The Cameron Files: The Secret at Loch Ness
- July 18, 2014
- Microids
- 9h median play time
Get on SteamIn "The Cameron Files: The Secret at Loch Ness," players assume the role of private investigator Alan Cameron, who is tasked with uncovering the truth behind the legendary Loch Ness Monster. The game is a point-and-click adventure that features puzzles, hidden object scenes, and a gripping storyline set in 1930s Scotland. As Cameron, players will explore various locations, interview witnesses, and collect evidence to solve the mystery of Loch Ness.
PC
Windows
Reviews
- The game offers a charming adventure set in an ancient Scottish castle, providing an entertaining and nostalgic experience for fans of point-and-click games.
- Despite its age, the story is engaging and humorous, with puzzles that are not overly difficult, making it accessible for casual players.
- The game allows for exploration of a 360-degree environment, which adds a sense of immersion to the gameplay.
- The game suffers from outdated graphics and technical issues, including a lack of modern resolution support and a simplified interface that limits player interaction.
- Many puzzles rely on pixel-hunting and illogical progression, leading to frustration and confusion, often requiring players to consult walkthroughs.
- The overall experience is marred by poor voice acting, awkward animations, and a lack of meaningful hints, making it feel shallow and tedious.
- story20 mentions
- 50 % positive mentions
- 35 % neutral mentions
- 15 % negative mentions
The story is described as clichéd yet entertaining, with a mix of humor and confusion that keeps it interesting, though it lacks depth and charm compared to other games in the genre. While some players appreciate its private investigator theme and potential for a franchise, others find it tedious and overly reliant on pixel-hunting, which detracts from the overall experience. Ultimately, the narrative is seen as fun but nonsensical, appealing primarily to fans of similar adventure games.
“The story itself is interesting and kind of funny, although there are some confusing points.”
“I enjoyed the storyline.”
“What I'd recommend this game for would be the plot :) it's fun and interesting but utter nonsense!”
“The plot is as thick and as slow as molasses, in a beautiful yet empty world.”
“It fails to have the same charm as any other point-and-click game, even the free flash ones, while attempting to have an engaging story.”
“I'm not searching the whole mansion to find single items to continue a story; screw that.”
- graphics14 mentions
- 14 % positive mentions
- 64 % neutral mentions
- 21 % negative mentions
The graphics of the game are widely regarded as outdated, with a locked 4:3 resolution that limits customization options and results in low-quality visuals. While they were impressive at the time of release in 2001, many players find them difficult to appreciate today, often hindering gameplay by obscuring areas of interest. Overall, expectations should be tempered given the game's age, though some still find charm in its nostalgic aesthetic.
“Graphics are pretty dated (but were awesome when it came out!) but they still hold up pretty alright.”
“This is an older game so don't expect quality graphics; however, the sound really added to the atmosphere and I loved exploring an old Scottish castle and its grounds.”
“There's no options to change the resolution for the game or customize the graphics settings.”
“There's no way for gamers to try to improve the low-quality graphics, and as mentioned, it's locked to a stretched 4:3 resolution, so unless you're gaming on a rig from 1996, this is going to look rubbish.”
“It is hard to see areas of interest due to the dated graphics.”
- gameplay6 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 50 % neutral mentions
- 50 % negative mentions
The gameplay is centered around a point-and-click adventure format, allowing players to explore a 360-degree environment while unraveling a mystery related to Loch Ness. However, many users criticize the outdated mechanics reminiscent of earlier titles like Myst, especially given the advancements in the FPS genre by 2001. Additionally, technical issues such as frequent crashes detract from the overall experience, despite the game offering around nine hours of playtime.
“There's no problem with the theme or the concept here, you're exploring a mystery surrounding the famous Loch Ness in Scotland, and you do this with the usual point-and-click adventuring. You can look around a 360-degree image sphere and move between them to give the illusion of moving around a real 3D space. Despite the fact that in 2001 the FPS genre was already in full swing, there's no excuse for the retrograde Myst ripoff gameplay here.”
“[I had the game constantly crashing after a few seconds of playing a video. It would skip to the next part of the game until it had played all the intro videos and would be at the first gameplay section, and then it would just crash to desktop with no error. Moving the install files from my secondary drive back to my C: drive let me play and 'enjoy' the game.]”
“This game gave me about 9 hours of gameplay.”
- grinding6 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
Players find the grinding aspect of the game to be frustrating due to confusing and repetitive maze-like corridors that detract from the experience. The tedious puzzle design and lackluster story further exacerbate the feeling of monotony, particularly highlighted by the inclusion of a featureless underwater maze. Overall, the grinding elements contribute to a sense of tedium and frustration.
“This really comes into its teeth-grindingly frustrating own when the game decides it would be fun to have a largely featureless underwater maze.”
“Puzzle design seems tedious and the story is not terribly gripping.”
“(Maze-like corridors with incongruously changing angles and repeating details mean walking down a simple hallway is confusing and tedious. Not to mention the actual mazes that were seemingly designed by the devil himself...)”
- optimization4 mentions
- 50 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 50 % negative mentions
The game suffers from significant optimization issues, including a lack of widescreen support and modern display resolutions, resulting in heavy stuttering during screen panning, animations, and cutscenes. Despite decent sound design, it has not been updated to run smoothly on contemporary gaming PCs.
“Decent sound design, but heavy stuttering during screen panning, animations, and cutscenes.”
“Decent sound design, but heavy stuttering during screen panning, animations, and cutscenes.”
- humor2 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The humor in the game is generally well-received, with an interesting and amusing storyline; however, some players find certain elements confusing, which may detract from the overall comedic experience.
“The story itself is interesting and kind of funny, although there are some confusing points.”
- music2 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
The music in the game is described as basic, neither particularly good nor bad, suggesting a lack of distinctiveness or impact.
“The music is basic, not good or bad.”
- stability2 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
Users express frustration with the game's stability, suggesting that it is not worth the effort to troubleshoot due to the availability of better alternatives that function properly without issues.
“I don't believe this game is worth troubleshooting given the superior alternatives that work out of the box.”
- atmosphere2 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The atmosphere of the game is enhanced by its immersive sound design, which complements the exploration of an old Scottish castle and its grounds, despite the dated graphics. Players appreciate the evocative setting that draws them into the experience.
“This is an older game, so don't expect quality graphics; however, the sound really added to the atmosphere, and I loved exploring an old Scottish castle and its grounds.”
