This was given away only two months ago on the 24th June 2017. You can see my review and all the comments posted over the giveaway HERE. The game received a positive 94% out of 34 votes and received 14 comments. Tomorrows game is over a gigabyte in size (1.01GB), so be sure to download as early as you can, avoiding prime time otherwise you may find the download takes a long time.

Please only post comments about today's game giveaway; though, a little light banter among community members/friends and with the moderator to keep this a friendly place to visit is acceptable and welcomed. Other comments not specifically about today's game giveaway will be judged by the moderator and if deemed inappropriate, will be deleted at the moderator or administrators discretion and usually with no explanation. Comments that may be deleted include anything considered Inappropriate or not in the spirit of the site such as swearing, commenting negatively about other community members and their comments, spamming, posting nonsense or comments with only one, abbreviated phrases or a few words; for example vg, good, thank you, TY, bad, rubbish, this game is ****** etc , or if the comment has nothing to do with today's game or is complaining (send your complaints to the giveaway team via the contact form that I've linked to below). Please see the moderation policy HERE for details about posting comments. If you are having problems installing today's game check the FAQ's thread HERE and read through the communities comments because sometimes fixes have already been posted.

The main issue we have is with the giveaway wrapper, which uses a Themida based code to protect the games executable. Unfortunately Themida is also used to hide malware; so, as a precaution, some security software may block the installation and sometimes even delete the executable file. Blocking or deletion is usually determined partly by the way your computer is set up. Usually you'll get a message saying ''the file is corrupted'', but in reality the files are okay. There are a couple of things you can do to overcome this issue. The first is to reboot in safe mode with networking, install the game then reboot, or secondly you can (at your own risk) temporarily turn off your security, install the game, then turn your security back on. A note of reassurance to those that choose the latter and quicker method. The game giveaway team have been giving away games for over a decade (Dec 2006 & prior to that, via the main site 2 or 3 times weekly since Oct 2006) and have 'NEVER@ given away a game infected with malware; they always test every giveaway with several of the top anti malware suites to ensure all games are free from malware.

If for any reason you want to contact the giveaway team, for example, you have a game to offer the community, or are unable to download the latest game or other issues that the FAQ's thread or these comments don't cover or solve you can do so HERE

Love Alchemy: A Heart In Winter

In Brief

Love Alchemy: A Heart In Winter is an Hidden Object Adventure game, with excellent graphics and decent puzzles that was originally developed by ILving Studio and released via Alawar on the 1st January 2014.

Suggestions:

After you've had an opportunity to play Love Alchemy please take a few moments to give some positive or negative feedback about the game; for example, what you liked or disliked, or how improvements could be made to make it more enjoyable and perhaps change your mind about this game? If you don't like Hidden Object games at all, please explain why? If you don't have time to post a comment today, please do so at your convenience. These comments will always be accessible for as long as this site is open and provide a valuable resource for game developers, thank you. To access the comments once the giveaway is over, open up the game giveaway to its home page then scroll to the bottom of the page where it says Archives and select the date the giveaway was live (giveaway days are in bold type). This will open up the appropriate page for you to post your comment or review.

There are thousands of subscribers to the game giveaway of the day every weekend which makes this an ideal forum for giving developers new or fresh ideas as to what their consumers (i.e you) would like to see in a game. For example, you could suggest extra content such as better or more original mini games, or a level editor that you would like to see that would make it more appealing to you. Maybe you think the graphics are a little dated and are in need of re skinning, or maybe you've just had enough of the genre and want to see something different or something with more originality? Giving such feedback instead of saying nothing or just saying this game is rubbish or good may bring more developers to the site, which could mean more and better games. Would 'you' give away thousands of copies of a game (or extra content for a game) away to a community that complains all the time instead of giving useful feedback? It only needs a few moments of your time.

This site could be transformed if only the community would be more forthcoming in their opinions of the games they are getting for free instead of complaining about the way this site has changed, for example, they don't like MPC games, they hate HOG's, have had enough of Match Three and Time Management games, or they want to see the latest version of Call of Duty or some other big name AAA game given away or that they don't like Steam games. If something isn't for you then please move on to the next giveaway, or check out the forums HERE, HERE and HERE, where a few members of the community post details of various free games and free game sites as well as links to various indie bundle sites etc; you never know, you may find something that really interests you.

If you miss today's game giveaway you can always get the game via MyPlayCity 24/7 HERE; or If you prefer to purchase the game you can get it HERE via Big Fish Games.

Installation:

Love Alchemy: A Heart In Winter downloads to a 473 MB zip file that unzips to three files, (a setup.gcd security wrapper, the set up file and a read me). Those with multiple hard drives are able to save games on any drive they wish. The newly installed game is 487 MB in size. The game installs to the following path (same as June 24th's giveaway, so if you installed it then, there's no need to again) by default, but can be changed if you prefer to install to a different place for example I install mine onto a different hard drive into a folder labelled J:/Games/Arcade Games/MPC:

C:\Program Files (x86)\MyPlayCity.com\Love Alchemy - A Heart In Winter

Four short-cuts are installed to the desktop. three of which can be safely deleted (Play Online Games, MyPlayCity Games and short-cuts to a free online game which vary each week). Also, if you don't like icons installed to the quick launch task bar, make sure you un-check the box when the additional tasks window appears (after the Select Start Menu Folder window)

Introduction:

When a new romance blossoms, the door to mystery opens in Love Alchemy: A Heart in Winter. Follow a young woman as she's caught in the tightening web of intrigue surrounding her charming but mysterious lover. To do so, you'll have to search for hidden objects, solve puzzles, and win mini-games, even as the game romances you with its astonishing beauty. From opulent castle halls, to creepy dungeons, to exotic faraway lands, you'll want to stop and soak in the visual splendour. But you won't because each discovery will lure you closer to an ending you won't expect. If you enjoy adventures that hold your heart in their grip like a budding romance, then play Love Alchemy. As the door to mystery opens, you'll be helpless against it!

Reference accessed HERE June 24th 2017

Main Features:

⦁ A magical love story
⦁ Amazing worlds inside paintings
⦁ A shocking alternate ending
⦁ Captivating characters
⦁ Challenging puzzles

If you have a problem installing or activating or getting Love Alchemy: A Heart In Winter to work please visit the problems section, which I've now incorporated into the FAQ's thread, and which you can find HERE

The Game:

Review 1

There are two modes available Casual and Expert. Casual mode gives you fast recharging of the hint buttons and hidden object scenes include highlights, whereas the expert mode hints and the skip buttons recharge much slower and you get no highlighted hints. As with most modern hidden object games when your cursor changes to a hand it indicates some sort of interaction, for example you can interact in some way, or pick an object up to add to the inventory for later use. The cursor also changes to a magnifying glass when the zoom function is activated. Clicking on an object when the magnifying glass appears means you can zoom in by clicking the object or scene. The cursor also changes to an eye when an object in your inventory is useful and finally a door icon indicates that you can move to a different area of the game.

I found the hint button a little ineffective at times, having to use it a few times before I found what was being indicated. If you get stuck on a particular hidden object scene, you can leave it and continue later by clicking on the arrow that appears when you hover along the bottom of the scene, you can also skip puzzles, which will solve automatically for you. Hovering your mouse along the lower part of the game board also opens up your inventory.

Written by Whiterabbit-uk June 23rd 2017

Review 2

Help Ellie reveal all mysteries of the ancient castle in the gorgeous game Love Alchemy: A Heart In Winter! She fell in love with a talented artist Charles and visited his ancient castle that was being renovated. But once Charles left her in the castle alone and the girl decided to see round the house. You will accompany Ellie in the game Love Alchemy: A Heart In Winter and do your best to solve various puzzles and riddles. Look at the mysterious portrait and find out why the man on it resembles her beloved so much and follow the ghost of the pretty girl. Unbelievable adventures await you in the breathtaking hidden object game Love Alchemy: A Heart In Winter!

In Love Alchemy, You, as Ellie fell in love with Charles on the internet. He took you on a romantic dinner date and somehow you agreed to follow him to his castle. Once you arrived, you found out Charles’ terrible, dark secret. Set free the seven women lovers from the castle’s portraits and stop your lover from his disastrous plan.

Love Alchemy starts off with an anticipating story, it sounds promising and of course, interesting. However, as the game develops, we feel like the story is being dragged out for too long – hard to follow and it gets boring after a while.

The game play in Love Alchemy is very straightforward, and old-dated some might say. It feels like the game is being dug out from the piles from the early age of HOPA. Everything is super simple, from HOG scenes to puzzles. There is an interactive map, but there no voice overs, no any other features and set this game apart from the others in the genre. The game is focused on the adventure side than the Hidden Object side, puzzles are very few and far between – they are not complex and are not original.

Moreover, despite the fact that there are up to seven portraits to investigate, the time spent inside each portrait is far too short. As a result, the overall game length is around 2 hour short for advanced players and can be slightly longer for slower players.

Nonetheless, Love Alchemy is visually impressive. The graphics are extremely well drawn, colours are nicely painted – even though they are not outstanding, they are beautiful to the eye. The music is okay, fits the game well.

Reference accessed HERE. Original review by All About Casual Games on Jan 12 2014, re-posted by Whiterabbit-uk 1st Sept 2017.

Other Reviews, Slide show, Videos and a Walk-through of Love Alchemy: A Heart In Winter:

Other Reviews, Slide show, Videos and a Walk-through of Love Alchemy: A Heart In Winter:

You can see community reviews of Love Alchemy: A Heart In Winter Winter HERE and HERE and more information in the Big Fish forums HERE. You can also see a slide-show (spoilers present) of around 70 images HERE

You can also see some videos of game play (spoilers present) HERE, HERE (German), HERE, HERE and HERE. You'll find a written walk-through HERE.

Conclusion:

A typical middle of the road adventure HOG with decent graphics, pleasant background music and some reasonable puzzles, though most I found easy to solve. All About Casual Games said ''From opulent castle halls, to creepy dungeons, to exotic faraway lands, you'll want to stop and soak in the visual splendour. But you won't because each discovery will lure you closer to an ending you won't expect. If you enjoy adventures that hold your heart in their grip like a budding romance, then play Love Alchemy. As the door to mystery opens, you'll be helpless against it!''

I'd like to take this opportunity to thank MyPlayCity for giving away Love Alchemy: A Heart In Winter and also to the game giveaway team, as always, for securing other ways to get free games, in this case Steam keys.