 |
Gardening Mama (DS)
by cath_del
After enjoying the Cooking Mama games so much, I decided to try out the Gardening Mama game they had recently brought out. With a combination of gardening and time management games, which are some of my favourite pastimes, this was a great game to find and I am glad that I did. With the same concept as Cooking Mama but set in a garden, ... there are a variety of plants for you to grow and different minigames to play.
The graphics are still the same as previous Cooking Mama games, however the detail has certainly increased and they have become much more bright and colourful within this game. Even the loading screens are as cute as the game itself, as they contain various plants included throughout the game.
The touchscreen is only ever used for this game, which makes a great improvement to some of the other DS games out there, as they hardly use it all. It uses the touchscreen in a variety of ways and the actions it makes you perform using the Stylus are never the same, so it does not get repetitive.
You can choose to begin at the "Lets Get Growing!" level which is pretty similar to Story Mode in any other game. Here you have your own little garden, where you can grow plants, maintain them and decorate your garden with various objects you earn throughout the game. Similar to the other Cooking Mama games, there are levels of difficulty for different plants and you can choose which one you play and try and improve upon it. In these mini games, there is also different grading for how well you did it, such as bronze, silver and gold. These keep you wanting to play the game so you can get excellent on all the plants and get a gold medal.
There is also added bonuses with this version of the game, as you are able to get presents after every gold medal you get from a minigame, and after you get 3 you are able to get an ornament or clothing piece to customise Mama or your garden. Keeping your garden maintained is also very important, as your plants can wilt.
Customsing Mama and your garden really adds to what the game has to offer. Throughout the game you have the ability to upgrade your Mama avatar with all different clothes, hats and hairstyles which is really fun. Not only that but you can customise your garden with a wide variety of ornaments to make it as bright as you want.
Along with the Lets Get Growing mode, you can also play with your friends whether or not they have the DS game cartridge in the Lets Play Together Mode. I normally play this against my sister, and we are always competing to see who can get the highest score and beat the other in this mode. It's great fun if you know someone who has a DS to.
I would recommend this game to anyone who has played the Cooking Mama franchise games, loves gardening and wants a relaxing gameplay! I can play this in whatever mood I'm in and it will destress me or add to my relaxing mood.
Read the complete review |
 |
Cooking Mama (DS)
by cath_del
I think this was one of the first games that I ever received as a gift for the Nintendo DS, as whoever bought it, obviously thought it was a game that I'd enjoy. They were definitely right as Cooking Mama has been a game that I have enjoyed thoroughly since getting it, and has made me become a Cooking Mama brand addict!
This ... game is 3 plus which is a pretty fair rating as generally the things you have to do in Cooking Mama are easy to understand due to the way the instructions are presented, although you do need a basic reading skill to understand some of the instructions they give you. This game can currently be found at about £10 in game and around the same price on sites like Amazon.
For those who have never played any of the Cooking Mama brand games, the game is centered around Mama who is teaching you currently, her pupil, all of her favourite recipes. There are probably around 80 of the dishes to complete, and each of them comes from a different country. You, the pupil of Mama, is never directly seen by the player, and all we see of who we are controlling are their hands.
Throughout Cooking Mama what you must do is do certain tasks, and all of these lead up to creating a final dish. These small dishes can be frying, cutting vegetables and meat, grilling, washing rice or blending. After you complete these tasks, you get a score, which is handy if you are trying to get all Gold Medals because it will tell you if you got less than perfect.
All of the instructions to completing the tasks are well set out and easy to understand, as mostly they are just shown by arrows in which to move the stylus. While some of the written instructions can be hard to understand, once you've played them a couple of times, you do begin to understand what the game is asking you to do.
You are rated overall on your dishes, with Bronze, Silver or Gold (which can only be acheived by getting 100 points) and the most addictive part of Cooking Mama is that you want to get all of the dishes up to Gold but this can take ages and be difficult. Not only are you rated on your dishes though, as you also are rated on your tasks that you do to make the whole dish. There are rated exactly the same.
The graphics are pretty normal for the Cooking Mama brand, and although they are not as developed as the later, they are still pretty good. They are cartoony and sharp edged, with most of the utensils looking realistic and the food cartoony. I prefer it to look unrealistic though as it makes the food look much better!
My mum and sister both enjoy this game due to its easy controls and instructions. This game also gives a variety of dishes with different levels of difficulty, so whatever your mood you will be able to play. This is a great game that I would reccomend to my friends and family as whatever your age you will be able to enjoy it.
Cooking Mama has expanded its brand however in recent years, and this has meant that more of the games have been created. Therefore, if you are looking for a game with more things included in playing then I would definitely go for one of the later Cooking Mama DS game.
If you are looking for a game to play casually with easy controls and many levels then Cooking Mama is just that! With cartoony graphics for the Mama and the dishes, this makes it a game that kids and adults will enjoy. It's at a great price right now, however if you are looking for a better modernised version of the game, definitely pick up one of the newer games as there is more to complete in them.
Read the complete review |
