Legacy Games Blog

Hi,
As a mother of four, (and two doggies), I have often struggled with buying presents during the holidays. On the one hand, I want to buy gifts that our children will enjoy. On the other hand, it is hard not to feel like I am just spending money on things that will either be exchanged, discarded, or broken.

After many years of gift-giving, it seems to me that the best type of gift is the kind that is meaningful beyond a momentary pleasure. It is the kind of present that you know your child will enjoy and at the same time, you can feel good that other deserving people are also receiving a benefit.

My in-laws figured this out long before I did. When our children were young, they would receive cards for their birthdays from their grandparents that read, “A tree has been planted in your honor in Israel.” I was never sure how much of an impression that made. Then a few days ago, our son gave a birthday present to his new spouse of an orangutan…that they “adopted” in Australia through a wildlife conservancy group. Clearly, children pick up values and pass them on. Reinforcing our obligations to other people (and animals) less fortunate is hopefully an important value in many of our homes.

So what’s my point? Legacy created a fun “platformer” game (think Nintendo’s Mario) for an organization whose mission is to help hospitalized children and their families. The game is called “The Tuttles Madcap Misadventures” and the organization that receives 75% of the purchase price (which ends up being $15) is www.Starlight.org. Read about the wonderful things they do for kids on their website. We are very proud to be associated with them and have this opportunity to help them raise money for their organization.

So this Christmas season, think about giving a gift that will both charm and entertain your children/grandchildren (great for ages 6-12), and that has meaning too.

Merry Christmas from all of us at Legacy Interactive!

Ariella
Legacy Interactive

Legacy Games

It's Feeling a Bit Crowded...Home Sweet Home!

Now that my husband and I have two kiddies in the house, its feeling a bit...crowded. Our tiny starter apartment was great for two newlyweds, but was never meant for a family of four. There's teddy bears on the coffee table, pretty ponies stuffed into the kitchen cabinets, and Dora the Explorer DVDs in my underwear draw. That means its moving time soon...and it also means we'll have a lot of decorating to do. Pssst, but between you and I, that's my favorite part! I still have some time, but I'm looking around for ideas, so I was pretty excited to come across Home Sweet Home.

Home Sweet Home is an interior decorating sim and time management game rolled into one. As an interior designer, you need to listen to each customer, and select items that make him or her happy. If you make a wrong selection, you'll get a thumbs down, but you can sell the item back. Once the customer's happiness has reached a certain level, you can start building. At this stage, you must order your workers around, supplying them with tools and coffee, trying to finish in under the allotted time. There are hints and bonuses along the way, so you can't really lose.

The clues made me think, and its definitely original. I haven't played any other decorating games before, but it's a great idea. I found the time management section cute and simple. It's easy in the beginning when your budgets are low, but as more items are purchased it becomes more difficult.

I would have liked a few things differently. For one, once you've selected items, they are displayed in their uncolored form until the workmen scene. This makes it tougher to color coordinate, which is part of the fun after all. There are only a small number of room items. Also, if you misinterpret the clues, it can get very frustrating to complete a room. Even if you understand what the customer wants, it can be tough to please them. Like Mr. Johnson, the bachelor who wants to “play where he eats, and eat where he plays.” That means you should put in a sound system with speakers, plus a pool table with chairs nearby. It took me ages to make that guy happy.

But, on the whole, its a fun game, good for playing in short spots of time. Just don't expect too many decorating ideas.

LISA

DOWNLOAD HOME SWEET HOME HERE>>

Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Whoa! Santas Missing?...Christmasville!

Jingle bells, jingle bells....goodness me. Is it just me, or are the holidays a lot more fun when you're under 12? With turkey dinners to prepare, presents to buy, lights to hang, and trees to decorate – Christmas is hard work! Hmph. Maybe its best to take a moment and really enjoy the season, instead of all the hustle and bustle. Kids have no problem doing this, because they always live in the moment. So...I'm making a commitment to putting my feet up and getting immersed in more holiday cheer.

Christmasville is a holiday story to enjoy...that is, if you're not put off by the fact that Santa is suffering from senior dementia, the Abominable is a pacifist, the lead Elf has a Napolean complex, and the head Reindeer is, well, rude. This game is packed – literally stuffed – with humorous quips, jokes, and silliness. It's really very funny, suitable for adults and teens. The little ones might question things a bit, so it might be a good idea to play it yourself first before sharing with your Christmas believers.

Speaking about the game play, Christmasville is exactly like it's sister, Mysteryville. It's a hidden object hunt, where you find stuff in suitably cluttered rooms. The objects are always changing, and sometimes things must be found in sequence. The mess is usually explained by Santa's unfortunate “ailment.” Despite a lot of positives, comparing it to other hidden object games, its probably middle of the road. Mystery Case Files: Madame Fate is a lot more challenging for experienced players.

What's particularly fun is that there are lots of “excursions” that break up the mood. For example, you are asked to “spot the difference” between two images, and piece together scrambled word puzzles. Everything you are asked to do is integrated with the story and actually makes sense, so I really felt immersed in the game.

It's nice to find holiday games for grown-ups, especially with Christmas vacations coming up. Too often, it seems like Christmas games are made with only the little ones in mind. This one is amusing and designed for adults. I'm halfway through, and plan to enjoy the rest of the game with some eggnog. Cheers!

Lisa

DOWNLOAD CHRISTMASVILLE HERE>>

Embark on an Epic Misadventure...The Tuttles Madcap Misadventures!

We all have family members that seem to be the complete opposite of each other.  And yet, each family gets along in some odd way.  Well the Tuttles are no different.  While Barbara is busy getting dinner ready, Zach is playing a video game in another room of the house.  While Barry is working on the family mini-van in the garage, Jess is talking girl talk to a good friend.  Each member of the Tuttle family is enjoying what time left they have before their trip to the Alamo.  Little do they know that their easy trip is about to become an adventure.  Rather a misadventure and you are coming along with them as they are about to embark upon The Tuttles Madcap Misadventures!

Now normally Legacy Games/Legacy Interactive disperses great games for anybody to play but this one game is unique.  It has quite a few things special about it.  The first and foremost item on it’s list of unique specialties is, it is actually for charity.  You heard right, if you buy this game you are in fact giving to a highly reputable charity called Starlight Starbright Children’s Foundation (www.starlight.org.)  Were to you purchase this game, 75% of the that purchase goes directly to Starlight.  So this game is great right off the bat since you can feel good by playing a grand game AND you are donating to a charity all at the same time.

Second in the list that the game has to offer, is the popular cast involved.  Now most games have voice-overs that help out a game, but what if those voices were highly familiar and widely known?  How would you like to hear the following cast in a game:  Dominic Scott Kay, Ashley Tisdale, Bob Saget, Jamie Lee Curtis, and William Shatner.  When I first read that not only Bob Saget and Jamie Lee Curtis were involved I had to do a double check when I read that William Shatner was applying his voice to the game.  And, you can not debate the fact that those voices are uncanny and impossible to miss.  Not only do they add their voices and some likenesses to the game‘s characters, they even throw in a little personality with every little cinematic and in-game phrase.

Now this alone will not make a great game, so how does the rest stand up?  Well first off, the game simply looks great.  Every character moves seamlessly, each pre-level cinematic is well written and well drawn, and nothing just blends in with anything else.  Every colorful creation is just superb when playing a new level and each new area is highly detailed.  The gameplay is smooth and easily to use.  You can either control your character by using your keyboard or your mouse.  So pick your favorite style to play or switch back and forth, it makes no difference!  Along with the crystal clear voice-over, you even get sharp, crisp sounds from collecting countless gems to crashing into a duck with your rocket mini-van.

Overall, this is easily one of the best games I have ever had the privilege to play on my computer.  From the moment I began whacking monkeys with a purse to bouncing off scorpions, I was enthralled by this game.  I couldn’t pull myself from my computer for quite some time, at least until somebody called out “Dinner’s ready!”  So who knows maybe after playing a charitable game involving a misadventure, I might get into a misadventure of my own.

Aaron Roberson

DOWNLOAD THE TUTTLES MADCAP MISADVENTURES HERE>>

Have Fun While Doing Good...The Tuttles Madcap Misadventures!

Family vacations, the joy and scourge of modern American family life. We can all relate to being dragged...er...escorted along on excursions with our loving brood, where not everything goes according to plan. The Tuttles Madcap Misadventures starts out with an innocent family trip to the Alamo, and ends up taking you through a series of wild adventures and excursions like you could barely imagine.

The Tuttles Madcap Misadventures is a platform adventure, which means you jump, climb, and swat your way through obstacles courses, collecting key items to complete each task. Even though you select an avatar at the beginning of the game, you get to play every member of the family in turn.

It's a lot of fun to spot the celebrity voice overs. There's a bunch of really big names here -- Bob Saget, Jamie Lee Curtis, William Shatner, Ashley Tisdale, and Dominic Scott Kay. You get the idea. And, they do a really great job of making the game come to life. There are plenty of jokes and even trivia tidbits thrown in as you play. The graphics are great, with a combination of 3D characters and some very well drawn environments. The music and sound effects are realistic and interesting too.

One of my favorite things about the Tuttles is how accessible it is. Everybody can enjoy this game – Mom, Dad, Junior, and Grandma. You can adjust the difficulty level and change the avatar, and wallah, totally suitable for the whole crowd.

What makes this game even better is that Legacy Interactive is donating 75% of the profits to the Starlight Starbright Children's Foundation. Starlight Starbright helps seriously ill children and their families to cope with the daily challenges they face, bringing together resources from technology, medicine, and entertainment. Since we're in the season of giving, this is a great gift for your civic minded friends and family – plus its really really fun. Totally worth your download to check this one out.

Lisa

DOWNLOAD THE TUTTLES MADCAP MISADVENTURES HERE>>

Interview with the Prez of Legacy

Check out this nice interview with Ariella Lehrer, the President of Legacy Interactive, on one of our favorite casual game review sites, www.gamezebo.com.  (Those are some softball questions, Erin!)

3 Unique Games, Only Available at Legacy Games

Hi there,

While I’d like to think that Legacy is good at everything we do, I don’t think we are. We are much better at making games than we are at marketing and promoting them. You’re probably a Legacy customer, or otherwise you wouldn’t be reading this.  But do you know that in the past two months, we have released three new, uniquely thoughtful games that are only available on Legacy Games? Better yet, do you know what they are?  Hmmm…I thought so. Let me summarize quickly before I lose my job as company mouthpiece.

-------------------------------------------------

Zoo Vet Endangered Animals is the fifth veterinarian game by Legacy. (We started with Vet Emergency in 2001 – hopefully we’ve got it right by now!) It is the perfect Holiday gift for the young person who loves animals (ages 8-14). It’s educational and fun, and has won lots of awards. We are also giving away some free copies, so click here, http://www.zoovetgame.com/quiz.html, to enter our “animal names” contest. Zoo Vet Endangered Animals is currently only available in CD-ROM format, for both PC and Mac computers.

-------------------------------------------------

Brain Spa was designed by Legacy’s own Dr. Craig Brannon, an educational psychologist who is also Legacy’s Director of Game Development.  There are eight separate mini-games, all focused on different aspects of thinking. You can download the free trial of Brain Spa at Legacy Games, and give it a workout. I'd love to know what you think!

------------------------------------------------

This past week we launched The Tuttles Madcap Misadventures game, together with the children’s charity, Starlight Starbright. 75% of the purchase price of this charming “platformer” game goes to support their services to seriously ill children and their families. Hollywood stars like Bob Saget, William Shatner, Ashley Tisdale, Jamie Lee Curtis, and others donated their talents to the game as well. (It’s fun to try and spot the celebrity voices within the game!)

------------------------------------------------

You can tailor the difficulty level, then jump, climb, and swat your way through gorgeous graphics and obstacles, collecting key items to complete each level. Check out the free trial on Legacy Games.

------------------------------------------------

Well that was a long email, but Christmas is coming soon, and I wanted you to know about Legacy’s new games in case you are looking for that perfect gift.

Thanks for being our customer!

Ariella

President

Legacy Interactive