Review – Magic Shop – Alawar Games

Magic Shop

Basic Idea as I see it: you are trying to resurrect a shop which has been abandoned by a great sorcerer who packed up and moved to distant lands making artifacts for various witches, wizards, and other such magical creatures (sort of a cross between Cake Mania and Bejeweled).The game is set over 25 progressive days. However, after the 25 days you can continue your game and keep the rewards and helpful characters you get to invite along the way.

First Impression: I got totally lost in this game – in a good way. The music, scenery and even the colors created a pleasant environment without overshadowing the actual game. I played it one time through just to get the idea and feel of what was going on and did pretty well.

Playability: Mechanically, it’s a point and click game. You click groups of 3 or more elements until you collect enough of each color to manufacture the requested artifact – before your customers get fed up and walk out. There are also some bonus rounds which are memory matching centric. It’s easy to play without being boring.

Bells and whistles: During regular game play, there are rubies to collect – to buy more expensive artifacts as well as potions to restore your customers’ patience. There are spells to let mature as well as bonus powers that turn up on select pieces to ease the process and push past the barriers. During non-regular game play, there are bonus rounds to collect enough crystals to invite master wizards who assist you in a variety of ways. There are ranks to earn from learner to sorceress (though there is a maximum score). There are also trophies awarded to you along the way for accomplishing things from multiple combos to completing days without using potions or spells.

Frustrations: Overall, the frustrations with playing this game are very low. They came when I went beyond playing for playing and started playing for specific trophies to complete my collection. I found two were just beyond my reach. One (leaving 35 customers in a good mood in a row) was for sure an issue with my patience, though the good mood phrase is slightly vague for me. There are 2 – 8 customers a day, so if you’re almost to the goal and something slips, you almost have to start the whole game over. The second (unlocking the secrets of all the artifacts) I am pretty sure is not operator-error based. I unlocked them all twice. The first time I had failed levels 3 times (the limit) but continued my game and then unlocked them all. The second time however, I unlocked them all in one go fair and square. Both times I was awarded a trophy – just the wrong one, but the same wrong one both times. The only other thing I would say in this section is that I can’t seem to access the tips that pop up along the way after I have closed them if I forgot what they said. Other than these small small things, the game is super low on the frustration front.

Overall Opinion: I was pretty happy with this game. It presented enough challenge to keep me playing (all weekend). I was interested in employing different strategies to achieve different goals. The characters were enjoyable and I found myself looking forward to when certain ones came in. The reward system encourages extended playing time. I still don’t feel like I have found all the secrets, a good factor to keep me playing. Not to mention that I’m really into magic and stuff like that, so the environment was inviting to me.

Female Aspect: Yes, there are both female and male characters both for the player and for the customers – though if I remember correctly, all the master wizards are male.

Rating Halos: 8.75/10

http://www.alawar.com/games/magic-shop/