Friday, May 30, 2008

Games up for Grabs at Blog 8th Birthday Bash





It may be this blog’s birthday, but the presents will go to readers like you. All the birthday details here. Here are the games up for winning!




  • Reflexive contributes a total of 10 copies of three games! Some are for Mac.


    • Big Kahuna Reef 2: 4 copies (2 Mac and 2 PC)


    • Ricochet Infinity: 2 copies (PC)


    • Airport Mania: 4 copies (2 Mac and 2 PC)




  • One full copy of Orchidia PC game from Joyboost. See Meryl’s Orchidia review.


    • One full copy of Spinword PC game from Joyboost.


    • One full copy of Astraware Classic Collection, which includes Astraware Sudoku, Astraware Solitaire, and Astraware Board games. Astraware is one of Meryl’s favorite — if not the best — developer of handheld software.




  • Two full copies of Magic Farm Game PC games from Oleg Kuznecov of Meridian’93. One copy for a reader and one copy for a guest blogger. My Magic Farm review.


  • One Alawar PC game package including full copies of Virtual Farm, Curse of Montezuma, and Alex Gordon.


  • Full copy of First Class Flurry PC game from Chanon Sajjamanochai of Viquagames. Meryl’s First Class Fury review.


  • Full copy of Lex Venture: A Crossword Caper PC game from Mark Kanter of Bang Out Games. Meryl’s Lex Venture: A Crossword Caper review.






5:00 PM 0 comments
Thursday, May 29, 2008

Larva Mortus Review





Larva Mortus, developed and published by Rake In Grass.

The Good: Simple controls, randomly generated levels, powerful weapons, fair difficulty, useful interface, lots of gore, fitting musical score

The Not So Good: Archaic overhead perspective, must kill everything, dying resets all level progress, can get tedious, very elementary AI

What say you? A zombie-hunting game with elevated replay value that’s addictive but repetitive: 6/8



MY POORLY WRITTEN INTRODUCTION

I think I used up all of my zombie-related material when I wrote the review of Night of a Million Billion Zombies a little over a month ago. So thanks a lot, Larva Mortus, for making me think of another introduction. But then I thought: what about writing an introduction complaining about writing the introduction? Brilliant! In Larva Mortus, you shoot zombies and other assorted not-nice things in randomly generated levels with a host of exotic weapons. Killing hordes of the undead can get monotonous and boring, so how will Larva Mortus fare?



GRAPHICS AND SOUND

Larva Mortus features an old-school overhead perspective. Now, I normally dislike playing from a birds-eye view, but Larva Mortus does a good job in making you forget about the missing third dimension. While the game isn’t the most detailed in the world, I would much rather have a straightforward presentation like Larva Mortus than messy and repetitive 3-D graphics. It can be difficult to see enemies on occasion since you are looking down on them, but you can usually tell they are there when they shoot at you. It’s easy to see which weapon is equipped, and the more simplified approach takes away the potential new player confusion associated with hectic action games. The cut scenes look good, featuring a nice visual style. Larva Mortus also features plenty of blood for those of us who crave gore. Performance could be better when a lot of explosions take place at once (I don’t think Larva Mortus uses 3-D acceleration of any kind), though. Still, despite their minimal nature, I found the graphics to be pleasing enough. The music is outstanding: a haunting theme that fits the game superbly. While the rest of the sound effects are average for the genre, the music is the definite highlight of the game’s presentation.



ET AL.

In Larva Mortus, you’ll be dispensing of many foes with guns. Lots of guns. And a crossbow. The game is played by choosing a level on the map; there is a main storyline, but you can only access the next story-related level by getting a minimum experience level by playing the single missions. Typically, the story levels feature one big boss at the end and have cut scenes that describe the situation. All of the levels in the game are randomly generated: the number and location of the enemies and rooms will be different each time you play, even if it’s in the same city. While the levels aren’t as obviously randomized as Scallywag, since you’ll always encounter the same basic level layouts, not knowing what enemies lurk beyond the next locked door is great for replay value. Larva Mortus uses traditional controls: WASD to move, and the mouse to aim and shoot. Since the game takes places from an overhead perspective, it’s a bit different than first person shooters (since the mouse does not look), but it’s intuitive enough. The game interface makes playing Larva Mortus very easy: rooms which you have previously cleared are indicated on the minimap, and a large “room cleared” message pops up when all of the enemies have been disposed of. Ammunition levels are also plainly displayed, including a graphical (instead of simply numerical) representation of how many bullets are left before reloading is required: a nice touch.



Larva Mortus gives you a variety of weapons to choose from: a sword, pistol, shotgun, machine gun, crossbow, cannon, flame thrower, dynamo gun, and dynamite. These are gradually given to you throughout the campaign: as you meet more dangerous foes, you’ll get more dangerous weapons. Each of these weapons requires ammunition that, like the guns, can be dropped by enemy units. Enemies can also drop various power-ups, which grant temporary bonuses in ammunition, armor, damage, score, or movement speed. The AI is very basic, though your enemies being mindless zombies might have something to do with it. Normally, enemy units will track straight towards you or move in semi-random patterns to make killing them more difficulty. A good strategy (and really the only one to employ) is to walk backwards while firing. This makes playing Larva Mortus more repetitive than it should be: enemy units won’t use cover and they can move quickly enough (and the rooms are small enough) where you only have a couple of seconds to kill them before they reach you unless you start going backwards. That said, the game does offer reasonable difficulty, and once you learn how each new enemy will behave, the game almost becomes trivially easy (almost).



Along your journey of killing, you will gain experience for each enemy you turn into a bloody mess. Eventually, you will level up, and then you can upgrade one of several areas to make your character more powerful: faster leveling, walk speed, chance of enemies dropping stuff, and health regeneration are just a few to choose from. This gives a bit of incentive to keep playing, although Larva Mortus is action-packed enough to hold the interest of people who enjoy this type of game. Unlike Night of a Million Billion Zombies, I never felt unfairly overwhelmed by the enemy and found the gameplay to be quite enjoyable, albeit eventually a bit repetitive. Shooting enemies is fun, and the randomly generated levels give enough variations to keep Larva Mortus fresh. You can cheat and see the enemies in a room to pick the best weapon and then quickly duck back into a previous room since exiting a room will reset the enemies, but that’s a minor issue. Connected to this “feature” is the fact that you have to clear a room before leaving. Otherwise, all of the enemies will respawn (even if you killed them before) and your hard work will go to waste. This 100% requirement would be a concern if the game wasn’t fairly balanced, which, thankfully, it seems to be. If you die, you do have to restart a level from the beginning (the game actually brings you back from the mission map) and the level will actually be different (that’s the whole random generation thing), but other than that dying is no big deal (there’s no XP penalty, for instance). Levels are quick to complete; this promotes the fast-paced nature of the gameplay where the focus is on the action. Overall, I found Larva Mortus to be quite similar to Scallywag: an action-oriented game with randomly generated maps. While the overhead 2-D graphics might turn off some shallow action gamers, the gameplay of Larva Mortus is good enough to keep you interested for quite a while, and the endless supply of maps doesn’t hurt.



IN CLOSING

I like Larva Mortus. The action is constant, the random levels keep you guessing, the interface is intuitive, and the blood is definitely flowing. The game provides an array of weapons to use and the presentation, despite being in 2-D, is good thanks to quality background music. Larva Mortus isn’t without its problems: you must destroy every enemy before moving on to the next room, all progress is lost if you die, and the AI isn’t terribly smart. This makes the game repetitive in the end, but it’s still an enjoyable ride as you go through the storyline, encountering new enemies and gaining new weapons. In all, Larva Mortus is the very definition of a “buy it if you like the genre” game: fans of the genre will be pleased, but people who don’t like action shooters won’t find enough to start liking them now.


5:00 PM 0 comments

Virtual Villagers 3: The Secret City





Virtual Villagers 3: The Secret City is a brand new chapter in the best-selling Virtual Villagers franchise. This latest offering has a larger map, all-new puzzles and mysteries, and introduces innovative new features such as a Tribal Chief and Real-Time Weather. The award-winning Virtual Villagers series, including Virtual Villagers: A New Home and Virtual Villagers 2: [...]


1:00 PM 0 comments

Wedding Dash 2: Rings Around the World Released





Wedding Dash 2Quinn is back on a new whirlwind adventure, joined by Flo and Joe Wright, wedding photographer. Help Quinn become the world’s top wedding planner in this hilarious sequel to the hit game Wedding Dash. Visit beautiful, exotic locations while managing new guests, fulfilling bride and groom requests, and tackling comedic disasters. Do you have what it takes to help Quinn win the honor of planning the most exclusive wedding of the year?




  • 2 modes: Story and Endless Game


  • 50 new levels of riotous game play


  • Bridezilla now joined by the all-new Groom-Kong



Download and try Wedding Dash 2: Ring Around the World free.



Read the review of the original Wedding Dash.







PC Game Review Supermarket Mania





Supermarket ManiaWith the price of groceries going up by the minute, Supermarket Mania offers a great deal in keeping you busy for hours avoiding a trip to the grocery store. Like the coffee shop on every corner, Torg has supermarkets all over town giving Nikki little choice but to go work there as a stocker.



Nikki doesn’t like the looks of Torg when scary-looking robots greet her on her first day of work. After four days of excellent work, Mr. Torg fires her and her cashier friend. He activates the robots to run his stores. The girls find a better place in a run down pop store (well, there’s no mom as far as we can see) run by Mr. Clarence. He trusts the girls to run the store alone.



The girls deal with different types of customers who have different styles of shopping. Granny takes her time and has plenty of patience while teens have zero patience and move quickly. Kids tear up the place until you have your security guard friend, Mr. Barefist (I wonder how they came up with that), blow the whistle to stop their antics. Barefist also comes in handy in stopping brazen thieves.



You have two ways to catch a thief. Notify Barefist while the thief has a circle over his head to stop the thief who moves on to the next attempt or leaves the store. Or be patient and let the circle over the thief’s head fill and shake — alert Barefist at that time and you earn a cash bonus. However, the shaky thing doesn’t happen every time so waiting for a full circle could lead to thief getting away with … well, theft.



Supermarket ManiaUpgrades are present ranging from better products that sell for more money and a gumball machine for more tips to a faster loading stockroom and the most expensive one, a bigger cart. As you advance levels more upgrades show up to help keep customer patience from spiraling when so many require your time in stocking the shelves.



Occasionally, a celebrity shops at the store catching the attention of all shoppers who stand by snapping pictures. While the celeb works around the store, Nikki must keep shelves stocked for celebrities as they don’t wait long. Another unique feature in Supermarket Mania is Super Shop. Click the thumbs up symbol at the right time (when you have as many shoppers as possible and as few thieves as possible) so that everyone buys a bunch at once. This drives up sales and Nikki’s carting work as she races around refilling the fast emptying shelves.



The action spreads across five shopping stores including Torg’s for 50 levels. That’s right, Mr. Clarence somehow comes up with the cash for more stores. Nothing illegal mind you. He’s good people.



The game lasts a couple of sittings and gets nutty at times. I’ve yet to beat a Diner Dash(but I made it through Wedding Dash), and I finished Supermarket Mania. It meant repeating a few levels, but all in a game reviewer’s work. So I think the difficulty is on target for the average casual gamer.



Animation and cartoon-style graphics are bright and attractive. The music upbeat with good effects. Decent variety of upgrades and a nice even pace. Animation and cartoon-style graphics are bright and attractive. The music upbeat with good effects. Decent variety of upgrades and a nice even pace.



Supermarket ManiaSupermarket Mania probably falls in the middle of the time management games. Far better than those at the bottom, but not quite as good the best. You’ll spend less money on the game than in a five minute trip to the grocery store and have loads more fun.







Game du Jour: Week of 2008-05-12





The following games will be discounted next week on Game du Jour, the ‘one-deal-a-day’ web site dedicated to indie and casual games:



Mon. May 12th: 50% off on Pick11



Tue. May 13th: 65% off on Brainiversity



Wed. May 14th: 40% off on Pet Shop Hop



Thu. May 15th: 50% off on Solitaire Epic



Fri. May 16th: 70% off on Snakylines



Sat. May 17th: 50% off on CrazyTrain



Sun. May 18th: 50% off on Mahjong Epic






5:00 AM 0 comments

Blog 8th Birthday Celebration: Win Games!





While the games section is new to meryl.net, the original blog has been around for eight years as of June 1. meryl’s notes blog birthday celebration includes prizes and some of them are PC games! Check out the birthday celebration and how you can get entries to win prizes.







PC Game Review First Class Flurry





First Class FuryWhen you play as many time management games as I have (and many more exist that I haven’t tried), you wonder if it’s possible for a developer to come up with more undiscovered surprises. First Class Flurry answers, “Yes!” And, no it’s not an Airport Mania copy.



I don’t dream of becoming a pilot or traveling the world free as a paid flight attendant. Sure, I want to see the world, but I’ll have to do it the traditional way — shell out the bucks. Nonetheless, First Class Flurry satisfies — and way more than a Snickers bar.



Like the old airline, Braniff Airways, Starlink files for bankruptcy. But wait a minute. Like Braniff (as Braniff International Airlines, Inc.), Starlink comes back to life under a new owner. Claire, the flight attendant, happens to know the right people including the owner. The owner hires Claire as the lead flight attendant to ensure passengers are as happy as larks.



Not so fast — not as easy as you might think. You deal with sick, whiny, demanding, and honeymooning passengers of all ages. In typical time management fashion, players must reach the minimum score to move on to the next level. Time management kings and queens, challenge yourself and shoot for the expert score every time.



Claire starts working on a diddly economy flight, but play well — and she can move up to business class, first class, and finally royal first class. Her job involves making meals, fetching drinks, finding lost handheld devices and diamond rings, and handing out other comforts of the plane like headphones, pillows, and sleeping masks.



Claire tracks orders, recycles the trash, and somehow has to watch for annoying kids who cry because they can’t find mommy or they want to pester other passengers. After you earn enough points, you can buy a tray to carry three items and even four. Not often a game lets you carry more than two things and I like it!



First Class FuryTravelers also come with hearts for your monitoring their happiness levels. When the levels dip below unacceptable levels, you lose points. Quickly giving them what they want will keep them smiling. You also have the opportunity to simultaneously boost everyone’s happiness by spraying air freshener — can only use once per flight.



Another way — and you’re stuck with a captain who thinks too much of himself — is to quickly serve the captain whatever he (yes, “he” while the flight attendant is a “she”– don’t blame the messenger) wants. Once he’s happy, the whole flight smiles in adoration right back at the captain. The guy has an ego, but I love my job anyway.



The flights can fly in one of four locations: North America, Asia, Europe, and Africa. Pick any to start and fly for the duration of the economy flight. Finish that and you select another spot for business class. As you travel to new locations, you’ll notice some culture in the air. Plus, learn or refresh your knowledge of flags for different countries in the flight map.



Turbulence? Of course, there’s turbulence and it interrupts your work. Forget whatever you’re doing and make a run for the phone to warn passengers of impending bumpiness. Then help the lazy ones buckle their belts and get to your seat all within seconds or else enjoy a nice headache.



The game works beautifully with the mouse and its two buttons. Right-click anytime to cancel an action. Click ahead to get Claire hopping in doing a bunch of tasks in a row. It’s a lovely thing to have almost complete control over future actions. Although, the game occasionally gets me by having a passenger cancel his order and I keep trucking along unaware.



Upgrades and tasks can make or break a game. First Class Flurry aces the test. Upgrades change the look and color of the airplane, add features and d??cor to relax the passengers (hint: make them happier and more patient), and speed Claire’s movements. Some upgrades come with a few color options. With each flight class, you start over on the upgrades. You may or might not be able to buy all of them before the end of the flight class — just depends on how well you play.



Way past the game’s halfway point, the game continues to surprise with new dishes and features. So the tasks don’t feel repetitive especially in food preparation. On one flight, Claire makes burgers and fries. On another, she makes salmon (takes three steps) and sandwiches (also three steps). The station locations — such as the emergency kit and the magazine rack — also change around so you can’t get comfy.



First Class FuryFirst Class Flurry is almost perfect. Its wonderful all-around production values overshadow the few scrapes. For some, the pace can get frantic a little sooner than they would like. Some dishes are hard to distinguish especially the noodle family. That nuisance goes away after a little practice. Aptly named First Class Flurry is indeed a first class game. Take off and go play it!







Game du Jour: Week of 2008-05-19





The following games will be discounted next week on Game du Jour, the ‘one-deal-a-day’ website dedicated to indie and casual games:



Mon. May 19th: 40% off on Dream Chronicles 2



Tue. May 20th: 50% off on Mahjong Epic



Wed. May 21th: 60% off on Tale of Three Vikings



Thu. May 22th: 50% off on Runes of Avalon 2



Fri. May 23th: 50% off on Yardmaster



Sat. May 24th: 50% off on Gallop for Gold



Sun. May 25th: 50% off on Kakuro






5:00 AM 0 comments

Video Game Music Compilation





Game Music 4 All releases its first free internet compilation. It is called Here Comes a New Challenger. It is a compilation of chiptune, nerdcore, and VG musicians collaborating together as a tribute to video games. Get more info and download the album for free.







Flower Stand Tycoon PC Game Review





Flower Stand TycoonWe give the casual game industry credit for not going flower crazy. Flower Stand Tycoon doesn’t have the distinction of being the first flower-themed game, but it won’t be the last. At least, we don’t see flower-theme games come out left and right like other themes. Players and reviewers appreciate it when the themes don’t come out in droves.



Anyway, Flower Stand Tycoon reminds me of Fairy Godmother Tycoon without the wacky and quirky characters and comedy. Don’t let the fact Flower Stand Tycoon doesn’t quite measure up with Fairy Godmother Tycoonstop you from smelling the roses. Fairy Godmother Tycoonstands out from the tycoon crowd, so I don’t expect to see one come close to matching or surpassing the game.



In typical casual game fashion, the game starts off with the story of Uncle Potts who wants to grow a flower business. However, he has no business acumen as he specializes in bioengineering and would rather discover new flowers. He hands off what little he has of his business and lets you take over beginning with picking your avatar.



As you begin, the game guides you through the features and how to manage the business. Figuring out the game its controls involves a learning curve, but the competition doesn’t enter the game for a bit giving players time to feel comfortable. While you can build up to buy more stands, it’ll take time to get to that point as you need to upgrade, discover new flowers, and take over several areas of the city.



Flower Stand TycoonStock up your inventory, set the prices, and let the day play it out. You can speed up the day (as you don’t do anything except watch customers, their reactions, and the profit numbers climb (you hope). So often, I just end the day and not bother waiting around. Is the game still playable when I do this? Yes. There are lots to do — I have to figure out which upgrades to buy, study reports, determine how much cash to invest in research and marketing.



I also study the areas to see where I want to sell next. The game provides population, demand, and popular item information. Reviewing this information makes an impact on your sales, one big plus about Flower Stand Tycoon. Make decisions do matter and you see the results of those decisions. News and reports also aid decision-making.



You have a say in how many of each product you want to sell. However, the numbers jump as they get larger beginning with 20, 40, 60, 100 and then 200. No 75 or even 150. At one point, I had customers buying an average of 70 to 80 of a flower, but 100 is a waste. Whatever they don’t buy doesn’t always carry over — a big problem in the game. While it makes sense for flowers to do before we can sell them, the game isn’t consistent in its handling of leftover inventory.



When competitors come to play, the neighborhoods receive different colors based on the company that holds the leading share of the market. Between competitors and all the information available, players have plenty to think about and decisions to make. The game’s strength is its ability to let you go in almost any direction. The only thing you can’t jump around on is buying certain items. Some items call for buying something else first.



Flower Stand TycoonUnlike many business games, you don’t deal with goals for every level. In fact, sometimes I’m not sure where I am going except to overtake the competitors and earn lots of profits so I can upgrade everything and discover new flowers.



Flower Stand Tycoon runs for a long time and offers many upgrades and other options. While it doesn’t win gold medals or green thumb awards, the journey of managing a business complete with marketing and reporting makes the game a worthy play.







Game du Jour: Week of 2008-05-26





The following games will be discounted next week on Game du Jour, the ‘one-deal-a-day’ website dedicated to indie and casual games:



Mon. May 26th: 50% off on Ultratron



Tue. May 27th: 54% off on Interactive Parables



Wed. May 28th: 40% off on Airport Mania: First Flight



Thu. May 29th: 80% off on BubbleWorld



Fri. May 30th: 50% off on Egyptian Dreams 4



Sat. May 31th: 60% off on Mecapumble



Sun. June 1st: 50% off on Rainbow Web 2






5:00 AM 0 comments
Wednesday, May 28, 2008

Flower Stand Tycoon PC Game Review





Flower Stand TycoonWe give the casual game industry credit for not going flower crazy. Flower Stand Tycoon doesn’t have the distinction of being the first flower-themed game, but it won’t be the last. At least, we don’t see flower-theme games come out left and right like other themes. Players and reviewers appreciate it when the themes don’t come out in droves.



Anyway, Flower Stand Tycoon reminds me of Fairy Godmother Tycoon without the wacky and quirky characters and comedy. Don’t let the fact Flower Stand Tycoon doesn’t quite measure up with Fairy Godmother Tycoonstop you from smelling the roses. Fairy Godmother Tycoonstands out from the tycoon crowd, so I don’t expect to see one come close to matching or surpassing the game.



In typical casual game fashion, the game starts off with the story of Uncle Potts who wants to grow a flower business. However, he has no business acumen as he specializes in bioengineering and would rather discover new flowers. He hands off what little he has of his business and lets you take over beginning with picking your avatar.



As you begin, the game guides you through the features and how to manage the business. Figuring out the game its controls involves a learning curve, but the competition doesn’t enter the game for a bit giving players time to feel comfortable. While you can build up to buy more stands, it’ll take time to get to that point as you need to upgrade, discover new flowers, and take over several areas of the city.



Flower Stand TycoonStock up your inventory, set the prices, and let the day play it out. You can speed up the day (as you don’t do anything except watch customers, their reactions, and the profit numbers climb (you hope). So often, I just end the day and not bother waiting around. Is the game still playable when I do this? Yes. There are lots to do — I have to figure out which upgrades to buy, study reports, determine how much cash to invest in research and marketing.



I also study the areas to see where I want to sell next. The game provides population, demand, and popular item information. Reviewing this information makes an impact on your sales, one big plus about Flower Stand Tycoon. Make decisions do matter and you see the results of those decisions. News and reports also aid decision-making.



You have a say in how many of each product you want to sell. However, the numbers jump as they get larger beginning with 20, 40, 60, 100 and then 200. No 75 or even 150. At one point, I had customers buying an average of 70 to 80 of a flower, but 100 is a waste. Whatever they don’t buy doesn’t always carry over — a big problem in the game. While it makes sense for flowers to do before we can sell them, the game isn’t consistent in its handling of leftover inventory.



When competitors come to play, the neighborhoods receive different colors based on the company that holds the leading share of the market. Between competitors and all the information available, players have plenty to think about and decisions to make. The game’s strength is its ability to let you go in almost any direction. The only thing you can’t jump around on is buying certain items. Some items call for buying something else first.



Flower Stand TycoonUnlike many business games, you don’t deal with goals for every level. In fact, sometimes I’m not sure where I am going except to overtake the competitors and earn lots of profits so I can upgrade everything and discover new flowers.



Flower Stand Tycoon runs for a long time and offers many upgrades and other options. While it doesn’t win gold medals or green thumb awards, the journey of managing a business complete with marketing and reporting makes the game a worthy play.






1:00 PM 0 comments

Video Game Music Compilation





Game Music 4 All releases its first free internet compilation. It is called Here Comes a New Challenger. It is a compilation of chiptune, nerdcore, and VG musicians collaborating together as a tribute to video games. Get more info and download the album for free.






1:00 PM 0 comments
Monday, May 26, 2008

AtomHex Review





AtomHex, developed and published by MarkInc.

The Good: Unique gameplay, chaotic pace and action packed, neat theme, stackable bonuses, achievements, flexible price

The Not So Good: Odd control scheme, very challenging, only one game mode

What say you? It’s definitely different and potentially addictive, but this action game has a steep learning curve thanks to its overly complicated controls and high difficulty: 5/8



MY POORLY WRITTEN INTRODUCTION

They say that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. So when Mark Incitti created an almost exact replica of Geometry Wars, he was kindly asked to remove it immediately or face legal action. Awww...how nice! What is a good programmer to do? Well, slightly repackage the game and change it enough not to get sued! Here is AtomHex, an enhanced third cousin (once removed) of Geometry Wars featuring lots of shooting at lots of enemies. Will the frantic action translate well on the PC?



GRAPHICS AND SOUND

AtomHex doesn’t feature ultra-realistic 3-D graphics, but it does excel in presenting a nice theme. The minimalist design helps to create a Tron-like environment of bright, neon graphics set against a stark background and the result is a distinctive look; they remind me a lot of Immortal Defense. AtomHex is pleasing on the eyes and the generally chaotic nature of the gameplay is helped by the relatively simplistic graphics, as the player is never confused by what is being shown on-screen (at least any more than they are supposed to be). The basic nature of the graphics also means that AtomHex will run on a variety of computer systems. The sound in AtomHex is similar: basic but nice. The effects for each enemy are characteristic enough to know what deadly foe is being spawned, and the music fits the theme well. Overall, I was pleased with what AtomHex brings to the table in terms of presentation.



ET AL.

Probably the first thing you’ll notice about AtomHex is that it lets you name your own price (William Shatner would be so proud): you can pay between $5 and $20 for the game. While this method would not work well with games by larger publishers, giving users an option to show their level of enjoyment and allow for different amounts of budgetary allotment is nice. As for the features, AtomHex only has one game mode (shoot stuff) and lacks multiplayer, but it does have sixty achievements to earn (that don’t unlock anything) and online scoreboards once you get good enough at the game. As for the controls, well, I hate the controls. OK, “hate” is a strong word…I “loathe” the controls and “wish” they would “rot in Hell.” AtomHex is designed for a dual analogue gamepad, where one pad moves and the other shoots, but I dislike this method very much (can you tell?). I want an arcade shooter to have controls similar to that of Asteroids: move and shoot forward. That’s all. I don’t need two axes, one for moving and one for shooting: that’s too much thinking that gets in the way of frantic gameplay. You can use the mouse, but aiming is too inaccurate since only allows you to shoot at increments of every 30 degrees or so instead of any angle, and using the keyboard is just asking for trouble. Who came up with this unintuitive control scheme not designed for the PC? Oh, right. I don’t mind having this method as an option, but a more straightforward and intuitive control scheme (left and right arrows to turn, forward and backward to move, spacebar to shoot forward) is a feature I would like to have.



So what exactly are you shooting at? Well, there are these atoms and hexes (as you might have guessed from the game name). When one atom bonds with one hex, it starts spitting out slow-moving pods that can kill you. The more hexes, the worse the enemies: bugs that eat hexes, triangles that follow your ship, squares that shoot in four parallel directions, and things that split into five little things. If you survive to the point where six hexes are bound to an atom, you get to enter subatomic mode, which is actually easier than the base game: it involves rotating wheels of color that must be destroyed. The thing that complicates AtomHex is color: you can only destroy things that are the same color you are. The only way to change colors is to destroy the shield of a solitary hex and then collect it. This means while you are shooting red hexes, yellow ones may be gathering up strength. It’s a neat dynamic that involves a bit more thinking that simply holding down the fire button.



Every time you collect a hex, you will get some sort of powerup. These are usually score multipliers that can be stacked (a 2x and a 5x make a 10x), so you’ll want to collect hexes in quick succession in order to maximize your score. You may also gain interesting weapons like freeze bombs, triple shots, or spreading shots. The bonuses will also come towards you, so you don’t have to go all over the map in order to collect them all. AtomHex is a pretty addictive game that takes a lot of practice. In addition to the learning curve imposed by the unintuitive controls, the game’s fast pace makes death a common occurrence. Easy difficulty slows things down a bit and limits the number of colors, but it’s still pretty intense. If you are used to a game that uses this control scheme, then AtomHex’s unique chaotic gameplay will be more instinctive and ultimately more enjoyable.



IN CLOSING

AtomHex is one of those games that is addictive, but has a couple of limitations that make you want to stop playing for a short while. I just can’t get over the controls: I hate them. I’m curious if other people will have the same level of disgust that I do or if I’m just in the minority as most everyone is used to a dual analogue arcade shooter scheme. The more I played AtomHex, the less annoying the controls got, but I still don’t like them. It’s too bad, because the rest of the game is quite fun. The color matching system adds some strategic depth, and while AtomHex only comes with one game mode, trying to earn all of the achievements and earning a high score will keep people coming back. The innovative behaviors of the enemies and the progressively more difficult foes also keep the action varied and fresh. If you can get past the controls, then AtomHex delivers some intense and exciting arcade shooter action that’s unique and enjoyable.


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Game du Jour: Week of 2008-05-26





The following games will be discounted next week on Game du Jour, the ‘one-deal-a-day’ website dedicated to indie and casual games:



Mon. May 26th: 50% off on Ultratron



Tue. May 27th: 54% off on Interactive Parables



Wed. May 28th: 40% off on Airport Mania: First Flight



Thu. May 29th: 80% off on BubbleWorld



Fri. May 30th: 50% off on Egyptian Dreams 4



Sat. May 31th: 60% off on Mecapumble



Sun. June 1st: 50% off on Rainbow Web 2






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Friday, May 23, 2008

Dirk Dashing: Secret Agent! Review





Dirk Dashing: Secret Agent!, developed and published by My Game Company.

The Good: Simple controls appropriate for a range of skill levels, non-violent gameplay for all ages

The Not So Good: No unique features, very limited weaponry and gadgets, can be quite difficult, dying returns you to the start of the level and the game doesn’t prompt to load a saved game, no in-level autosaves

What say you? This family-friendly platform game lacks innovation: 5/8



MY POORLY WRITTEN INTRODUCTION

Platform games have been around for quite a while: historians estimate the genre started in 145 A.D. with Super Ptolemy Brothers. From there, faster computers have produced better graphics and 3-D worlds in which to jump around and avoid enemies. While the genre is certainly more popular on those dreaded consoles, the PC has seen its fair share of platform games, and Dirk Dashing: Secret Agent! is next in line. Taking a spy’s viewpoint, Dirk Dashing: Secret Agent! follows a secret agent named Dirk Dashing (coincidence? I think not!) in his crusade against E.V.I.L. in snowy southern Germany. Will Dirk Dashing: Secret Agent! advance the genre forward with new and exciting features?



GRAPHICS AND SOUND

The graphics of Dirk Dashing: Secret Agent! are simple at best. While the backgrounds are nicely detailed, the character models are sparsely animated and look like 2-D sprites floating against the background. Special effects are few: only some gas from grenades and some weapons flying through the air. Some of the buildings are somewhat detailed, but the environments in each setting become repetitive. You can have a 2-D game that still looks good, so the lack of distinctive flair in Dirk Dashing: Secret Agent! is disappointing. As for the sound, it is limited as well. The game does have some good spy theme music (however it does loop quite often), but the effects are meager and Dirk Dashing: Secret Agent! never feels like you are in a semi-realistic environment rather than playing a game. More could have been done with the presentation of Dirk Dashing: Secret Agent!.



ET AL.

Dirk Dashing: Secret Agent! is a very conventional platform game. The story is a classic spying cliché: get diamonds back from an evil organization. The game has a forced sense of humor that is funny on occasion; I think the developers were trying to hard in naming the organizations (G.O.O.D. and E.V.I.L.) and the levels (Snow Pain, Snow Gain and Forgive Me, It’s Not My Vault, to name a few). The game comes with a good number of levels (30) that will keep you busy for at least a day or two, if you play straight through. The controls are simple enough where anyone can play Dirk Dashing: Secret Agent!: you can use they keyboard or a gamepad to move, jump, enter buildings, and throw grenades using only the arrow keys, spacebar, and control. Also appropriate for all ages is the low level of violence: grenades simply put enemies to sleep rather than causing bloody, fragmented death. Most of the levels have you disposing of enemies, jumping on platforms, flipping switches, and moving the occasional crate to access certain locations: very standard stuff. Dirk Dashing (Secret Agent) also has a PDA that displays mission objectives and in-game scores; this is better than cluttering up the screen with a permanent HUD.



The main problem with Dirk Dashing: Secret Agent! is the lack of unique features. First, Dirk is only equipped with two weapons: grenades and (later) a grenade launcher. Where are all of the cool spy weapons and gadgets? You do have some temporary power-ups like x-ray specs and shoes with springs, but these are given at very deliberate times (usually right before you need them). This really limits your strategic options and makes playing rather boring: all you need to do is lob grenades at people and move on down the level. There are a couple of alternative methods of stunning enemies without using up your ammunition that essentially entails causing them to run into things (they don’t stop moving immediately if you jump), but this is still not a substitute for more varied gameplay. Getting cash during the game (by picking up coins, bills, rings, and credit cards) has no point: you can’t purchase or otherwise unlock new weapons, and getting a high score means nothing other than simply having a high score. You can collect 100 apples for an extra life, though.



The other problem with Dirk Dashing: Secret Agent! is the lack of checkpoints: dying sends you back to the very beginning of the level. On top of this, the game does not automatically save your progress, so you have to constantly exit to the main menu and go through the save process every couple of minutes. The game also does not prompt you to load a saved game if you lose a life. At least the enemies are still sleeping when you restart through the level, otherwise you might be caught in an endless loop. The AI, I think at least partially by design, is very dumb: they move towards you in a straight line and shoot if they are equipped with a weapon. Despite this, I found Dirk Dashing: Secret Agent! to actually be quite difficult, since the enemies have weapons you could only dream of. You have to be very careful, moving to the exact distance where you can see them but they haven’t been triggered to shoot at you, and then lob a grenade. This repetitive gameplay is not exciting or original, which makes playing Dirk Dashing: Secret Agent! a drag.



IN CLOSING

Dirk Dashing: Secret Agent! is too conventional. While the game is certainly fitting for a diverse audience, the gameplay is bland enough where most people will get bored after the first couple of levels. Part of being a secret agent is having cool toys to play with, but Dirk Dashing: Secret Agent! really limits your strategic choices due to the inadequate weapons at your disposal. Add in very elementary AI and the lack of checkpoints, and there isn’t anything new or better that Dirk Dashing: Secret Agent! offers in the platform genre. At this point in computer gaming, you need to have some sort of hook that draws new players in, and Dirk Dashing: Secret Agent! certainly lacks that. People who enjoy simplistic platform games (and others who aren’t as picky as I am) will find straightforward gameplay geared towards a wide audience, but most of us can avoid this featureless title.


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Thursday, May 22, 2008

Blog 8th Birthday Celebration: Win Games!





While the games section is new to meryl.net, the original blog has been around for eight years as of June 1. meryl’s notes blog birthday celebration includes prizes and some of them are PC games! Check out the birthday celebration and how you can get entries to win prizes.






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Wednesday, May 21, 2008

PC Game Review First Class Flurry





First Class FuryWhen you play as many time management games as I have (and many more exist that I haven’t tried), you wonder if it’s possible for a developer to come up with more undiscovered surprises. First Class Flurry answers, “Yes!” And, no it’s not an Airport Mania copy.



I don’t dream of becoming a pilot or traveling the world free as a paid flight attendant. Sure, I want to see the world, but I’ll have to do it the traditional way — shell out the bucks. Nonetheless, First Class Flurry satisfies — and way more than a Snickers bar.



Like the old airline, Braniff Airways, Starlink files for bankruptcy. But wait a minute. Like Braniff (as Braniff International Airlines, Inc.), Starlink comes back to life under a new owner. Claire, the flight attendant, happens to know the right people including the owner. The owner hires Claire as the lead flight attendant to ensure passengers are as happy as larks.



Not so fast — not as easy as you might think. You deal with sick, whiny, demanding, and honeymooning passengers of all ages. In typical time management fashion, players must reach the minimum score to move on to the next level. Time management kings and queens, challenge yourself and shoot for the expert score every time.



Claire starts working on a diddly economy flight, but play well — and she can move up to business class, first class, and finally royal first class. Her job involves making meals, fetching drinks, finding lost handheld devices and diamond rings, and handing out other comforts of the plane like headphones, pillows, and sleeping masks.



Claire tracks orders, recycles the trash, and somehow has to watch for annoying kids who cry because they can’t find mommy or they want to pester other passengers. After you earn enough points, you can buy a tray to carry three items and even four. Not often a game lets you carry more than two things and I like it!



First Class FuryTravelers also come with hearts for your monitoring their happiness levels. When the levels dip below unacceptable levels, you lose points. Quickly giving them what they want will keep them smiling. You also have the opportunity to simultaneously boost everyone’s happiness by spraying air freshener — can only use once per flight.



Another way — and you’re stuck with a captain who thinks too much of himself — is to quickly serve the captain whatever he (yes, “he” while the flight attendant is a “she”– don’t blame the messenger) wants. Once he’s happy, the whole flight smiles in adoration right back at the captain. The guy has an ego, but I love my job anyway.



The flights can fly in one of four locations: North America, Asia, Europe, and Africa. Pick any to start and fly for the duration of the economy flight. Finish that and you select another spot for business class. As you travel to new locations, you’ll notice some culture in the air. Plus, learn or refresh your knowledge of flags for different countries in the flight map.



Turbulence? Of course, there’s turbulence and it interrupts your work. Forget whatever you’re doing and make a run for the phone to warn passengers of impending bumpiness. Then help the lazy ones buckle their belts and get to your seat all within seconds or else enjoy a nice headache.



The game works beautifully with the mouse and its two buttons. Right-click anytime to cancel an action. Click ahead to get Claire hopping in doing a bunch of tasks in a row. It’s a lovely thing to have almost complete control over future actions. Although, the game occasionally gets me by having a passenger cancel his order and I keep trucking along unaware.



Upgrades and tasks can make or break a game. First Class Flurry aces the test. Upgrades change the look and color of the airplane, add features and décor to relax the passengers (hint: make them happier and more patient), and speed Claire’s movements. Some upgrades come with a few color options. With each flight class, you start over on the upgrades. You may or might not be able to buy all of them before the end of the flight class — just depends on how well you play.



Way past the game’s halfway point, the game continues to surprise with new dishes and features. So the tasks don’t feel repetitive especially in food preparation. On one flight, Claire makes burgers and fries. On another, she makes salmon (takes three steps) and sandwiches (also three steps). The station locations — such as the emergency kit and the magazine rack — also change around so you can’t get comfy.



First Class FuryFirst Class Flurry is almost perfect. Its wonderful all-around production values overshadow the few scrapes. For some, the pace can get frantic a little sooner than they would like. Some dishes are hard to distinguish especially the noodle family. That nuisance goes away after a little practice. Aptly named First Class Flurry is indeed a first class game. Take off and go play it!






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Tuesday, May 20, 2008

Airport Mania: First Flight Review





Airport Mania: First Flight, developed by South Winds Games and published by Reflexive Entertainment.

The Good: Nicely balanced chaos, can queue multiple actions, customizable airport upgrades that impact gameplay

The Not So Good: Gets repetitive, can’t skip levels

What say you? The click management genre takes to the skies with good results: 6/8



MY POORLY WRITTEN INTRODUCTION

Click management games, where you use the mouse to direct a character to perform specific tasks, are fairly popular. Most of the titles in the genre revolve around food service or a similar small business. Airport Mania: First Flight takes the click management game into the world of aviation, a place historically dominated by flight simulators or realistic air traffic control reproductions. Will this new setting spice up the gameplay?



GRAPHICS AND SOUND

The animated feel of Airport Mania: First Flight shines through in the presentation. Though the graphics are relatively simplistic, as the game is rendered in 2-D and it looks like it could have been put together over a long weekend using Paint. But you don’t have to worry about any 3-D artifacts, camera angles, or confusing overlays, or high system requirements. The planes are nicely modeled: Airport Mania: First Flight is the only game that features both male and female aircraft. The various buildings around your airport are easily identifiable and large icons are displayed to show each plane’s next appropriate destination. So even though I would not call the graphics “impressive” or “groundbreaking,” they won’t destroy your computer and they don’t get in the way of the gameplay. The sound is cute: each airport has its own jaunty instrumental theme and the plane reactions are satisfyingly adorable. As far as click management games go, you could do worse than the graphics and sound of Airport Mania: First Flight.



ET AL.

Airport Mania: First Flight puts you in the role of airport manager, an abstraction of an air traffic controller, where you direct planes to land, unload and load passengers, fuel up, and get repairs. There are a lot of levels in the game, and each stage has you continually improving a single airfield. The levels unlock in a set order, so you unfortunately can’t skip ahead to the more difficult scenarios if you get bored early on. Also, the amount of new elements introduced in the game is very low: almost every structure you will need is given to you in the first stage. This means you won’t want to see what unlocks next since you’ve seen everything by the first handful of levels. There are a number of rewards to earn along the way that can be earned by keeping planes happy or using runways in quick succession. The rewards aren’t enough motivation to keep you playing, but they are a thoughtful feature.



So here’s what you do: each plane needs to land, go to a gate, and then take off. Some planes will also need repairs and fuel before loading new passengers. Orders are given by simply clicking on the plane and then the object (runway, gate, parking spot) you want it to use. This relative simplicity makes Airport Mania: First Flight easy to comprehend for all skill levels and makes the game approachable as a whole. You can queue half of the actions up in advance (before or after passenger unloading), which makes running a functional airport easier. The game will even send planes directly to a gate if it opens after you have given a landing pad order. Airport Mania: First Flight will not show the queue for planes that are not directly selected, however, so you can lose track of how many orders you have given to existing planes when the action gets hectic. Airport Mania: First Flight offers up just the right amount of controlled chaos: the first levels aren’t terribly difficult and ease you into the game, which the closing stages require a lot of managing skills. Each plane is rated according to the income you’ll receive, the number of passengers, loading and unloading speed, and their patience. Your job is to make sure all of their required tasks are completed before they get mad and fly away. You can earn score bonuses for having the same colored airplane use the same gate in a row, in addition to landing or taking-off planes on the same runway in quick succession. You will have to make key decisions on which color bonuses to sacrifice in the interest of getting all of the planes unloaded and flying again. Each individual level passes by quickly enough that Airport Mania: First Flight doesn’t drag.



The feature that keeps Airport Mania: First Flight from being just another run-of-the-mill click management game is the upgrades you can purchase. Unlike a lot of games in the genre, Airport Mania: First Flight does not predetermine which upgrades become available, so you can tailor your improvements to your gameplay style. Keep a lot of planes in the air? Get in-flight movies to keep passengers happy. Like to earn a lot of color bonuses? Purchase new gates. The most useful upgrade is the radar, which tells you the next four colors that will appear; this is great for deciding which gate color bonuses to keep and which to switch to a new color. You can also get more efficient gates, additional parking spaces, and new planes that can bring in more cash. I like to have freedom in my strategic decisions, so allowing the user to determine which upgrades to get next is a wonderful feature.



IN CLOSING

If you like click management games, then you can’t go wrong with Airport Mania: First Flight. The controls are straightforward, the actions are intuitive, and the game balance is well done. I do wish there were more objects available later in the game as the levels tend to become repetitive after a while, but the pace is quick enough where you won’t notice too much. Airport Mania: First Flight might not have the best graphics, but it does have an inviting theme. I really like the upgrades that can be added in any order: they not only impact the gameplay, but letting the user choose which ones to get makes the entire experience better. Being able to queue actions is great, and the fact that the game is smart enough to remove unnecessary queue orders when a gate opens up is fantastic. Airport Mania: First Flight will not win over anyone who doesn’t like this type of game, but it is surely good at what it does.


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Monday, May 19, 2008

Game du Jour: Week of 2008-05-19





The following games will be discounted next week on Game du Jour, the ‘one-deal-a-day’ website dedicated to indie and casual games:



Mon. May 19th: 40% off on Dream Chronicles 2



Tue. May 20th: 50% off on Mahjong Epic



Wed. May 21th: 60% off on Tale of Three Vikings



Thu. May 22th: 50% off on Runes of Avalon 2



Fri. May 23th: 50% off on Yardmaster



Sat. May 24th: 50% off on Gallop for Gold



Sun. May 25th: 50% off on Kakuro






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Saturday, May 17, 2008

Game du Jour: Week of 2008-04-28





Happy Birthday, my youngest edition.



The following games will be discounted next week on Game du Jour, the ‘one-deal-a-day’ website dedicated to indie and casual games:



Mon. Apr. 28th: 50% off on Repton 1



Tue. Apr. 29th: 50% off on Pipeline Plus



Wed. Apr. 30th: 50% off on Repton 2



Thu. May 1st: 50% off on Ravenskull



Fri. May 2nd: 50% off on Galaforce Worlds



Sat. May 3rd: 50% off on Solid Spheres Deluxe



Sun. May 4th: 40% off on Tumblebugs 2






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Game du Jour: Week of 2008-05-05





Build-a-lot 2: Town of the Year already available at a discount! The following games will be discounted this week on Game du Jour, the ‘one-deal-a-day’ website dedicated to indie and casual games:



Mon. May 5th: 60% off on The Butler Did It!



Tue. May 6th: 40% off on Build-a-lot 2: Town of the Year



Wed. May 7th: 60% off on SnakeTris



Thu. May 8th: 60% off on Frutti Freak



Fri. May 9th: 50% off on 5 Star Mahjongg



Sat. May 10th: 50% off on First Star Software’s Greatest Hits



Sun. May 11th: 50% off on Towers







Pocket PC Magazine Accepting Nominations for 2008





2008_boardofexperts.gifIt’s already time to start recognizing the best software for Windows Mobile devices and smartphones running Windows Mobile. If you know of a product that deserves a nomination, go to the nomination form or check out the awards page, which contains 2007 winners and questions with their answers.







Grand Theft Auto IV Release Worries Hollywood





A game… worrying the movie makers? According to canada.com, Hollywood needs to keep an eye on this game’s mega release. I just don’t see gamers giving up movie watching because of a game no matter how popular it is.



Gamers have games they captivate them, but they still do their regular activities. Those who already spend hours gaming gave up on movies long ago.






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40% off Games in Honor of Great Moms





Big Fish Games offers a 40% off coupon any game in honor of Mother’s Day. But you can buy a game for yourself or anyone. Steps:




  1. Explore Big Fish Games.


  2. Find and try games until you find the perfect match.


  3. Click “Buy.”


  4. Enter mothersday in the code box.



The coupon is good until May 16. If you’re struggling to find the right gift for Mom — you still have time and you don’t have to mail anything.



Recommendations for Mom:




  • Enigma


  • Build-a-Lot 2


  • Build-a-Lot


  • Chocolatier 2: Chocolate without the guilt


  • Dream Chronicles 1


  • Dream Chronicles 2


  • Dream Day series







Study Shows Casual Games Relieve Stress and Improve Mood





I don’t need a study to tell me that playing casual games helps relieve stress and improve my mood. When the writing muse stays away or my spirits drop, I play a game I need to review. Almost every time (don’t like to use 100%), I feel better after a few rounds of a casual game.



See the results of the study and the Popcap Games press release.







PC Game Review Natalie Brooks - Secrets of Treasure House





Natalie Brooks Secrets of Treasure HouseI love games where they make me feel part of the story by letting me interact with the scene and its objects. Such stories contain puzzles where anything goes and you find them in Azada, Dream Chronicles, and Mortimer Beckett and the Secrets of Spooky Manor. Artfully illustrated Natalie Brooks - Secrets of Treasure House comes with a game full of puzzles for solving and a few hidden object scenes.



As Natalie Brooks, players inherit her grandmother’s house only to find that the city plans to move or destroy the house to make room for its new road. Natalie starts a petition to help keep her grandmother’s house where it belongs and discovers the house has secrets of its own as well as some of the city’s citizens. Natalie learns she can trust no one.



Natalie’s story appears in comic strip format between scenes and in her conversations with people she meets in her unexpected adventure. The story captivates, but typos and imperfect grammar detract from the story at times.



Players need to pick up objects to add them to the inventory. These objects work together or with items in the scene to solve a puzzle whether it’s to open a safe or build something. Natalie also keeps notes in her notebook, but they don’t come in handy.



While the playing beguiles for a few hours — two sittings at most — the game has serious flaws. It feels like the developers wanted to make a deadline regardless if the game is complete. Solving the puzzles to make something happen almost satisfies though the story and some of the game don’t come together.



Natalie Brooks Secrets of Treasure HouseFor example, scattered postcard pieces appear throughout the game. Nothing comes of them. Natalie Brooks - Secrets of Treasure House ends without a reference to those postcards. What’s the point? To offer a mini-game without purpose? No, it needs to have a purpose. Another time, I copy down a series of numbers for later use. The code never has relevance.



The incomplete postcard mini-game is one of many issues that caused the game to surprise me with its abrupt ending. It reminds me of Lost— more questions than answers, but everything in the TV show has a purpose (supposedly).



Natalie comments on things players click. That’s another annoyance - the first time she tells us, it’s fine. But she repeats it every time we click near the item in trying to find nearby things. I understand people miss the commentary on the first click and want to see it again. There has to be a more effective way to do this. Funny, I miss a few comments (because I accidentally clicked the screen to make it go away) and couldn’t bring the game to repeat itself.



Natalie Brooks - Secrets of Treasure Houseincludes a few scenes that let you find hidden objects to gain bonus hints. These scenes appear in the first half of the game only to never be seen again. This makes the game feel uneven. The hidden object scenes should show up evenly throughout the game.



Some scenes come with a mini-game. For instance, one calls for a slingshot where you need to make all the circles light up to open the cage. I find the slingshot and look for something to use with the slingshot until my eyes hurt.



Stupid me. I click the slingshot and the target — the game automatically gives me what I need to shoot at the target. Yet in other similar games, I collect the “bullets” myself. So inconsistency is another problem.



Natalie Brooks Secrets of Treasure HouseSome scenes and puzzles are easy while a couple of them trick me. I think experienced gamers might call this one easy, but I’m glad I played the game despite its incompleteness.



Games in this genre tend to run short because of the work that goes in creating original puzzles as opposed to repetitive puzzles (hidden objects, match three, etc.). Natalie Brooks - Secrets of Treasure Houseisn’t the shortest, but it could stand a little more game play.



The “little faster than classical” and “slower than rock” sound fits the game’s atmosphere. It isn’t my favorite, but that’s a personal opinion and not a judgment of the sound quality. The attractive illustration engages and wows.



Flaws aside, Natalie Brooks - Secrets of Treasure Housedoesn’t feel like a waste of time. Its blending of wonderful art and a variety of puzzles prove entertaining.



Try Natalie Brooks - Secrets of Treasure House.






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Wedding Dash 2: Rings Around the World Released





Wedding Dash 2Quinn is back on a new whirlwind adventure, joined by Flo and Joe Wright, wedding photographer. Help Quinn become the world’s top wedding planner in this hilarious sequel to the hit game Wedding Dash. Visit beautiful, exotic locations while managing new guests, fulfilling bride and groom requests, and tackling comedic disasters. Do you have what it takes to help Quinn win the honor of planning the most exclusive wedding of the year?




  • 2 modes: Story and Endless Game


  • 50 new levels of riotous game play


  • Bridezilla now joined by the all-new Groom-Kong



Download and try Wedding Dash 2: Ring Around the World free.



Read the review of the original Wedding Dash.







PC Game Review Supermarket Mania





Supermarket ManiaWith the price of groceries going up by the minute, Supermarket Mania offers a great deal in keeping you busy for hours avoiding a trip to the grocery store. Like the coffee shop on every corner, Torg has supermarkets all over town giving Nikki little choice but to go work there as a stocker.



Nikki doesn’t like the looks of Torg when scary-looking robots greet her on her first day of work. After four days of excellent work, Mr. Torg fires her and her cashier friend. He activates the robots to run his stores. The girls find a better place in a run down pop store (well, there’s no mom as far as we can see) run by Mr. Clarence. He trusts the girls to run the store alone.



The girls deal with different types of customers who have different styles of shopping. Granny takes her time and has plenty of patience while teens have zero patience and move quickly. Kids tear up the place until you have your security guard friend, Mr. Barefist (I wonder how they came up with that), blow the whistle to stop their antics. Barefist also comes in handy in stopping brazen thieves.



You have two ways to catch a thief. Notify Barefist while the thief has a circle over his head to stop the thief who moves on to the next attempt or leaves the store. Or be patient and let the circle over the thief’s head fill and shake — alert Barefist at that time and you earn a cash bonus. However, the shaky thing doesn’t happen every time so waiting for a full circle could lead to thief getting away with … well, theft.



Supermarket ManiaUpgrades are present ranging from better products that sell for more money and a gumball machine for more tips to a faster loading stockroom and the most expensive one, a bigger cart. As you advance levels more upgrades show up to help keep customer patience from spiraling when so many require your time in stocking the shelves.



Occasionally, a celebrity shops at the store catching the attention of all shoppers who stand by snapping pictures. While the celeb works around the store, Nikki must keep shelves stocked for celebrities as they don’t wait long. Another unique feature in Supermarket Mania is Super Shop. Click the thumbs up symbol at the right time (when you have as many shoppers as possible and as few thieves as possible) so that everyone buys a bunch at once. This drives up sales and Nikki’s carting work as she races around refilling the fast emptying shelves.



The action spreads across five shopping stores including Torg’s for 50 levels. That’s right, Mr. Clarence somehow comes up with the cash for more stores. Nothing illegal mind you. He’s good people.



The game lasts a couple of sittings and gets nutty at times. I’ve yet to beat a Diner Dash(but I made it through Wedding Dash), and I finished Supermarket Mania. It meant repeating a few levels, but all in a game reviewer’s work. So I think the difficulty is on target for the average casual gamer.



Animation and cartoon-style graphics are bright and attractive. The music upbeat with good effects. Decent variety of upgrades and a nice even pace. Animation and cartoon-style graphics are bright and attractive. The music upbeat with good effects. Decent variety of upgrades and a nice even pace.



Supermarket ManiaSupermarket Mania probably falls in the middle of the time management games. Far better than those at the bottom, but not quite as good the best. You’ll spend less money on the game than in a five minute trip to the grocery store and have loads more fun.







Game du Jour: Week of 2008-05-12





The following games will be discounted next week on Game du Jour, the ‘one-deal-a-day’ web site dedicated to indie and casual games:



Mon. May 12th: 50% off on Pick11



Tue. May 13th: 65% off on Brainiversity



Wed. May 14th: 40% off on Pet Shop Hop



Thu. May 15th: 50% off on Solitaire Epic



Fri. May 16th: 70% off on Snakylines



Sat. May 17th: 50% off on CrazyTrain



Sun. May 18th: 50% off on Mahjong Epic






1:00 PM 0 comments
Friday, May 16, 2008

Galactic Civilizations II: Twilight of the Arnor Review





Galactic Civilizations II: Twilight of the Arnor, developed and published by Stardock Entertainment.

The Good: Unique technology trees and buildings for each race, four game editors, automated custom ship design, more detailed graphics with better performance, insanely large galaxies, new campaign, improved AI, new music, a bunch of smaller stuff

The Not So Good: AI hates people going for an ascension victory too much

What say you? The swan song for Galactic Civilizations II is an excellent, feature-filled expansion that delivers more than most full-priced sequels: 8/8



MY POORLY WRITTEN INTRODUCTION

Turn-based strategy games have a small, dedicated, rabid following on the PC. This goes for a number of other genres (racing and flight simulators, to name a few) as well, so while they might not have the sales figures that the carbon-copied, rehashed console games designed for 10-year-olds do, they are still popular if you ask the right people. A good example of a company that caters to this crowd is Stardock Entertainment. Their recently-released real-time strategy game Sins of a Solar Empire has overshadowed their strategy series that was first, Galactic Civilizations. The second and final expansion has been released for the sequel, titled Twilight of the Arnor, and it hopes to further enhance an excellent turn-based 4X experience. Does Twilight of the Arnor prove to be a fine twilight for Galactic Civilizations II?



GRAPHICS AND SOUND

Galactic Civilizations II: Twilight of the Arnor makes some slight improvements to the overall presentation. First, the default ship designs have been overhauled and include more detailed textures and animated parts for a more immersive feel. The game actually performs slightly better as the developers have altered the way textures are stored so the game uses less memory than before, so it has that going for it. Battles also have better weapon effects for more space-based destruction. I play from the zoomed-out icon view for the most part so I didn’t notice the enhancements for the most part, but people who like their strategy up close and person will be pleased with the upgrades made here. The sound has also been enhanced with some new songs that fit the game well; more variety is always better. You can’t ask for much more improvement in the graphics and sound of an expansion pack than what Galactic Civilizations II: Twilight of the Arnor delivers.



ET AL.

Since Galactic Civilizations II: Twilight of the Arnor is an expansion pack, this review will focus on the improvements made since the last time. First off, we get a new campaign. Now, I’m not the biggest fan of campaigns (the fact that Sins of a Solar Empire lacked one didn’t phase me) and the one contained in Galactic Civilizations II: Twilight of the Arnor is similar to the ones in past versions of the game: a series of skirmish levels with non-random galaxies and some text story to tie the mission together. It’s not the most intriguing campaign seen in a strategy game, but the additional content is nice. I like the fact that the campaign starts out relatively easy as the game does not assume you have completed the previous two campaigns. New to the series is the suite of editors that allow you to change pretty much everything in the game. Although some level of customization was present before (in the form of custom races), Galactic Civilizations II: Twilight of the Arnor lets you make your own maps, scenarios, technology trees, and planetary improvements. You can imagine that it won’t be long before mods that mirror notable science fiction series start to appear. Letting the user completely customize their gaming experience is great for longevity and the editors are a find addition. You can also use the new extremely large galaxy size “immense” (possible because of the performance increases) and play others in tournaments through the metaverse (the online scoreboard).



The biggest addition made in Galactic Civilizations II: Twilight of the Arnor is the unique technology trees. Before, the various civilizations were different only in morality (good versus evil) and color: everybody had the same ships, buildings, and research paths. While this made it easy to new players to transition from one race to another, the game tended to get repetitive after a while as the same strategy would work for all races. Now, every race (all twelve of them) has a drastically different technology tree that mirrors their overall theme. For example, the evil Drengin have an emphasis on weapons while the Thalan has a drastically reduced tech tree because they came from the future and thus know a lot already. Each race does share a lot of the basic techs, but you will find plenty of unique technologies for every civilization to take advantage of. This helps the game immensely as each side has a unique strategy. Included with these technology trees is unique buildings for each race, from the basic structures that are available when you start to more powerful versions further down the line. This addition is very awesome and well-done, providing twelve different ways of approaching the same game.



In addition to the standard array of victory conditions (research, alliance, influence) from previous games, Galactic Civilizations II: Twilight of the Arnor adds ascension. Here, you need to place starbases (using constructors) on several ascension crystals scattered around the map. Once you place one starbase, you are 1,000 turns away from victory and each additional ascension crystal cuts the time remaining in half. This is the worst aspect of Galactic Civilizations II: Twilight of the Arnor. You will probably reach one of the other victory conditions first (I almost always get an alliance victory first…I guess I am friendly) and all the ascension victory does is get everyone mad at you. Even if you are 800 turns away from victory, all of the AI players will hate you and relationships will deteriorate quickly. The AI puts way too much importance on an ascension victory, to the point where capturing two crystals is suicide. I don’t mind the other players ganging up on someone when 100 turns are left before the end, but the instant you have the most crystals (no matter how many turns are left), you had better be ready to take on everyone else as an enemy.



The ship designer is a big part of Galactic Civilizations II, as you need to incorporate newly-researched items into your designs to make your fleet as effective as possible. But wouldn’t it be nice if the computer did it for you automatically? Twilight of the Arnor does! Computer-designed ships are automatically created using the best weapons available, and they do a pretty good job incorporated the latest developments, even using incremental upgrades along the way. The computer designs don’t serve up the best variety (I’d like an all-offense, all-defense, and average design) and basic ships (freighters, colony ships, constructors) are never improved, but they are a good starting point for beginners. Speaking of ships, Twilight of the Arnor also includes the “terror star,” a slow-moving spherical monstrosity capable of destroying an entire system (I wonder where they got that idea from). Galactic Civilizations II: Twilight of the Arnor has smarter AI (yeah, like the computer opponents needed to become even more difficult) that will make you weep. Also, the budgetary requirements for colony improvements and ship maintenance have been drastically increased, making it much more difficult for smaller empires to afford a large military and lots of buildings. If you are preparing for a fight, you had better have a robust economy that can afford the increased ship count. Since you can very easily out-produce your income with ships, I’ve had to be much more careful with my money in Twilight of the Arnor than with previous versions, where balancing the budget or earning a hefty monthly profit was relatively easy. This means that small empires won’t get completely steamrolled and spies (they disable buildings) are even more important.



IN CLOSING

Simply put, if you have any version of Galactic Civilizations II (and even if you don’t), you need Twilight of the Arnor. The additions made here are far beyond what we see in most expansion packs, and the amount of content is more like a sequel. The unique technology trees alone would justify purchasing this game, as they add varied strategies for each race and increase replay value dramatically. But there is even more new content in Twilight of the Arnor: more detailed graphics and additional music, even better AI, and new game editors, just to name a few. There is really only one thing I hate (the ascension victory condition) and that’s because the AI overreacts to the side closest to victory, even if they are hundreds of turns away. But since you can turn ascension victory off, this is really a non-issue. The turn-based nature of Galactic Civilizations II: Twilight of the Arnor lets you experience the game at your own pace and the experience never drags since you can quickly skip through the boring parts, something that can’t be said for the first half-hour of Sins of a Solar Empire. As a whole, I like Galactic Civilizations II more, and it’s the best 4X strategy game available. If you have the original Dread Lords or the first expansion Dark Avatar, then Twilight of the Arnor is definitely worth it. If you are new to the franchise and enjoy 4X games like the aforementioned Sins of a Solar Empire but want more varied options, then getting the entire collection for $60 is a bargain considering the amount of replay value and content contained herein. Galactic Civilizations II: Twilight of the Arnor puts all of those repetitive sports franchises to shame with the amount of new, meaningful improvements it has. More than just a handful of new maps and a couple of new units, this is how expansion packs should be.


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Thursday, May 15, 2008

PC Game Review Dream Chronicles 2: The Eternal Maze





Dream Chronicles 2Casual gamers who enjoyed blockbuster Dream Chronicles will be excited to see the Faye returns for another adventure. In the previous episode, Faye went on a quest to find her husband, Fidget. She reached him only to find the sneaky Liliith, Fairy Queen of Dreams, take him away again. To find her husband, Faye must go deeper in the dream realm in Dream Chronicles 2: The Eternal Maze.



Dream Chronicles 2 follows its predecessor’s footsteps with its phenomenal art nouveau scenes, graphics, and effects. Players again fill in Faye’s shoes to find Fidget and their daughter Lyra. But like any good soap opera, we won’t find all the answers in this latest episode and must wait for another. Nonetheless, solving puzzles, picking up dream jewels, and collecting clear and hard to see dream pieces will entertain and challenge.



When the dream pieces fill a dream jewel (you must find the jewel first), players must solve another puzzle before receiving a clue to help them in their adventures. This puzzle consists of words that form a sentence.



Dream Chronicles 2We must figure out the order of the words to create the correct sentence. Here we discover one of the annoyances with the game. We can’t backtrack or swap words whenever we mess up or change our minds. So reset we must hit and start over. 15 dream jewels will dutifully reveal their secrets after we solve their puzzles. Some of the dream jewel clues do come in handy.



The best part — the 80 assorted puzzles — comes between finding jewels. These puzzles can spread over several scenes requiring us to move back and forth. Some needed items won’t appear until we first finish another task. The game lets players move freely instead of sequentially. Sure, you won’t be able to go certain areas until you solve a puzzle — but some adventure games don’t venture beyond a set sequence.



Oh, how the puzzles vary! A few puzzles call for putting something back together to make it work (my favorite type). Another has us matching musical instruments with their sheet music. My least favorite is the Simon-like game where the game plays a sequence and you must repeat it. Never like that kind of game, but I get through it.



Dream Chronicles 2 treats us to 25 chapters, seven over the original’s 18 chapters. Though the game lasts longer, it’s shorter (it took me less than eight hours) than the average game in its genre except for Mortimer Beckett and the Secrets of Spooky Manor— the shortest of ‘em all.



Dream Chronicles 2Even if you haven’t played the original, you should be able to play Dream Chronicles 2 without confusion since the story stands alone. Although, the game tells a stronger story than stories found in most casual games, the original Dream Chronicles spins a more compelling story. I’m ready for Dream Chronicles 3— will it stop there? Will it continue? To be continued…



Try Dream Chronicles 2.






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Pocket PC Magazine Accepting Nominations for 2008





2008_boardofexperts.gifIt’s already time to start recognizing the best software for Windows Mobile devices and smartphones running Windows Mobile. If you know of a product that deserves a nomination, go to the nomination form or check out the awards page, which contains 2007 winners and questions with their answers.







Grand Theft Auto IV Release Worries Hollywood





A game… worrying the movie makers? According to canada.com, Hollywood needs to keep an eye on this game’s mega release. I just don’t see gamers giving up movie watching because of a game no matter how popular it is.



Gamers have games they captivate them, but they still do their regular activities. Those who already spend hours gaming gave up on movies long ago.







Game du Jour: Week of 2008-04-28





Happy Birthday, my youngest edition.



The following games will be discounted next week on Game du Jour, the ‘one-deal-a-day’ website dedicated to indie and casual games:



Mon. Apr. 28th: 50% off on Repton 1



Tue. Apr. 29th: 50% off on Pipeline Plus



Wed. Apr. 30th: 50% off on Repton 2



Thu. May 1st: 50% off on Ravenskull



Fri. May 2nd: 50% off on Galaforce Worlds



Sat. May 3rd: 50% off on Solid Spheres Deluxe



Sun. May 4th: 40% off on Tumblebugs 2






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Study Shows Casual Games Relieve Stress and Improve Mood





I don’t need a study to tell me that playing casual games helps relieve stress and improve my mood. When the writing muse stays away or my spirits drop, I play a game I need to review. Almost every time (don’t like to use 100%), I feel better after a few rounds of a casual game.



See the results of the study and the Popcap Games press release.







PC Game Review Natalie Brooks - Secrets of Treasure House





Natalie Brooks Secrets of Treasure HouseI love games where they make me feel part of the story by letting me interact with the scene and its objects. Such stories contain puzzles where anything goes and you find them in Azada, Dream Chronicles, and Mortimer Beckett and the Secrets of Spooky Manor. Artfully illustrated Natalie Brooks - Secrets of Treasure House comes with a game full of puzzles for solving and a few hidden object scenes.



As Natalie Brooks, players inherit her grandmother’s house only to find that the city plans to move or destroy the house to make room for its new road. Natalie starts a petition to help keep her grandmother’s house where it belongs and discovers the house has secrets of its own as well as some of the city’s citizens. Natalie learns she can trust no one.



Natalie’s story appears in comic strip format between scenes and in her conversations with people she meets in her unexpected adventure. The story captivates, but typos and imperfect grammar detract from the story at times.



Players need to pick up objects to add them to the inventory. These objects work together or with items in the scene to solve a puzzle whether it’s to open a safe or build something. Natalie also keeps notes in her notebook, but they don’t come in handy.



While the playing beguiles for a few hours — two sittings at most — the game has serious flaws. It feels like the developers wanted to make a deadline regardless if the game is complete. Solving the puzzles to make something happen almost satisfies though the story and some of the game don’t come together.



Natalie Brooks Secrets of Treasure HouseFor example, scattered postcard pieces appear throughout the game. Nothing comes of them. Natalie Brooks - Secrets of Treasure House ends without a reference to those postcards. What’s the point? To offer a mini-game without purpose? No, it needs to have a purpose. Another time, I copy down a series of numbers for later use. The code never has relevance.



The incomplete postcard mini-game is one of many issues that caused the game to surprise me with its abrupt ending. It reminds me of Lost— more questions than answers, but everything in the TV show has a purpose (supposedly).



Natalie comments on things players click. That’s another annoyance - the first time she tells us, it’s fine. But she repeats it every time we click near the item in trying to find nearby things. I understand people miss the commentary on the first click and want to see it again. There has to be a more effective way to do this. Funny, I miss a few comments (because I accidentally clicked the screen to make it go away) and couldn’t bring the game to repeat itself.



Natalie Brooks - Secrets of Treasure Houseincludes a few scenes that let you find hidden objects to gain bonus hints. These scenes appear in the first half of the game only to never be seen again. This makes the game feel uneven. The hidden object scenes should show up evenly throughout the game.



Some scenes come with a mini-game. For instance, one calls for a slingshot where you need to make all the circles light up to open the cage. I find the slingshot and look for something to use with the slingshot until my eyes hurt.



Stupid me. I click the slingshot and the target — the game automatically gives me what I need to shoot at the target. Yet in other similar games, I collect the “bullets” myself. So inconsistency is another problem.



Natalie Brooks Secrets of Treasure HouseSome scenes and puzzles are easy while a couple of them trick me. I think experienced gamers might call this one easy, but I’m glad I played the game despite its incompleteness.



Games in this genre tend to run short because of the work that goes in creating original puzzles as opposed to repetitive puzzles (hidden objects, match three, etc.). Natalie Brooks - Secrets of Treasure Houseisn’t the shortest, but it could stand a little more game play.



The “little faster than classical” and “slower than rock” sound fits the game’s atmosphere. It isn’t my favorite, but that’s a personal opinion and not a judgment of the sound quality. The attractive illustration engages and wows.



Flaws aside, Natalie Brooks - Secrets of Treasure Housedoesn’t feel like a waste of time. Its blending of wonderful art and a variety of puzzles prove entertaining.



Try Natalie Brooks - Secrets of Treasure House.







Game du Jour: Week of 2008-05-05





Build-a-lot 2: Town of the Year already available at a discount! The following games will be discounted this week on Game du Jour, the ‘one-deal-a-day’ website dedicated to indie and casual games:



Mon. May 5th: 60% off on The Butler Did It!



Tue. May 6th: 40% off on Build-a-lot 2: Town of the Year



Wed. May 7th: 60% off on SnakeTris



Thu. May 8th: 60% off on Frutti Freak



Fri. May 9th: 50% off on 5 Star Mahjongg



Sat. May 10th: 50% off on First Star Software’s Greatest Hits



Sun. May 11th: 50% off on Towers






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