The third one is the charm, right? Well, in Hidden Wonders of the Depths 3: Atlantis Adventures it is. Even though it is much like Hidden Wonders 1 and 2 in the match 3 play, the timed game is very much a challenge. There are many differences in this latest match 3 version. The colors are more intense and vibrant, more hidden object games and less memory games. The music not as intense as before but it is appropriate to the play. The crab is still its sassy and impatient self, losing none of its funny personality.

The premise of this game is that you can resurrect Atlantis destroyed many centuries ago to its former glory by making matches to earn money, bonuses and upgrades. With the money you earn you can purchase buildings, statues and more to beautify the once grandiose city. Bonuses will get you fish, coral and other items to enhance the scene.

The match 3 is the main play still in Hidden Wonders of the Depths 3 with playful board designs and related icons. You swap 2 tiles to make a match of 3 or more similar items either vertically or horizontally. In addition you must make matches in front of the crab so he travels to the treasure chest. Also there are colored tiles you must make matches over to destroy before the level can be completed. I got the crab to the chest easily but the level did not end because I had missed one tile in a corner. If you should lose a level, you have 4 more lives in the timed mode and you can get more lives by playing the mini games.

There are fun bonuses and upgrades to help you along on your journey. Some will need a few levels to complete your upgrade tools. You’ll see them on the right side of the screen. The powerups are on the left side. There are many blocks that will need to be cleared with your upgrades to pass barriers. The blocks can be stone, vines and other things to block your passage. The crab himself is a block because you can’t move him to make a match.

Between match levels there are many mini games related to the story. The hidden object scenes will take you to undersea places where you will look for items. There is a beautiful mosaic puzzle you must return to its original design. Other games are the blank board with very few objects scattered around and the match by collapsing your objects game.

The rebuilding of Atlantis is a game in itself. You need to make enough money from your match games to buy different beautiful buildings and statues for your city. Remember you can only purchase one building a day. With each improvement you will win a reward like coral. To see your city any time click on the eye icon at the bottom left.

Many of these things are familiar and may be too easy for you, but it’s still fun to do and try out. The main play is very similar to the first 2 games, but the developers listened to your suggestions and improved on many aspects. The artwork is more vibrant and colorful from the first game. I checked it out. The music is slightly different and more calming. If you want a challenge, play it timed to meet your difficulty demands. If you liked the first 2 games, you’ll like this third improved version. Try it out and see what you think.

Features of Hidden Wonders of the Depths 3: Atlantis Adventures:
-Improved Match 3 Levels
-Rebuild Atlantis
-Lots of Mini Games

Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars

Have you ever wondered what it would be like to run and manage a cemetery? In Mr. Jone’s Graveyard Shift you can tackle the answers to your conundrum by sim time management playing in the graveyard. You’ll discover what happens after the sun sets and how to handle those ghostly dilemmas.

Mr. Jone’s Graveyard Shift is a different kind of sim play from Youda Marina or even County Fair. First of all you have a very involved tale of Kranky who retires to an idyllic forested area to spend his final days with his faithful dog. Kranky becomes very cranky and lonely in his little house in the woods and calls his lady friend Mimi. Luck will have it, and she wants him to come down to her tropical paradise, but he needs to bring a few items. Unfortunately, Mimi wants a lot of things that cost plenty of money that Kranky does not have. In order to meet her needs Kranky must work to earn money. He stumbles on a scheme to turn his land into a cemetery to make the money, because, let’s face it, he’s old and no one is going to hire him. I guess he’s never heard of age discrimination.

The cemetery play is very similar to your usual sim play where you click on the customer to find out what he/she wants and then you go about preparing the plot to their specifications. In order to keep your supplies handy, you must buy from Mr. Bingo who delivers headstones, fountains, flowers and trees for the gravesite. You have different types of clients with different price ranges, likes and dislikes that you have to satisfy as quickly as possible. You must keep your customers happy in order to increase your reputation so you get more clients and make more money. You do this by providing the types of flowers that the deceased enjoyed while on this earth and decorating the gravesite with the best headstone they can afford.

In addition to all that, you must avoid the scary part of living on cemetery land. You have to sidestep the ghouls, zombies and ghosts who frequent the gravesite at night. You can avoid these pitfalls if you go home to bed, but sometimes you have to work the graveyard shift to meet your timelines. What’s even scarier is Mimi when you do not make enough money to purchase all her wants.

I think the tutorial is very good and the play interesting and funny. The character reminds me of the cartoon Courage the Cowardly Dog except the dog has a minor role in this game. It has the same dark, acerbic comical humor especially when the dead body plops into the grave you just dug. This game may not be for everyone because of the theme, but it is a good Mac sim game with many features you must deal with in the scope of the play, and it’s funny on top of it.

Features of Mr. Jone’s Graveyard Shift:
-Build Cemetery Empire
-Battle Ghouls and Zombies
-Collect Crystals

Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars

The Story: Jessica is home from LA and overhears her Aunt Margaret talking about hers and Uncle Fred’s woes about their failing bakery. Bright-eyed, ever ready Jessica suggests updating the bakery concept and start a cupcake café to bring in the customers and also make a profit. Aunt Margaret is thrilled with the idea since all the buzz is about cupcakes (even Martha Stewart devoted a week to cupcake making on her top-rated TV show, and everyone knows Martha can turn a profit). However, Auntie M is astute enough to know that a conversion of the shop will take a lot of work and assistance, so she asks Jessica to lend a hand to get things started.

There will always be a need for your typical neighborhood bakery making breads, birthday cakes and cookies or even the fancy French patisserie with their, oh so decadent, ganache frostings and croissants, but the latest craze in bakeries is the cupcake shops that are everywhere nowadays. My favorite cupcake shop is Magnolia in New York City, and I hear Vanilla in LA is quite good. I’ll have to check it out next time I’m in town. Jessica’s Cupcake Café is an updated sim play like Ice Cream Craze and Mystic Emporium.

The Play: Making cupcakes appears to be a straightforward, easy play or it it? The play is to click on the type of cake your customer wishes to buy (this is shown to you with the number of cupcakes in a bubble next to the client). The highly innovative machine will place the correct amount of batter into the baking sheet, you click on the pan, click on the oven to bake, wait, click on the baked cupcakes, click on the counter, click on the requested frosting, click on the completed tube of frosting, click on the tray of cakes to frost after completion click to pick up the pan, click on the customer and finally on the cash register to collect the money. These are a lot of steps to maneuver, but once you get into the groove, everything will flow nicely. However, in these plays there are always things that may slow your play down such as a decoration candy piece to top the cupcake. It can be a bear, daisy, heart or sun. The customer may request a special order causing you to throw out a batch of cupcakes or frosting.

However the game will always give you great upgrades to help you increase your speed to beat the level. You may get additional stoves, more icing machines and candy makers. Another added plus is you can design your own cupcakes to sell to your clients. Don’t worry about the extra cupcakes since they will be sold at a bake sale in a side mini game. Your goal is to sell as many cupcakes as possible in a limited time.

Jessica’s Cupcake Café, although similar to many of the sim plays, is an entertaining Mac game for everyone. In addition you will unlock many great cupcake recipes to try out and enjoy. The graphics is good and the music will keep you in sync with quick speed to meet your goals.

Features of Jessica’s Cupcake Café:
-Run a Cupcake Café
-Design Your Own Cupcakes
-42 Levels in 9 Locations
-Cupcake Recipes

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

Nanny is on vacation when she reads about Sofia Ashford, movie star, and terrible mother in the gossip rags. She decides to help her and goes to Hollywood to start her new employment. Nanny’s motto is whatever the problem, begin by caring.

This Mac sim game is played by clearing one room at a time. The object is to click on the red framed items for Nanny to clean and clear. The clothes spewed throughout the house must be picked up, taken to the washer to wash, then click on the dryer and finally click to pick up the basket of clothes, and click on the dresser to put away the items.

There are only 3 people who reside in this house: Sydney the baby, Lucas the 3rd husband, and Sofia the movie star. They are probably the messiest people in the world who need a lot of attention, especially the baby. When the baby cries above the crib will show you what it needs. If you see a diaper, you click on the crib for Nanny to change the baby, then click on the dirty bundle next to the bed and then click on a trash bin to throw it out. If you see a a bottle above the crib, the baby is hungry, and you click on the small refrigerator in the nursery, then click on the bottle warmer, then again on the bottle to pick up and click one more time on the crib to feed the baby.

It’s hectic just writing about it. See how frantic it gets in the first few levels, and remember, the levels are timed so you must hustle. In between the levels you can go to the store to buy anything that is unlocked, you have the money for it, and you need to make your work easier.

Nanny Mania is like Baby Sitting Mania with a few more perks like the shop, more people and a little story to get to know the messy slobs to make it a little more personal. Sim plays are not my thing, but this one has a few more activities than a lot of the games out there. Try it out for a little work out in this play.

Features of Nanny Mania Goes To Hollywood:
-Help Celebrity Family
-Sequel to Nanny Mania
-Time Outs, Pets and More

Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars

The title, Smiling Pasta, reminds me of the pasta or cracker with the smiley face on it. It’s also a name of a Taiwanese soap opera. In any event, Mac game Smiling Pasta is a time management and match 3 pastime. Since we have been doing a lot of Hidden Object Adventures, I thought this would be a great break.

The story begins with Uncle Leo, the chef, leaving his restaurant, Smiling Pasta, to go to Italy. No reason, he just upped and left the café to Daisy the assistant chef. His confidence in her is incredible but that’s life and video games. Daisy must ready herself for the Best Restaurant Award by working hard and fast to prove she can do it.

The game is to serve customers what they want to eat. In order to make the pasta of choice, you must match 3 or more of the ingredients needed for the meal at the screen to the right. Match 3 or more tomatoes, meat, cheese, chicken and pasta. Each time an ingredient is matched and is needed for the dish, it will fly to the customer’s list of supplies. You’ll be getting helps like the fire when you make 4 matches that will clear (burn) several of the ingredients at once when you click on it. The star can swap with any of the ingredients but you need to make 5 matches. Once all the ingredients are met, the dish is finished and you click on the dish to serve the customer. Just be sure to serve your guests as fast as you can before they lose their patience (represented by the 5 hearts above their heads). You’ll be able to appease them by clicking on the candy dish at your lower right or if you have a coffee machine, give them a cup by clicking on the cup and then the diner. The happier customer will pay more. The money can be used at the Beach Mall for recipes and treats.

If you get only 1 customer at a time, it would be too easy, so you will be getting a multiple of guests to serve, some more patient than others. Once a chair is vacated, another customer will fill the seat. There are 2 modes of play in this game, but you have to find it first. It’s under the Option button. You can choose Normal or Easy. Normal for the casual gamer is fairly easy so this game may not be for the experienced sim time management player needing a challenge, but for the rest of us, this is fast enough. The match 3 game is not much of a challenge either but at least for novices and young kids, you have the Easy mode to switch to if you need.

All in all this game may not satisfy the sim time management fans or the match 3 fans. This hybrid didn’t have the challenge in either game and the cursor slowed down a bit and made matches difficult to make. The artwork is okay, but Daisy did look a little crossed-eyed in the opening sequence. The music started the game with a happy and upbeat tune but later got a little annoying even though they changed up the jingle. Under Options you can adjust the sound. Try it out and see what you think. I give it a 2.5 out of 5. Do you really want your pasta to smile at you?

Features of Smiling Pasta:
-Sim Time Management and Match 3 game
-7 Locations with 10 Levels Each
-Beach Mall for Shopping

Rating: 2.5 out of 5 stars

So you are a brave prince on your way to marry your beautiful princess when an evil, ugly witch stops all your future endeavors. Who knows why someone would curse your beloved and the castle in order to stop you from marrying? Maybe she is interested in you and wants to be your mate? In any event, you are not going to take it anymore and you go to the dragon’s lair to see if they could help you defeat the wicked witch. Who knew dragons are so helpful? It is the year of the dragon so maybe they are willing to assist you in your quest to recover your princess.

Before the dragon can help you with this, you must help the dragons raise their own “clutch”. You take on this task by clicking repeatedly on an egg to hatch, when the adorable baby dragon emerges, you must take care of it by feeding and collecting their gems. Yes, baby dragons poop out jewels. Hooray! No dirty diapers to change. Click on the gem to collect because the main dragon will give you your goals to collect a number of jewels. These gems can, in turn, be forged into magical jewelry (necklaces, rings) to sell for gold dragon coins.

The progress quest is at the upper right of the screen along with the Start of Day button. You use the button to start each day of dragon duties. The screen will darken when you day is almost over. However, before you start the day, be sure you have filled your food rack, forged your jewels, and other preparatory business you must deal with. Once you begin your day you will be kept busy feeding the babies by clicking on them when you see the bubble with the drumsticks. Collect their gems by clicking and fight off the intruders. These so called heroes will enter your precious nursery to create havoc and steal your wards. Just click on the enemy and see their clothes fly off them one by one. Once they are in their undies, they will escape your cave as fast as they came into it. But, wait. They will leave blue orbs of hero essence for you to collect. Once again click on these because they’ll come in handy later in the game.

As these sim breeding management games tend to do, they increase your duties many folds. However, you with your amazing time management skills will be able to make a lot of money raising baby dragons. Hire trolls, goblins and imps to help you with your many tasks including protecting your growing dragons, feeding and collecting the gems.

Mac sim time management game Dragon Keeper is a fun and entertaining game to while away the day. It could have been longer with different types of dragons but that may be for the next version. They produce different colors and shapes of gems, but all in all it’s basically the same. There are only 4 chapters with 3 types of dragons per chapter. The dragons and characters are adorable, the artwork good and the music is cute and light making for a great time all around. So brave prince, rescue your fair maiden and raise your dragons.

Features of Dragon Keeper:
-Tale of Good versus Evil
-Sim Breeding Management Game
-Dragons, Gems and More

Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars

There are match 3 games, logic puzzles, and simulation plays, but Mac game Pizza Chef 2 combines all 3 games in one play. Not playing these 3 things separately, but playing them at the same time. While you are making matches you must figure out a logic puzzle to fit onto the match board while pleasing your customers and keeping them happy. Most match 3 plays have sim plays after you complete the match game successfully but Pizza Chef 2 combines all three plays in one.

In Pizza Chef 2 you must deal with 3 main plays at the same time. I couldn’t believe it at first, but as you play this match game it draws you into the frantic sim part with the fitting of the foods correctly onto your match board. You will see a match 3 board with different food items to match 3 or more of the same objects to clear the board or in this case start the oven. The tiles will turn to blue when the oven is ready to cook the customers’ orders. You must clear enough room to fit each food order a customer at the right of the board in a tetris like play. If a man wants a pizza, you will see a pizza in the bubble by his head. You need to make matches to fit the pizza on the match 3 board. You need at least 2 tiles across and 2 tiles down to fit the pizza. For a sandwich you will need 3 tiles across or 3 tiles down to make the sandwich. The croissant sandwich is more difficult. You will need 2 tiles across and one down. You may need to click and rotate the croissant or sandwich to fit correctly on the tiles. You have to keep making matches so you can fit all the food orders from the customers sitting at the left of the board. Keeping the clients happy is very important in sim plays so you must work quickly in order to satisfy everyone concerned.

Recipes will open up and upgrades can be purchased to help you in your play. The match game will earn you coins to buy all the necessities of a successful restaurant. There are great bonuses you can buy to help you in the match 3 like turning all the tiles blue so you can put all the orders on the stove to cook at once, there are lightning and bombs to clear tiles. If an icon is shaking, you need to try and make a match with it to clear down the column and across the row. The blocks in the match 3 can be chains where you need to make matches over them to break the links and to place the food orders in a logical arrangement to fit all the foods on the oven.

The story is about Chris whose uncle disappears the day before they were to open their pizza café together. Chris boldly goes ahead and opens the restaurant with your help. Uncle will call in occasionally to give you advice. Listen to his words to efficiently work your café. Later you learn that some bad people are after uncle for his unique pizza recipe.

The story is not that interesting to me and I felt it is more of a distraction than anything else. As a match player it is hard to be playing a match 3 and need to switch gears and think about the sim and logic plays at the same time. However, it can be done and as the levels increase it is a challenge and becomes a frantic paced game so give it a try. Kudos for an original play of match 3, logic and sim games integrated into one nice activity. Oh, I almost forgot there’s hidden object and logic games in between the other plays.

Features of Pizza Chef 2:
-Match 3, Logic and Sim Games
-Mini Games
-The Secret Pizza Recipe

Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars

A great drought is forcing you and your tribe to leave your beloved homeland. The Elders consult the Shaman and is told the bones have the answer. It is to leave this land and start over somewhere else. Your tribe must travel across the ocean to the land of Kalevala. Heroes of Kalevala is a match 3 and build a village simulation game. The Kalevala is a Finnish national epic work from ancient oral poetry, this mac game is based on this important piece of literature.

The match 3 part of the game is to swap items to make matches of 3 or more of the same objects to clear. Making matches over the yellow tiles will change them to blue. When all the yellow tiles are gone, then the level is complete. However, you must do so before the evil crow sent by the wicked witch Louhi flying the perimeter of the puzzle burns the entire board forcing you to start again. The puzzles are easy for a few levels and will begin to increase in difficulty and blocks like the icy tiles or double locked chains as you go higher. When you make matches of 4 or more, you will get bonuses like bombs to clear your tiles. You have the powerful Finnish gods to help you fight off the malicious blocks to your game. Il Marinen will throw fiery hammers that incinerate tiles and the god of sea, Ahti, will raise the water to flood and take away tiles. More helps will be unlocked as you advance in the play. At the beginning of each level you choose which god you would like to help you, but be sure to make the right choice for an ultimate experience.

The match 3 games will earn you cash to help build a town. The faster you complete the puzzles, the more money you will get. Once you get some structures up, it will attract people to your village. The people themselves will let you know what they want and what will make them happy. You use the shop to buy houses, trees and other things for survival and happiness. After building your first village, you move on to build more towns. There are medals you win for accomplishing different things.

Heroes of Kalevala has a lot to do from its match 3 with loads of bonuses to the sim play and additionally the interesting tale about Louhi, her crows and the ancient gods. The artwork is great especially the beginning of the story and the beautiful backdrops, and the music are interesting. There’s hours of playability and fun for all ages. Just keep in mind that the levels are challenging after about a dozen puzzles. Give this game a try and have an entertaining time.

Features of Heroes of Kalevala:
-Over 140 Levels
-Match 3 and Sim Plays
-Based on Oral Finnish Poetry

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

I didn’t get this review out in time for Halloween but it’s still a fun Mac match 3 and simulation game to play any time of the year. It’s very similar to their Fishdom – Frosty Splash without the Santa theme and with lively ghostly items instead.

Like in the Frosty game you shop for your fish tank with a Halloween theme. In addition you must keep your fish happy by buying comfort or beauty items or other fish. Click on the Shop button and then choose from Fish, Beauty and Comfort. The Fish tab will display a variety of different sea creatures to choose from, Beauty will have plants and Comfort has different water cleaning devices. Of course, all these items cost a lot of money and in order to purchase these great things, you must make cash. This is where the match 3 games come in.

The match 3 levels have sea and Halloween related items to match. You swap 2 items to line up either horizontally or vertically 3 of the same objects. When this is done, it will clear and more items will fall into place from above. You must make matches over the gold tiles to destroy and when you get rid of all the gold tiles, you win the level. If you make your matches quickly, you will win more money. There are blocks to impede your movements like chained items (single or double) where you must make matches with them to clear. The double chains you must make 2 matches to destroy. Even with the many block different blocks, there are as many helps to aid you in your quest to finish the level. Making matches of 5 items or more will get you bombs, firecrackers, lightning and more. Also look for the shape of the match boards because they are in forms of spiders or other things.

Fishdom – Spooky Splash has all the fun elements of the other Fishdom match plays with a Halloween theme. If the relaxed mode is too easy for you, try it timed to challenge your match 3 skills. Either way the game is great fun and should be enjoyed by children and casual gamers. I give it a 3.5 out of 5 for an entertaining play. Try it if you dare. Boo!

Features of Fishdom – Spooky Splash:
-Halloween Theme
-Lots of Match 3 Levels
-Fish Tank to Decorate

Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars

A group of friends come across an ancient zodiac wheel on their way home and were transported through some teleporter to a strange land in Mac sim game Gemini Lost. Unfortunately for these 6 people the wheel exploded and spewed the zodiac signs across this mysterious region.

In order to return home, they must find all the keys to repair the wheel. However, life goes on and the 6 must start a village of sorts in order to survive. They must gather and grow foods, find wood and stones for building shelter, increase their knowledge to be able to perform many tasks, they must marry to increase and sustain their population and find all the zodiac keys to transport them back.

In addition to all that, there are puzzles and tasks to complete in order to teleport back home. In order to get across a river, someone needs to have the skills to build a bridge spanning the distance from your end to where the key is located. Labs will increase your knowledge level, working on the garden will increase your farming skills and the chapel will marry your couples so you can increase your village. Also after a time the older people will die off so raising the children is important. The kids however do not work until they are grown, but can pick up items for potions. The game is very good about giving you vital information and stats on each person. If someone is sick, they will be moving around slowly and will need to be healed. Potions can be made and the recipes are available in the log.

The game will allow you to choose how you want your villagers to proceed when you leave the game. If you want to be involved at all times you are on, you can do so or you can have the people go about their tasks even when you are not on the computer. This part of the game is different from other games of this nature.

The tutorial is easy to follow and will get you started on your village without any trouble. I did find it curious when I left the game with 2 skilled people building a bridge, and when I got back, no progress was made and the 2, nowhere to be found. I suggest you keep track of your people’s names because when they grow up while you are gone, they are like strange new person you’ve forgotten. It gets a little confusing.

For the most part I liked this sim develop your own village type game. This one seemed easier to train people, and they didn’t mind working very hard each day. When they get tired, they will rest in the hut, and when they get hungry they will feed themselves so you just need to watch the upper part of the screen to see how much supplies you have and will need. The computer will announce any changes such as a baby being born or someone who passes away. This game is appropriate for children because they take care of birth and dying in a discreet manner.

So create your own village full of people to your specifications and search for all the zodiac keys for your ticket back to civilization.

Features of Gemini Lost:
-Puzzles and Mini Games
-Zodiac Signs
-Your Own World
Similar games: My Tribe, Wild Tribe, Virtual Villagers 1 and 2

Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars
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You play as the mayor of Kitschville. This wonderful town has faced hard times and is in the hole for $1,000,000.00. The city council is going to turn everything around by turning it into a tourist trap when the major highway gets built through their village. The city planner, Barbara Brand will help you with your daunting task. You click on city hall to get ideas from the council. They, in all their wisdom, will advise you to build different tourist attractions like the gas station, restaurants, turtle farm, corn palace and more. Some of these things are a necessity when you attract a whole slew of people. There are a variety of characters roaming through your town like the seasonal college students, bus loads of seniors, business professionals, truckers and families. Each group has their own idiosyncrasies you need to cater to and make everyone happy. In addition, you must connect your structures to the main road so tourists will find you and spend their money. The cash must be used for repairs, building roads and other every day needs. You can also upgrade your locations and improve them to charge more.

Tourist Trap: Build the Nation’s Greatest Vacations is a game with a lot of activities, but it doesn’t have the manic time factor to make your game exciting. You have to wait for your money to generate before you can do anything more. What it does have are quirky characters and a good set up with the city council to advise you on how to build up your town. If your thing is sim real estate management games, this may be your game but don’t look for the anxious feeling you get when you know you have to complete your tasks in a hurry. Just enjoy the zany characters visiting your small town full of bizarre attractions. I give it a 3 out of 5 for a game you can hone your sim time management skills.

Features of Tourist Trap: Build the Nation’s Vacations:
-Real Estate Sim Management Game
-2 Modes of Play: Normal and Free Build
-Strange Attractions and Quirky Characters

Rating: 3 out of 5 stars

Do you like to cook? Do you like to play video games? Do you watch TV? Then Top Chef is the game for you! Take one part hit TV show and combine it with one part Sim and one part cartoon and voile, you have Top Chef. Forget what you learned in culinary school because all that is going to be put to the test in a grueling competition that challenges both the mind and the stomach. This intro may be a little cheesy, but in Top Chef that isn't necessarily a bad thing.

The game is very straightforward: compete on the show to become the best chef you can possibly be. You have a kitchen at your disposal and whatever you decide to make is up to you. At the beginning of each challenge you have a sidebar that gives you a list of what types of ingredients you need (spicy, sweet, salty, savory, etc.). You then have the ingredients on a shelf in the back. Depending on which one you choose, you can get different bonuses. For example, combining apples and bacon gives you a "classic combo" bonus. After you choose the corresponding ingredient, you bring it to the work station where you begin the preparation. You can only prep one thing at a time, but ingredients sitting on the work station slowly become finished as time goes on. Naturally the station that you are working at goes faster, so timing is very important.

After you complete your "masterpiece," you are off to be judged. Each dish is computer generated to show exactly the ingredients that you put into it. This was actually pretty funny, as the first time I played I put some weird combination of food together, and they showed up in the judging (like mango and anchovies). Due to the fact that there is a gigantic number of possible foods to make, this game can have a great replay value. Although it is based on a show that I have never personally seen, I truly enjoyed the game because it was fun to see the food I had put together. The only complaint I had was that each ingredient did not look as it should when being prepared. However, that would have taken a long time to actually program, and they did get the final plating correct. Overall I would give Top Chef four out of five stars.

Features of Top Chef:
-45 Challenges
-Pick the Ingredients
-Multi-Task in the Kitchen
-Become the Next Top Chef

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

Emily is put in charge of the family get-together and holiday dinner at a mountain lodge. Upon arriving at the Snuggford Hotel, she finds things are not as it should be and offers to help out the staff until they can get everything in order, and to be sure her family and friends enjoy their stay at the hotel in Mac sim game Delicious-Emily’s Holiday Season.

This is the sim game where the guests will seat themselves in the dining area. This is different from Diner Dash where you have to drag customers to specific tables. Emily has a lot of other duties she must take care of in the course of her cooking commitment. She must check people in and out of the hotel by clicking on the person and what they want. She must deal with the postman when he delivers mail or packages, cook all the meals by watching the ribs on the grill, taking it off the fire before it burns, stirring the cranberry and basting the turkey. If that’s not enough, you have to deal with Emily’s friends and relatives. And, to make matters a little busier there are spiders and mice in the lodge and you must click on them at the same time as dealing with all the clients. You get 10 points for spiders and 100 points for a mouse. You will see what each person wants over their heads, you click on the item, when it is ready, click on the customer and then click on the register to get paid.

Don’t forget the original reason Emily is there at the hotel. She is to coordinate the family gathering at the same time. Sis may help you fill out the name place cards, but she will not put it on the table. You have to do that by clicking on Sis and then the highlighted seat at the long dining table.

There are a lot of things to do in this sim game. Emily’s friend Francois has his catelog again and you can get upgrades to the hotel and helps for your play. When you complete enough levels of play you get festive fireworks for your hard work. Outside of the hotel is a winter wonderland full of snow for outdoor activities like making snowmen, snowball tossing and ice skating.

Even though there are series of steps you must complete before finishing a level, it is enjoyable and fun to play. The artwork is done well with bright colors and cute characters (some who you will recognize from Delicious: Emily’s Taste of Fame). So bundle up and have fun in the snow with Delicious: Emily’s Holiday Season.

Features of Delicious: Emily’s Holiday Season:
-Holiday Adventure
-Fireworks
-Snowmen, Ice Skating and Throw Snowballs

Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars

Rainbow Web 3 is the latest game about a giant wizard spider. In the earlier games this spider took over the castle in the kingdom of Rainbow and you became the hero who solved match 3 puzzles to release letters to reverse the curse.

After defeating this evil sorcerer spider, twice, you must once again solve match 3 puzzles to release letters and save the village of Rainbow covered in cobwebs. You go from house to house rebuilding the structures and bringing the villagers back to their homes.

The match 3 play is very similar to the first 2 Rainbow Web games except this last game does not have a timer as an option. You match 3 or more of the same color orbs to match along a spider web. Some of the orbs have letters when matched will release to the top left of the screen to create words. It’s like playing Wheel of Fortune, but it’s much easier to solve. Once you solve the puzzles, you will earn magic dust to buy furniture and items for the shops and homes in the village. In addition to this play, there are some hidden object games and puzzles to solve in order to remove special curses.

There are a few blocks to your match game. The orbs or beads can be frozen and you have to make matches over them twice to unfreeze them. Also some parts of the web are missing making it more difficult to make matches across in a straight line.

The game play is not difficult and without a timer, you can relax and enjoy the puzzles. The sim play of rescuing the village, mini games and puzzles add to the overall game, but all the mini games are standard from jigsaws to hidden objects. The artwork is good and the music appropriate for the story. If you liked the first 2 games, you’ll love this one also, but if you are new to this series, start with 3 and see what you think.

Features of Rainbow Web 3:
-Web Match 3 Games
-Restore the Rainbow to its Original State
-Mini Games and Puzzles

[rated:3]

Mac Global Warning is a different type of game. It’s difficult to identify what kind of genre it is. It’s easier saying what it is not rather than what it is. It is not a HOG or match play, and it is definitely not an action game. It is an original environmental rpg/sim/card game for anyone who is involved in saving the planet from, well, yourself. In order to avoid a landfill from being developed next to your home, you make choices in your life to help improve your outcome. I guess it is a realistic game of life for the environmentally conscious and those who want to learn more about being green.

It seems that picking your hero is an important and possibly critical choice to win this game. So I looked at the choices carefully. There’s Jerry the travel agent. He’s not in a very green business. The scientist is fresh out of college…..think toxic frat house. The kindergarten teacher is too frazzled to be conscious at the end of the day to think about cleaning up the earth. So I chose the museum curator the oldest and hopefully the wisest character and may know a thing or two about being environmentally sound. As in most rpgs you’ll find the details of each person: knowledge, compassion, naivete, charisma, health, finances, morale. You need to keep an eye on the upper left corner to make sure morale, health and finances do not fall. In addition, the environmental impact is listed on the upper right of the screen for waste, chemical, energy, co2, self-sufficiency, water and overall.

Each round is a week in the life of your hero. You choose the actions of your person from the work space, and with increased experience you will get to choose more cards. The outcome of your actions will be displayed on the left of the game board. Also helpful green tips are given at the middle top of the screen to live a better life. There are 104 rounds to complete your game. Each week will bring about new data about how your hero is doing. Press the arrow next round button to continue your play. There are encouraging comments about the choices you make and not so happy words for your mistakes.

The play gets engaging as you go from round to round or week to week because you get concerned about the choices you made the week before and how it will affect you. There’s a lot to read but most of it is information you can use to live a healthy and good life. The game itself is challenging and difficult to beat. I guess I had a lot to learn so I tried the game with another hero. The demo will let you try each hero for 20 rounds. The more I played, the more I liked it so give it a try and make an important impact on this green planet of ours. I give it a 3.5 out of 5 for a totally awesome and original game.

Features of Global Warning:
-104 Rounds
-Environmental Data
-Get Rid of the Toxic Dumpsite.

Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars

Vicky became so fit she wanted to open her own gym to help people become healthy in Fitness Frenzy. This sim Mac game is a colorful, cute play for children and casual gamers. They will enjoy learning to greet the customers at the door, giving expert advice, assisting when needed by clients and handling the money matters of the business.

As Vicky you do all the work at a rather rapid clip when the game gets going. When you greet the people, they let you know what kind of exercise regimen they want, and in the bubble above their heads you can see how many machines they must utilize to meet their requirements. You quickly learn to move from the door to the machines assisting the users with their exercises by clicking each area. If the client is satisfied, you will get a large tip. Afterwards you go to the desk and handle the cash transactions for the fees and tips. You continue to do this over and over until you have enough money to upgrade your existing machines and possibly buy more equipment. Eventually you get enough money to hire employees to help you out.

This game would be a great educational tool for kids to learn time management, customer service and finances. However, I am not a sim game type of person, so I didn’t really get anything out of  it. The play is repetitive with very little action involved except when you are swamped with demanding customers and have to run around satisfying everyone or lose money. The simple cartoon figures and background are colorful and lively. If you are into sim Mac game play, it should be enjoyable and fun for you.

Rating: 2 out of 5 stars

Where in the world is Farm Frenzy taking us now in this third of a series of fun time management games? You’ll be traveling to 5 exotic locations around the world from Africa to the arctic South Pole. Each site will have its own indigenous creatures. You will have to take care of the animals, prepare goods and raise money for your farm to prosper.

Scarlet receives a letter from her good friend Morris who needs help with his farm in Africa. Upon arriving Scarlet finds embezzling within the local farmers’ union. Scarlet and Morris are not so easily foiled and they both get to work to make the best running farm in the area.

You begin by watering plots of land so grass can grow, and the guinea birds find food and lay their eggs. You click on the eggs to put in the warehouse. When ready, you click on the scooter to transport your eggs to market. You’ll receive money for your goods and after waiting for your scooter to return, you can start all over again. Eggs are fine but you can get more if you process your eggs into powder. That means you need to purchase a machine to do this. Thus begins your journey into the farming business. You must put up buildings, upgrade them, cage wild animals like lions from destroying your birds and bake products from your powdered eggs. There’s enough to do while at the same time making money, getting achievements, trophies and stars. The stars are needed for new animals and upgrading buildings.

Not only do you collect these awards, you must meet your level goals such as getting so many guinea birds, sell so many eggs and capture the wild life dropped on your land. Certain items can be bought in the shop but others will have to be produced by using your bought machinery and building structures. This is when the “frenzy” comes in with you doing as much as possible as fast as possible. Speed is another factor so you can earn your trophies and stars.

The gameplay is similar to their other games but adds a few items to make this one as addictive and fun as ever. The 3D animals are great fun to watch and capture by clicking on them over and over until a cage surrounds them. The 5 locations around the world will bring about new animals and activities to perform. The game is repetitive, but isn’t that what makes a good time management play? If you are new to the genre, choosing any one of the Farm Frenzy franchise will give you the pleasure and fun these types of games produce. Try Farm Frenzy 3 and play a fanatic game full of things to do with colorful graphics, 3D animals and good upbeat, rhythmic music. I give it a 3.5 out of 5 for a entertaining, solid game.

Features of Farm Frenzy 3:
-5 Different Locations Around the World
-95 Frenetic Levels
-Help the Farmers of the World

Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars

Escape from Paradise 2: A Kingdom’s Quest is a conglomeration of many genres of Mac games. For the most part it is a sim play developing your own tribe of people. It is up to you to make sure there is enough food, water and building supplies for a successful life.
This game is a continuation of your life after a shipwreck stranded you on an island. You work to earn your freedom off this paradise isle, but found that life on the island wasn’t so bad after all, and you try to assimilate back into the tribe. The chief, a jealous and vindictive person, ban you to the outskirts of the island to prove to him you are worthy of returning.

The game starts at this point after you choose your avatar. If you choose a male, a princess will help you. If you choose a female, you get help from Prince Perusah. He will have an explanation mark over his head if he needs to speak to you. The tutorial and play will start you off with simple challenges like gathering wood. The challenges will be posted at the top of the screen with the bottom part of the board with useful stats on your person. In addition, there are buttons for building and another for items. You need to click on them for structures you need to erect and items you find scattered throughout the island. Happiness levels stay below each person for you to keep an eye on the bar so it doesn’t dip too far down. You need to keep everyone in your tribe happy and sated for tasks to be completed. Also at the bottom are the numbers for the amount of tribe members, food, and wood. If you help people build, they will give you their loyalty. When you click and drag people to a tree, they will either chop for wood or gather food. The prince will help you out with tasks also, but if they tire, you can see that they need to rest in the hut. Also if anyone is near food or water and they need it, they will eat or drink until they are satisfied but be sure to have plenty of food and water for them.

After you complete a challenge, you may receive a reward in a form of a crate washing ashore. The first reward is a monkey who will assist you in finding hidden objects. Of course, with the added responsibility of a screeching monkey, you must build him a home. After completion of this house, you have a new ability. You must build up your own skills and the skills of others so you can expand your ability to build different types of things so you can go on to your next challenge. In addition to your skills you must increase your population by marrying couples. In time they will have a baby and that child will grow into an adult who can help with the many tasks. Unfortunately people will die and that will decrease the numbers in your tribe.

The mini games are many and you can go to them when needed since the plays will earn you food, wood and skill points. They can be a match game with your option of playing Tiki Topple or Classic. The Classic play is to match 3 or more like items to collect points, and Tiki Topple is a match game with you playing against the clever chief. It’s tough to beat him, but fun to keep trying. There are Sudoku plays and card games to enjoy.

If that’s not enough for you, the island slowly reveals secrets but only to true souls. At one point steps to a temple all of a sudden appeared from the sands of the beach. The items you uncover will assist you in many ways. Also remember, sometimes you need your monkey close by to be able to see some of the hidden things. He will be screeching for you to do something. Eventually you will need to connect to the other islands so you need to somehow get rocks to cross over to the other side. Dynamite may help you so look, dig and find your TNT.

Escape From Paradise 2: A Kingdom’s Quest is full of many interesting things and surprises to do for your island tribe. The mini games are a nice distraction from your daily tasks on the island. I never played the first game so I don’t have that to compare this new sequel, but I’ve played other similar games such as Virtual Villagers 1, 2 and 3, and Wild Tribe. I found Escape From Paradise 2: A Kingdom’s Quest a better game even though there are many similar aspects to the sim play, you get a lot of fun and well thought out side games to keep you engaged during the entire time.

Features of Escape From Paradise 2:
-Customize Your Hero
-Keep Everyone Happy
-Chief of the Tribe

Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars

Tetala Island is where Chief Aruku reigns over her Hawk tribe. For many years there have been struggles and challenges for her people. Aruku wants to better the conditions for her village. The ancients have all known about the Tear of Heaven that can grant unimaginable wisdom and enlightenment to whoever possess this talisman. With this magical power, Aruku can improve the outcome of her tribe but in order to do so she must search every island in the vicinity and complete missions to find it.

To begin your play use the tutorial which will guide you through some of the aspects of this sim/rpg/hidden object/strategy game. It’s hard to say what it is with so many options available. The important thing to remember is to read all the stone guides since these are your hints in the game. If you do not read one, it will be highlighted in yellow. Another big item in your search is the tower. Build them to defend your troops and to see further. The buildings are important to put up by clicking on the hammer at the lower right hand side to get different types of people needed in your quest. There are hidden objects and gems to find everywhere you go. You may need to revisit an island for things you may have passed by or were not available at the time. There are tasks you must perform like finding boulders and using them to make a bridge, and quests to conquer for different people you meet along the way.

Guro of Wolverine is one of them, and he resides on Mushroom Island. On this island are mushroom-like enemies you must fight off to complete a task. You will find many hostile enemies on different islands. The crossed swords at the bottom of the screen will activate your troops into fighting. The magnifying glass will help you find some hidden objects. Also sometimes these items will pulsate to help you locate them. Another huge help is the mini map. You can get to a site on the island quickly by clicking on the spot you would like to travel to. In addition, the bad guys are in red so you can spot them easily. The difficult part comes in when you cannot see parts of the screen because of a black fog. These areas open up as you go along collecting needed items and accomplishing certain tasks.

Totem Tribe Gold with its interesting graphics will draw you into its story while playing the game. The more you play it, the more you get involved in figuring out the quests and puzzles in order to help Aruku and the Hawk people. Instead of keeping your villagers healthy like in other games, you have a goal and objective to reach through the many tasks and puzzles that are waiting for you on each island. So heed Guru’s words and find your sacred totems to complete just one of your many quests.

Features of Totem Tribe Gold:
-32 Locations
-Over 200 Missions and Puzzles
-Hidden Objects

Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars

Youda Marina is a refreshing change from the usual real estate sim Mac play where you build homes, castles and business buildings in a town or borough.  In this imaginative game you create from a vacant, barren shoreline, island or lagoon to a well-developed corporate moneymaking ideal beachside town for fun and recreation.

In order to build and maintain a beach community you need to initially build a radio station to communicate with the many boats that will need to dock and enjoy the facilities of your town.  When a boat is in need of your services, they will radio you and a yellow triangle with a radio will appear.  You then click on the radio, a boat with a similar triangle and radio will appear, and you will need to click to see what they need.  Your options are to either dock or if there are no available spaces or the ship is too large, you may need to turn away the boat losing the income.  This will force you to build more docks and enlarge spaces.

Other income will come from the many facilities (gas, radio, etc.), land attractions (bar, restaurant, hotel) and event facilities (diving school, game fishing, water sports and sea park).  The infrastructure builds the docks, lighting and can also demolish sites.  Milestones in the upper left corner are the goals for the campaign mode you must meet to complete the level.  After reaching a milestone, you get a star rank at the bottom right of the screen.  The small map is useful to click on a location and going directly there.

While all the construction is happening, the boats continue to come in and you need to click to reveal docking options for them.  The play is busy but never frustrating even though there are a lot of work to be completed.  It’s interesting to see your beach town rise from sand and water to a thriving community.  I was raised near beach cities and saw a few marinas developed from nothing into large ports for boats and yachts of all sizes.  Before Marina del Rey, California became an upscale, trendy beach location, it was farmland and fishing creeks.  The idyllic country living is gone now and the busy congestion of city life took over, but the new development and progress helps bring revenue to the area. I enjoy playing Youda Marina with its change in scenery from building homes to erecting docks and prosperous fun beach communities. Navigate your boats to your safe and exciting harbor with its many attractions.

Features of Youda Marina:

-4 Maps

-Facilities

-Beautiful Designs

-Be the Harbor Master

Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars