Posts Tagged ‘sims time management’

Cake Mania 2 Review

Sim | Posted by Meg
Mar 11 2010

cake-mania-2

Now that Jill has rescued her grandparents from financial disaster (in Cake Mania), she sent them on a Hawaiian cruise in Cake Mania 2. Jill is ready for her own adventures in the baking world in addition to her personal life. Her future outcome is in your hands. Where will Jill end up with 6 different outcomes to her life’s story in this Mac game.

The play starts with your decision to go with Risha, Jill’s friend, and bake in a posh hoity penthouse bakery in the middle of town or work for Jack, her ex-boyfriend who cannot run a water park and is going bankrupt, on the out skirts of the city. The 2 locations have different type of clientele and many personalities.

The play is very similar to Cake Mania, but in multiple scenes. A customer comes in the shop, you click on the customer, they read the menu and decide what shape cake and which frosting they want, you click on the shape on the oven and wait, click on the baked cake to pick it up, then click on the type of frosting the client requested, click on the frosted cake to pick it up, click on the customer and finally click on the money left on the counter. This money will goCake Mania 6 towards your daily cash total. This procedure is done over and over in the course of the workday. You can change it up a bit by picking up the baked cake and click on the next shape before going to the icing station. You need to do double duty to keep up the demands of the impatient customers. You can tell by the hearts what the level of tolerance is for that person.

In order to speed up your production and satisfy your clients, you need to purchase baking equipment to expand your Cake Mania 7shop. You can only do this when you have made enough money for the expensive items. Hopefully you are fast enough to make the daily quota. In addition to the new equipment, there are extras that will allow you to charge more for each cake and make more money.

There are 18 new and different customers from the deep sea diver from Jack’s water park, the security officer, doctor, and the old cat lady at the posh bakery. The areas are new from the first game, and there are 50 more kitchen upgrades to buy and install in your shop. The oven is the same old reliable machine that granny has always used, there are toppers for the cakes, and additional frostings. With a couple hundred levels, play can continue for hours.

Cake Mania 2 has more options and a twist to the story line that the first version of the game did not have. If you liked Cake Mania, you’ll love this second one even more with its options to the story line, different location to bake your cakes and funny characters to satisfy.

Features of Cake Mania 2:
-18 New Customers
-204 Sweet Levels
-50 Kitchen Upgrades

Rating: ★★★☆☆

Garden Dreams Review

Sim | Posted by Meg
Feb 27 2010

garden-dreams

Garden Dreams is an action-packed Mac game for kids and casual gamers. Be ready to swat and spray pests and grow produce to help Granny Gertrude pay her bills and keep her lovely garden intact.

Granny Gertrude once grew prized veggies, but as she grew older, it was more and more difficult for her to keep up the work to grow a garden. It is up to you to assist her buy equipment, plant seeds, water her plants, harvest the food and keep the pests away. This all must be done with only 3 lives for each level.

The play is easy to learn, and the game will take you through it slowly at first and then with more intensity later on. You click on the object to perform an action. You click on the water can to water the plant, and if you do not do it fast enough, you will lose a plant. A great upgrade to get is the sprinkler, but this item must be unlocked before you can use it. You will lose the plant making you work longer on fewer plants. I lost 2 plants because I didn’t water fast. Also you must click on the ripe produce when it falls to the ground, but if this is not done quickly it will rot and you will lose money. Also after harvesting the produce you must click on Granny to give her the money or she is grumpy.

In between working very hard in the garden, you must fight off the pests so you do not lose plants and in turn money. This is done by swatting quickly and repeatedly on the caterpillars to squish them. When you start to unlock awards you can use pesticides to get rid of them faster. You must master getting your pests under control because in the higher levels the enemies will increase and become harder to conquer.

Your only defense will be your friends. Stinky Skunk can stun the pests giving you time to swat or spray them. Tom Turtle will pick up the produce you missed on the ground. He walks back and forth on the bottom of the garden picking up your tomatoes.

This Mac game is like Alice Greenfingers, but with more movement and action. Alice Greenfinger seemed like it is more of a sims time management game and Garden Dreams is a little more like an action swat and squish game. I think this game is fun for a lot of people without the violence, except when you swat and squish pests, and you are helping Granny Gertrude pay her bills.

Features of Garden Dreams:
-Make Your Own Garden Dreams Come True
-80 Levels
-Many Plants and Enemies
-40 Locked Upgrades

Rating: ★★★½☆

Fitness Frenzy Review

Sim | Posted by Meg
Jan 20 2010

fitness-frenzy1

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 Fitness Frenzy3learn 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 Fitness Frenzytransactions 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 Fitness Frenzy2service 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: ★★☆☆☆