Dec 10, 2010

Review: Restaurant Rush


Type: Match 3
Platform: PC
Price: USD 6.99 from Big Fish Games

After gaining success in cooking burgers, Heidi want to open a cooking school. But to do that, she will have to prove that she can also cook other cuisines besides burgers.

Gameplay
You serve dishes by matching the ingredients on the board. Each dish needs different types and different amount of ingredients. Once you've cooked a dish, you have to serve it to the customers and collect the money. The faster you serve a dish, the more money you make. You can also add a soup or drink to the dish for more money. If you serve a few customers at the same time, you will get a chain bonus which means more money.


Every once in a while, you will get a chance to enter a cooking competition. In the competition, you have to serve dishes a few times before the end of the timer.

After each level, you can choose to buy upgrades with the money you have earned. You can buy recipes for new dishes, new music or better ingredients. The pricer dishes will need more ingredients to complete but they also earn you more money while improving the quality of ingredients will earn you more money when you serve a dish that uses the improved ingredient.


Thoughts
This is a fast paced game that's really fun. The tutorial does a good job of of teaching me about the game. It's fun to see all sorts of wacky characters come to the restaurant. There's also lots of sound effects in the game which not only makes it fun but it also helps me in playing the game. I can depend on the audio cues to know when the dish is ready to serve. I also like that there are many different types of upgrade options for me to choose.

Verdict ★★★★★
Store page

Dec 7, 2010

Review: Jane's Hotel Mania


Type: Time Management
Platform: PC
Price: USD 6.99 from Big Fish Games

Jane asked her niece, Jenny, to help manage her hotels.

Gameplay
You started will four rooms which you can upgrade later on in the game. As you progress in the game, you will get more facilities at the hotel. Besides Jenny, there is also a chambermaid and a porter to ensure that the hotel run smoothly. Different types of  guests will come to your hotel and request for a room. They will also make demands like getting their room cleaned or having the fireplace lit up. There is a time limit to fulfill the guests' demands and taking too long to complete it will result in no tips. If you ran out of time, it will cause the guest to lose some happiness. Depending on the type of task that was requested, you may have to call the chambermaid or the porter to complete it.


Thoughts
Despite this being a Jane's Hotel series game, Jane actually appears very little in game and the show is run by Jenny instead. I feel Jane's Hotel Mania is a friendly game for people who are new to time management games. The difficulty curve is very gentle and it is pretty relaxing to play. As the facilities increases, there are more requests to handle but it doesn't get to the point of being overwhelming. Loading times can be a little long and each level may take 15 seconds or more to load.

Verdict ★★★★
Store page

Dec 5, 2010

Review: Time to Hurry: Nicole's Story


Type: Hidden Object
Platform: PC
Price: USD 6.99 from Big Fish Games

Follow Nicole as she tries to find her dream job.

Gameplay
Customers to your shop will give a list of the items they want. To serve them, you have to find the items scattered around the shop. Each customers will ask for 3-4 items and while you are serving one customer, the requests of the other customers are hidden. Sometimes you will get VIP customers and if you serve them quickly, you will get a bonus. After each level, you can play a mini game and upgrade Nicole. To upgrade Nicole, you can choose from four activities, each improving one aspect. The activity will require you to purchase 1-2 items with the money you have earned.

You start with a bare room which will get filled up with medals and items purchased

Thoughts
The game is pretty challenging. The items change places in each level and more and more items get added to the shop. I find that I have to be accurate in where I click, even a little bit off the mark is not acceptable. This can be difficult when the items are small or long and thin.

Before the start of each level, I am shown pictures of a few items so you can identify them by name. It's a good idea but I wonder at the usefulness because sometimes items from previous levels are shown and by then I already know their names. It would be more useful if it shows newly added items.

The mini games are quite fun and there is a variety of them so it doesn't get boring.

Verdict ★★★
Store page

Dec 2, 2010

Review: Season Match: Curse of the Witch Crow


Type: Match 3, Hidden Object
Platform: PC
Price: USD 6.99 from Big Fish Games

The months have been captured by the evil Witch Crow to stop the coming of the new year. It is up to you to free them so spring can arrive.

Gameplay
The aim of the match 3 games are often to break the big block of ice at the bottom of the screen. To get to the ice, you have to break other barriers around it. Depending on the stage, you may or may not need to break all the barriers. Each month that you have rescued will have their own unique powers up to help you in the game. You will also play a mini hidden object game where you have to find a number of a certain object hidden in the picture.


Thoughts
Playing the match 3 games is fun. It is satisfying to set off the power ups and see them blast, destroy or blow away the gems. The hidden object game is easy and I do not have problems with it. While this is a pretty good match 3 game, what I like most about it is the artwork. The months are pretty funky dressers and I like looking at the surreal backgrounds.

Verdict ★★★★★
Store page
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