Game review: Dream Day First Home

Hm, I thought I had written about the Dream Day series of hidden object games but apparently I haven't. Well, you're in luck because a brand new piece of the puzzle has arrived. First we had Dream Day Wedding where you were preparing for your wedding. Then we had Dream Day Honeymoon where the newlyweds went on a tropical vacation. Now we have Dream Day First Home. I really love how each of these games progresses not only the overall storyline but also the playability. In Wedding, you have a very basic hidden object game with a bit of a Choose Your Own Adventure piece stuck in. When we moved to Honeymoon, the basics stayed the same but the difficulty got bumped up a notch. This time around, we are given more to customize - from the type of house the couple moves into down to what furniture they will put in their rooms. There is still a great hidden object game with a few little surprises but it's really the addition of the mini-games that makes it a blast.

Since the series is geared towards women, I'm not sure that men would find it interesting. Besides, there are enough games out there geared toward the boys, right ladies? So roll up your sleeves and jump into the wonderful world of home ownership!

Music review: W - Koi no Vacance

duo_uu.jpgArtist: W Members: Ai Kago, Nozomi Tsuji Album: Duo U&U Release date: 6/6/04 Video link: On Veoh (Original song sung by The Peanuts)

English translation: Your kiss, Enough to make me sigh A maiden's heart seeing a sweet dream of love

Shining in a gold color Above the hot sand Let's love in bare flesh like mermaids

Gathering your sunburned smiles The promise we whispered It's a secret between the two of us A sigh escapes my lips

Ah, love's joy in the rose-colored days The first time I saw you... A vacance of love

Gathering your sunburned smiles The promise we whispered It's a secret between the two of us A sigh escapes my lips

Ah, love's joy in the rose-colored days The first time I saw you... A vacance of love About the song: W's first album consisted entirely of cover songs from the late Showa period (1924-1989). Despite the songs not being originally written for the duo, they bring a completely new sound to them. The original version of Koi no Vacance had a very 'Japanese' sound with a bit of big band tossed in. Aibon and Nono not only gave it an updated pop sound but they were also able to hold onto the original feeling of the song. While this isn't my favorite W song, it does make the top 10.

Game review: The Office

Yes, there is a downloadable casual game based on the hit television show, The Office. I've never been a fan of the show myself but I decided to give the game a try. Sadly, it is a terrible time management game. You play a member of The Office team and your job is to hand out assignments to other team members. Over and over again. The game designers decided to dress it up as a competition against other Office characters but there is no real competition in there as your 'competitor' just stands around most of the time.

I was really hoping for a decent game along the lines of Miss Management but with some Office humor tossed in. This piece of trash isn't even close.

Back again!

Yesterday, I went to Atlantic City with my mother and my sister. We had a pretty good time. The Hannah Montana/Miley Cyrus Best of Both Worlds concert was at our hotel so it was a little weird to see a lot of little girls walking around the hotel/casino area. But we still had a lot of fun.

Game review: Babysitting Mania

When I first saw Babysitting Mania, I figured that it would be a time management game where you take care of babies or children. Feed them, change them...that sort of thing. It's nothing like that. You spend the entire game trying to clean up after a couple of hellion children while feeding/changing the baby. The goal is to get the entire house clean and the kids in bed before the parents come home. Sadly, that is really difficult because the children keep making more messes. You can put the kids in "time out" but that only lasts a little while. I was really disappointed that this game is more about being a maid and less about actual babysitting. In real life, I don't think anyone would be expecting their babysitter to do a lot of the things she does in the game. For example, one of your in-game chores is doing the family's laundry. I know that I wouldn't expect my babysitter to do the laundry while I was out.

In the end, it was a frustrating game that had nothing to do with the title. The only time you care for the children is when the baby needs to be fed or changed. The older kids are permitted to run around destroying things without any sort of punishment. (They go back to destroying the house after their "time out" so I don't consider that much of a punishment. It's intended to give you some time to catch up on your chores, that's it.) Definitely a game I will not be picking up.

Music review: Kawabe Chieco - Be Your Girl

chieco.jpg Artist: Kawabe Chieco Album: Brilliance Release date: 3/15/05 Video link: on Veoh

English translation: Baby, I wanna be your girl Baby, all I need is you

Even though you're with me so much now Even though you love me this much now

Time isn't on my side I can't be your girlfriend

Again and again I thought I was okay with that I'm sharing you with somebody else, but Again and again I cry knowing I don't want that, "(I wanna) be your girl..." Even if it's a lie, even if it's just for my peace of mind, tell me I'm the only one

It hurts when the anesthesia of your kiss wears off Are you leaving already?

Telling myself it would be cowardly to cry here I'm gritting my teeth and holding myself back

Again and again I thought I was okay with that I'm sharing you with somebody else, but Again and again I cry knowing I don't want that, "(I wanna) be your girl..." Even if it's a lie, even if it's just for my peace of mind

Come on, please You're the only one inside me Tell me I'm the only one you love There's just one thing I want, I simply want all of you

I won't run away from the world waiting ahead on this path I want to see for myself where it leads Even if I get hurt even more than I have already, "I'm gonna be your girl!" There's no way you can stop me, because this is the way I feel

Again and again I thought I was okay with that I'm sharing you with somebody else, but Again and again I cry knowing I don't want that, "(I wanna) be your girl..." Even if it's a lie, even if it's just for my peace of mind, tell me I'm the only one

Baby, I wanna be your girl Baby, all I need is you About the song: Chieco is very good at singing bubblegum pop songs. After spending two years starring as Sailor Mercury in the Sailor Moon musicals, she released her first single, Be Your Girl. The song became the ending theme to the anime "Elfen Lied" and shot her into stardom. I can definitely say that this is a song I can listen to over and over and still not get tired of it. Even though it's very bubblegum pop, the music is interesting enough to capture your attention. Chieco has a strong voice that helps make the song sound a bit more 'rock' than it really is. Sadly, she hasn't released a song since early 2006. I hope that she will return with a stronger sound. Bubblegum pop is good but that can't last forever.

Game review: Farm Frenzy

Farm Frenzy was a really fun game. You start out taking care of some geese and move into harvesting their eggs to sell at market before moving into other animals and products. Once you get sheep, you can harvest their wool to sell at market. Beware of the bears though! They will throw your animals off the screen, which forces you to buy new animals. Luckily, you can cage the bears and sell THEM at market. I didn't think I would like this game. It sounded like a lot of work with no real reward. Instead, I found the game exciting. I kept looking forward to making more money to buy upgrades for my farm. This is definitely a game you should try.