Mac games Only the Best Mac Game Reviews in Town!

2Feb/120

The Great Tree Review

the-great-tree

A graphically beautiful Mac game The Great Tree is different from the usual arcade play. If you can say a game is elegant, this is the one, even the creepy bugs have an air about them.

This is a story about the Great Tree that is the source of strength and magic for a group of fairies. The tree must be supplied pollen from the Smees, who collect the yellow substance inadvertently on their legs, nesting in the Great Tree. For some dark reason the colony of Smees have been decreasing and the tree has not been supplied with sufficient pollen causing havoc in the fairy world. This scare caused the fairies to split into 2 clans. The Wren who grew sapling from the tree and survived, and the Ixies who went looking for magic and found dark forces that turned them into horrific, tormented creatures full of hate towards the Wren. The only person who can help the Wren survive is one of their 1000 year old child – you. Your job is to collect pollen floating through the air and take it back to the transient star in the middle of the screen, which in turn, will take it to the Great Tree.

The play is simple. You fly around collecting a string of pollen and get it back to the shining orb without encountering any of the flying insects. If you should run into the insects all your pollen will be scattered, and you will have to start all over again collecting the specks. The longer the string of pollen the more points you will garner, and eventually you will be able to purchase powers like health, strength, agility and magic. In addition to all that there are power-ups like the deep freeze where it will freeze all the flying insects giving you time to collect, and the extra that will attract all the pollen to you. In addition to the insects, frogs, Venus flytrap, and other obstacles you need to free the Smees from their bubble prison.

This game is quite fun to play, easy to pick up and entertaining for everyone. It wasn’t frantic but you must work at collecting all the pollen, avoid the flying bugs and free the Smees. The best part of The Great Tree is the extraordinarily gorgeous artwork.

Features of The Great Tree:
-Save the Wrens from the Ixies
-10 Environments
-Insects and Creatures
-Power-Ups

Rating: ★★★½☆

29Jan/120

Jessica’s Cupcake Cafe Review

Jessica's Cupcake Cafe

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 Jessica's Cupcake Cafe2cupcakes (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 andJessica's Cupcake Cafe3 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 Cafe7Jessica’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: ★★★★☆

27Jan/120

Call of Atlantis Review

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The mystical land of Atlantis was a blissful, idyllic place where Poseidon created for his people, but as time past they neglected the god and darkness fell throughout the kingdom. The altar of Poseidon was separated and 7 crystals were sent to 7 countries and 7 cities to be sealed forever.

The hero will be the one to remove the spells and bring the crystals back together to resurrect and bring the power back to Atlantis. The hero is you, and you need to swap 3 or more like items in a row to conquer and win back the jeweled encrusted altar. In the match game there is an amulet of Poseidon power-up which must be used in the level. There are bombs once brought to the bottom of the game board can be used in a hard to destroy area.

This game is very similar to Around the World in 80 Days with a different story line, but somehow Call of Atlantis is not as an engaging of a tale. The play although is a match game like many match games, it was not as exciting to play. I thought it was good but not enticing enough to play it again. Maybe it is because I didn’t play the previous Atlantis games, but I think other match plays are more interesting. However, the artwork is excellent. If you are into Poseidon and Atlantis, this may be the game for you.

Features of Call of Atlantis:
-Part of the Atlantis Series
-66 Levels
-7 Lands to Explore
-7 Crystals to Recover

Rating: ★★½☆☆

24Jan/120

Nanny Mania goes to Hollywood Review

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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: ★★★½☆

18Jan/120

Fishdom H2O Review

Fishdom H2O 4

Jennifer a strong willed recent graduate of Environmental Protection University is looking for employment. As a marine biologist she has many talents and skills to be useful at the world’s foremost aquarium run by Old Barney a close friend of her grandpa. However, Jennifer wants to prove herself and get the job on her own merits, but with no or little money, she cannot produce the kind of aquarium to impress her cat. At her grandpa’s suggestion, she goes diving for the manyFishdom H2O 11 treasures sitting at the bottom of the sea. With these finds she can make enough money to buy necessary fish, plants and equipment to make an fantastic tank to win her the job at Water is Life Foundation.

Fishdom H2O is an underwater hidden object play. After clicking on all the listed items in 3 minutes, you reach your goal and move on to the next level. In between the levels you can purchase the supplies for your aquarium. At the top right there are 3 meters you must increase to 100% before moving on to another project or aquarium. The 3 meters are fish, Fishdom H2Obeauty and comfort. The fish category lists all the different species of fish that is available for purchase. The beauty section will allow you to buy plants to beautify your tank and the comfort will let you put in lights and air filters to make your fish at home. After filling up all the meters, you will win a star.

Mini games are fun and played very quickly. You get 2 minutes to click in all the vases in the scene, collect all the gold items (including gold bullions, gold coins, golden bowls and vases) from the bottom of the ocean, find 10 items such asFishdom H2O2 hourglasses, guitars and more. You may dive without your oxygen tank and must look for 1 of 3 items listed as quickly as you can.

Fishdom H2O is a lively and fast-paced hidden object game. Each scene is 3 minutes. Quite fast for most hidden object plays, but it is enough time to find all your items. If you can’t find your object before the time runs out, use the hint button to have the seahorse point out your item. In addition look for more seahorses in each scene to increase the number of your hints.
Fishdom H2O 10
This is a great game and the scenes are doable in 3 minutes, however there always the relaxed mode. I like the colorful graphics and underwater scenes. The aquarium and screen saver are fun to create and enjoy. The only suggestion I have is to add a couple of match games from the first Fishdom for variety.

Features of Fishdom:
-Underwater Hidden Object
-20 Sea Creatures
-Accessories and Decorations
-Bonus Screensavers

Rating: ★★★★☆