Safecracker: The Ultimate Puzzle Adventure for Wii

GF Rating

8

Very Good

a SAFE bet for a good time

posted by castian (HOUSTON, TX) Dec 12, 2008

Member since Nov 2008

37 out of 41 gamers (90%) found this review helpful

SAFECRACKER. Is a very well thought out and developed game. It slowly grows your mind until your thinking so far outside of the box its scary.

It one of those rare games that actually make you feel proud of yourself.

As The title suggest you go around cracking safes. As you progress each safe get more and more difficult.

The Wii remotes work perfectly in tune with this game, making you believe your really there handling the tools.

Hopefully if you buy or rent this game you know what your in for. Its not some hack and slash action game, its a mature mind blowing expierence. Sometimes setting back and mediating on your task is the best way to accomplish it.

The graphics are nothing amazing, but then again its on the Wii.

With all that being said, the game is a definite rental choice, and if you like it then buy it.

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GF Rating

9

Excellent

Challenging Game

posted by buzmac (MARLTON, NJ) Jan 10, 2009

Member since Dec 2008

8 out of 10 gamers (80%) found this review helpful

My husband and I played this one together...two minds are better than one! We got 11 hours of playtime out of it. We found it challenging and love figuring out the puzzles. Some were much more difficult than others. We confess that we had to have some help close to the end of the game from online "walkthroughs". Navigation was slow and we wish we could just "jump" from one place to the other with the use of the map. All in all, we had a great time challenging our brains. We're now looking for similar puzzle types of games for Wii!

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GF Rating

6

Above Average

ehhhhh...

posted by sna1119 (FREDONIA, NY) Mar 17, 2009

Member since Feb 2009

7 out of 9 gamers (78%) found this review helpful

I liked this game, it was very interesting and my fiance and I couldn't wait to keep playing it to try and finish it...the only thing is we needed to use the walkthrough for the majority of the game. Without that, I don't think we would have ever figured half the puzzles out.

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GF Rating

7

Good

We liked it! challenging yet solveable

posted by g8rpit (SANFORD, FL) May 4, 2009

Member since Dec 2008

4 out of 5 gamers (80%) found this review helpful

My husband & I had fun with this game, glad I rented and didn't buy, though, because once you finish it, you're done. (some of the puzzles you could probably play a few times, they're challenging enough that you would have forgotten how you solved it last time if you wait a few weeks!)

We definitely needed to log on the internet and do some walkthroughs on some of them!

Overall it was fun... long load times between rooms. Don't forget to LOOK at the pieces of paper and see what they say!

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GF Rating

5

Fair

Can't think of a good reason to open Safecracker

posted by JMichaud (BETHESDA, MD) Dec 16, 2008

Member since Jan 2008

18 out of 25 gamers (72%) found this review helpful

A wealthy man has vanished and it's up to you to find his ... will? (I thought I'd be looking for him).
And so begins Safecracker. In this point and click adventure you are a safe cracking specialist who explores a mansion. Why? To go from one safe to the next, unlocking each one in order to get to the will.
Sounds simple, right? Problem is, that's all the game has to offer.
Safecracker doesn't have a compelling story or characters that make me want to find the next safe or continue playing the game. It also suffers from the "point and click" problem of finding the hot spots so I can interact with objects and move about the mansion.
Adding to the lack of joy are long load times when I want to take a look at my inventory and a longer load time when I get out of the inventory screen.
What does work in Safecracker are the puzzles. Some of them are the best designed puzzles I've seen in a while. They make almost forget the story attached to the game.
But Safecracker is made just for those who don't mind tough puzzles with few hints to solve those tough puzzles. SKIP IT.

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GF Rating

5

Fair

Fun but hard

posted by Tee980417 (SUMMERVILLE, SC) Apr 3, 2009

Member since Jan 2009

3 out of 4 gamers (75%) found this review helpful

This game has a lame ending and most of the puzzles you need a walkthrough guide to help you, but it is still fun especially with a group of people!

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GF Rating

6

Above Average

Classic puzzles, but nothing new

posted by ObamaLlama (CLEVELAND, OH) Dec 22, 2008

Member since Oct 2007

2 out of 3 gamers (67%) found this review helpful

If you're a fan of puzzle games, you'll recognize the vast majority of puzzles in this game. Although there's really nothing ground breaking, there is an acceptable variety to keep you from getting bored.
My main complaint with this game is the amount of pointless room to room travel. In addition, the map screen is slow to load. Still, if you're a fan of the genre, this game delivers puzzles with attractive window dressing.

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GF Rating

1

Horrible

The only cracking I wanted to do was to the disc

posted by Stormwind (ROCHESTER, NY) Apr 12, 2009

Member since Dec 2008

5 out of 8 gamers (62%) found this review helpful

I've rented bad games from here before, but this was the first game that I actually sent back the same day I got it.

The premise seemed great - go through the game, solve puzzles, etc. Right up my alley. I then get to the second puzzle (a square sliding affair) that I spent an hour on with no results - even walkthroughs didn't help.

There's no instruction as to where to go in the game and how to solve the puzzles, and they're not as intuitive as you may think. The controls are also clumsy, and the narration not good.

Don't waste your time.

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GF Rating

1

Horrible

SafeCracker is Cracked Up

posted by JamesE (HILTON, NY) Feb 25, 2009

Member since Feb 2009

5 out of 9 gamers (56%) found this review helpful

My wife and I were VERY disappointed in the game. After all the reviews I anticipated a fun time. NOT!! The game was frustrating and very difficult to navigate. I am VERY glad I didn't BUY the game and only rented it via Game Fly. Receiving no paper instructions with the game and also unable to print any out via the internet made it almost impossible to play which contributed to our frustration.

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GF Rating

3

Bad

This game is not as easy as you may think.........

posted by jakesmommy (CONNEAUT, OH) Feb 15, 2009

Member since Jan 2009

1 out of 2 gamers (50%) found this review helpful

This is the only game ive ever left a review for. My boyfriend and I love doing puzzles and are very good at them. This game gives you all kinds of puzzles to solve but gives you very little info on how to solve them. This is a very time consuming game also. I found the solutions on line that we have been using to help us figure some of them out. If it wasnt for finding solutions i would have send this game back immediately(rented it luckly!) but we did play it for a few hours today and its been ok. RENT THIS GAME FIRST!

So my review for this game is:
game without using the internet: 1
game with using the internet: 5
fun level :4
Clue/hints :1
Difficulty level :8

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GF Rating

2

Really Bad

Don't waste your time

posted by GamerRob78 (OAK HARBOR, WA) Apr 3, 2009

Member since Feb 2009

1 out of 4 gamers (25%) found this review helpful

I finished the game in less than six hours, so given the average intelligence of the world, you can too. I wouldn't recommend this game due to its pathetically short gameplay, its horrible user interface and camera modes, and the graphics are not good. A lot of small detail that you can see because its not in focus, that you rely on to further yourself in the game. I don't recommend anyone rent, or buy, this game

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GF Rating

6

Above Average

Quick play with clever puzzles.

posted by Vyrus616 (LOS ANGELES, CA) Aug 7, 2012

Member since Aug 2012

I read some decent reviews about this game so I decided to check it out. Thought it would be something a little more advanced than Mario or Donkey Kong that I could play with my girlfriend. She got bored of it pretty quickly because the puzzles were a lot harder than she expected. I on the other hand, was hooked. The puzzles in this game were unexpectedly clever. It reminded me of some of the older puzzle games I have played before like The Neverhood and Myst. Definitely a worthwhile title to check out if you're looking for some serious brain teasers. It's very easy to get the hang of and get started and will stump you on many occasions.

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GF Rating

3

Bad

Kinda frustrating

posted by lovesgreen (VILLA PARK, IL) Sep 20, 2011

Member since Sep 2011

Game doesn't really help you at all as to what you need to do.

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GF Rating

3

Bad

much better on the nintendo ds

posted by mostlyharmless (ROUND ROCK, TX) Jun 1, 2011

Member since May 2011

I played this game before, so when it came in the mail today, I was kinda excited. I enjoyed it on the ds, I hoped there would be something more to the game, I was wrong. It was the exact same game and playing on the wii wasn't any better than the ds... it was boring. So boring that after a few puzzles, I put it back into its envelope and sent it right back. I didn't even keep it here for an hour. If you want to try it and you have a DS, get it on that. If you don't have a DS, then give it a shot, it isn't a bad game... just boring after you have played it once through.

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GF Rating

6

Above Average

Somewhat fun.

posted by Jeff10ct (NAUGATUCK, CT) Feb 10, 2011

Member since Feb 2011

I liked the overall game, but I have a couple of complaints:

1) The movement through the game is sort of annoying - it's point and click instead of free-flowing. To get from one side of the house to the other it takes a minimum of 8 clicks.

2) My other complaint is the large gap in difficulties of the puzzles in the game. Instead of having the puzzles get progressively harder so that you can get into the flow of the game, one puzzle will be super easy, then the next one will be almost impossible. I definitely do not consider myself dumb, but some of the puzzles in this game make me think I am. It would be nice if, as in most games, the earlier puzzles were easier and slowly got progressively harder. The first level of the house had 2 or 3 puzzles that I had to look up the resolution online, as there was no logical reason for solving the puzzles the way you did.

Again, I mostly enjoyed the game and would recommend it to anyone who likes puzzles and thinking, but prepare to be completely happy one moment, then annoyed enough to break your TV the next.

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GF Rating

1

Horrible

SafeCracker

posted by Beatrice (WHITNEY POINT, NY) Jan 11, 2011

Member since Jan 2011

This game is hard we are sending it back....Not enough directions.....

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GF Rating

5

Fair

Safecracker

posted by philpot168 (SYRACUSE, NY) Jan 27, 2010

Member since Dec 2009

if u like useing your mind and like to figure out puzzles then i would say rent this one some of the puzzles are very hard but if u take the time to think about them u can figure them out because u will get items that will most likely get items that will help u out with them i have this game on the pc so i wanted to see how it is on the wii the loading time to go to diffrent rooms is very slow but other then that every thing elts is the same the game shouldnt take no more then 4 1/2 hours to complet so all i can say is if u like games like this then injoy if not then dont bother renting

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GF Rating

4

Weak

More walking than puzzling.

posted by eyemac (ROCHESTER, NY) Jan 4, 2010

Member since Jan 2010

While I liked the puzzles in this game, the seemingly endless walking around to get around the house seemed pointless and a waste of time. Some of the puzzles were quite challenging, and if you find cheats, they are a little easier. (Trying to understand what the cheat writers were explaining was a challenge in itself at times.) Other improvements i suggest to the writers are to make the music volume separate from the narrator voice so it would be easier to hear what the narrator is saying. Also, the cursor is quite difficult to see, so make it bolder.

If you liked older games like 7th Guest or MYST series, then this would be a good game for you to try. Also, just before you open the final safe, SAVE your game. You may find you will want to try an "alternate ending" after you open it.

I will note i played on a 56-inch TV and i have low vision. Those of you with better eyesight may not have the cursor problem as bad as i did.

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GF Rating

1

Horrible

Safecracker Review

posted by nshields13 (JOLIET, IL) Dec 19, 2009

Member since Dec 2009

This game is horrible!! I was very axious to play it because I love puzzle games but there were many aspects that were flat out horrible. You move around the level so slowly. The puzzles are way too hard and everything is so out of rational sequence. The puzzles are just way, way, way too hard. Without any hints in the game itself, you were forced to go online and see the cheats which takes away any fun aspect of the game. This game is horrible. That's why Gamefly is giving it away for $10. They should pay me to take it off their hands.

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GF Rating

8

Very Good

Not for the weak of mind!

posted by Semidios (OCONOMOWOC, WI) Dec 10, 2009

Member since Dec 2009

I got this game expecting just a couple puzzles. I was surprised to find a Myst like game with more challenging puzzles and better graphics. I will concede that I used the walk through for two of the safes. Some of them were frustrating, but worth the effort.

I do not understand the people complaining about the lack of paper instructions, you can view what all the controls are at the beginning of the game. Other than that no instructions are necessary.

If you like playing room escape games online, or have played and liked Myst, you will enjoy this game. This is, however, definitely and rent and do not buy game. Its fun to play, but once you have won there is no point in keeping it. I would like to see a sequel.

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GF Rating

6

Above Average

SafeCracker

posted by davhar59 (ADVANCE, NC) Sep 17, 2009

Member since Sep 2009

Very challenging if you like to research your puzzles.

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GF Rating

3

Bad

It was Fun While it Lasted...

posted by Paladin28 (LA CANADA FLINTRIDGE, CA) Sep 5, 2009

Member since Sep 2009

Graphics: Nothing spectacular, but everything was drawn and animated well. Only noticed clipping in one particular section.

Sound: The music, when it's playing is quiet and relaxing, which is good when trying to solve some intricate puzzles.

Gameplay: The controls mapped well and made sense. My one complaint comes from navigation, as you are required to click and move from room to room, or if it's large enough, to individual sections within that room. It would have been quite helpful if, when viewing the map, you could simply click on the room and go straight there.

The puzzles, which are the feature of the game, are mostly done quite well. There are only a few, such as a sliding tile puzzle that you manipulate via buttons that rotate the pieces or one puzzle where the solution is completely random and you only get five tries to guess, that would qualify as frustrating. Some could have been a little clearer in their solutions. You can however save at any point in the game, which is a nice touch.

Replay: Zero. Once you solve all of the puzzles (which you have to to beat the game), there is little if any reason to replay the game. It technically has multiple endings, but you can save directly after solving the last puzzle and read the brief conclusions for each.

In conclusion, my advice is to rent this game, beat it, and send it back. If you really like reliving the puzzles, then you might consider buying it, but I strongly recommend you find it at a bargain price. Do NOT pay full price for this game.

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GF Rating

1

Horrible

OMG DO NOT RENT!

posted by BibisNPesk (Brooklyn, NY) Aug 27, 2009

Member since May 2009

Me nd my girl are brainy people and love a good challenge, but this game SUUUUUCKS! stay away. save your 2 day mail time. rent something else.

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GF Rating

6

Above Average

Will give you a challenge

posted by Lesley (Virginia Beach, VA) Aug 17, 2009

Member since Dec 2008

This was a very challenging game. To be honest, I ended up using online cheats to get through about half of the puzzles. Kept me entertained and thinking, but definitely not easy. Put your thinking cap on and enjoy!

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GF Rating

5

Fair

Do you want to rent?

posted by DJTomEGun (CASTLE ROCK, CO) Aug 17, 2009

Member since Aug 2008

I am glad I rented this game instead of buying it. Its not a bad game, but it was also pretty short and not as promising as I'd hoped.

This game can take a while when you're trying to decode certain puzzles. Once you've figured it out though, you could play the entire game start to finish in under 15 minutes. Its worth playing through once, but if you need something to keep you busy for a while, leave this one out of your queue.

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Safecracker: The Ultimate Puzzle Adventure for Wii Reviews by Gamers

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