samizdat's Profile
Stat Summary
- Average Rating:3.9
- Helpful Votes:237
- Reviews Submitted:16
- First Review:January 30, 2012
- Most Recent Review:June 3, 2016
- Featured reviews0
Chocolatier 3: Decadence by Design
Travel the globe in search of flavorful and exotic ingredients to customize your own chocolate creations.
Overall rating
5
/
5
26 of 38 found this review helpful
Excellent Game - My Favorite
PostedJanuary 30, 2012
samizdat
fromNew England
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Brain Teaser, Adventure, Strategy
Current Favorite:
Chocolatier 3: Decadence by Design
(37)Fun Factor
5
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
5
/
5
I adore this game and have played it many times. Everything about it is outstanding - the story, the opportunities for creativity, the graphics and music, the control you have over your character's choices, even the "arcade" style way of making the chocolates.
The best features are: you can make your own chocolates and coffee drinks - choose your flavors, colors and even name them. I love how each locale has its own music native to that region. And I loved haggling to buy and sell.
A good investment if you want a game you can play many times and enjoy every time.
I recommend this game!
Set out in search of your place in the sun in Path to Success! It's your life! What are you going to do with it?
Overall rating
5
/
5
51 of 57 found this review helpful
A Grittier Life Simulation Game
PostedJanuary 30, 2012
samizdat
fromNew England
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Brain Teaser, Adventure, Strategy
Current Favorite:
Chocolatier 3: Decadence by Design
(37)Fun Factor
5
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
2
/
5
Level of Challenge
5
/
5
This game is similar to Life Quest etc. but it's grittier and a bit more "real" in some ways because it gets at the emotional effects of life struggles.
As with the other games, you need to get a job, get a place to live, feed yourself, so to school, buy stuff etc. This game places a lot more emphasis on how you FEEL - are you happy or sad? Are you tired or energetic? Sadness and exhaustion build on themselves - if you're exhausted, you sleep late and have less time the next day to accomplish things, which makes you more tired.
There are more opportunities for fun in this game than in some others. You can visit a museum, a water park, a circus. I also liked that you can save your money in the bank and earn interest.
The graphics are poor and depressing, frankly. But that adds to the vibe of the game.
I recommend this game!
Worried that you are wasting your life, you finally decide to take action. Dump your dead-end job and find your true calling!
Overall rating
2
/
5
11 of 14 found this review helpful
Good for Kids Maybe
PostedJanuary 30, 2012
samizdat
fromNew England
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Brain Teaser, Adventure, Strategy
Current Favorite:
Chocolatier 3: Decadence by Design
(37)Fun Factor
2
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
3
/
5
Level of Challenge
2
/
5
This life-simulation game would probably appeal more to kids than to adults. I found it to be too talky, too linear and too simple, with no opportunity for creativity.
The object of this game is to choose one of four life paths and then build your skills in four areas to complete challenges. The challenges are mostly simple - a few took some thinking.
There's a set group of characters who talk all the time and say things that are supposed to be funny but just come across as annoying and lame - you want to click through ASAP. You get no chance to choose your avatar, clothes, food or anything else.
I played this game twice - a first time and a last time.
I don't recommend this game.
Survive the ordeals of modern day life as you strive toward the career of your dreams in My Life Story, a fun Builder game!
Overall rating
3
/
5
49 of 72 found this review helpful
Retro Look and Hipster Irony
PostedJanuary 30, 2012
samizdat
fromNew England
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Brain Teaser, Adventure, Strategy
Current Favorite:
Chocolatier 3: Decadence by Design
(37)Fun Factor
3
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
5
/
5
Level of Challenge
3
/
5
I've played all the life-simulation games on this site (I think) and this was my least-favorite. It's kind of gloomy with a big dose of hipster irony that is sometimes funny, sometimes stupid.
Like other games, you start at as clueless 20 year-old who needs to get a job, pay rent, buy food, go to school, etc. The hipster irony comes in right away - one of your first "job opportunities" is to be a beggar on the street. Your landlord is a creep, the only place to buy stuff is a pawn shop. If you get too hungry or too tired, you get rushed to the hospital and lose half your money in hospital fees.
The look of the game also feeds into this vibe. It has an Atari-looking, big-pixel design with jerky motion. I can only assume this was intentional.
This game is more repetitive than some others of its genre. There's just less to do - no clothes to buy and very few meal options - and the dreariness gets you down.
I don't recommend this game.
Want to accomplish your life goals? Find out if you’re up to the challenge in Life Quest, a quirky Simulation game!
Overall rating
5
/
5
45 of 58 found this review helpful
Fun Game with Some Good Laughs
PostedJanuary 30, 2012
samizdat
fromNew England
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Brain Teaser, Adventure, Strategy
Fun Factor
5
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
3
/
5
Level of Challenge
4
/
5
This cute life-simulation game is more complex and cheerier that many I've tried, with some good laughs and unexpected opportunities for creativity too.
The game starts you off as a penniless 20-something who needs to get a job, get an education, pay rent, buy stuff, feed yourself, fall in love, etc. You compete against peers to gradually climb the ladder of life.
What makes this different are the creativity opportunities (decorate your apartment, clothes, etc. in more sophisticated ways) the opportunity to sell stuff, and the chance to date, get married and have kids.
Some fun too - you can write movie reviews, the restaurant dishes have funny names, and the peers you compete against are goofballs.
It does get a bit repetitive in the end, when you have to perform tedious tasks to get to the top.
I recommend this game!
Save the three worlds contained inside of a magical book in Azada: In Libro! Stop a dark magician from conquering Azada!
Overall rating
3
/
5
A hidden object game with a few puzzles
PostedJanuary 30, 2012
samizdat
fromNew England
Skill Level:Intermediate
Favorite Genre(s):Brain Teaser, Adventure, Strategy
Current Favorite:
Chocolatier 3: Decadence by Design
(37)Fun Factor
3
/
5
Visual/Sound Quality
3
/
5
Level of Challenge
3
/
5
I dislike hidden-object games as a rule. This game seemed like it was mostly puzzles with a few hidden objects to find along the way. Nope. It was mostly about finding objects and then putting them together in a way that solved the puzzle.
I don't recommend this game.