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Showing posts with label time management. Show all posts
Showing posts with label time management. Show all posts
Tuesday, October 28, 2008
Parking Dash
Parking Dash, a new time management game from PlayFirst, the makers of Diner Dash, Flo on the Go, and Cooking Dash, is a fun and enjoyable game.You're Karma, a friend of Flo (famous heroine of the Diner Dash and Cooking Dash series), who inherits a parking lot (luckily) behind Flo's Diner. Flo encourages your entrepreneurial skills and to run a valet service instead of selling the lot.
There are some interesting twists to the time management aspect. As each customer appears, a timer is over their head. This lets you know how long they want to park. Since some spaces can blocked in, it's important to strategically place the cars that will be there the longest in those spots (and then to remember which ones will be there the longest!) Karma must keep the customers happy by picking up and delivering the car on time as well as managing the parking lot space limitations.
Play style is different from many of the dash games - more on that in a tip post to follow. There are bonuses to placing the same color car on a similar colored spot (just like sitting diners in the same color of chair). The cast of characters is the same from the dash games and have the same sort of temperaments. The businesswomen are still the most impatient. As the game progresses, there are upgrades that help improve the appearance of the lot, increasing either tip or patience level. I thought it was pretty funny to have a donut upgrade to help improve driver patience. Bonus points are scored by performing a series of events (parking cars, delivering cars, washing cars). The happiness of the customer is designated by their face. Big grin: happy. Small smile: content. Unhappy: red. Upgrades are choices at the beginning of levels and do not have to be purchased.
Graphics are very similar to other Dash games. I did love how the "bug" style cars have a little purple heart on top.
There is a radio station that plays music and you can change the channels a la Grand Theft Auto. This has no bearing on the satisfaction of the customers, but is a welcome addition to listening to the same music over and over. It does add a boost of speed for Karma, and can add to the hectic pace of some of the later levels.
What they did well: As in many of the Dash games, you get to see familiar faces - like Flo and Quinn (from Wedding Dash). The puzzle piece of placing the cars in a way that is accessible is a nice and different twist on time management games. Again, having the radio station dials is also an improvement over the same music.
What could have been better: The upgrades were not very compelling, and there weren't achievements to unlock. Not having hearts to show the happiness of the customers is such a different take for the Dash games, I found it a little difficult to know when a customer was just content vs bordering on angry. Sometimes the only "hint" was the sound of tires peeling out of the lot and then the -100 flashing on the screen.
It is a challenging time management game that both new players and veteran “Dash” fans will enjoy.
Recommended for: kids, fans of the Dash series or time management games
Friday, October 17, 2008
Cake Shop
Cake Shop, a time management game from Elefun. You are Emily, a recent college graduate. An underwhelming cover letter lands you a job managing a cafe.Customers come in and their menu choices are displayed in a chat bubble. You'll prepare a layer cake, with one of three cakes, a filling (jelly?!), and another cake on top. Depending on your upgrades available in the shop, they may also order something else. Left-clicking on the item selects it; right clicking sends it to the customer. You can also click on the customer to send the item to them. Each customer starts out with a smiley face surrounded by a green timer. As they wait, the timer ticks away. Once the timer makes a round, the tip level decreases.
Each level is about 2 minutes.
Upgrades, called "fittings" are unlocked by a combination of available money and amount of tips earned. Upgrades include a coffee and a cappuccino machine; a cotton candy machine; three soda machines (cola, orange, and fresh, whatever the heck that flavor is - Fresca, perhaps?); three ice creams: strawberry, chocolate, and vanilla; two popcorns: sweet and salty; and three creams: peach, forest fruit (again, any idea what flavor that is?), and chocolate. The player must balance spending money for the fittings and towards building a house. As Emily gets depressed, building the house pumps up her attitude. The better her attitude, the more patience the customers have.
The trick is to make sure you keep all the upgrades filled.
What they did well: Towards the end, it did get difficult to manage all of the upgrades. Having the house building impact her attitude was a different and interesting take. It was easy to see the patience level of the customer and how much time you had left to serve them to get the best tip.
What could've been better: Overlooking the weak story design (why would a college graduate fly somewhere to manage a cake shop?) and weird character movements (really, just drag the image across a screen and have her flip her hand out for a taxi), Cake Shop was mostly just a time-waster. I didn't get any rewards out of playing it. Graphics were very low end and the music was repetitive. Speaking of repetitive, how about having to click through the same dialogue any time I wanted build something on the house? Additionally, it would make more sense for her attitude to make her a slower waitress, rather than affecting the patience levels of the customer. I encountered a pretty major bug when deleting a name. The screen and computer freeze. Behind the full-screen game is a Windows text box, asking if I am sure I want to delete that file. Once you click OK, you can go back to the game or close the game.
Overall, if this had been designed by a set of first year game students, it would be passable. Since it's not, I'd only recommend it for kids, who might not notice all the glaring issues.
Saturday, October 11, 2008
Diner Dash: Seasonal Snack pack
Diner Dash: Seasonal Snack Pack is another in the very popular time management Diner Dash series brought to us by PlayFirst games. Try them all for free at Big Fish Games:Diner Dash
Diner Dash Flo on the Go
Diner Dash Flo on the Go
They even created a version for kids:
SpongeBob SquarePants Diner Dash
Diner Dash: Seasonal Snack Pack is not for the faint of heart, and not for people who are new to the Diner Dash series: it gets up and running very quickly!
The player joins Flo and her Grandma for fun and excitement waiting tables at 5 new restaurants: it starts out at Coral Cover Cafe Waterpark (summer). All of the customers from previous Diner Dash games make an appearance, with all of their little peculiarities. The businesswomen like to be served fast. They don't like noise. Bookworms are slow to order and eat, and have more patience, but they don't like noise. Cell phone guys don't mind noise, and they are also impatient. Families don't mind noise and are moderately patient. The girls don't like noise and are moderately patient. Tourists like to be served quickly once seated, and often want you to stop and take their picture. (I still hate that breaking my chains!) Fitness ladies don't mind noise and are moderately impatient. They rarely order dessert. Lovebirds are patient, don't mind noise, but their kissing annoys tourists, bookworms, cell phone guys, and the girls.
Points are gained for chaining together actions: taking orders, delivering food, picking up the checks, clearing the tables, delivering "extras" such as appetizers and desserts. The level of patience left is shown by the number of hearts under each table. Quick service earns hearts.
There are bonus items, which include drinks (serve to tables to improve their patience/hearts), a podium (talk to people while they are waiting to improve patience), flowerpots for a bonus when seating tables, and appetizers and desserts. Each person in the dining party has a specific color - that color can also earn a bonus, if you seat them in a matching same color seat. This is, as always, one of the best ways to earn points and gain expert level.
The story continues to four other restaurants (and 3 other seasons): the Crypt Cafe, Hometown Harvest, Winter Wonderland, and Romantic Rendezvous. (Don't you know Cookie would love it there.)
Unlike the other Diner Dash games, which gradually introduces characters, colors, and bonus items, the first two levels have the drink bonus, flowerpot bonus, and podium available. The customers and colors are varied. In level 3, the snack station is opened up. Level 4 gives desserts. By level 6, all of the customers are unlocked and so are the purple colored customers. It's quite a challenge!
As an FYI, when playing against a waiter/waitress to earn more points than they do, the biggest points are earned by seating groups (matching customer color to the seat, of course) and taking the check. Use these to your advantage. You also can get a bonus if you seat people at a table where you've placed a flowerpot...but be quick because the rival waiter/waitress will get the bonus if they seat people there!
What they did well:
The graphics are improved, and it combines all elements from the previous games. The story line is fun, and it is a challenge even for veteran Diner Dash players. The competition levels where you have to earn a certain number of points more than the other waiter/waitress are a lot of fun. It was fun to see all the different customer types come through the water park slide, and the other restaurants are all unique.
What could've been better:
The music. It's disappointing that there isn't more variation. Also, they expect that the player is familiar with the Diner Dash family, as they don't introduce the different customers and describe how to maximize points with them. I also wish they'd take the Crypt Cafe and had the customers dress up for the season.
Recommended for: fans of Diner Dash or time management games.
Thursday, September 18, 2008
Cake Mania 3
Cake Mania 3, a fun time management game from Sandlot games, builds on the successful Cake Mania franchise. In Cake Mania 3, Jill is about to get married to Jack (who you may remember from the previous game) when a time distortion ball breaks, sending her friends and family to different eras: prehistoric, ancient Egypt, the Ming dynasty in China, 17th or 18th century Paris, and perhaps the Shire.As in previous Cake Mania games, the purpose is to give a customer a menu, take the order, make the cake, ice it, garnish it (if you've unlocked that tool) and deliver it, trying maintain or improve the customer level of hearts (patience). Items to unlock include a phone, additional ovens and icing machines, a display case, a tea maker, and garnish tools. Other items include a phone to take cake orders over the phone, and shoes for swiftness. Of course, each of these can be upgraded. They are purchased with the profits from your days.
In each time scenario, there are different power ups to use. The prehistoric has a club that allows you to give any cake to the waiting customer. In Egypt, the Ra power-up extends the day. In China, the Tao of Cake (which is a phrase I may borrow for my own purposes) extends the patience (it doesn't give more, but holds the customers at their current heart level). In the Shire/Fairyland, the crystal ball will tell you what the next customer without a menu will order.
There is an additional powerup that is achieved either through making a specific cake or through strings of 3-series (3 menus, 3 coin collections, etc). This sugar rush makes all the tools (ovens, tea machine, icers, garnishers) produce instantly instead of having a timer. This is a fun element to manage!
In addition to gameplay, there is a sandbox area where you can create wedding cakes, save and send them as e-cards. This does not need to be unlocked, but can be accessed from the first play. A cartoon function will also be unlocked down the road. There are also mini-games on the map, where you have to make and package a certain number of cakes off a conveyor belt. You can earn extra money this way, as well as bonus power-ups.
What they did well: Cutscenes added voice-overs, a nice change of pace for a casual game! The text was witty and poked good fun (for example, Jill wonders why cavemen and dinosaurs are together). I played the first release of Cake Mania 2 and encountered several major showstopper bugs. This version seems much more solid. I found the controls worked better than in the previous games. The costumes for Jill were hilarious. Each customer "pays" with appropriate "coin" (i.e. chimps pay with bones, dinos with stones, etc.) That attention to detail is nice. The sandbox mode, the mini-games, and the save functions are all superb additions.
What could have been better: An explanation of why they had a time distortion ball in the first place. The Ra gift from Egypt didn't seem to add much gameplay value.
Cake Mania 3 is a big improvement over Cake Mania 2 and is a very fun time management game.
Recommended for: fans of the Cake Mania series, time management game fans, and those with a sense of humor
Monday, September 8, 2008
School House Shuffle
School House Shuffle is a time management game, where you create a school and attempt to turn the kids into geniuses. Ms. Brighton, who is the school principal, talks like Charlie Brown's teacher.The levels start slowly, with one grade at a time. The grades are distinguished by hair color. The second grade starts at level 7. This is a school that you and I probably would wish we had attended. When kids get hungry or need to go to the bathroom, they get dismissed to the cafeteria or to the restroom.
To help corral the kids, the player starts with a hall monitor (if a kid passes within his range, (s)he will go back to class) and a chaperone (get it close enough to the kid and the kid will follow the chaperone). Money is earned as kids learn and at the end of the day. There is a bonus if the class performed well enough to earn an A. (Note: if there is a way to earn an A on the first two levels, I was unable to figure out the appropriate strategy.) The money purchases upgrades (faster restroom/cafeteria breaks, better classrooms for faster learning; additional staff to help with control the children; aesthetic improvements to the school).
What they did well: the music is good. It has several different themes: one that reminded me of the Incredibles; another that was very swing-style, and a third that made me think of Jerry Lee Lewis. I liked the personalization of the profile screen, where the player gets to name the school and pick a favorite class. The school name shows up on the play screen as well, which was a very nice touch. Also, the paper that was the background for the summary sometimes had some funny non-sequiturs. The gym, which reminded me of a hamster ball, was amusing.
What could have been better: Controls. It was difficult to click on the kids/monitor/chaperone/janitor, especially when the kids were in the gym. I would send a kid to the cafeteria to get something to eat, then click on the janitor to repair something. All of a sudden, I'd notice the kid was wandering off and not going to the cafeteria. That was pretty frustrating. For many parts of the game, I was waiting for something to happen. It was worse in the early levels, but even in the more advanced levels, I sometimes had nothing to do. It didn't make sense that the principal would be disciplining the classes, which acted up multiple times in the day. Each time she disciplined them, this annoying pop-up message would appear. Also, apparently the staff is not the cream of the crop, as they doze off and the principal must discipline them too.
I have to say that I was disappointed in the execution of this game. I expected it to be much more fun and enjoyable than it was. Instead, playing through felt a little bit like torture.
Sunday, August 31, 2008
Farm Frenzy 2
Farm Frenzy 2 is the second in the Farm Frenzy series. It's a fast sequel; Farm Frenzy was first released in February 2008.In Farm Frenzy, you plant grass to feed your animals (hens, pigs, cows) and collect their goods (eggs, milk, meat) by clicking on them, sending them to your warehouse. You can sell the products at market, or build new buildings where you can process the product into higher grossing items such as egg powder or pie crust or desserts.
To earn money, you must load up your truck to the city to sell your goods. It's worth upgrading the truck and plane so they travel faster, so you can get the money back sooner (they must return before the money becomes available for use).
Adding to the fun, bears drop in and attack your animals. The bears have received an art upgrade for FF2, and I'll leave it as a surprise to the player how they now look. There is now more than 1 type, and I'll leave the teaser that I chuckled over them. You can trap them so they don't kill your animals and either sell them at market, or let them escape and run off your farm.
Farm Frenzy can be a lot to manage! If you run out of water, and don't have enough money to replenish the well, your animals will die. They all make very funny sounds as they perish. Sometimes the pace is a bit hectic, especially when 3 or more bears drop into your little space!
Each level will have specific goals (for example, amass 15 chickens or make 15 crusts). There are time bonuses to reach a gold or silver level, that gives you bonus stars.
Stars are spent to upgrade your buildings (upgraded buildings take more raw items and produce more output), pets (dogs can help with trapping bears; cats collect items on the ground), vehicles (can store more and go faster), wells (larger well, fill faster) and storage space. Smart use of upgrades goes a long way in this game! For buildings and vehicles, players may want to note that the upgrade only unlocks the upgrade for that level. The player must earn enough money during the level to upgrade them.
There are 19 awards available for both the goal-based levels and survival modes (which is unlocked by finishing half of the goal-based game). They range the gamut for breaking your own time record, finding the gags in the game, collecting products, or playing 10 consecutive levels without losing an animal.
What they did well: While similar to Farm Frenzy, the graphics are improved and are very cute. Levels are pretty challenging, especially if you're trying to get gold on all of them. There are 19 awards to unlock, including ones from survival mode. The UI (user interface) is much improved, and it's easier to track how much money you have and what goals need to be accomplished. Levels are quick and it's easy to jump in and out of the game. Some levels have the gold level goal as 1 minute 30 seconds!
What could've been better: Both the original game and Farm Frenzy 2 had only one song that plays during the levels. However, I enjoyed the original song, and did not like this one.
Recommended for: people who want to jump in and out of a game quickly, time management aficionados, and Farm Frenzy fans.
Wednesday, August 27, 2008
The Great Chocolate Chase
A new title from PlayFirst games, The Great Chocolate Chase is a Time Management takeoff of the popularChocolatier franchise.The player is Evangeline Baumeister, and start your first chocolate shop in Iquitos, Peru. The playstyle and strategy is similar to Turbo Pizza or Cake Mania, two successful time management games. Evangeline serves chocolate bars and chocolate sauce to customers who line up at the bar. The customers get a menu, take some time to decide, place their order, and Evangaline delivers it, then takes their money. Chain bonuses are available through multiple menu delivery, chocolate delivery, or money collection. There are 3 types of upgrades: decoration (nicer place makes for happier customers), machines (make them faster or produce more), and power-ups. The power ups either improve Evangeline's speed, increase the amount that can be charged for chocolates, or improve customer tips.
Of course the main goal is to keep the customers happy. The happiness level is indicated by color and lines of the box around the picture their order. I found this to be a little more difficult to interpret than the typical shaded hearts. As with most time management games, the more satisfied the customer, the bigger the tip. Angry customers will leave the store. Each level has a minimum amount of money the player must earn to move on.
What they did well:
Each level begins with a short journal entry written by Evangaline. Some of these entries contain important information about customers and their level of patience. Other entries are "quests" where a certain goal must be met (such as serving 3 people in a row or earning master level dollars on the level) in order to unlock ingredients. This is similar to the Chocolatier games, where the player runs across characters who give recipes and ingredients once the player has met certain goals. In The Great Chocolate Chase, however, the player only has that one level to meet the goal and unlock the item. While a player can complete the level without earning the ingredient, that ingredient will never become available. The story line is a very fun part of the game.
There are many achievements to unlock, and the player starts earning them very quickly. There is even a dubious achievement for discarding items! This system is very rewarding to players who like to earn achievements.
For fans of Chocolatier, players create all different types and flavors of chocolate, starting with plain dark chocolate bars. In later levels, other types of chocolate (light, medium) are added, as are fruit flavors and infusions.
They scale the levels well - the intro levels are easy to manage, and the later levels have just the right amount of hectic action to be fun.
What could be better:
I found that I had a difficult time telling the banana from the Amazonian spice in the dark chocolate. That was the most frustrating part of the game for me. Also, the system of showing the customer satisfaction wasn't terrific, and the background music was mediocre.
Otherwise, The Great Chocolate Chase is a decent time management game that players of Turbo Pizza, Cake Mania, or fans of Chocolatier will like.
Monday, August 25, 2008
Go-Go Gourmet, Chef of the Year
Go-Go Gourmet: Chef of the Year is the second in the Go-Go Gourmet titles. In this one, Ginger is competing for Chef of the Year against 7 of the world's best chefs.The play style is exactly the same as for Go-Go Gourmet - a mixture of hidden object and time management styles. The added twist is a like reality cooking show, where judges score the recipes (based on speed). Final point totals given each chef a placement. Chefs can even be eliminated! Go-Go Gourmet, Chef of the Year differs from the first one in that items no longer move around the kitchen like they did in Go-Go Gourmet. Each country's kitchen has a different layout, but the items are fixed.
Collectibles are plentiful. Every time the player places first, there is a bonus. Either an upgraded item (fry pan, chopper, etc), a collectible (vases, teddy bears, etc), or a bonus chef's outfit are added. The bonus outfits give different boosts - one makes Ginger faster, one adds bonus points to each delivered dish, and and one makes the judges more patient. There are even printable recipes that can be unlocked.
At each stage in the game, Ginger starts off with the basic kitchen, and must place first to get the bonuses for each country. In between the addictive, fast-paced finding and cooking, there are cute cut scenes where Ginger interacts with the other Chefs. There are also bonus rounds, which might involve placing items in their correct locations, collecting all of the items on a list, or picking up all of a specific type of item.
Go-Go Gourmet, Chef of the Year is similar to the original game (even the music is the same), but it is enlivened by the judging aspect. Its fast-paced levels are very addicting.
Wednesday, August 6, 2008
Baby Blimp
Baby Blimp, by Youda Games, is a cute time management game. There are two alternating levels: one where the babies are "produced" on an assembly line, and a delivery level where the storks bring the little bundles of joy to the homes.In the "assembly" levels, requests come in for a specific baby type (girl, boy, no preference), and you pull the slot lever at the correct time for the correct baby to come out from the machine. You control the main stork, who is responsible for making sure they don't fall down, get a toy, fed, cleaned up, washed, a nap, and get sent back on the "assembly line" to be put into a chute and sent off. The more babies you can send off at one time, the bigger your bonus. You also get bonus points for completing the same action more than once. If the babies get unhappy, you lose points.
For the stork delivery levels, you can earn bonuses for delivering the same gender babies in a row.
Like most time management games, upgrades are available, both in the production and in the air force delivery levels. The production allows for additional help with the clean up, upgraded toys, more beds and washing stations, and more bottles produced at once. The delivery upgrades involve making the storks faster (for happier parents and more points) and adding to their strength so they can carry more than one baby. This will come in handy when the twins, triplets, and quadruplets start to appear! For extra dramatics, weather conditions sometimes cause a quandry for delivery - and the storks must be properly equipped to handle the weather.
There are also achievements to be unlocked. Each achievement is shadowed out, but you can hover over the shadow to find out what steps you need to take in order to earn the trophy.
I found Baby Blimp cute and fun, with the one complaint that I prefer time management games where I can hold and do more than one thing at a time. I found that I often forgot to throw the dirty cloth in the laundry, which made me fall behind schedule. Once I got the upgraded attendant, it was a lot easier.
Tuesday, August 5, 2008
Yummy Drink Factory
Yummy Drink Factory, by Amaranth Games, is a time-management, make-a-recipe game.The story behind the game is that a rude youngster gets lost in the woods. To teach her humility, a witch banishes her to a magical kingdom to work as a barista. She must learn recipes and serve the fairies the proper drinks in order to gain her freedom.
There are 3 main story modes from which to choose: Easy, where you learn 20 recipes, Medium, and Hard, where you learn all 36 recipes.
In addition to story mode, you can play just using recipes to earn gems with which to decorate your shop. The more pleasantly decorated the stand, the more patience your customers will have. You also can create your own drinks and play free-form with them, as well as share your drink recipes with other people who have the came.
The playstyle feels like a hybrid of Chocolatier and Burger Island. The music is Zeldish and cute, although I did get tired of hearing Scarborough Faire.
You can consult the menu at any time during making the drinks. You can prepare drinks in advance for customers. Kids may like the option of using slug slime and warts and fairy dust in their drinks.
Warning, though: instead of having profiles as many casual games do, this one has "save game slots" which means you can accidentally save over a game. Unfortunately, you can be in free-style mode and save over your story game, so be cautious.
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