Undercover - Secret Management

[i]Undercover - Secret Management[/i] is the second installment in the latest supernatural thriller series, [i]Undercover[/i], published by GameHouse. The central character of the series is Veronica - a feisty journalist whose sister mysteriously disappears one night. Instead of waiting for the police to do their slow investigation work, Vera decides to take matters into her own hands and go undercover as a barista for the club where her sister Lilly was last seen. Once successfully infiltrated there, she discovers that Lilly was transformed into a vampire and joined their ranks, leaving her human life behind. The story of [i]Undercover - Secret Management[/i] picks up at this exact spot, and the plot is extended with some new murders committed in town, in which the vampire coven is potentially involved. While trying to escape the vampires’ web of intrigue, Vera attempts to reason with Lilly as the new manager of one of the most influential vampire nightclubs by appealing to her humanity through their sisterly bond. https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3262789498 While the first game is aimed at introducing the various characters in this universe (as Vera makes new friends as well as enemies along the way) and ends rather abruptly, [i]Secret Management[/i]’s story is more fleshed out and gives a new depth to these characters, revealing their background stories and unexpected identities - although it still ends with major cliffhangers for all plotlines. The writing in the second game makes sure that everything the player needs to know about the events of the first game is already explained during the first few levels through character interactions, thus having played the first game before diving into [i]Secret Management[/i] is not a must. On the other hand, playing [i]Blood Bonds[/i] alone without its current sequel feels more like watching just the first episode of a lengthy series and will only leave you hanging and wanting for “more”. I played both games back-to-back, and I’m really glad to have done so for the narrative continuity. https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3262789483 Regarding the gameplay, this is the typical GameHouse game in its simplified version (no location or item upgrades). Vera works as a barista in various clubs where her investigation leads her. There she fulfills customer orders, bills them and cleans the tables they used. Because of having fewer items to handle in one location, [i]Blood Bonds[/i] gave me the impression that it was meant to be one of the easier GameHouse games. On the contrary, the second installment of the series goes back to the standard difficulty or even slightly higher than that considering that in some locations multiple dishes have to be cooked under a timer are usually situated in opposite corners of the room and one customer often orders several of them in one go. The pathing here is thus much more important than in the first game, or rather than in pretty much any other GameHouse game. On the other hand, in both [i]Undercover[/i] games, there are fewer levels than usual (60 compared to 90 which is the standard for Delicious games) because there are no intermediate / secondary levels. The requirements to grind extra levels for the last few achievements post-game have also been removed and now all achievements can be unlocked in one go, without having to replay any level (as long as you complete all their respective tasks). https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3262789533 [i]Undercover - Secret Management[/i] takes between eight to ten hours to complete, and it’s a very enjoyable ride due to its compelling story and addictive gameplay. Like all other GameHouse games, there are three difficulty options, unique minigames for each location, and a special scene where you can spend the diamonds earned from completing levels to decorate Vera’s desk. [quote]💜 If you like this review, please consider following [url=http://store.steampowered.com/curator/11354094]Lilly's Corner Curator page[/url] 🌸 [url=https://lillycorner.com/]Website[/url] [/quote]

[code][url=https://store.steampowered.com/curator/33025671-Missi-the-Achievement-Huntress/] Please see my curator page for more games that are well worth your time[/url][/code] [b]Approximate amount of time to 100%:[/b] 8,5h [b]Estimated achievement difficulty:[/b] 2/10 [b]Minimum number of playthroughs needed:[/b] 1 [b]Is there a good guide available:[/b] You don't need a guide [b]Multiplayer achievements:[/b] No [b]Missable achievements:[/b] No [b]Grinding Achievements:[/b] No!! Which is such a welcome change for this type of game [b]DLC-Only achievements:[/b] No [b]Speedrun achievements:[/b] No [b]Time-gated achievements:[/b] No [b]RNG-achievements:[/b] No [b]Does difficulty affect achievements:[/b] No, you can play on easy and unlock all the achievements [b]Unobtainable/glitched achievements:[/b] No I adore the SQRT3/GameHouse games. it is just so much fun to serve customers and speedily complete their orders in a video game. And as a bonus, their games are also filled with a good story. I didn't know it before starting this one but I missed this universe with vampires a lot. I'm a sucker for the general vampire lore of Vampire Diaries, Twilight, The Originals and this just fits in within that universe. What was a welcome surprise is that the game doesn't have grindy achievements. I had to replay 3 levels to get the "all clean" bonus at the end of a level but choose an early level to make it quicker, but by other titles in the past I had to complete a bunch of different things after finishing the game and that wasn't the case here. I'm also glad that the achievement for failing a level isn't here, as this may sound weird but I had problems with so many disliked faces on my screen and somehow felt like I was really disappointing them while it was just a video game. (Confession: in previous titles to get that achievement I started a level and walked away from my computer to not have to see all those sad faces) So what kind of achievements does Undercover - Secret Management have? It has the general do something X amount of time, but in moderation, so you can unlock those already while playing through the levels. It also has achievements for finding the notebook in every level, completing the bonus objective in every level, and getting the 3-star score in every level. However, if you're struggling, you don't have to do these all at once, but you can do them all at once so you only have to play that level 1 time. It ends on a cliffhanger and I'm excited to see what will happen next! I give Undercover - Secret Management 4 out of 5 stars.

[b]Note:[/b] A wonderful friend gifted me a copy of this game. ^^ [i]Undercover - Secret Management[/i] is a time management game developed by SQRT3 and published by GameHouse. It is the sequel to [i]Undercover- Blood Bonds[/i]. Thus, I would recommend playing [i]Blood Bonds[/i] (or at least, reading my [url=https://steamcommunity.com/id/calliestar/recommended/2193410?snr=1_5_9__402]review[/url]) first since there will be story spoilers from the first game. You take on the role of Vera, who has found out that her sister Lilly is a vampire but is determined to save her from the organization that she's a part of. At the start of the story, Vera finds out that Sam's (who is Lilly's ex) parents were murdered and that Sam is being framed for it. Vera has her hands full, taking it upon herself to investigate the ever increasing number of crimes in the city while trying to find a way to save Lilly. Add to the mix a possible love triangle with Gabe, Vera's ex who is a detective, and Ezra, who is also looking into the series of murders even though he is outside of the law, who both care about Vera and want her to be safe even though Vera insists that she can take care of herself, and the story gets more and more complicated. However, I should end my story synopsis here to avoid spoilers. XD In regards to the gameplay, it is pretty much what you'd expect from time management games published by GameHouse. You can choose from among three difficulty modes: easy, normal, or hard. (For review purposes, I chose to play on normal mode.) There are a total of 60 levels and 5 different locations. The first level serves as a tutorial (although you can choose to disable it) where you learn the game's mechanics, such as completing customers' orders, cashing them out, and cleaning up tables. From there, you're on your own. In each level, you can earn up to 5 diamonds. 3 diamonds are from earning up to 3 stars in a level, 1 diamond is from finding Vera's notebook (the equivalent of the mouse in the [i]Delicious - Emily[/i] series), and 1 diamond is from the additional task, such as only serving full orders. Diamonds are used to purchase items in Vera's workspace, purely for cosmetic purposes. Also, there are lots of Steam achievements/in-game trophies that count towards a user's global total. Now that I've gone over the story and gameplay, I'll move onto my thoughts. It has been quite a while since I played [i]Blood Bonds[/i] (to be exact, January 2023 :o), so yeah, I had to read my review of that game to refresh my memory. Fortunately, it isn't too hard to catch up to the story's events and get reacquainted with the characters. Most of the characters are returning ones from the previous game although there is one new character, Vera's old colleague from when she used to work at the newspaper. I like how Vera's personality remains the same. She's stubborn but determined to save her sister, believing that there's still some humanity left in her. However, she tends to have tunnel vision when it comes to the feelings of those around her. For example, it's fairly obvious that Ezra likes her, but Vera doesn't really pick up on this until way later in the story. I like that she isn't perfect and that her flaws shape her to be the way that she is. The same goes for the other characters as well. Also, I really like that Lilly/Lilith makes more appearances in this game. I enjoyed seeing her wanting to embrace her vampire powers, and yet, there is still a part of her that shows her old human side. Compared to the first game, the story definitely feels more fleshed out, and I found myself getting caught up in the events and the characters. As for the ending, man, it just has to leave off on that cliffhanger, doesn't it? lol Obviously, it's setting up for another game in the series, and hopefully, we'll get it on the sooner side. XD In regards to the gameplay, I didn't encounter any technical issues. It's pretty straightforward, serving customers and whatnot. Also, there are mini-games (which have a brief tutorial), ranging from circling newspaper headlines to following the correct steps for customers' signatures. I found all of the mini-games to be doable, simply requiring that the steps be done quickly to earn up to the maximum of 3 stars. All of the achievements unlocked for me without any problems, and thankfully, no grinding is required. With the art, it's in the same style as usual, with the sprites and backgrounds drawn well and the colors feeling vibrant without being glaring. I especially liked looking at the nighttime scenes, such as the party on the rooftop. Oh, and I really liked watching the opening and ending cutscenes. Even though there's no voice acting, the scenes themselves give you a great idea of what's going to happen. https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3263588395 Regarding the music, the tracks are the same as in the previous game although this wasn't a problem for me. I feel like the tracks fit perfectly with the levels they're placed in, giving off that mysterious, supernatural vibe. Overall, would I recommend [i]Undercover - Secret Management[/i]? If you're a fan of time management games, especially enjoy the ones published by GameHouse, and liked [i]Undercover - Blood Bonds[/i], this is definitely worth checking out. [i]Secret Management[/i] has a deep, engaging story with the same fun gameplay mechanics, and it's an improvement over [i]Blood Bonds[/i]. For the asking price, it might be a bit on the steep side for those who are veterans of time management games, so you may want to hold off for a sale. Still, this is totally worth getting, and I'm happy that I had the chance to play it and share my thoughts. ^^ [quote]For more detailed, fully complete, high quality reviews like this, please follow [url=https://store.steampowered.com/curator/44702020/]The Introverted Gamer[/url], prioritizing heart and soul always. ^^[/quote]

The plot line was intriguing. It kept you wanting to come back to see what was going to happen. Can't wait for the next game to come out.

Jeu intéressant, j'attends la suite avec impatience car la fin m'a laissée un peu dubitative.

good

Interessante Story. Freue mich wenn da noch ein Teil kommt.

Wow! The cliffhanger at the end! I couldn't be more excited about the rest of this series.

A solid point&click game - maybe a bit darker than other entries by the publisher. I liked it overall - perhaps a bit pricey though.

まだまだ終わっていないようです。続編は楽しみしております。