Three Musketeers is a classic novel and now a RPG Mac game. The play starts with d’ Artagnan leaving home to pursue a life as a Musketeer. He travels to Paris to begin his training. He has a letter of introduction to Monsieur de Treville but it is taken from him during a scuttle with a rogue.

The game is to follow the yellow footprints for d’ Artagnan’s quests. You can veer off the yellow prints to search barrels and crates for loot and mana for health. The story is moved along in conversations and cartoon strips. You duel with just about everyone who challenges you. The main thing to remember when dueling is to wait to see your opponent sweat and then take them down. D’ Artagnan’s father had told him to never sell the horse he gave him, but to get money and avoid embarrassment (the horse is a different color than most horses) d’Artagnan sells it right away. Other methods of earning money is to take on quests that will pay you and sell your loot to the blacksmith. Some of the loot can be coins, peasant shirts, berets with or without feathers, collars and more. The blacksmith also will repair things, and he can sell you firearms. It’s important to collect the health potions in case you get injured in a fight.

You will eventually come across Athos (aura of mystery), Aramis (true calling is the priesthood), and Pothos (great strength). They will help you along the way. They like to party and play games so be ready for the side games. Tennis anyone? Cards and dice are also favorites of the musketeers. You will meet the evil cardinal and you will pursue the man in the purple outfit who stole your letter.

Your quests will take you all over France and England and back again helping good people and fighting the bad. You will encounter civilians and soldiers.

This RPG play follows the novel in a close adaptation. The artwork is simple and flat but works for this type of play. The game is easy enough for new and casual players without being frustrating like some other more difficult and violent RPGs. I never advocate not reading a book, but this game makes it very tempting not to read the original novel. Find out what happens to d’ Artagnan and his fellow musketeers. All for one and one for all.

Features of Three Musketeers:
-17th Century France and England
-Thwart Cardinal Richelieu
-Defend Queen Anne

Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars

Hit the grass courts and fire off an ace in a high speed match of Smashing Tennis. The game is clear: win sets to win matches. Now all you have to do put your own skills to the test and see if tennis is indeed your sport of choice. The key to this sports game in particular is skill.

Smashing Tennis requires skills with the use of two hands on different keys of the computer. If a gamer fails to play well on their first try and decides to just give up and complain about it on other people's blogs, then they missed the whole concept of Smashing Tennis in the first place. Smashing Tennis is not supposed to be mastered when someone presses start, it evokes a determination to evolve in skill level as players and tournaments are conquered one by one. To rise to the top of the International Tennis Association, it takes a lot more than scrolling and clicking a mouse.

Tennis is personally not my favorite sport. However arcade games of tennis  are always amusing and tons of fun. Smashing Tennis in particular is pretty entertaining as it reminds me of a 2D version of Mario Tennis. Overall I would give Smashing Tennis a 4 out of 5 stars.

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

When it comes to professional tennis who doesn’t love the William sisters? Both Venus and Serena are outstanding in their field and fun to watch. Their aggressive nature on the court won many tournaments. In Mac hidden object game Venus: The Case of the Grand Slam Queen you get to meet Venus off the playing field. Something strange is happening in her life and you are there to witness every step of the way.

You are Venus in this hidden object game, you watch your assistant, Mary chase down a criminal. Unsuccessful in her attempt to catch the thief you are there to take photos of the scene. At the bottom of the screen you will find photos, you move your viewfinder until the circle in the center turns green, adjust it further to turn the rectangle in the middle also green and then snap your picture. In the apartment you search for your fashion design pictures scattered about. There are a few HOGs throughout the chapters. The items you need to find will be listed at the bottom of the board. At the bottom center you will find the menu, journal and hint tabs. The hint button will recharge after a minute. Click too many times on wrong items and you will be penalized 30 seconds. Other mini puzzles consist of a breakout game where you shoot tennis balls up to soda cans, find what doesn’t belong in the scene, find the differences, and find multiples of a single item.
A different sort of play is after a hidden object game in Venus’ closet, you have a list of inventory items to use to dress Venus for her next match. You click on the clothes item and drag it to her. This is somewhat like Fashion Cents and Weekend Party Fashion Show.

All in all, the story is not that engaging, and the HOGs fairly easy to do. The artwork is good but in the scenes with Mary and Venus they both have their left hands on their hips, what is up with that? The music is pleasant enough. Some of the mini games are different from the usual plays in a HOG. You don’t usually see breakout games. There are 14 chapters with several levels and mini puzzles in each chapter. The tennis facts were interesting but there is a lot of reading you must do to unlock each chapter. The first chapter is open but the rest must be unlocked by using a password from the previous play. If you do not remember it, you must re-read the journal.

Venus: The Case of the Grand Slam Queen is not for everyone, but may be for tennis fans, children and some casual gamers. Try the demo and see for yourself how a tennis turned fashion superstar lives when she is not on the courts of Wimbledon.

Features of Venus: The Case of the Grand Slam Queen:
-14 Chapters
-Variety of Mini Games
-Solve the Mystery of the Stalker

Rating: 3 out of 5 stars