STAND-O-FOOD (by Sarah Ab Kadir)

So my mom never allowed me to work in the F&B line. And playing this game was the only way to satisfy my one desire to be a waitress/server/cashier at McDonalds, etc etc. I've always wanted to serve someone burgers, get the order wrong, get yelled at the customers, and whatever. Thanks to Stand-O-Food, my dreams have come true.

So what is this game about?
This game can be played on your PSP or it comes as an app for your Iphone.
So basically, you run a burger deli of somesort, where you don't exactly have to flip the patties or anything, but you just have to put the order(of burgers) together. You have to stack the ingredients up according to how the customers order them. So you're either making a chicken/beef/bacon/fish burger. And towards a later stage, comes the lettuce, pickles, tomatoes, eggs and everything else. Once you earn some moolahs, you're able to purchase different types of sauces, or even boxes whereby you can just throw it all in when you're lazy to put the burger together.
The game gets harder once you've become a pro like me and your customers start getting impatient and groggy cause they want some tar-tar sauce with their fish fillet and you put tomato in it instead.


What makes the game so compelling/interesting?
Well I haven't exactly tried playing it on the PSP, and I guess that affects the game's playability. Since I use an Ipod touch(NO, NOT IPHONE), all I use is just my index finger to touch/click on the ingredients or menu. It's interesting too cause the level gets harder each time as you become more pro. The customers will start to show you fucking attitude to which you have to spend your hard-earned money and buy a fan or an air-conditioner to make them stay longer to wait for their food. You might also have to buy a heater that helps heat the burgers up for those fucked up customers who have waited really long in queue and now want you to warm up their buns. Most times when the queue starts to build, you might want to waste your money on investing in a juke-box with hopes that your customers dance to the annoying jazz music. But if that's what it takes to make your customer happy, then do it. Because the customers are always right. So this game is compelling enough for me cause I've always wanted to work in this line but I can't so this fantasy game definitely fits my bill!


Is it hard?
This game isn't exactly that hard once you get used to it. Of course you won't start of with tonnes of burger ingredients being thrown at you. It's a gradual progression and you usually start of easy and you get introduced to other ingredients later on. You may also be frustrated at the beginning cause your index finger might be a little to big to click or touch the screen for certain ingredients. You might click the wrong ones, get the order wrong and then probably groan about being the newbie at work(like I always do) who gets everything wrong. But don't worry, nobody is going to fire your ass cause you work for yourself in your own selfish little world! Don't ever fret that you aren't a good server or anything because practice will make you Employee of the month.

Limitations maybe?
Ok I don't really have any problem with the game, probably minor things like how the name of the game doesn't exactly portray what the game is about. Like, there isn't a direct connection or visualization of the game. You'll play it first and then you'll understand what's going on. And being somewhat a feminist, I think the game maker should make a female character AT LEAST. How sexist and selfish.

In a wrap?
Other than everything else, I kinda think the game has achieved whatever it was trying to achieve with potential gamers. The game is really simple and not so graphically beautiful or anything, but the game players aren't exactly attracted to that. We're much more keen on just pleasing and pleasing and getting things right that we don't really stop to check out the graphics. Well at least for me.

Just wish I could like piss in an order when the customer gets groggy.

Wht??
A puzzle game which is very puzzling for puzzled puzzlers.

Why??
This is food for the brain and a life important lesson in disguise which is "there will always be a way out if yout hink hard enough". So, think!!! N THink hard!!

Is it good??
Its very fun as you push yourself to levels that u tink u cannot conquer but time n time again u will manage to solve it somehow or rather, sooner or later.

it is bad??
Sometimes it gets very frustratingly hard that even though u spend a considerable amount of time on it, u still cant solve it. but as my mother always say, "do wad u can do first, wen got time den do the difficult ones". In other words, don give up! Hardwork will prevail.

How can it be improved??
I personally think it doesnt need improvement as its meant to be a simple but yet engaging game that can keep u occupied for many years to come. Something like sudoku wher u feel dat u can always solve the problem n while ure at it, it gets irritatingly hard n u jus wanna get back to it if u have time.

ratings 8/10

AHH HELLO AGAIN. WAH it's week 4 already?!

Okay okay okay here's my review this week! Actually Weiwen introduced this game to me last semester. It's a bit like Fragger, using physics for the mechanics. But it's fun! And quite challenging too ey.

So this game is produced by armorgames, which so far has been a good game website for games!

WHAT'S CRUSH THE CASTLE ABOUT??

Okay this game has a mini storyline. Just a simple one - The King himself (the ultimate terrorist) has ordered you to crush his enemy's castles. And you... crush them lah!




SO WHAT'S THE OBJECTIVE AND HOW DO WE GO ABOUT KILLING PEOPLE AND CRUSHING CASTLES HMMM?? YOU TELL ME NOW!

Okay okay, it's pretty simple actually. It all works by the use of your mouse.

1) First they'll show you the structure of the 'castle' that you have to crush.

2) How do you crush them? You're given a olden catapult (I forgot what it's called)

3) Next, they zoom into your catapult. From there, you need to click once to activate the stones that are in your catapult to start swinging.

4) You then need to click one more time to launch the stones into air and hit the 'castle'.

5) Knowing when to click to release the stones is crucial as it will determine where it hits the 'castle' at and this in turn, determines how it will fall.

6) Sometimes one hit can bring the whole thing down, sometimes you need more hits - as I mentioned, it depends on where you hit the structure




HOW ADDICTIVE IS THIS GAME REALLY??
Hmmmmmmmmm personally I think it's quite addictive.
It makes you want to complete each level to challenge yourself and see if you can finish them all.
Plus, you win medals along the way if you're skilled, ehem which I am mostly, hehehe.
It's a simple, straightforward, fun and casual game that gets just enough of your attention to continue to the next level.


It also has cool aesthetics - the medieval theme that gives you this olden feeling.


I say the best part is just the fun factor, yeap!




SO... ANY FLAWS?
Hmmmmm I don't think so!
Maybe you'll get irritated after a while if you cannot complete a level.
But it's really not that hard to complete each level lah.
You just must know where to hit each time!
Easy peasy!




TOUGH? EASY? MIND-BOGGLING??
Anyone above the age of 13 should be able to handle this, hahahaha.







ALRIGHT LET'S GET CRACKING. HOW TO PLAY?!

Okay this is the main page... the menu as usual! Btw there's an iphone version so benjamin and timothy and whichever rich kid out there who has it can play!



Here's the storyline before you GO FORTH!


This is the main map where they show you an overview of the whole place. You gotta conquer them island by island.



Each island has a specific number of castles.



And if you hover over one castle, they'll show you how many hits will get you a medal. The lesser number of hits you take to bring the castle down, the better the medal! Over here, 1 hit = gold, 2 hits = silver, 3 hits = bronze   fine fine you get my point!



For the first game.. they'll give you directions how to get the catapult moving the way you want it to.



Screen shot of stones being flung in the air


And this is the structure where you need to hit! Once you hit the 'castle' and it topples, it will hit the people in it, following the structure's momentum. So let's say it sways a lot, it'll manage to crumble down.



And if I don't bring the castle down by 3 hits, I get a shitty encouraging message.


But if I do hit the castle within 1 hit, they'll suck up to me and praise me to be a 'royal success' and gimme a medal. Now that's what I wanna hear!



Then once you complete an island, you can move on to the next one



Same cycle repeats for the next island...



And with new islands, you get to launch new things like bombs!



And crush bigger 'castles'. Each level proposes a tougher structure to break down.



But seeing them go down makes you feel soooooooooo goood.


Hahahahahahahahahaha okay go try the game already!
HERE!

Street Fighter 4

Xbox 360

I didn't start out liking Street Fighter 4. In fact, I couldn't understand why the people in the game studio I was interning at last June was so high on playing it almost everyday in the games room. Most of the staff would hide in there at 6.30pm sharp (knock-off time) every evening to battle it out. Graphically, I have to say that it looks great. But what's so fun about playing a game that allows players to fight against each other over and over again? I started playing only a while later, when late nights in the studio became the norm. I picked up the controller, and before I knew it, I became like the rest.

Street Fighter IV (SF IV), developed by Capcom, is a fighter game similar to the ones you play at the arcade. It is also one of the few dominating fighter games with a huge fanbase. Most people would consider SF IV the 'proper' sequel to where Street Fighter II left off many many years ago. I remember playing Street Fighter II, I still have the yellow cartridge for my SNES.

SF IV starts off with a magnificently beautiful introduction scene. It shows off its art style, which heavily employs a calligraphic touch. Instead of the usual air rush trail thingy that happens when someone does a punch, calligraphic ink moves gracefully through the air, only to disappear after a while. I was mightily impressed. Character design is top-notch, with characters still dressed in their old uniforms: Ryu wearing a white gi, Ken Masters a red one.

Players can either choose to play in a variety of ways: there is the story mode, versus mode (for 2 players), online Xbox Live Arcade play, or go through a series of challenges and trials. This provides for a good many hours of play, as players have so many options to choose from when they do get bored of one mode.

Controls are similar to that of the arcade version, so players who played SF II will have no problem controlling their characters. On an XBOX360 controller, players can either use the D-pad or the left thumb stick for movement, while the rest of the buttons are used for the different attacks. What I find interesting are the different moves and combos: all characters have basic and advanced moves. While this is typical in every game, I only realised the reason for it when I played SFIV. Having basic moves allow people to pick up this game easily, letting them throw out moves with just a couple buttons. For the advanced players, they have the more difficult moves to master. In addition to the moves which require 3 to 5 button presses, there is the ability to link different moves together. These are called combos, and the game teaches the player how to do this in the training mode. Also new to SF IV is the Super Ultra Combo, which is a character's signature move. it is a level higher than an Super, and costs more, but does significantly more damage.

In story mode, an individual cutscene for each player will be played at the start of the game, narrating to the player the personal reasons why each character is in the game. After which, they will then fight rounds after rounds with different character, till they reach the penultimate round where they will fight against a rival character (e.g. Ryu's rival is Sagat, Sakura's rival is Ryu, etc). The final round will be against a creature called Seth, who is able to biologically change his body parts, similar to that of the T-1000 in Terminator 2. This individuality between characters allow the player to experience a sense of belonging and attachment to them, and creates a pseudo player-character relationship, instead of seeing the different characters only as pixels who can do different moves.

Online play is fun, but unless you play it with friends whom you know and are situated locally, chances are that you will be playing in tremendous lag, and that kills the game. In a fighter game, reaction and feedback time is of utmost importance. It is almost impossible to play properly with high latency, and that is what I have been experiencing in Xbox Live. A neat feature in the game is how they simulate arcade playing: during story mode (or known as arcade mode), players might get interrupted halfway into the match with the words 'A new challenger has arrived!', a prompt signaling that someone else (a real life player) has entered the match and will be challenging you. This happens in a real life arcade when someone puts in a token and sits opposite you. In the Xbox360/PS3 version however, it would mean that someone from either Xbox Live or PSN has entered an online game that you have created, and the single player match is interrupted. Fortunately, the player is able to switch this function off.

As mentioned before, art style is beautiful. It plays in 3D, and character design is impressive. You can see the detail of the character and their emotions during the different stages of fight. In fact, it was the graphics that made me first notice this game. It is done in a stylised manner, and evokes a fun and hilarious feel to it.

All in all, I really like this game and is definitely in my top ten list of games to play, sitting alongside the likes of Doom, Quake, and Commander Keen.

For the record, my favourite character is Ken Masters.

Rating: 9.5/10

 

Game: Johnny Rocketfingers 2

Genre: Adventure (point n click)

Link : http://www.y8.com/games/Johnny_Rocketfingers_2

What is it?

Johnny Rocketfingers 2 is adventure game whereby player takes up the role as johnny rocketfingers. This guy, Johnny has steal some drugs from some drug dealer and he is being hound by the this gang( where that drug dealer is from). Now Johnny has to find the gang and settle them once and for all (means kill them all). This game exercise in perception and experimentalism( using and finding different objects to solve the situation the character is in) To put it plainly, the game is hard(really hard and unlogical in some ways).

**Warning: the following game is both obscene and obscenely difficult.**

How to play?

Players just need to find the various items he can find in this game and use them correctly to solve the situation that the character is in. Sometimes, the player has to combine some items together to get another item to use in this game. This game is mainly a adventure game (explorative game) which will usually lasts the player quite some time.

How is it good?

Firstly, i found this a challenging game as it is not a short game and one have to wander around the game environment to find and figure which items to use in certain scenario. Secondly, the theme of this stickman character solving situation and fighting against the muscular guys are interesting though. Though offensive languages are used in this game, i find it interesting at some point.

Finally, I love the animation and graphic in this game!!! The animation is totally flowy!!! the fighting scenes are extremely action packed and gruesome. I guess animation makes most part of this game sucessful. This game will be nothing if it doesnt have these action packed animation in it. An adventure game cant do anything much if it doesnt have animation in it. Sometimes i feel a adventure game is more of a animation than a game, but thats my opinion though. Now the graphics!!! Cool graphic is use in this game, dark colors are use in this game to highlight the night ,street alley kind of feel. The graphic are not colorful at all ,but its dull, dirty(which matches the theme of this game). I think the style of the illustrations in this game is unique and i like it.lol

How is it bad?

For me i hated the long dialogue with other characters in this game. Sometimes it is just plain stupid option. As this game is quite challenging at some point, one might find it a chore to play and might end this game.Lastly it is not a game where parents want their kids to play as gruesome animation and offensive languages are used in this game.

Developer: Tom Fulp, Dan Paladins
http://www.newgrounds.com/portal/view/254456

Dad n’ Me is a flash game that took on the tried and tested formula of old arcade side-scrolling beat-em-ups without bringing anything new to the table. There isn’t much of a story in this game and the whole game is about this pair of father and son assassins who went into town to get rid of these hoodlums who were all kids. Yes. You get to spank, whack and kill kids in this game. Fun. You take on the role of the child assassin and the objective of the game is simply to kill all the kids in town as well as get rid of the gangster head. Obviously, humour is a big part of the game and it worked really well.

This is a short game as it only consists of 1 level. It only takes about 10 to 15 minutes to complete the whole game. The level plays linearly, with you starting at the left side and progressively moves to the end of the level at the right side. Certain items on the screen such as dustbins, lawnmowers and other hazardous objects can be picked up and thrown by the character. 

Controls in the game is very similar to traditional beat-em-ups like the street of rage or metal slug series. You use the arrow keys to move the character around the screen and there are only two other buttons which do light and heavy attacks respectively. The controls of the game are very responsive easy to get used to. Dad n’ Me also features a well implemented combo system. Mashing a combination of both the light and heavy buttons in the game will cause the character to unleash a chain of attacks that does more damage to the enemies. This system adds on to the gameplay as it allows you to experiment and play with different combinations to see what works well. Much of the game’s enemies have a really simple AI routine that does nothing except to move towards you to get beaten to a pulp. The game was probably created this way to accentuate the humour of the game although there are a few exceptions such as the bully, ninja kids and the final boss who will attack you on sight. The ninja kids and final boss who are only found at the last portion of the game brought about an unbalance to the difficulty in the game. They are much harder to defeat compared to all previous enemies and are introduced so late in the game which caused the difficulty to get rammed up so significantly in the last portion that it became inconsistent.

The most memorable aspects of this game are its graphics and sounds. The whole of this game is done in bright colourful digitally painted vector graphics. The characters in the game animate fluidly and are wonderfully designed with a cartoony look and feel. The backdrops are nicely drawn with very bright, cheery colours and details. Slight depth can also be seen with the use of parallax scrolling on elements in the background. The graphics in the game works very well as the very cartoony look also contrasts with the violent nature of the game. The music in the game is quirky, fun and upbeat and suits the theme of the game immensely.

While the game doesn’t bring anything new to the genre, it had implemented the old formula well and is one that is very enjoyable. It’s short too and works as a great stress reliever during a break session.

Rating : 6.5/10

Weiwen

This game is based on the Tim Burton's Nightmare Before Christmas movie for PS2 as a 3D action horror game. The main character being controlled is Jack Skellington. When he left Halloween Town, 3 mischvious ghosts, Lock, Shock and Barrel started to cause chaos in the town by bringing Oogie, the evil enemy, back to existence and take revenge on Jack for banishing him in the first place.

His character can toggle between 3 types as you progress through the game i.e. the original Jack Skellington, the Pumpkin King, Santa Jack n his normal self. Each of his alter ego has different combat abilities such as the 'soul robber' whipper, throwing flames and throwing gifts.

Ghosts and evil spirits are present at discoveries of new locations and are relatively easy to defeat. At the end of every level, there will be a major battle scene to fight the Lock, Shock and Barrel trio or the huge Oogie himself. And the challenge is upped during the music based battles when players have to press the keys shown following the music to increase Jack's powers to attack which gets difficult and frustrating as this is the part where the battle is always lost and the whole fight scene is restarted again.

The music used accompanies the game well for all the scenes and adds a lot of quirkiness for example during the Battle of Lock, Shock and Barrel, the music has them singing as though they are taunting Jack in a very mischievous manner and Jack trying to get them to obey him. Together with the great animations it is really entertaining to play as it gives players a cinematic experience.

Summary:
Typically one of your tower defense games which is quite simple and addictive. Though the graphics are simple (they're bubbles, what do you expect?), strategic thinking is required.

Gameplay:
Basically you are given a field where you have to plant towers and prevent the enemies from crossing to the other side. Every enemy that successfully crosses to the other side means a life down which is a point to consider because your enemies mostly come in swarms. At the beginning of the game you are given a certain number of points used to place towers to prepare your field. After that you can only gain points by the number of enemies you destroy. Plus once you place your towers there's no way to reverse the decision except to sell the tower at a lower price and place another one. Once you start wave (your list of enemies in chronological order), your enemies will keep on coming until you defeat them all and advance to the next level. So the tricky part in the game is to keep your eye on the points, upgrade you towers and the enemies coming at you.

(The 'time line' shown, you can click on the next enemy to bring them forward for more points)

Enemies:
There are different types of enemies in the game which makes the game even more challenging. Some of them are regenerative, some fast while others have their own speciality. These difference makes the user consider carefully what upgrades he wants and towers to place to take down the enemies. A common strategy used is to force your enemies to travel a pathway which is fine and dandy until the ghost enemies come which can pass through all obstacles. Placing too much towers also means not having enough points to upgrade them all when the hardier enemies start coming. A good strategy is to make sure your plan can be adaptable and effective to the later attacks.

Sound:
Simplistic and strangely meditative for a tower defense game. I find it rather therapeutic when I hear all those popping sound when the tower shoots down the enemy.

Is it fun:
Yes!

Is it hard:
You can change the difficulty level in the game but i find the game challenging enough as it is. The strategy used in one level may not exactly work as well in another level. You really have to use your thinking skills to plan ahead.

Overview
Toonstruck is a point-and-click adventure game created in 1994 by Virgin interactive. The player is meant to navigate a fictional disgruntled animator, Drew Blanc, through the cartoon world he created and to help him to find his way back to reality.

Interesting points to note
Although the entire game is drawn and animated, Drew Blanc actual video-captured representation of the actor Christopher Lloyd.

Flux Wildly, Drew's wacky animated sidekick, is voiced by Dan Castellaneta, the same man who does the voice of Homer Simpson and various other Simpsons characters.

Storyline
Drew Blanc is the creator and animator for the nauseatingly cute, yet wildly popular Fluffy Fluffy Bun Bun show. After ten years of the show being on the air, Drew Blanc is sick and tired of animating the cute bunnies for the show and wants to push for a show for his own favourite created creation, Flux Wildly, a funny, wise-talking purple character. The request is denied by his boss who believes that the future of the company depends on creating more cutesy bunnies for the FFBB show and wants the designs for the new characters on his desk first thing the next morning.

Drew stays overnight in the office, but suffers a burnout and simply cannot think of any new characters. He then falls asleep at his desk, and wakes up to find out that his TV set mysteriously turned on to the Fluffy Fluffy Bun Bun show. When he tries to turn off his TV, he somehow gets zapped into the show, amongst all of the characters he's created. He then befriends Flux Wildly and finds out that there is a evil creature called Nefarious who is using a device called the Malevolator to turn cute adorable characters into evil, ghastly beings.

In other words, he turns this:


....into this:


Drew must travel through his own created world to find a way to stop Nefarious and get back to reality.

Worlds
There are 3 worlds for the player to work through; Cutopia, Zanydu and Malevolands

Cutopia is a bright and cheery town inhabited by adorable Cutopians; including Fluffy Fluffy Bun Bun herself.





Zanydu, Flux's hometown, is colourful and kooky.




Malevolands is dark and dangerous place where Nefarious' castle is located.



Gameplay
The play controls Drew Blanc, and must work their way though logical (but mostly illogical) puzzles in order to advance in the game. The game takes a minimalistic approach to the icons, with only a inventory bag known as a Bottomless Bag, and a dynamic icon that changes according to the interaction available with a particular object or character. The following video is an example of one of the puzzles that you have to work through.



That contraption is basically the "cable car" that connects Cutopia to Zanydu. In order to get from one point to another, one must somehow get the elephant to run either forwards or backwards in order to power the contraption. When you switch the lever down towards mainland, a hand goes up and reveals a tantalizing peanut to the elephant. That causes it to run forward, but since you're already on mainland, this doesn't do anything. When you decide to go to Zanydu and push the lever forwards, and empty hand goes up. This does absolutely nothing to get the elephant to move. But what are elephants afraid of? Mice, of course! At one point during the game, you would get a hold of an unconscious mouse. You can then put the mouse into the hand of the contraption. When the lever towards Zanydu is pushed again, the hand goes up and shows the unconscious mouse to the elephant, making it very nervous, but not scared enough to run away. In order to revive the mouse, you need to find some kind of smelling salt. What's a suitable alternative? Why not the watering can of rancid manure? Stick it under the mouse's nose and he wakes up. You can then now push the lever, which raises the mouse which then pulls an ugly face and terrifies the elephant who then starts to run backwards, moving the cablecar towards Zanydu.

In Conclusion
This game was my official introduction into the point-and-click genre when I was about 7 years old. I fell in love with the style and humour it portrayed and I distinctly remember my brother and I sitting down and cracking our heads over the puzzles and the immense satisfaction we got after completing each one. The game wasn't as successful as anticipated, but it gained a huge and loyal fanbase.