2 stars (The developers confused "family friendly" with "childlike") - I was addicted to Railroad Tycoon 2, but unfortunately it wouldn't play under my new operating system. I was thrilled to find RT3 and eagerly awaited its delivery. Unfortunately, RT3 has lost much of the complexity and the underhandedness that made RT2 so much fun. For example: - in RT2, only industries or resources inside your station's field of influence would be serviced by your trains. In RT3, each station has a vague, undefined "area of influence" that goes beyond the size of your station's shown field. Is that feedlot, grain farm, or mine close enough to your station so you don't have to build another closer station? Good luck figuring it out. - in RT2, one could designate different loads for cars in the same manifest. This can't be done now. This makes it very difficult to produce goods manufactured from more than one type of raw material. - the graphics are very comic-book like, and would more appeal to children around the age of three than they would adults. Very unattractive and simplistic. I would have even preferred a 2-D model with more sophistication. - the business models have been vastly oversimplified, and the AI companies are not one thousandth as cutthroat as in RT2. This is a bad thing. Historically, rail companies were not paragons of industry; for a historical sim to be realistic, it has to reflect the true conditions of the industry. The rail business in RT3 appears to have been emasculated, perhaps to appeal to young naive children, but it's lost much of its interest for adults. - creating new maps and new scenarios is much more complicated in RT3 than it was in RT2. - the weather is a useless, worthless feature that eats memory. Yes, you can turn it off, but it still takes up a lot of space in storage memory. I did not much enjoy RT3. It appears to have lost much of the detail that made RT2 so enjoyable (wasn't it great to finally get iron *and* coal, send one tr... Jack of All Games :: World Building (Builders) :: Simulations :: Strategy (Strategic) :: Simulators (Simulation) :: Action :: Computer Games :: :: Railroad Tycoon 3
3 stars (Considerable Expansion Pack for Pet Lovers) - With this expansion pack installed, you will see some pets in your neighborhood. Once in several days, you'll meet not only street cats and dogs, but also some skunk! Having animals around is not always a good thing. You will have more things to do at home. Cleaning up their poo, bathing them, expense more on their food, etc. While keeping a pet at home could means more trouble, you'll have some advantages on them. If you have a dog, you can have your daily newspaper brought in your house by your dog. Or if you pet a cat, you'll see that cockroaches around the corner aren't there anymore (yes, your cat eat them up!). With this expansion pack installed, you will be able to pet a dog, cat, fish, bird, iguana, etc. When you buy a dog or cat, you can choose its colour and name it. You should buy toys and other tools for your pet. Of course you cannot make your cat sleep in a bird's cage. What is more, you'll see that your neighborhood is enlarged! You will have more lots to be built. Either as a house, or as a common place for you to visit (you can build shops, pets shop, etc) As I don't really like pets and I am disturbed by those wild animals around my house, I don't like this expansion pack very much. I would prefer buying another expansion pack for this game such as Superstar or Makin' Magic. 5 stars (please help) - i want get a sims game but my mom thinks its bad. what is there in the game and what certain age do you have to be? i hope you guys help me. if you do put your title as problem for help. thankyou thankyou thankyou thankyou thankyou thankyou thankyou bye :-) :-) :-) :-) :-) 5 stars (A great game overall) - This game is a lot more fun that the Deluxe Edition because you actually get to go out of the house and to shop. You can buy pets and meet new people at the shops. You also get to create new stores, like pet stores, dog and cat adoption centers, gardening shops, food shops. The neighborhoods ... Electronic Arts :: World Building (Builders) :: Simulations :: Strategy (Strategic) :: Simulators (Simulation) :: Computer Games :: :: The Sims Unleashed Expansion Pack
5 stars (Strategy Game Star Trek) - Here is a simple galactic conquest stategy game that allows you to play in spurts if you can tear yourself away from it. It's just complex enough to allow you to become immursed in it. The AI is intelligent enough to provide a challenge. 1 stars (Terrible AI won't even bother to attack you) - Galactic Civilizations is the junk food of 4x games. It's filling and comfortably familar, but after awhile you realize it's making you sick. It's basically what you would expect if you took every successful 4x game and merged them together, but with no regards for balance or gameplay. The feature list looks impressive, until you realize half the features are broken or unbalanced. Here's a sample game I played once I realized how broken things were: Normal difficulty/Small Map Right away I colonized 2 systems. I did nothing except change research, occasionally build a building, and hit next turn. I did not build any attack/defense ships. This went on until near the end of the research tree(!), when finally the AI attacked. I built ships to defend, but I was overwhelmed as you would expect. Then they ground invaded. Carrier of 5 million lost for them, killed 3 million of mine, repeat. Sounds bad since I only had 2 planets, right? Well unfortunately the pop of my planet they were invading was 100 billion. They couldn't conceiveably wipe me out since they couldn't make transports fast enough. Why are transports "used up" when you attack anyway? So after a few hundred attempts they seemed to give up then space sharks were randomly spawned. Since I had no ships they didn't attack me, and instead wiped out both the remaining ai player's fleets. I couldn't invade for the same reasons they couldn't invade me though, so I just waited to see what would happen. Eventually I was given one of the AI's systems. Turns out I had set some money in "destabilize" a few dozen turns ago. I pumped up the amount of money i was spending on it, to ... Strategy First :: Strategy (Strategic) :: Science Fiction (Sci-Fi :: scifi) :: Space Simulators (Simulation) :: Adventure :: Action :: Computer Games :: :: Galactic Civilizations Deluxe
5 stars (Great game) - This is a great game. Cabela's Big Game Hunter 2004 and 2005, Cabela's Deer Hunt 2005, and Cabela's Dangerous Hunts are also very good. This game is a good one to choose for average hunters. Dangerous Hunts is for beginning hunters. Deer Hunt is for experienced hunters. The scenery is one of the best things about these games. It took me three days to complete the career mode of this game. Time passes more slowly than in some of the other games in this series. Day changes to night. There is rain, snow, and wind. There is no choosing a season in this game. Many of the animals are slight variations. Animals included are Arctic Wolf, Barren-Ground Caribou, Bison, American Black Bear, Bobcat, Brown Bear, Columbian Black-Tailed Deer, Cougar, Coyote, Dall's Sheep, Desert Bighorn Sheep, Desert Mule Deer, Eastern Timber Wolf, Grey Wolf, Grizzly Bear, Javelina, Kodiak Brown Bear, Lynx, Mountain Caribou, Mountain Goat, Musk Ox, Northern Timber Wolf, Northwestern Moose, Polar Bear, Pronghorn Antelope, Rocky Mountain Bighorn Sheep, Rocky Mountain Elk, Rocky Mountain Mule Deer, Roosevelt Elk, Shiras Moose, Stone Sheep, Tule Elk, White-Tailed Deer, Wolverine, Woodland Caribou, and Yukon Moose. In addition there are several non game animals such as rabbits, foxes, and black-footed ferrets. The weapons are .243 Compact Bolt-Action Rifle, .270 Bolt-Action Rifle, .280 Bolt-Action Rifle, .30-30 Lever-Action Rifle, 7mm Magnum Semi-Automatic Rifle, .30-06 Bolt-Action Rifle, .30-06 Semi-Automatic Rifle, .300 Magnum Bolt-Action Rifle, .308 Bolt-Action Rifle, .308 Semi-Automatic Rifle, .416 Bolt-Action Rifle, .45-120 1874 Replica Rifle, 10 Gauge Pump Shotgun, 12 Gauge Semi-Automatic Shotgun, 12 Gauge Over and Under Shotgun, Semi-Auto Slug Gun, .44 Magnum, Revolver, Single-Shot .30-30 Long Hunting Pistol, .50 AE Semi-Auto Handgun, .500 Magnum Pistol, Recurve Bow, Cabela's PL1 Compound Bow, and Crossbow. Note that not all of these weapons are available immedi... Activision :: Hunting :: Sports Simulators (Simulation) :: Computer Games :: :: Cabela-s Big Game Hunter 2006- Trophy Season
5 stars (super!!!) - this is a really cool game but, it wouldn't save my stuff.maybe it's just my comp or game. other than that evry thing is super 5 stars (GREAT!) - The game is nice.It is very easy.I also like the pros.It is a rearly good game. 4 stars (Good, But Not Great) - This is a good game, but I have a few reccomendations and I have found a few flaws. Here is a list of them. Mr.Clanky - It is cool that you unlock him after you win the backyard world series but you can`t put him on your normal team, in fact you can only use him in a single game! players - they are basicly good but their skill ratings are a little off on a few of them, for instance a person who the game says is great at batting, like Barry Bonds can really be pretty bad at it. trading - I haven`t gotten far but I am pretty confident that there is not and will not be a trading option, and i think that it would be cool if you could trade with other players or the computer. skills - It would be nice if your players skill ratings increased with the experience they get from games. graphics - The graphics are ok but not anything special. I think this is a good game and that is why I gave it four stars, so I can`t wait to get the upcoming versions. ... Atari :: Kids (Children) :: Computer software (programs) :: Basketball :: Sports Simulators (Simulation) :: Computer Games :: :: Backyard Basketball 2004
2 stars (Broken for high-end ATI cards.) - Well Madden is my favourite PC game. I invariably buy it the first day of its release every year and play it till mastery. Madden 2005 was a substantial improvement over 2004. It offered decent defense and it was possible to stop the ridiculous long bomb issue that plagued 2004. 2006 on the surface seems to offer a great deal more depth it terms of gameplay than before. The precision passing thing is a great addition. Making it harder to score was also the most challenging thing. Previous games were too easy as once you knew the plays you could advance the ball upfield unhindered. However there are some significant hurdles to be overcome before you can get to the goodness underneath. The key mapping is just horrid and there is no way on the PC of remapping them. I use a Logitech Wingman Rumblepad Cordless and in order to change the precision passing receiver that you are locked on to prior to the snap you need to hold "A" and then press the key of the receiver that you want to lock on to pre-snap. This is ridiculous. If you have to press two keys at once they need to be on different sides of the gamepad - this is how they work. Alas not in Madden 2006, you need to hold multiple buttons down with the same finger. However an even greater issue is the performance problems with ATI cards and high end systems. This issues appeared in MVP baseball as well and has now hit Madden as well. There are entire online debates about the issue. Basically on a high end system with ATI cards you get excessive stuttering during gameplay. It doesn't matter wether you turn off compression in the options or not, though this helps, it doesn;t matter if you play it in 640x480 or 1600x1200 the stuttering continues. You can tried the Catalyst 5.6, 5.7, 5.8 drivers it doesn't make any difference, I even tried the zeropoint drivers. Also I tried adjusting the PCI latency values. After two weeks of perservering I am resolved to the fact that the game i... Electronic Arts :: Football :: Sports Simulators (Simulation) :: Computer Games :: :: Madden NFL 2006
4 stars (As Fun As in Harry Potter) - I read and watched Harry Potter series. One day this expansion pack is available on the game shop. I bought this expansion pack and installed it. It is just as fun as I tought before! I can learn spells, cast it to objects or even myself. :D I can go to secret shops in a Mystery Town and buy odd ingredients needed in my mixture. When I have time, I went to the Mystery Town via special hole in my backyard and I played some games there. I can also meet other wizards and have some battles with them. New clothes, furnitures, objects, and some other stuff are included in this expansion pack, making it possible for me to create my own Castile. :D I use stonewall wallpaper to wrap all my walls, plant some old-abandoned-well and dead oak tree, use antigue doors and windows, and select 'magic and ancient' furnitures instead the ordinary. I just love it! XD 5 stars (Pack Your bags we're goin to hogwarts !! sort of?) - The Sims Makin Magic is a fun game but also the sad reminder that there is no longer going to be the sims 1 anymore byt be happy there is the sims 2 to the rescue!!! I have to be honest i really dont have this game but i have seen the screen shots and thought wow we have got to write a review hey i need to know if i write good reviews so please read all of mine they all are on the sims and plz i need help with finding the right wedding present !!!! Thanks dont forget to rate my reviews!!!!!! Any ideas to the present????? 3 stars (Not the best Sims expansion...) - I found magic to be very inconvenient and expensive to use. As in all other Sim games, it is hard to keep your Sim happy for more than a few days, and also make enough money to live off of. It is only fun to go to a premade house and play with the premade sims, but that's not the point of the game... ... Electronic Arts :: World Building (Builders) :: Simulations :: Strategy (Strategic) :: Simulators (Simulation) :: Computer Games :: :: The Sims Makin- Magic Expansion Pack
5 stars (super!!!) - this is a really cool game but, it wouldn't save my stuff.maybe it's just my comp or game. other than that evry thing is super 5 stars (GREAT!) - The game is nice.It is very easy.I also like the pros.It is a rearly good game. 4 stars (Good, But Not Great) - This is a good game, but I have a few reccomendations and I have found a few flaws. Here is a list of them. Mr.Clanky - It is cool that you unlock him after you win the backyard world series but you can`t put him on your normal team, in fact you can only use him in a single game! players - they are basicly good but their skill ratings are a little off on a few of them, for instance a person who the game says is great at batting, like Barry Bonds can really be pretty bad at it. trading - I haven`t gotten far but I am pretty confident that there is not and will not be a trading option, and i think that it would be cool if you could trade with other players or the computer. skills - It would be nice if your players skill ratings increased with the experience they get from games. graphics - The graphics are ok but not anything special. I think this is a good game and that is why I gave it four stars, so I can`t wait to get the upcoming versions. ... Atari :: Computer software (programs) :: Football :: Sports Simulators (Simulation) :: Computer Games :: Kids (Children) :: :: Backyard Football 2004
2 stars (seems fifa is making each of its sequel worst than before) - the video has minor glitches.the ball and players move slowly.its a pain to get a goal.it just wansn;t right.i didn't like anything in this game 3 stars (Arcade version, not a simulation) - If you want to play football without much control depth then choose this over the European "Pro Evolution Soccer 4" (title is "Winning 11" in the US) and if you have heard the buzz surrounding that game then you should know that it is in the top three sports simulations of all time. Winning 11 however is not an out-of-box game, taking days to learn, weeks to master and then improve on with other players. FIFA works straight out of box, is easy, but its limits become all too obvious in light on Winning 11, a game has been in development since the Nintendo 64 and is easily the best soccer engine out there. The bottom line is that if you want a soccer game that works out of box, that you can play almost right away with anybody, then FIFA has it. If you want a real soccer sim that takes longer to get into but is far better, then choose Winning 11. 4 stars (Fifa 2005) - Fifa 2005 is very simialar to Fifa 2004. But there are differences between the two. I really like 2005 more for the reasons that the new style is really cool. The music in the game is killer [they went for a more international music approach, rather than just the American music scene], and there is a visible differnece in the graphics upgrade. Basically, its an updated version of 2004. However, I bought this just for the hell of it, but 2005 doesnt come anywhere close to Winning Eleven 7. I bought Winning Eleven 8 recently, but it was in Japanese, but the gameplay is so much better. In F2005, no matter how many times you press sprint, the players just move so slow. The stadiums itselfs are not very lively, [i only saw one flag waving in the enitre crowd]. I bought 2005 mainly because I lost Winning Eleven 7, but Fifa 2005 is still pretty worth the ... Electronic Arts :: Soccer :: Sports Simulators (Simulation) :: Computer Games :: :: FIFA Soccer 2005
5 stars (great and fun) - i got this yesterday and i could not stop. its amazin choosing a character and a skateboared and the moves and the cool places you can go. i have basketball and soccer backyard games, but this is the best. 5 stars (Backyard skateboarding sound aswome ) - This game sound very fun and interesting I'm going to get it. You can get sponsors unlock new gear and use a pro skater andy macdonald. 5 stars (Best Backyard Game Ever.) - As someone who beta-tested this game, let me tell you: it rocks. If you like the Backyard Sports games, you will go nuts for Backyard Skating. Awesome graphics, awesome gameplay, fun for a girl or a boy. Go out and buy it. Right now. Go! ... Atari :: Sports Simulators (Simulation) :: Computer Games :: :: Backyard Skateboarding
2 stars (i really believe someone somewhere can do better) - I know, I'm an adult- don't even have kids so what am I doing with this game? Well, I'm interested in games, have not been entirely satisfied with the ea sports games I've tried and heard good things about this series, so when I ran across a cheap 2005 hockey I thought I'd try it out. I found it disappointing enough that I probably would not try another backyard game and would not really recommend this to anyone be they 6 or 600. I've rated it on the following factors that are important to me. Story: B-, okay, it's a sports game- no story, but the commentators are amusing and the little goal dances are cute Characters: B, I could care less about the real hockey players as kids stuff, but the create your own player thing (which I often find limited and/or boring in games) is reasonably simple, yet cute, and I was able to make versions of people I know sometimes with success. Gameplay: D-, starts falling apart here most crucially. The simple mostly mouse only controls are okay, you win some and lose some with it- less control, but nice and simple. but unfortunatly things like what sort of situation would make you score a goal are very off and don't make sense to me. The power ups are cute but sort of ruin the game as some of them basically provide free goals. Better just have easier to score goals. Too much of the game revolved around the power ups. And I know its for kids, and that maybe the idea is if you can't score too easily then wait till you get an under icer (the puck goes under the ice when you shoot so no one can stop it) and you'll get a goal, but why not just make it so that on easy setting, at least, if you get a decent shot off in the open it might actually go in? also, what about getting to control your goalie! This would be a very big improvement if you could go into goalie mode or something. Graphics: C+, pleasant. They work. Rinks could really be a little cuter. Dreariness facto... Atari :: Hockey :: Sports Simulators (Simulation) :: Computer Games :: :: Backyard Hockey 2005
2 stars (I demand a remake!) - Quiddich, though only imaginative, is an incredible sport in concept. I was practically compelled to buy the game because of visions I had of the possibilities there, even though the reviews were lackluster. Well, turns out people were right. The passing and shooting is oversimplified, the 3D element is completely absent, and its a little too easy to steal the quaffle (i.e. the ball.) The bludgers and beaters (bat-weilding players hitting heavy balls at enemy players) were handled fairly well. The vying for special moves by accomplishing certain goals in a match is a nice touch, but another reviewer hit a chord when they compared their vision of a Quiddich video game with Madden Football. Let players compete at Hogwarts, Club (Professional), or World Cup difficulty, and let them handle the recruiting and management of a team (or even let players you had at Hogwarts play on your pro club when you move to the next level.) Let the flying be more 3 dimensional, with the chance to play as any position all the time instead of just chasers, and you could have a game that redefines sports gaming. Right now, its just a cheap shot by E.A. Games at all us Quiddich dreamers out there. $10? Yeah, its worth about that much. 2 stars (For the wee ones) - I agree with most of the other reviewers here: This game was clearly designed for younger kids, with the fun, eye-candy set high and any possible frustration kept to a minimum. It's clear that EA Games just adapted a soccer-game engine, trying to minimize the three-dimensional nature of Quidditch. That, combined with the utterly predictable AI system, makes it possible for an adult player to WIPE THE FLOOR with any and all comers. It's aggravating, really: It's not likely that there will be another version of this game made for adults with, say, an AI system worthy of the name. And EA games could have so easily created a workable 3D flying system--just use the usual WASD/three-button mouse ... Electronic Arts :: Computer Games :: Movies (Movie) :: Computer software (programs) :: Sports Simulators (Simulation) :: :: Harry Potter- Quidditch World Cup
5 stars (Playing with my friends all over the country) - I think the other reviews cover the game quite well but there's no mention of playing on line. I play on line with buddies in Florida, No. Carolina and Oklahome City. WE play about five nights a week, late,late,late, after the wives are in bed. While we play we are all connected to Yahoo Messenger voice chat so we can talk as we play. We have a few little problems from time to time but nothing we can't handle quickly. I recomend this game to anyone who enjoys golf. I'm an old Geezer and can't swing a club without falling on my Keester so this game is a savior. 4 stars (Great Deal for a Great Game) - Let me start by saying that this game is the closest to real golf that you can get on a computer. The game is very big and well designed. There is so much to do with this game. You start by creating your character, which is a very fun process in itself. Like others mentioned there are enough options that you can get your character to look almost exactly like you. It's actually kind of scary. I even bought the exact clubs I use in real life. After you've had that fun you start playing on the amateur tour. You enter tournaments and win some money. You can use that money to buy new clubs and equipment and improve you attributes in a number of different categories such as "long game" and "short game". You take lessons to learn new shots such as "high spin" and "flop". Your ultimate goal is to win the amateur championship and become a pro. Once you do this you join the EA Sports tour, when you win the championship on this tour it's off to Q-School and the PGA Tour. The graphics in this game are really spectacular. I have a high end system so I can't comment on the requirements but I would imagine you need a fairly modern PC to play this game to its full potential. I will admit that this game is the only program that has ever caused my PC to crash. It has only happened a couple of times but it has happened. The only... Electronic Arts :: Golf :: Sports Simulators (Simulation) :: Computer Games :: :: Tiger Woods PGA Tour 2005
2 stars (A lot of tinkering, not a lot of control) - After playing MVP Baseball '04 and now, '05 on PS2, I find that I actually prefer the older ("Classic") version. The new game is great with many of the things still present from '04 that make it fun to play, but there is a reason it was priced less than '04. There are several small reasons it doesn't rock (they brought back the same announcers, lots of batters look exactly the same-Moises Alou still bounces in the batter's box even though he doesn't do this in real life-some players don't have pictures, etc.). Then there are the big ones... First of all, the overall graphics are great and the players are a bit more realistic and left handers can actually hit some shots only the right handers could do in '04. Plus, of course, the music is great. I only wish you could pick a playlist or leave some songs off (similar to GT3), because some songs really get on my nerves! I tried the "Owner" mode and one of the first things I tried was to design my own park. I could be missing something, but it looks like I can make a high right field wall, but not a left field one? Not to mention it is not as high as it looks (nothing like the Green Monster) when the game starts. I would like more control and more choices if the game is going to let me "design" my own park. The stadium starts off with a minuscule seating capacity (lower and upper deck, 20K only). Yes, you can purchase more seats and this is part of the fun, but isn't this the Major Leagues? When a new park is built, it looks like a massive artistic construction with seats all around. Starting off with only a lower and upper deck would be perfect for designing your Minor League park. After not finding a proper tutorial/FAQ for running my day-to-day baseball operations (selling tickets and concessions at the price I want), I tried it the best I could and found this also to be a confusing double-edged sword. The game doesn't take into account the team's record and eve... Electronic Arts :: Baseball :: Sports Simulators (Simulation) :: Adventure :: Computer Games :: :: MVP Baseball 2005
5 stars (Best original Sim game!) - If you've never experienced a Sim game, this is the place to start! Original and clever it will always be considered a classic! 4 stars (A good game!) - In the Sims Deluxe I liked it better and worse than the regular sims. I liked it better because there were more interesting things to buy and do. I liked it worse because it wasn't as easy as the sims. For example, in THE SIMS I made a boyfriend who was a negative to my sign of the zodiac. But now I have so many things to do. I do recommend this though ;) 1 stars (Dont waste your money) - First, Let me say, the reason I gave this a 1 star rating isnt the game itself, I havent gotten to play it yet! Not from this disc. I ordered it brand new, it was delivered, I unwrapped it, and tried to install it. The serial # EA GAMES printed on it (which you have to have to install it on your computer), is invalid!!!! And, I cant get an answer from their tech support/customer service on this. I have found others who have bought this version with the exact same problem. If you can get this in a jewel case, good. It seems when they come in the case shown on this page, the serial #'s wont work, and you have to go through a huge hassel to get it fixed. ***This is not an amazon problem, it is an EA GAMES problem ... Electronic Arts :: World Building (Builders) :: Simulations :: Strategy (Strategic) :: Simulators (Simulation) :: Bundle (Bundles) :: Collections (Collections) :: Computer Games :: :: The Sims Deluxe Edition
