DrDavid's Profile
Stat Summary
- Average Rating:3.3
- Helpful Votes:2,837
- Reviews Submitted:246
- First Review:November 24, 2011
- Most Recent Review:July 12, 2022
- Featured reviews0
Status:
Make the world a better place - build your own planet!
Overall rating
2
/
5
11 of 21 found this review helpful
I did not 'get' it
PostedJanuary 5, 2015
DrDavid
fromRaleigh, NC
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Hidden Object, Match 3, Strategy
Fun Factor
1
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
3
/
5
Level of Challenge
2
/
5
Storyline
1
/
5
I played 18 minutes in two separate tries and I simply don’t get the point of this thing. I combined this and that and created a couple of new items and so what? Is there a point? Is there a goal? I failed to find anything which would hold my interest in this exercise and I deleted it. I like the developer of the game and this represents a different game from their usual tower defense, but I did not find it captivating.
I don't recommend this game.
The ancient Chaos has devoured the abode of the gods. Save the gods from Chaos and become a legend!
Overall rating
2
/
5
A pretty M3 but not for me
PostedJanuary 5, 2015
DrDavid
fromRaleigh, NC
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Hidden Object, Match 3, Strategy
Fun Factor
2
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
4
/
5
Level of Challenge
2
/
5
Storyline
1
/
5
After playing 12 minutes of this M3 I was convinced that I could not continue playing it. It lacked anything to hold my interest, and I do enjoy M3 games. This game was simply too sweet for me. Easy, but not the switch gems type of M3 which I usually play, rather this is the gathering of like gems of one color. That style of play does not interest me.
I don't recommend this game.
Castle Secrets: Between Day and Night
Explore a castle full of secrets and save the world!
Overall rating
4
/
5
26 of 29 found this review helpful
Bizarre but absorbing
PostedDecember 31, 2014
DrDavid
fromRaleigh, NC
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Hidden Object, Match 3
Fun Factor
4
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
4
/
5
Level of Challenge
4
/
5
Storyline
4
/
5
I have trouble describing this game. Hints on how to play are sparse and repetitive and generally not helpful enough, and yet I am fascinated by the possibilities and frustrated by the lack of progress. I have played several hours now and still I have only gotten to level 17 and have only 5 rooms open. I simply cannot fathom how to earn enough money to open more rooms, but I cannot quit playing. I think I have a fascination with trying to figure out how to play the game more than trying to achieve any goals. The rooms are classic, if short and repetitive, HOS where you can earn money and items. Money can buy items and items can kill the attacking forces of evil, which in turn generate more items. Somewhere in here is a method to be promoted faster, but I’ll be darned it I can figure it out. The English is fractured and the names of items can be very odd, but then there are things like an Ann Arbor newspaper to make you wonder what country this originated from. I suggest you try it and see whether you are absorbed by it or not. So far, I recommend it.
I recommend this game!
Help Jill & Mike to save their wedding and uncover Jill's heritage!
Overall rating
3
/
5
6 of 9 found this review helpful
Best of the series
PostedDecember 31, 2014
DrDavid
fromRaleigh, NC
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Hidden Object, Match 3, Strategy
Fun Factor
4
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
3
/
5
Level of Challenge
3
/
5
Storyline
1
/
5
This is best game of the series, however the series is rather weak. This game is the best in a rather bad lot. The original Gardens Inc was an abomination. I finally gave up and deleted it after getting totally stuck about 2/3 finished and totally bored with the play. The second game was an improvement; at least I could finish it, despite being somewhat bored. This game, however, was actually fun to play, if you skipped the hour or so of what they thought was ‘plot’. There was a section with trophies, which I did not visit, and another on preparations for the wedding, which held no interest for me. Actually I believe that marriage is the triumph of imagination over intelligence. Forget it. But the actual game play, skipping all but the first six or so cut scenes of the 50 or so which the game provides, is worth the money. I ignored the time and color of the award, finished all but one level in under 15 minutes. Time means nothing in the game, except the color of the trophy. As an adventure game I liked and recommend this game. For TM, probably not.
I recommend this game!
The evil wizard Moramor has captured the Happy Empire! Help Princess Leya overcome difficulties, banish the evil wizard and restore the empire!
Overall rating
3
/
5
9 of 12 found this review helpful
Happy Empire is a short but sweet game
PostedDecember 9, 2014
DrDavid
fromRaleigh, NC
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Hidden Object, Match 3, Strategy
Fun Factor
4
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
4
/
5
Level of Challenge
3
/
5
Storyline
2
/
5
Happy Empire is a very short game in the time management style. The time management part, however, is very easy to beat. Those who want a difficult challenge will not find it here. I usually play untimed but in this case I earned three stars on every level but one on the first play and never ran out of time. The one level I failed on was because I could not figure out where to click to do one task. Once I learned where to click, everything worked. Stacking tasks is possible in this game, but be careful as only about three can be stacked before some of them become unchecked. The game is short and easy but somewhat entertaining because few of this ilk have been offered lately. I played it one evening while rebuilding a computer with a particularly vexing problem. The game was over before the computer was fully rebuilt, but my sanity was preserved despite the problems I was encountering.
I recommend this game!
In this exciting match-3 game, you’ve been called upon by the Queen to cultivate the biggest garden ever. Are you up to the task?
Overall rating
5
/
5
44 of 49 found this review helpful
Quite an unusual M3
PostedNovember 26, 2014
DrDavid
fromRaleigh, NC
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Hidden Object, Match 3, Strategy
Fun Factor
5
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
5
/
5
Storyline
5
/
5
This is a M3 with colored tiles which are removed by a match above them, but in this game only one particular match of 3 items will remove the tiles. Other matches do nothing to them. After that, vine covered tiles and frozen tiles are like other games. Another quirk is the almost total lack of instructions. Good luck. Figure it out yourselves. Fortunately, that isn’t too hard. However, on one board there is an arrow pointing left to right and constantly in the way. It seems to be pointing to a bird’s nest which also is in the way. After some time you may notice that the arrow has a clove of garlic behind it. The object is to move the garlic into the bird’s nest. Then a sprout will grow and you will figure out that the garlic was a seed and the nest a pot or something. There are also butterflies in bubbles to release in some boards. After several boards I found that they can be removed with the obvious explosion or by dropping them off the bottom. No instructions! In a way, this game is similar to Gardenscapes but rather than earn coin by finding and selling hidden objects, one earns coin by clearing M3 boards. All in all, I have completed 45 boards and I am pleased with the game.
I recommend this game!
An explosion destroyed your magical alchemy laboratory! Rebuild it by unlocking the mysterious ingredients you need in exciting match-3 levels!
Overall rating
3
/
5
18 of 21 found this review helpful
A M3 with power ups for purchase
PostedNovember 5, 2014
DrDavid
fromRaleigh, NC
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Hidden Object, Match 3, Strategy
Fun Factor
4
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
4
/
5
Level of Challenge
3
/
5
Storyline
3
/
5
This is the second M3 I have played which sells power ups in the store. Unfortunately, the play is very different from usual M3 in that the power ups are purchased, not earned, and in order to purchase power ups one has to accumulate quite a few specific gems. After one hour, I have about 25% of what I need for the first purchase. The trick, if it is a trick at all, is to play in relaxed mode and avoid winning a level until you have collected as many gems as you can. Of all the gems available on a level, usually only one or two fall into the category of counting for purchasing. I feel that this interrupts the flow of the game, as winning is secondary to collecting, but maybe that is what you prefer. I find it at least relaxing to play a bit at a time and once I can purchase some powerful power ups the collecting goes faster. I can recommend the game but with the caveat that you really need to play it for an hour to see whether this style of play suits you. I just bought it.
I recommend this game!
Mother Nature is no match for the courageous men and women of the Rescue Team!
Overall rating
4
/
5
3 of 4 found this review helpful
An adventure game worth playing to relax
PostedOctober 30, 2014
DrDavid
fromRaleigh, NC
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Hidden Object, Match 3, Strategy
Fun Factor
4
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
4
/
5
Level of Challenge
4
/
5
Storyline
4
/
5
OK. This is a time management game at heart but it has an untimed mode with turns it into an adventure game. I like to play it for a couple levels and then do some work. For me, it is nice relaxation in between periods of work. It is cartoonish and silly, but at the same time it is fun. Previous rescue teams were blackguards seemingly doing good only to enrich themselves. That theme has not been apparent here. Rather here the rescuers are rescuing people and animals, and you just can’t hate that. Try the free play because you might like it too.
I recommend this game!
Seek the help of Lemuel Barnabas and unravel the mystery of what happened to Halloween in this ludicrous and imaginative hidden object adventure.
Overall rating
1
/
5
20 of 42 found this review helpful
No skipping puzzles is an automatic fail
PostedOctober 28, 2014
DrDavid
fromRaleigh, NC
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Hidden Object, Match 3, Strategy
Fun Factor
1
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
3
/
5
Level of Challenge
1
/
5
Storyline
1
/
5
After 20 minutes of the free trial I discovered that there is no way to skip a slide the tiles puzzle. I don’t play puzzles, ever. So I erased this loser. There is nothing more to say. I saved my money.
I don't recommend this game.
Cruel beings have devastated a floating island leaving its peaceful populace helpless in the face of war. Conquer the evil scourge and repair the land!
Overall rating
4
/
5
13 of 14 found this review helpful
My first tower defense/M3 game
PostedOctober 22, 2014
DrDavid
fromRaleigh, NC
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Adventure, Hidden Object, Match 3, Strategy
Fun Factor
4
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
4
/
5
Level of Challenge
4
/
5
Storyline
4
/
5
On the surface, this is a tower defense game. But suddenly when you need resources to purchase towers or magic, you have to play a match 3 game or several. And there have already been some hidden objects to find to assemble a machine. What? This is certainly a game worth playing to see whether you will like it. Can you be happy with a tower/M3 game? Have you ever seen one like that before? I bought it and I am at level 10 and still trying to learn it. In the M3 portion, I sometimes get nothing and then the next time I get to level 5 and I get coin and magic in quantities. I just wish I could figure out why sometimes I win a little and sometimes I win a lot. The instructions are paltry so you just play and figure things out for yourself. Strange, but it seems to work in this game. So exactly how many stars does it deserve? Hard to tell. I’m not sure I know which game within a game to be rating, but I like it.
I recommend this game!