It Keeps Me Out of Trouble (Real Arcade Mah Jong Medley (PC))

Member Name: kitschkitty

Product:	Real Arcade Mah Jong Medley (PC)
Date:	12/01/09 (132 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Available for free, large variety of game options

Disadvantages: Where did my evening go?

I have a confession to make. My name is kitschkitty and I'm a mah jong addict. It all started last November when I read a review of Mah Jong Medley. I love to wind down playing a game or two on the PC in the evening so I duly headed over to www.gamehouse.com where the game is available to download for free. And then my addiction started. First of all, I used to dabble in a little game here or there until I reached the stage where I couldn't go through an evening without having a quick couple. And whilst I've been off work, I find myself whiling away entire games as I try to better my high scores and hone my skill and agility at spotting the mah jong pairs.

If you haven't played mah jong before, it's a difficult game to explain but it's surprisingly simple to play. It's based on matching pairs of tiles which are stacked in varying patterns. You can only access those which don't have an adjoining tile to one side of them though and this then removes them from the board freeing up more tiles to match. I recall reading that playing mah jong as part of a computer game is entirely different to playing it in real life so for the purposes of the tape, Mah Jong Medley is based on the PC method of mah jong which I'm so familiar with.

You can download Mah Jong Medley from www.gamehouse.com for free and it's a quick and painless process which simply requires you to register for a Gamehouse account. The free version does include adverts but they are only 15 seconds or so long and only appear after every few games so they don't interfere with game play. They also provide a great opportunity to pop the kettle on or powder your nose. Alternatively, if you can't abide the thought of watching some rather amusing American adverts, you can pay $19.99 to download an ad free version of the game.

Mah Jong Medley contains, as the name might suggest, a medley of mah jong based games. My mode of choice is the classic version which is a typical computerized mah jong game. Here there are over 80 tile layouts so when you find yourself mastering one layout, you can opt for another. There's more than enough variety in this selection alone to keep me entertained for hours on end so it's rare for me to venture into the other game modes. Other ways of playing include 'Ten' which involves matching tiles which add to ten. This means you have to find free tiles as well as utilise the old grey matter a little more to test your skills of basic arithmetic. 'Free cell' gives you an extra get out clause to make the game a little easier as you can remove two tiles that don't match and quarantine them until you need them. And finally there's 'Addiction' mode which is perhaps the hardest to explain but has the added bonus of coming with a well written and informative introduction so you can play it in no time.

With such a range of modes in which to play mah jong, Mah Jong Medley is a game that can't fail to satisfy even the most hardened of mah jong addicts. The graphics are simple but clear and easy on the eye. The sound effects are great but you might need to play around with the settings a little. The gong sound when you complete a game can come as quite a surprise if you have your volume turned up. There are two sound options on the games, both of which can be set separately to your own preferences. In the background there is a therapeutic Eastern sounding music reminiscent of the sort of stuff you might hear in a high class spa and then there are the compulsory bings and various other sound effects when you match pairs.

Mah Jong Medley takes a simple game and provides enough variety and different game modes to ensure hours of entertainment. It isn't particularly perplexing but it's a nice way to relax after a long day in the office. The music is soothing and the thrill of beating my high scores keeps me going back for more. Sad I know, but am officially a mah jong addict.

Summary: Warning - this game is seriously addictive!