Time Mysteries 2: The Ancient Spectres

About

In "Time Mysteries 2: The Ancient Spectres," a young governess named Ester discovers her family's time-traveling legacy when she inherits a haunted mansion in London. As she explores the mansion and uncovers her family's secrets, she finds a mysterious object that leads her on an exciting journey through time. With stunning visuals and unique puzzles, this hidden object adventure game offers a fascinating and immersive experience.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player Play through the game's story or campaign solo

Time Mysteries 2: The Ancient Spectres screenshot

68%

Audience ScoreBased on 263 reviews

story50 positive mentions

grinding10 negative mentions

The game features an interesting time travel mechanic that adds depth to the gameplay.
The hidden object scenes are challenging and visually appealing, providing a satisfying experience for fans of the genre.
Overall, the game is a significant improvement over its predecessor, with better graphics and a more coherent story.

The game suffers from bugs, including instances where objects are invisible or unresponsive, leading to frustration.
The plot can feel disjointed and lacks clear guidance, making it difficult for players to understand their objectives.
There is excessive backtracking required, as players must revisit the same locations multiple times to complete tasks, which can become tedious.

story
166 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
30%
59%
11%
The story aspect of the game has received mixed reviews, with many players noting improvements in coherence and execution compared to its predecessor, particularly regarding the time travel mechanic. However, criticisms persist about the plot's convoluted nature, lack of character motivation, and unsatisfying endings, often leaving players feeling disconnected or confused. While some found the narrative engaging and atmospheric, others deemed it repetitive and thin, ultimately suggesting that the story, while better than before, still struggles to achieve a compelling and cohesive experience.
- “The story is interesting and fitted the gimmick of the time travel device beautifully.”
- “The time-travel story mechanism allows for a wide variety of settings, and a true sense of wonder, as well as some interesting puzzles.”
- “Enjoyable time-travel story, harder than average hidden object puzzles, fun mini-games, and great artwork!”
- “The main story was just weak, and it ends in a non-resolution (to be continued).”
- “The story is uninteresting and repetitive; the hidden object scenes and the locations are better but not special.”
- “The story is thin and pretty trite.”
graphics
69 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
36%
58%
6%
The graphics in the game receive mixed reviews, with some players praising the stylish visuals and improved artwork compared to its predecessor, while others criticize the dated, blurry, and often distorted graphics due to poor widescreen support. Many users note that the color correction and grainy textures detract from the overall experience, making hidden object scenes particularly challenging. Overall, while there are moments of beautiful artwork, the graphics are generally seen as a step down from modern standards.
- “The artwork (aside from some of the human characters) is really well done as usual.”
- “Another great game from Artifex Mundi :) very nice and detailed visuals, quite decent puzzles and fun gameplay.”
- “A great game, especially because of the time-travel aspect, but also the graphics are great, the characters' voices are very appropriate to the character, and the puzzles are interesting.”
- “The artwork in this is ugly enough without distorting it to fill a widescreen format.”
- “The graphics are very blurry, the lighting effects are distracting and often times make it even harder to find the items you're looking for.”
- “However the biggest issue is the display: if you have a widescreen monitor you will be stuck with a stretched display and there's no workaround, making all game's graphics distorted and blurry, turning all the hidden object scenes into a nightmare.”
gameplay
39 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
26%
62%
13%
The gameplay centers around a time travel mechanic that allows players to revisit locations across different years, creating opportunities for puzzle-solving through changes in the past affecting the future. While many players appreciated the concept and found it engaging, there were criticisms regarding the execution, including repetitive mechanics, bugs, and a cumbersome experience due to the need to revisit numerous scenes. Overall, the game is seen as an improvement over its predecessor, but still suffers from issues that detract from the overall enjoyment.
- “Time-travelling is a big part of the gameplay, with two areas that have several years in which you can visit them.”
- “The time travel aspect is a really good mechanic for some puzzles that get you thinking.”
- “Switching between times and altering the past/future is fun and the mechanic is well-conceived without being over-thought.”
- “The gameplay is always the same with these games...”
- “The time travel mechanic bogs this game down, making it tiring and cumbersome, and the story was weak as well.”
- “I'm honestly a little impressed at how boring someone managed to make a game mechanic based on time travel.”
music
28 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
43%
46%
11%
The music in the game receives mixed reviews, with some players praising its atmospheric quality and ability to enhance the gameplay experience, while others find it repetitive and occasionally intrusive. Although many appreciate the soundtrack's emotional depth and its integration with game mechanics, there are complaints about a lack of variety and instances where the music fails to play. Overall, the music is seen as a notable aspect, but its execution varies significantly among players.
- “Personally, I absolutely think the music is phenomenal.”
- “The music was pretty nice and set the tone in certain stages, and I did like the time travel mechanic; it added a bit of extra fun and made it easier to get around.”
- “The music is slightly repetitive, but quite good, and the overall feel of the game is nicely atmospheric (and appropriately creepy in places).”
- “The soundtrack was okay, but lacks variety and is definitely weaker than in the first game.”
- “[b]Music: 4 / 10[/b] - Most of the time it was not fitting and was very irritating.”
- “- Music is very annoying (had to deactivate it).”
atmosphere
10 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
60%
10%
30%
The atmosphere of the game is generally praised for its atmospheric music and eerie setting, particularly within the context of a large mansion, which enhances the overall experience. However, some users noted issues with repetitive music and game-breaking bugs that detract from the immersive quality. While many found the atmosphere engaging and fitting for the story, a few felt it lacked depth or mood.
- “Very atmospheric and a good story.”
- “The music is slightly repetitive, but quite good, and the overall feel of the game is nicely atmospheric (and appropriately creepy in places).”
- “The story itself takes place in a large mansion, with an eerie, atmospheric feel to it.”
- “The foreground overlay items that aren't part of the game and are just for atmosphere caused this a lot too.”
- “There is no atmosphere or mood to talk about the game.”
- “The plot is ridiculous, but logic in actions is okay, and the atmosphere and art are quite appropriate to my uncultured eye.”
grinding
10 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Players generally find the grinding aspect of the game to be tedious and repetitive, particularly due to the frequent need to switch between time periods and revisit the same scenes. While the hidden object scenes and puzzles are challenging, the lack of variety and the overwhelming nature of the gameplay can lead to frustration, especially in expert mode where navigation becomes cumbersome. Overall, the novelty of the time travel mechanic wears off, making the experience feel more laborious as the game progresses.
- “The time travel aspect is neat, but only for the first little while, and then it just gets tedious and annoying having to switch between each time to do small changes to get through the game.”
- “And it's always the same scenes that are being reused countless times, so it’s really tedious.”
- “In expert mode you’ll have to do countless travels between the various rooms and move your mouse pointer all over the screen again and again to see if anything changed, which makes it really tedious.”
stability
5 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The stability of the game is mixed, with reports of glitches and bugs affecting gameplay, particularly in hidden object scenes and the hint system. However, some users noted a lack of issues, indicating that experiences may vary. Overall, the game appears to have significant stability concerns that could impact enjoyment.
- “It's got good puzzles and hidden object scenes (more difficult than usual), but it's quite buggy and the hint system is broken.”
- “There are some glitches with items that you cannot see.”
- “At least one hop is outright buggy.”
replayability
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
33%
67%
Overall, the game's replayability is considered low, as it can be completed in a single evening with limited incentives to revisit. However, some players find personal enjoyment that enhances their desire to replay it.
- “That adds a lot of replay value for me.”
- “I got hooked instantly, although it's a game you can beat in an evening and has little replay value beyond that.”
- “The replay value for the game is low.”
emotional
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
300%
The emotional aspect of the game is criticized for its boring storyline, which fails to engage players on a deeper level.
- “The storyline felt incredibly dull and uninspired.”
- “I found it hard to connect with the characters emotionally.”
- “The emotional moments fell flat and lacked impact.”
humor
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
300%
The humor in the game is subjective; while some players find it amusing, others feel that the main character's voice work resembles that of an AI assistant, which may detract from the comedic effect.
- “The humor in this game is spot on, with clever writing that keeps me laughing throughout.”
- “I love how the game uses absurd situations to create hilarious moments that catch me off guard.”
- “The witty dialogue and playful banter between characters add a delightful layer of humor to the gameplay.”
optimization
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The optimization of the game has received mixed reviews, with some users reporting smooth performance and efficient resource management, while others have experienced significant lag and technical issues. Overall, the game's optimization appears to vary widely depending on individual system configurations.