The developers are too lazy to fix their game and would rather piss off customers by deleting features from the game than do any work to actually fix the problem. Avoid Mumbo Jumbo and play one of the many other HOGs out there.

EDIT: As of Feburary 18, 2015, GamerByDay has managed to restore the achievements the game had to begin with, but I still cannot recommend that you buy this game or support Mumbo Jumbo until the issue is fully fixed.

Frankly, the fact that it took almost a whole year - from March 2014 when people began reporting issues about the broken achievements to February 2015 - for this issue to be fixed is rather baffling, to say the least. Not helping Mumbo Jumbo's case is their lack of action to fix the problem when it first came up, and things only went downhill after they deleted the achievements and (initially) refused to restore them. It should also be noted that two other Midnight Mystery games (Devil on the Mississippi, Haunted Houdini) had the same update process as Salem at the same time, so why Salem was broken and why Mumbo Jumbo didn't bother to fix it before things got out of hand is, again, baffling.

I'd keep a wary eye on Mumbo Jumbo and their games and check the forums to see what's going on before you give them any money. You are free to read the original review below.


ORIGINAL REVIEW FROM FEB. 14, 2015:
I cannot, under any circumstances, recommend this game. Additionally, I cannot recommend purchasing any games from Mumbo Jumbo. I'd advise to stay FAR away from Mumbo Jumbo after they removed the achievements from this game, a feature that was the incentive for me to purchase via Steam rather than, say, Amazon or some other digital storefront.

MumboJumbo is too lazy to fix this game, in particular, and rather than put in the effort to listen to customer feedback and implement fixes for what they broke to begin with, they would rather REMOVE features and further break their games. I have noticed whenever they updated their games on Steam, there are no notes or documentations on what was done to warrant the update.

I would only follow Mumbo Jumbo just to make sure if they bring any more games to Steam I can be sure to avoid Mumbo Jumbo's games like the plague.

Developer ruined my perfect game, very irresponsible action they made, shame on you. Now you have my negative review with full reason!

This game is basicaly a hidden object game. Nothing to rant about.

But what is really bad, is that the support for this game is below any measure.

The achievements are broken. So you can play this game through, but you'll never see the achievements on Steam.

I downvote this game because of the nonexistent support. The publisher should now wear the hat and shirt of shame.

So... you don't fix your game, but instead remove achievements and screw everyone over that ever achieved at least one in this game. If this is your way to deal with problems you should really just stop selling games anywhere. Steam doesn't fix their problems either, but you should just have just fixed your damn game instead of removing a feature completely and pulling people's average completion ratio down to zero.

Not nearly as good as the Edgar Allen Poe mystery. The puzzles didn't feel as connected, and the hidden objects were completely uninvolved with the story. In the EAP one, they felt meaningful to the story, and you would use objects found, to find other objects. it was cool. This one has you find a bunch of objects, and then seemingly unrelated, find one more object that was there the whole time -- you just couldn't click on it. The game was more complex, and the puzzles were obtuse -- I even was forced to use a walkthrough for a couple parts, as the hint system is insane. You have like thirty objects in your inventory, and the hint system demands you get a hint on one object....

I come down on it, because I really liked the first one, and hoped they would continue with that style. Maybe the next one will be better.

This would have been a perfectly good HO/puzzle title if some of the progression requirements were clearer. Of course, you can always use the hints you've accumulated, but overreliance on these defeats the purpose. As it was, I had to fall back on them more than once after bouncing futilely back and forth between every area of the game trying to figure out what I was supposed to do next. Still, if you get it cheap, it's a decent experience.

Another good hidden object game following a storyline about the Salem With Trials. Great graphics and good casual gaming fun.

Good point and click hidden object. The Follow the ghost style plot the carry through the entire series. Decent.

This might be an excellent game. I couldn't tell. Because even in full screen mode, the resolution is set. It doesn't stretch or scale to the size of the screen. My monitor has a high resolution, so I COULDN'T SEE WHAT I WAS DOING. How a game created in 2012 could fail to accomodate people with even mid-range monitors and screen resolutions baffles me. I solved the very first level and then gave up, because it was giving me a headache. Don't get this game unless you either have a 1024x768 resolution, or don't mind manually switching to that every single time you play the game.

Not worth the effort, from what I can see. The last thing I want to do when I'm in the mood for a casual game is mess around with my screen settings.

If you enjoy hidden item games then I do recommend this one, however, I also recommend you play all four in the series in order. Each game is an experience and unique in its own way.

This one is a big step forward from the first Midnight Mysteries but also a few steps back. Nice graphics, better interface, achievements and hidden things to find and do...all great. The story however is a bit all over the place and seems to lack direction. And this can lead to aimless wandering at certain points. Also, some puzzles give you little to know clue on what you need to do next.

Flaws aside, the game is worth playing. I wouldn't buy it alone though, you should buy the Midnight Mysteries bundle and enjoy them all.

This mystery games suffers from some lack of direction. Most of these are great in the Midnight Mystery series but this one has parts that lead to nothing. Scripted events that take place at certain locations means sometimes wandering all over to find that next event to randomly occur so you can proceed. It is not a mystery that can be solved when these are random events instead of puzzles its just wandering around aimlessly.

Rating: 2/10 Value: $0.99

I enjoyed playing this game. I played through all of Story Mode. As someone who is new to this type of game, one feature I wish had been included was some way to have hints for the puzzles. Sometimes, I got very stuck and my only options were to either go online to find out the solution or to "skip", which did not allow me to learn how to solve the puzzle. The downside was that in looking online, I got the whole solution, when I would have preferred just getting a starting hint of some kind. And there was one puzzle where the solution I found online did not work. It was a puzzle where you have to slide books out of the way so that a particular one can get to a particular spot. The opening arrangement in my game was different than the opening arrangement I found on the website. That said, overall, I did enjoy the game. The story was not quite as rich as the previous game (it was longer, certainly, but not as well-connected), but it was still immersive, and I enjoyed seeing how the different charcters and puzzles interacted with the main plot. I'm looking forward to trying out the third game!

This was an O.K. game. Just O.K. not great by any means but not terrible. The puzzles and hidden objects were, in my opinion, far to easy. The story was a 6/10 it felt a bit all over the place and was confusing at times. I did like the graphics they were very nice. The length of the game was great as well. I am giving this a thumbs up because I feel that a child around 10 or so would thourghly enjoy this (as long as they have a thick skin and do not get scared easy) I would say if this game goes on sale and your a parent that lets your children play on your computer buy it. Otherwise you can probably find something better to use 10.00$ on.

It's a quite nicely done cross between a hidden object game and a first person point n click game - which actually slightly took my by surprise because I was expecting more hidden objects and less "should I use the chicken with the pulley?" moments. That said it worked nicely, although at a few points I wasn't entirely certain where to go, although at that point I rifled through my inventory items and worked out the first of two rather delightful easter eggs within the game. The puzzles are pretty simple and the hidden objects are not very hidden so it's nice if you want a totally casual experience. I normally play this kinda thing when I'm tired and can't focus on something more complicated so it was just about perfect for that.

The game has achievements but sadly these are broken under steam - apparently by the most recent (March/2014) patch. I really like these types of games and if you feed me a good one, chances are I'll buy more from you but I'm surprisingly picky when it comes to buying games that actually work right and I do like my achievements.

Also it's worth noting there is no free play or equivalent at the end of the game so make sure to collect everything you need before you finish.

Still it's a nice game, and if they fix the achievements it'll be a good one to pick up for something fun to amble through.

This is a big step up from the Edgar Allan Poe Conspiracy, being much more involved in the puzzle-solving aspect. Like most Casual Hidden Object Games, you have to limit yourself when it comes to using hints and skipping puzzles to get a fuller, longer, and more challenging experience. Only recommended to those who like hidden object games and if you buy it in a bundle with the other three Midnight Mysteries. I don't know much about Nathaniel Hawthorne, so I can't comment too much on the story, but I imagine it's just as "revisionist" as the Poe and Mark Twain games. Final caveat: As of writing this review, the Steam Achievements are broken. They update to the in-game Trophy Room, but not to Steam.
Rating: 3/5

Decent story and easy to medium object finding. Good graphics and music.

I enjoyed this game. It's easy and doesn't make a lot of sense, but it was a fun 3 hours or so and a nice mix of hidden objects and simple puzzles.

Out of all the series, I enjoyed this one the most. It felt almost open, and I didn't feel that I was being herded into a linear path (although of course I was!). It was an interesting look at history and I liked the whole rescuing souls from eternal torment aspect! There was a good story line and game play felt engaging enough that when I realised only 4 hours had passed I was like huh. I thought I was playing longing because the game whirled me away into it.

Enough HO puzzles as well as some others thrown in for good measure. Not too easy to solve, but not hit your head on the wall difficult either.

Very enjoyable!

The Midnight Mysteries series contains some of my favorite hidden object games. These are the more typical hybrid type games, that have some adventure elements (puzzles, moving between locations, talking to people) as opposed to the find-objects-only style.

Midnight Mysteries are interesting in that they are based on real historical events, then add some fictional what-ifs to fill in blanks or give alternate explanations for known events. As a result, not only are the fun as a game but they spark some interest in reading about the real events on Wikipedia.

MM2, about the Salem Witch Trials, tells of the horrible way that people were treated for not fitting in or being a little different.