Another casual game that is set to keep you playing all night long – well at least it kept me up all weekend! Actually, Airport Mania has not yet been officially released. Created by Reflexive Media, the official release date is sometime in April. Lucky for me and you – and the host of casual game enthusiasts out there – there is a Beta version circulating around the Internet. I was fortunate to run across one and have been playing it this weekend.

So what’s so great about Airport Mania? Much like all other dash games, it requires coordination, time management, and strategy. The idea is to manage different airports by landing planes, unloading and loading them, and then making them take off again. In between, you might have to repair planes and refuel them as well. You can repaint planes in order to get higher matching color bonuses for the gates. There are also numerous upgrades which you can buy.

For the Beta version, there is a glitch which will not allow you to pass the second level of the second stage. I had to search for a workaround – it turns out that you have to merely pass the goal (the minimum requirement) and don’t earn any more points. If you do, and you reach the expert goal, the game will simply loop and not progress. Was I glad to have found that workaround! However, I was not able to get past the 6th stage (there are 8 in all). I have not found any solution as most people are saying that since it is a Beta release, maybe it really does not go past that stage. Oh well, for a Beta, 6 stages are good. I just have to wait for the full release.

As you’ve probably surmised, I have been shopping this weekend. Together with the copy of Skate, which I reviewed in the previous post, I also got a copy of Dynasty Warriors 6 for PS3 – a game which I have been waiting for for quite some time now. It came out a month ago but I have not been able to get it till this weekend. So what’s the dish?

The graphics are awesome – but I already expected that. The attention to detail and the effects will just blow your mind as you play the game! My problem is that my TV does not seem to be good enough for my PS3 games!!! I have a pretty nice Sony TV which performs very well for most anything but when it comes to PS3 games, it just doesn’t have enough resolution. For Dynasty Warriors, especially, I can barely see the map and it makes for harder gameplay.

What happens is that I usually end up just running around not knowing where I am and where I am supposed to go. I didn’t realize the importance of the map until now. It still is fun just going around whacking crowds of enemy soldiers but when I lose the level because I do not know my whereabouts and where to go, it really irks me. Maybe it’s time to get a new TV? A 1080p one, perhaps?

Anyhow, there are some changes – naturally – with Dynasty Warriors 6 like during the preparation you can choose a weapon but you don’t have your choice of officers – maybe it’s just like that in the beginning. I haven’t really made much headway because of the TV issue. In any case, it still is a game worth buying for yourself.

I have been playing Skate since I was able to download its demo from the PlayStation Home. To be honest, I never really was interested in buying the game. For one, I am no skateboarder in real life. I think that if I even dared to try it I would be the laughingstock of the most average of skateboarders out there. Yet when I tried the demo, I found myself unable to stop playing it. Ever since I started playing the demo, I knew that would buy the game and finally, this weekend, I bought my own full copy.

What can I say now? It has not failed my expectations. Perhaps one of the best things I like about Skate is the fact that you can merely roam the streets and the areas of the map. You don’t even really have to take on challenges – you only have to go around and do your tricks. The open environment is something that I really appreciate. More so, some of the tricks are not that easy to master. You need to learn how to flick the analog sticks and you get a sense of achievement when you get to master a trick. It gives you pleasure – as Joe B says in his blog, you are not merely “mashing buttons” to get the tricks done.

I am really excited about trying out the online venue but unfortunately, my Internet connection does not seem to be cooperating. I have had the game for a day or so only so I am sure that I will be able to figure this out soon enough. If I were you, I’d buy your own copy now.

Build-A-Lot has been around for quite some time. I think saw it first on Big Fish Games several months ago but it didn’t really appeal to me at that time. For one, real estate has never been that attractive to me. When a friend told me how much fun she had playing with it though, I thought I’d give it a try.

So what is Build-A-Lot all about? It has two game modes – career and free play. I only played the career mode, wherein you play the role of a contractor. Mayors of different towns – each one corresponding to a level of the game – hire you to build up their towns. In each town, you have various sub-levels. For each one, you will be given specific tasks. There are different housing and building types, each of which you have to draft the blueprint first before you can build it. You also need to buy materials to build the houses and buildings. Workers are integral to the game as you need a certain number to build, repair, or upgrade each house or building.

The interface is quite easy an intuitive – as many casual games are. I really like how the game throws challenges at you in mid-game. Sometimes, just when you think you’re done with your goals, you will receive new tasks. Overall, Build-A-Lot is one of the best casual games I have ever played. It is easy enough to play but never boring or TOO easy. If you haven’t tried this yet, I suggest that you give it a chance – before you know it, you’ll be staying up all night to finish it.

In the last post, we saw the definition of casual games as given by Wikipedia. If you noticed, I mentioned looking more into the line that said that older women tend to play casual games more than any other group of people. Is there any truth to this? I did two things to determine for myself whether the statement is accurate or not.

First, I looked around the web to find out what other people thought of casual gaming and whether or not the main players are really “older women.” What did I find? According to the charts presented at an SXSW presentation (courtesy of Joystiq):

Ok, I can’t argue with numbers. The question is, just how accurate are those numbers? The second I did was to conduct my own little survey. I asked around – who plays casual games? What I found out is that indeed, a lot of women (age does not matter) play casual games. However, this does not mean that men do not like them just as much. I have a friend who is a PS3 fanboy but waits on the newest casual games as well. Another thing is that office workers seem to fall for casual games more – they tend to play while at work! (No passing of judgment here.)

So, who plays casual games? Just about everyone I know who likes video games. So let’s do away with the stereotypes, shall we?

As if Cory Barlog’s leaving was not enough, we heard the news of Phil Harrison’s leave taking last week. Sony seems to be losing a lot of its talents, doesn’t it? Phil Harrison used to be the head of Sony Computer Entertainment Worldwide Studios and his leaving the company is a serious blow – there is no doubt about that. As of February 29, he no longer serves as the president. But wait – there’s more!

On the 3rd of this month (just a couple of days ago), the gaming world went gaga over another bit of news. Not only did Phil Harrison leave Sony but he has joined forces with another big name in the gaming industry! Read this excerpt from a press release:

Infogrames Entertainment announces today the appointment of Phil Harrison as President and Directeur Général Délégué of Infogrames Entertainment, reporting to David Gardner. Phil Harrison also joins the Board of Directors.

What is Infogrames? It’s just the group which owns Atari. Who can forget this brand which so big in the 80s? They could definitely use an infusion of talent and creativity as the brand has suffered immensely over the years. Who knows, maybe Phil Harrison is what they need at this point. As for Sony, it is definitely a great loss – and may insult has even been added to injury here as their president has left for a competitor. As the French say, c’est la vie! I am sure Sony will continue to give us what we want – or die trying.

Tags: Atari, Infogrames, Phil Harrison, sony