Customer Reviews

Travel Games For Dummies

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

For the video game enthusiast who tends to gravitate toward puzzle games when browsing store shelves, Travel Games for Dummies for the Nintendo DS may be the perfect item to occupy your time. Whether you're actually traveling or just relaxing with your DS, the light challenge this little cartridge offers is the perfect combination of mental stimulation and old fashioned fun. Featuring three time tested puzzles--Sudoku, Solitaire, and Crosswords--Travel Games appeals to players of all ages, and parents need not screen this choice for sex and violence before handing it over to young gamers.

The game can be picked up and mastered almost immediately in its simplicity. Three choices, each choice offering different levels of expertise, and an easily accessible help menu provide instant entertainment. It is not clear how Sudoku and Solitaire made it into the "dummies" classification, but the crossword puzzles are fairly simple, even on the most difficult level. Several of the clues repeat, and words can be deciphered by trying out different letters until the computer accepts them. If you're easily frustrated with the inability to finish a crossword, have no fear. In addition to the aforementioned cheats, bonus letters rotate around the board, so if you happen to solve a clue while it's highlighted, you can earn up to three bonus clues at a time. Later, when you're having trouble coming up with an answer, you can use a bonus to receive an extra clue.

Sudoku and Solitaire require more strategy than knowledge, so the difficulty will vary with the user's skill. Personally, I'm not so hot with numbers, so even the beginner levels of Sudoku were a challenge for me. Solitaire also relies on the luck of the draw, so some games are naturally more challenging than others. The actual game operation is quite simple, however. The only complaint I really have is the keyboard for the Crossword puzzles is extremely tiny and cramped, and I often found myself aiming for one letter and actually clicking on another by accident. This is probably not an annoyance that can be remedied with the game being designed for a small DS screen. It's minor compared to the addictiveness of the game play.

Most people already know if Sudoku, Solitaire, and Crosswords are games that will keep them entertained. The actual execution of the games is solid and fans will be pleased. This would be an excellent game for mature players looking to hone mental alertness with games such as Brain Age, or anyone eager to sharpen problem solving skills.

First I should admit that I find Sudoku boring, so I did not purchase this game for the Sudoku. I have dallied with the Sudoku and appreciated the quick pencil option to run through the Sudoku puzzles quickly. I've tried the crosswords, and they are good, but limited. Definitely use the keyboard option because the print recognition doesn't work all that great. I couldn't get it to recognize "m"s no-how! What I would most recommend on this game is the Solitaire. There are many different types of Solitaire offered. The game works faster than solitaire on the computer and is very easy to use and understand. My only complaint about the solitaire is that in the blink of an eye, the game quits and tells you there are no moves left. I'd have preferred it if the game let you run through once or twice before telling you that.

However, this game has given me endless hours of fun and I highly recommend it for the Solitaire. If you like Sudoku, there are about 100 puzzles per skill level and about 5 skill levels. The crossword is good, but again, limited.

Loved the Solitaire so much, that I have not done the Soduku at all. The crossword does not try to guess at your handwriting; it features a tiny keyboard. I sold two copies by suggesting it to friends!

This game was worth more than what I got it for. There are so many puzzles for Sudoku. I like how you can select the number you want instead of having the game guess what you are trying to write. Once you complete a square or a certain number, the numbers will pop up letting you know that particular is correct! =) You can select what level you want too. Haven't even tried the other games yet!

I am a moderate "older" DS user and was looking for a good travel game. I tried this out because it has solitare and crosswords and I am a big "Dummies" fan. However, there is something to be desired in this game. I tried a couple crosswords and although they have different categories they repeat alot of questions throughout the categories and often only a couple questions have anything to do with the category. I do like the "hints" feature though. Also, the solitaire is so hard and it always quits automatically when there are no more moves left. It just shuts off right after you click on a card and says "game over... no moves left". I played about 20 games and it did this on 17 of the games. It was really difficult and that was an irritating feature of the game. Also, there are about 20 different subtypes of solitaire which is fun but they are hard to win also. I don't remember the simple computer version of this being so difficult. I like the "Dummies" features but there are some problems to this game in my opinion but it still makes a pretty good travel game to fill your time.

I enjoyed playing the Travel Games for Dummies crosswords games and whipped through them in no time. I also own copies of both the CrossworDS and the New York Times Crosswords games. The Crosswords game interface in Travel Games for Dummies is much better, particularly in that you can choose letters from a keypad. CrossworDS and NY Times games depend on handwriting recognition, upping the annoyance factor when it comes out wrong. Also, switching direction from horizontal to vertical is easier in the Dummies game. I would have liked it if there had been a few more challenging words. That being said, I'm glad it isn't like the NY Times games, which is all about being in the know w/regards to celebrities and the like.

The Sudoku games are fine, though I like Brain Age Sudoku better. The biggest annoyance I have w/the Travel Games Sudoku is that when you win a game, it just disappears. Oddly enough, I like it when a game gives you a little bit of a thumbs up upon completion.

All in all though, if they came out w/a Travel Games for Dummies II, I'd purchase it just for the Crosswords games.

The SUDOKU puzzles included here go from the very easy to the very hard.

For the "Hard" and "Very Hard" puzzles I specially like the optional feature that can pencil-in the candidate numbers for you. It saves a lot of time. However, this feature is not good for the "Easy" puzzles. The automatic pencil-in feature makes easy puzzles too short and simple--it takes away the basic effort needed to solve them.

As a good extra, this collection brings a SUDOKU TUTORIAL that is very detailed and more advanced than any other included in a DS game.

The CROSSWORDS are entertaining and instructive. They are of medium difficulty. I occasionally found myself following the recommendation (given by the game) to look for some answers in reference books, the internet or by asking people.

The rest is a few card games. I specially like the Klondike Solitaire and the Free Cell.

This game is okay. It has a good variety of Solitaire games, but I prefer Brain Age's Sudoku and CrossworDS' Crossword puzzles over the ones in this game. I think I've played it twice. I would recommend trying before buying.

This game is great. It's addictive and lots of fun. I don't go anywhere without it.