge is fair.”
“The low-resolution graphics and some of the incredibly cheap tricks to hide some items also point to outdated mechanics.”
“I mean, the low-resolution graphics are unclear, the objects don't respect realistic scale and are often virtually invisible.”
- gameplay23 mentions
- 26 % positive mentions
- 61 % neutral mentions
- 13 % negative mentions
The gameplay is generally enjoyable, featuring solid mechanics and a mix of hidden object scenes and simple mini-games that provide some variety. However, many players note the repetitiveness of revisiting the same rooms and the ease of the mini-games, which may detract from the overall experience. While the game is accessible for casual players and has a compelling story, it shows signs of being outdated in terms of design and graphics.
“Overall, it's fun, has solid gameplay, plays quickly, and feels different enough to seem fresh.”
“The inclusion of puzzles to give the gameplay variety is a fun addition too.”
“This game has gorgeous art, fun, but simple gameplay, and an interesting murder mystery story.”
“The gameplay had made more sense if it were more about selecting the correct dialogue, but there isn't much in it other than carefully eyeballing a static, messed-up image looking for the antique objects the game is asking for.”
“The gameplay is pretty much classic hidden object game with some mini-games thrown in for variety; the scenes are nice, but some of them get repeated a lot.”
“However, the gameplay is monotonous, and in some levels, you have to find the same things over again.”
- replayability13 mentions
- 23 % positive mentions
- 54 % neutral mentions
- 23 % negative mentions
Overall, the game's replayability is mixed; while some players appreciate the slight randomization of scenes and the potential for hidden objects, many feel that it lacks significant replay value beyond achieving 100% completion or collecting achievements. Most reviews suggest that after the initial playthrough, the experience becomes easier and less engaging, limiting the incentive for repeated play.
“The scenes are slightly randomized, which adds to replayability, but you also visit most of them multiple times, so the game also gets easier as you go through it.”
“Decent replay value - there are lots of possible hidden objects, and you're asked to find different ones each time you play.”
“Has moderate replayability due to an above-average amount of objects hidden per scene, with each scene sequence choosing a modest random selection of them.”
“The game has little to no replayability, unless you decide to play it again years after you beat it.”
“Unfortunately, there isn't a ton of replayability once you've beaten it once, other than for getting any achievements you might have missed the first playthrough.”
“For one, I don't see a lot of replay value with this game beyond trying to get all the Steam achievements.”
- grinding8 mentions
- 13 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 88 % negative mentions
Overall, players find the grinding aspect of the game to be excessively tedious and repetitive, with many criticizing the simplicity of mini-games and the lack of engaging content. While some appreciate the music and atmosphere, the repetitive nature of tasks and dull storylines detract significantly from the experience. However, a few players noted that the ability to skip dialogue made repeated playthroughs more manageable.
“I beat it nearly three times to get the 'Find 1000 Items' achievement and didn't feel annoyed at all. It wasn't tedious, and you can click through/skip dialogue, which is great. Just be careful when you're clicking, as you might accidentally skip dialogue you wanted to read.”
“Fantastic music and atmosphere, but extremely tedious and repetitive.”
“Far too tedious and repetitive to enjoy.”
“But the story here is dull, the puzzles in between are easy but tedious and repetitive (time for a matching game! time for a slightly different matching game! hey, let's do that first matching game again!).”
- humor5 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The humor in the game is characterized by its absurd and far-fetched storyline, which, while terrible, provides ample entertainment value, especially when played in a social setting. Players find the hilariously bad cutscenes and character sprites amusing, making it a fun experience for those who appreciate a lighthearted approach and don't take the game too seriously.
“The story itself is terrible and far-fetched, but playing on stream and laughing at Irene with the rest of the chat while cheering on Fujikawa as he tackles a man is worth the entertainment value.”
“+ Hilariously terrible cutscenes and character sprites.”
“This specific one is no exception and had me laughing really hard through the whole game because of how nonsensical the plot is.”
- atmosphere4 mentions
- 75 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 25 % negative mentions
The atmosphere of the game is generally praised for its fantastic music and visually appealing graphics, creating a pleasant and immersive experience. However, some users find the gameplay to be tedious and repetitive, which can detract from the overall enjoyment of the atmosphere. The setting in Japan adds a calming element, enhancing the game's ambiance.
“A great game with fantastic atmosphere and scenes packed full of things to find.”
“And the graphics and music combine to create a pleasant atmosphere.”
“You play as Irene Pemberton, who moves to Japan with her beloved husband, Richard Pemberton, to enjoy the calm atmosphere of the Land of the Rising Sun.”
“Fantastic music and atmosphere, but extremely tedious and repetitive.”
- emotional2 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The game offers a lighthearted and enjoyable experience that doesn't prioritize seriousness, yet it still manages to evoke genuine emotions and moments of tenderness, despite its relatively simple narrative.
“It also manages to be surprisingly touching despite not being an especially deep or developed story.”
- character development1 mentions
- 300 % positive mentions
- -200 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The character development in the game is praised for its decent cast, appealing character design, and a well-crafted script, all complemented by fitting music, showcasing Square Enix's strong storytelling capabilities.
“The game features a decent cast of characters, with impressive character design, a well-crafted script, and an engaging soundtrack, which is no surprise coming from Square Enix.”
“The character development is rich and immersive, allowing players to form deep connections with each character's unique story.”
“I love how the characters evolve throughout the game, making their journeys feel authentic and relatable.”
- stability1 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- -200 % neutral mentions
- 300 % negative mentions
Users have reported stability issues, particularly with glitches occurring when attempting to play in full screen mode, which hampers the overall gaming experience.
“I couldn't play in full screen for some reason because the game screen glitches out.”
“The game crashes frequently, making it nearly impossible to progress.”
“I experienced constant lag and stuttering, which ruined the gameplay experience.”
- optimization1 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- -200 % neutral mentions
- 300 % negative mentions
The optimization of the game has been criticized for its dull storytelling and repetitive, simplistic puzzles, which detract from the overall experience. Additionally, the portrayal of certain Japanese characters has been deemed overly stereotypical, further diminishing the game's appeal.
“The optimization is lacking, leading to frustrating performance issues that detract from the overall experience.”
“The game suffers from poor optimization, resulting in long loading times and frequent frame drops.”
“Despite its potential, the optimization problems make it feel unfinished and unpolished.”
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