mahnu_uterna's Profile
Stat Summary
- Average Rating:5
- Helpful Votes:60
- Reviews Submitted:4
- First Review:November 12, 2012
- Most Recent Review:June 7, 2013
- Featured reviews0
mahnu_uterna's Review History
Fairway Solitaire: Tee to Play
Fairway Solitaire: Tee To Play is an award-winning combination of solitaire and golf. Play sequential cards to create long drives. Long drives make better scores!
Overall rating
5
/
5
27 of 29 found this review helpful
It seems to good to be true....but it's true!
PostedJune 7, 2013
mahnu_uterna
fromGolden, CO
Skill Level:Expert
Favorite Genre(s):Word, Hidden Object, Card & Board, Brain Teaser, Puzzle
Fun Factor
5
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
5
/
5
Storyline
4
/
5
When I saw Big Fish was offering a "Free" game, I was expecting some sort of abbreviated version that required you to pay to access certain levels, or some item that you can't really continue without. Wrong!!
Not only is this a full game, it is actually an *improvement* on the pay version of Fairway, with more achievements, more interesting layouts, and even better rendering. Awesome of Big Fish and the game developers to offer this outstanding game to their customers...I hope this ends up being a good move for BF and they release other classic favorites in full free versions.
I recommend this game!
I SPY™ Fun House
Explore a carnival full of brain-teasing illusions in this Hidden Object game!
Overall rating
5
/
5
21 of 25 found this review helpful
An All-Time Favorite!
PostedDecember 8, 2012
mahnu_uterna
fromGolden, CO
Skill Level:Expert
Favorite Genre(s):Family, Brain Teaser, Hidden Object, Puzzle
Fun Factor
5
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
5
/
5
Storyline
5
/
5
I cannot say enough about how much my little ones have enjoyed playing this game. I sat with them on my lap, and we talked about all the items and the musical effects - lots of learning going on! My favorite features:
* Kids who can't read yet can click on a clue to hear it spoken again, so it isn't absolutely necessary for them to be able to read to succeed at the game. This feature can be considered an added value for an emergent reader!
* The items make unique movements and sounds when you click them. This makes it quite entertaining for young users! Also, the sounds are little flourishes by different instruments, so your little ones can learn those as well.
* The mini-game area isn't quite as little-kid friendly, but they are really interesting games. I'd often stop to play a few after my kids had enough of the main game.
* The pictures are gorgeous. Some items, I'll concede, are difficult to find, and a hint feature would be very appreciated. Still, I think it's good to have varying levels of challenge, and the scenes are really attractive.
OVERALL: This is a great game for kids, but parents, please play along. You'll both get more out of it! :D
I recommend this game!
The long-awaited sequel to Burger Rush is here! Help Heidi open her own cooking school to create flavorful dishes in this Match 3 mix.
Overall rating
5
/
5
2 of 2 found this review helpful
A good game made even better!
PostedNovember 24, 2012
mahnu_uterna
fromGolden, CO
Skill Level:Expert
Favorite Genre(s):Family, Word, Brain Teaser, Hidden Object, Puzzle
Fun Factor
4
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
5
/
5
Storyline
4
/
5
Restaurant Rush and its predecessor, Burger Rush, are games in which you must play a match-3 game to meet a time management goal, i.e., completing a customer's order before they run out of patience. In both games, you earn tokens that you can use to buy better recipes, improve your equipment, etc.
What I love about these games is that while the gameplay itself doesn't really change from level to level, there is a certain amount of strategy in the way you choose to spend your precious tokens, and the level of difficulty advances in a satisfying way.
Restaurant Rush offers several features that Burger Rush did not. In RR, there are five different types of restaurant (American, Chinese, etc.), so you are given five different sets of recipes and treats to upgrade. Also, in addition to treats, you have the option to buy jukebox music to increase your customers' patience. Just like in BR, there are beverage and soup machines you can upgrade for taste and efficiency, but in RR, you can upgrade your ingredients as well. Deciding on how and when to spend your coins is crucial to your success.
Restaurant Rush is certainly not a complicated game...a few reviewers seem to find this genre boring. I like these games for that quick de-stress break, and the fact that there is some kind of progress to keep track of makes it even more engaging for me. If you are a fan of the genre, this is a definite buy!
I recommend this game!
Compete with the neighbors for the highest score in ten home-themed card games! Use bonus cards to gain additional points.
Overall rating
5
/
5
10 of 10 found this review helpful
Minor flaws don't spoil the fun
PostedNovember 12, 2012
mahnu_uterna
fromGolden, CO
Skill Level:Expert
Favorite Genre(s):Family, Word, Hidden Object, Card & Board, Strategy, Brain Teaser, Puzzle
Fun Factor
4
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
4
/
5
Storyline
5
/
5
In Picket Fences, you compete against three computer "neighbors" to fulfill various homemaking and neighborhood goals. The gameplay is based on set-making, sometimes collecting any two or three of a generic set, sometimes collecting each card in a numbered set. Goals, rules, and cards change in each of 10 levels, including various bonus and penalty cards.
The Awesome: The goals and cards are different on each level - like ten games in one. Achievement awards give the game extra replay value. I like that this is a unique computer card game that really wouldn't work well in real life with real cards; that way I don't feel like I'm playing a card game on the computer simply because I lack friends. ;-) Finally, the layout makes it easy to track all the information you need - points, cards left, etc. It's a fairly "busy" game, and they did a good job of simplifying it visually.
The Good: There are two levels of play, which gives kids a fighting chance while they pick up the rules. The music and effects fit the theme, and they aren't annoying. The visuals are fairly simple, but pleasing and appropriate.
Improvements for Picket Fences 2, please:
There is no undo button, which means if you accidentally select the wrong card, that's too durn bad. The great thing about this game is that it requires some strategy, so if you've set up a good play only to have it ruined by a missed click...gah!
The AI isn't horrible, but it isn't great, either. Even on the standard level, your opponents will occasionally make inexplicable strategic decisions, which makes you feel like you're only winning because the computer is dumb.
You can't select or rename your computer opponents. This doesn't affect gameplay at all, but it would be a nice touch, don't you think?
OVERALL: Definitely buy. The flaws have annoyed me slightly from the beginning, but I've played the whole ten levels, plus achievements, on three different profiles. There's just nothing else like it that I've seen, and it's quite fun. Enjoy!!
I recommend this game!