Haunted Manor: Halloween’s Uninvited Guest – Review

It’s Halloween, and Regina Stratford has planned an elaborate Halloween party for the first time since her husband Elliot’s first wife passed away many years ago. The night takes a dark turn when the guests start to disappear one by one. Is this the work of Elliot’s late wife or is there something more sinister at play?

Although I thought Eipix did a great job with Haunted Manor: The Last Reunion, I have made it clear in the review that the revival was totally unnecessary. This latest sequel does not change my mind in that regard. Halloween’s Uninvited Guest utilizes a cookie-cutter plot line involving a haunted mansion and a ghost from the past. The thing that saves the game from being dull is the storytelling, which is on-point most of the time. The balance between thrills and suspense is excellent, making it much more captivating than I expected going in. That being said, the relatively extravagant theme of the game does not fit at all to the original dreary vibe of Top Evidence’s version of Haunted Manor. This could have been spun-off into a new series or a standalone adventure.

Most of the game’s extravagance is portrayed through the visuals, which are breathtaking as always. Every single scene is extremely rich in details, special effects, and Halloween decorations. The sophisticated artwork also makes the game a feast for the eyes. Similarly, the audio is pretty much perfect. The music gives the game an appropriately creepy undertone as well as soundtrack the more dramatic moments extremely well.

Haunted Manor: Halloween’s Uninvited Guest has a solid gameplay, but nothing to write home about. The adventure gameplay is essentially quite basic, but is leveraged by the snappy delivery of the storyline. It is also worth noting that the game features an insane amount of backtracking, and since the layout of the mansion can be confusing to navigate, some might find this overwhelming. Moving on to the hidden object scenes. They are scattered throughout the game; not particularly innovative, but respectably entertaining. The puzzles are sometimes challenging, but more in the frustrating side than the thought-provoking, impressively complex side.

Length wise, Haunted Manor: Halloween’s Uninvited Guest runs a tad short. The main game took me roughly three hours and 15 minutes on the easiest difficulty mode, and the bonus chapter, which gives the game another perspective, added another 40 minutes. The Extras section contains features like a strategy guide, wallpapers, concept art, soundtracks, videos, repayable hidden object scenes, replayable puzzles, achievements, collectibles, morphing objects, and a souvenir room.

Haunted Manor: Halloween’s Uninvited Guest is a neatly-crafted adventure filled with juicy Halloween fun, even though it feels foreign to this classic franchise.

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