Product DetailsPlatform: PC Download
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| Take the starring role in Jane Austen's most popular novels as you become one of the Bennet sisters in search of a husband. Will you pursue Mr. Bingley, whose good nature has already endeared him to your sister, or perhaps Mr. Darcy, the famous protagonist from Pride and Prejudice? The narrative of Matches & Matrimony comes from the combining of 3 different novels, allowing you to create new storylines from Miss Austen’s most famous works! As you play you, will pick your daily routine to improve your characteristics, and then select your own path through the intersecting stories. With 9 different endings to be discovered, Matches & Matrimony can be played again and again as you create your own tale of classic romance. System Requirements
What Other Items Do Customers Buy After Viewing This Item?Customer ReviewsMost Helpful Customer Reviews
21 of 21 people found the following review helpful
By Scott Bair
Platform for Display:PC Download
I thoroughly enjoyed playing Matches & Matrimony. I convinced my wife to try it also, and she enjoyed it and immediately started thinking of friends she wanted to recommend it to. My 11-year old daughter also enjoyed playing it, though the reading level was a bit over her head.
My kids and I play a lot of video games, probably a couple hours each day. Most of the ones that we enjoy are either adventure games (same category as this), role-playing, or strategy. I'm concerned about how much violence and aggression is portrayed in the games my kids play, so I was very pleased to find one that was about building relationships instead of accumulating body counts, The attributes one improves in the game is a well-conceived list of social attributes rather than the oh-so-common strength/dexterity/intelligence/health/mana schemes that are so common in gaming. They include Willpower, [artistic] Talent, Wit, Kindness, Propriety, and Sensibility. Playing the game was like a refresher course (or for someone unfamiliar with the 19th century, it would be an introductory course) on the types of values that were emphasized in that age, including how their definitions differed from ours today. The part of the game that impressed me the most was the moral component. This is a game that will stretch you in positive ways, reminding you of what makes people like each other when they have good values and wholesome lifestyles, which is certainly what I hope my children will aspire to. I had a very positive experience when I was playing and trying to court Capt. Wentworth and saw that my kindness attribute had to be higher--I needed to go back and play it a couple of times to get it up to a level that it had been when my character was supposedly younger and kinder--for him to be attracted to me. Reflecting on this had a very strong positive effect on the way I treated my wife and children for the next several days. It made me want to be a better person, as I recalled how kind I been to my wife when I was courting her, and wanting to be more like that again. I have never experienced anything like that in a video game before, and hope to find more like it. While playing the game I was able to finish 8 of the 9 different endings (one was quite difficult, but it was also very rewarding). I liked the feature of being able to skip ahead through scenes that I had already played, so that I got more quickly to the decision junctures I still wanted to explore. I would especially recommend this to anyone who is a fan of classic novels such as Jane Austin's work, who years for a nobler and less decadent age, or anyone who is tired of media choices that seem to cheapen the user or even just merely entertain. 11 of 11 people found the following review helpful Platform for Display:PC Download|Amazon Verified Purchase
Despite the subtitle "A Pride and Prejudice Tale", this game announces early on that it incorporates elements from "Sense and Sensibility" and "Persuasion" along with the main P&P plot. This is done in part by introducing characters from the other novels (Col. Brandon, Capt. Wentworth) and in part by making some P&P characters do double duty. Thus, Mr. Wickham is renamed "Mr. Wickeby", as he can function as Mr. Willoughby from S&S if you choose to pursue that path. Similarly, Lydia is now "Lydianne" and Mr. Bingley's first name has changed from Charles to Edward (as in Ferrars). You get to choose your character's first name, so you can play as "Evil Witch Bennet" if you like. The cast of characters from P&P has been reduced for simplicity, so don't expect to meet Mary and Kitty Bennet, the Gardiners, and several others.
The game play combines elements of a resource management game (allocating your weekdays to various activities) and a choose-your-own adventure book. These combine because the activities change your character's stats, and some of the better choices are unavailable if a particular stat is too low (or, in one case, too high). When this happens, the game often lets you know through internal dialog along the lines of "If only I'd had more WIT, I could have said something more charming to Col. Fitzwilliam." (This example isn't from the game - I made it up to avoid spoilers.) That lets you know to go back to a saved point in the game and try to beef up your Wit, assuming you care about charming Col. Fitzwilliam. When you do make choices, in general (not always) you'll want to try getting along with others - but it may not be obvious which choice accomplishes this. After you've completed the game once, when you begin it thereafter you'll be given the option of using some in-game cheats. Also, you're given a "Skip" option that lets you flash through parts of the game that you've seen before. I don't particularly recommend the cheats, but the skip option is great if you're trying to find all nine endings. You can end up with one of six possible husbands (one of which has "good" and "bad" variants) or remain single, which also has variants. Once you've attained all nine endings, there's nothing more for the game to offer, but that does take a while. The graphics in this game are extremely primitive. The only animation is that the characters, two-dimensional and entirely rigid like paper dolls, slide back and forth against a fixed background. Also, characters can change instantly from one frozen facial expression to another. For me, the most laughable thing in the entire game was Lydianne's incredibly stiff version of Louisa Musgrove's fall from the Cobb. (This is from "Persuasion", so you'll need to be pursuing Capt. Wentworth to see it.) However, I don't consider the crude graphics a major failing. It's quaint, and certainly I've been able to enjoy some of the better choose-your-own adventure books without having fully-rendered CGI animation magically appear before me. Still, the game is not without faults. The language occasionally falls into typical grammatical errors of the "between you and I" variety, and annoyingly insists on the modern use of "invite" as a synonym for "invitation". The game seems to be set in some mixed-era alternate universe: On the one hand, Mr. Bennet wears a powdered wig, consistent with the time when a young Jane Austen wrote the lost first version of P&P. On the other, there are references to books and authors from long after Austen's death, like Oscar Wilde. Someone wrote that the game uses the word "Victorian", which would also be an anachronism, although I don't recall noticing it. Again, these are not major deficiencies if you don't take the game too seriously. If you really like Jane Austen, I think you'll probably enjoy this game. 6 of 6 people found the following review helpful
By Donna M.
Platform for Display:PC Download|Amazon Verified Purchase
This was quite a fun little game as you played through, attempting to find Mr. Right from a variety of options. In the meantime you spend your time earning skills like willpower, talent, propriety and kindness by visiting, going outside, studying the arts, etc. Your skill development will effect which men consider your character and hints are available to help you with the tougher ones, like Mr. Darcy.
I generally consider the downloadable games on par with a paperback in terms of value, so I was happy that this kept me occupied for several evenings, eagerly chasing my chosen matrimonial victims (haven't played all the endings yet either). If you like games with lots of action and detailed scenery, this is not for you. But if you wouldn't mind a little old fashioned Victorian-style flirting (innocent and charming) and dialogue, it's quite fun. Most Recent Customer Reviews
3.0 out of 5 stars
Cute, but too short
This was a cute, fun way to spend a weekend, but a weekend is about all I got out of it. It takes forever to play your first couple runs through, but once you've read most of the... Read more
Published 5 months ago by loves2read
1.0 out of 5 stars
matches & matrimony
Does not follow jane austin very faithfully. Good for children 2-4, but not older. As a fan of jane austin, I would not recommend this game.
Published 9 months ago by no name
5.0 out of 5 stars
Loved ALL Nine Endings!
This was one of the most enjoyable games I've ever played. There are nine endings. The only problem I had with this game is, even though I played it about 2 dozen times, I had a... Read more
Published 17 months ago by J. Welp
5.0 out of 5 stars
Pleasantly Surprising
I have to admit, this game is more challenging than I predicted.
I'm not a Jane Austen fan by any means, so I actually have little familiarity with the storylines and... Read more
Published 17 months ago by squallsrinoa
5.0 out of 5 stars
Please make a sequel!!!
I love this game! It is so fun! You have to like RPG's, it is very much and RPG. And if your a big Jane Austen fan, it includes much of the books' dialogue and flavor. Read more
Published 17 months ago by ru
2.0 out of 5 stars
waste of time
As a Jane Austen fan I expected more from this game. I did not like that all the stories of Jane Austen were combined together so that it's a mess,it's confusing to figure out what... Read more
Published 18 months ago by momo
4.0 out of 5 stars
Game Review
It was a fun game and I had fun trying to figure out just how to get things to stack so that I would end up with whomever I wanted in the game. Read more
Published 20 months ago by Akili
5.0 out of 5 stars
Addictive! Imaginative Interactive storyline
I'm an avid game player of Big Fish Games. I've probably played 100's of these online games. Being a woman, I of course prefer the romance storylines. Read more
Published 23 months ago by Classicdeals
3.0 out of 5 stars
Amusing, but confusing
This game is a nice little diversion, especially for fans of Jane Austen's works. The art isn't fantastic, but the dialogues are well-written (as one would expect) and the basic... Read more
Published 24 months ago by Halfway
4.0 out of 5 stars
Lots of fun for a Jane Austen addict!
This game is sort of like a choose your on adventure book. The choices you make determine your matrimonial path. Read more
Published 24 months ago by Erin
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