Diner Dash - Hometown Harvest

PlayFirst has just released another new diner for the Diner Dash - Hometown Hero™ game!

This latest expansion is called Hometown Harvest and features a Thanksgiving theme restaurant with 10 story mode levels and one expert level!

The graphics are wonderful and really capture the feeling of a harvest celebration. The music is very cute, sort of a square dancing twist on the classic Diner Dash tune.

There is also a free outfit available in the DDHH shop!

This diner does not have a "Flo versus the Waitress" level (hooray!) and you start off with the podium at level one! There are also no snacks in this restaurant, but a delicious looking pie is available for dessert later on in the game.

(Note - the image above is a screen shot from my personal game. The outfit that Flo is wearing is available as a separate add-on item and not part of the Hometown Harvest package!)

The only level that I had trouble attaining the expert score in was level 3. What worked for me was to focus on color matching bonuses above all else. This meant that at times, I had only one or two tables seated instead of trying to fill up the seats. With a little bit of patience and close attention to the seating, you should be able to get an expert score relatively easily.

In order to download and play Hometown Harvest, you will need the full Gourmet version of the game, only available at PlayFirst!

Click here to download a free trial or to purchase the full version of Diner Dash - Hometown Hero™ Gourmet Edition!

Edited to add the following:

I wanted to come back and make a few more comments about the artwork in this new restaurant. I posted this at the PlayFirst DDHH forums, but I'll say it here as well!

The attention to detail is amazing in Hometown Harvest. See if you noticed the following:

• Two people tossing around a football
• Hayride
• harvest band and dancers
• Why did the turkey cross the road?
• animated horse
• animated cow
• animated owl
  
• lighting changes (it actually gets darker as evening falls!)

Didn't see all of those? Good excuse to play through the diner again! :)

Diner Dash - Hometown Hero at BFG!

Released today at Big Fish Games! You can read my review of Diner Dash® - Hometown Hero™ , including tips and tricks, here. This is truly the best in the Diner Dash series, offering incredible graphics, challenging game play, diner and waiter customizations and so much more!

I know that many people have been waiting for the BFG release of this game (as BFG's game club members can get the game for as little as $6.99!) instead of buying it directly from PlayFirst, however, to get access to ALL of the features of this game, you will need to purchase the Gourmet Edition from the PlayFirst website!

Delicious 2 Deluxe

I'm always a little nervous when a sequel game comes out. Just as with movies, the game sequels can sometimes lose the magic of a successful premier game. Thankfully, that is not the case with Delicious 2 Deluxe from Zylom Games!

The original Delicious Deluxe and the Winter Edition were very good games and I enjoyed them immensely. Delicious 2 Deluxe was so much better!

The object of the game is to serve customers in a variety of restaurants to earn enough money to bail out your struggling relative. As the income increases, you can buy upgrades and eventually open new restaurants. If you pick the right combinations of upgrades, you'll even earn bigger bonuses from the customers.

New helpers and improved graphics make the second (third?) installment of Delicious Deluxe a pleasure to play. The storyline is engaging and the characters are intriguing. This is one of my top ten favorite games!

The game is available from several game portal sites, including Zylom, but we must say that the game is $29.95 at Zylom and $19.95 elsewhere... just sayin'.

Downloads available at:
Yahoo Games! D2D Download
GameHouse D2D Download
GameFools D2D Download
Zylom Games


Some tips and tricks:

• Chain actions whenever possible. If you have someone waiting to pay their bill at the counter, if you can wait until someone else is ready to pay as well, you can chain the action and make a bonus!
• Use the helpers! They can keep the customers happy at their tables while you focus on getting the orders out as quickly as possible. Also, the helper that will clean the dirty tables is one of your biggest assets!
• Choose your upgrades carefully. If you pick the right ones, you will get an extra bonus tip from the customers.

I give this game a 9 out of 10!

Sponge Bob Diner Dash 2

Spongebob and his friends are back in this fantastic sequel! Help Spongebob, Patrick and Squidward save their favorite restaurants from the greedy Sharkey Two-Times in this cute undersea adventure!

Serve a variety of diners in a series of underwater restaurants, each with its own customizable upgrades. Later on in the game you can even choose which character to play as and each one has their own cute animations. (I prefer Patrick!)

Based on the popular Diner Dash game, SPDD2, Diner Dash fans will love the similar game mechanics and the new scenery! This is another fine time-management / service game from PlayFirst that appeals to the younger crowd. (My kids all love it and I admit, I do too!)

Some tips and tricks:

• Chain your actions! Take orders, deliver meals and collect the bills without breaking the chain. Chaining is a huge part of your overall score!
  
• Time the seating of the diners to make chaining actions easier. Don't seat new diners right away, let the line grow until you have enough to fill most or all of the tables.
  
• Match the color of the guest to the color of the seats for BIG bonus points!
• Use the podium! Try to make time to stand at the podium in between all of the chained actions!
• Get an expert score on every level to unlock a hidden restaurant!

I give this game a 7 out of 10!

To download a free trial or to purchase this game, please click HERE.

For more information and tips, please visit the PlayFirst SPDD2 Forums!

Wedding Dash

Meet Quinn! The ambitious friend of Flo (Diner Dash) who is starting her own wedding planning business! Help her grow her business by choosing the decor and food for the weddings, as well as the honeymoon destinations, and serving all of the guests in quick fashion! Avert wedding disasters by keeping Quinn on her toes and save the day!

Similar to the Diner Dash game series, Wedding Dash will not disappoint fans of the time management / service oriented games. In each level, you must first pay attention to the likes and dislikes of the wedding couple and choose their menu, decor and honeymoon location. You can earn 300 points before the level even starts by selecting just the right items! Once the level begins, you play the waitress who seats the guests, delivers their gifts to the bride and groom, serve the appetizers, main course and cake.

At the same time, you have to keep an eye on potential wedding disasters such as fighting bridesmaids and swarms of bees! Certain guests, such as a drunken uncle and sobbing aunt, will create problems as well.

Some tips and tricks:

• Make sure you get all three wedding planning choices right - those 300 points can really help!
• Pay careful attention to the seating arrangements. A good portion of your total points comes from properly seating the guests!
• Chain everything! Take all the gifts, deliver the appetizers, main courses and desserts without interruption.
• Use the champagne bottles to keep guests happy in line.
• Use the confetti blaster when the guests are mad at the tables for a mood boost.
• When selecting upgrades, focus on the ones that give point bonuses as well as the faster cooks and more comfortable seating. These combined will help on the rough later levels!

I thoroughly enjoyed this game and still play it! The replay value for this game is in trying to beat your own score and attain expert for each level, not as easy as it may sound!

To download a free trial or to purchase this game, please click HERE.

I give this game a 9 out of a possible 10!

For more help and tips, visit the PlayFirst Wedding Dash Forums!

Diner Dash - Hometown Hero - Gourmet Edition

The Diner Dash series set the bar for time management / service oriented games. The latest release in the series is "Diner Dash - Hometown Hero" and it is truly brilliant! A new website, DinerDash.com has been launched with all kinds of great features!

Our favorite heroine, Flo, is back in action in Hometown Hero. She returns to her hometown to visit her grandmother and discovers that the town has gone to ruin. Flo is ready to save the day by restoring the various eateries in town.

The Gourmet edition of Diner Dash - Hometown Hero offers players many new features and improvements over the earlier Diner Dash games.

• The return of "Flo's Closet", though much improved, allows you to dress Flo yourself.
• "My Waiter" is a tool to create your own waiter or waitress and customize their appearance!
• "My Diner" is a tool to create and design your own playable restaurants that you can share online!
• Online multiplayer gaming - even in the demo version! Go head to head with DD experts!
• Fantastic upgrades to customize your gameplay.
• Unlockable expert levels - very challenging!
• Add-on expansion restaurants available.
• Add-on clothing and decor items for your waiter and your diner!
• 50 levels of game play in the standard story mode.
• Play your own personal diner in endless mode.
• Wonderful graphics and music!

Seasoned Diner Dash fans will find a challenge in Hometown Hero, but the game is easy to learn for new players as well! The customizable diners, waiters and add-on restaurants will keep you from getting bored for a very long time. Definitely worth the $19.95!

Here are some tips and tricks that will improve your score and help you pass those challenging expert levels!

• Chain your actions! Whenever possible, fill up the tables then take all of the orders at once, deliver all of the food at once and collect the checks at once. Try not to interrupt those actions with other things! Deliver drinks, snacks, and desserts in between!
• Use the flowers! A new addition in this game - small vases of fresh flowers to put on the tables! Not only do the flowers give your diners a mood boost, but they also give you 100 points per table! That can add up to thousands of points per level!
• Watch the seat colors! The bulk of your points can come from matching diners to the right seat colors. Each time you match the color, the color bonus increases. This can mean HUGE points!
• Abuse the podium! Whenever you have the podium available, make sure you time your actions to allow for a stop at the podium in between! (Take all the orders, stand at the podium. Deliver all the food, stand at the podium, so on and so forth.)
• Beat the waitress? Several levels require you to earn more points than a competing waitress. To do this, ignore everything you've just read! Don't worry about chaining, the other waitress will mess you up at every turn! Focus instead on getting the color matching bonuses, snack and dessert points, and collecting ALL of the checks!

I give this game a 10 out of 10! Love it!

To download a free trial or to purchase this game, please click here!
For more help, please visit the PlayFirst Diner Dash - Hometown Hero forums!