Mac Games

Spirited Heart is a very particular game. Apparently it’s a sort of a mix between a life simulation game, set in a fantasy world, complete with the usual character statistics / skills typical of a RPG, and a dating sim.

Is really a unique and innovative combination never seen before on computer games. The game starts with the classic character generation, this time done in a very intuitive and “casual” style. First, the three girls, correspondant to the three races of the game (human, elf and demoness) are presented to the player.

After naming your character, you have to “build up” your early life experiences in a sort of minigame itself. You decide the starting social background, then you need to pick choices on certain events that changed your childhood. Each choice changes your starting statistics.

Then the real game starts, you can choose between 20 jobs to do, and every jobs has minimum requirements but also improves a statistic. While the basic jobs require and improve the same skill (example: the builder requires strength, and improves strength only), the more advanced jobs require two skills at a certain level, and improve a new skill (example: the Healer job requires charisma and wisdom and improve faith).

While you’re doing jobs, random events can occur: some positive, but most are negative ones, and beside have to pick a choice you also need to have some requirements: for example some thugs wants to rob you, you have the “Fight them” option only if you have a good combat skill.

The 6 potential partner encounter are fixed to some jobs only, but they’re clearly explained in the “Relationship Menu” inside the game, once you have met them for the first time, so you know where to look if you want to get one of the six special marriage endings of the game.

I could speak for hours about this game but the best thing to do is download the demo that is quite long and will let you try what this amazing game has to offer: lots of gameplay, fun moments, beautiful dialogues and much more. Definitely reccommended!

Download demo now (about 20mb)

It’s been a while I wanted to play the NSS series on my mac! Indeed, until this latest release, the popular shareware soccer series of games was Pc only. Now finally, even mac users can try this awesome game, that initially seems only a soccer game, but there’s much more behind it! You’ll see it for yourself once you start playing it: the game simulates the life of a soccer player, similarly to what happens in recent commercial AAA games like Pro Evolution Soccer 2009 or Fifa 2009.

Differently from those games though, this one REALLY simulates the life of a player. Not just the field and the training: but everything else, from your girlfriend to your car, and your free time. There are many sub-games, so really it’s like playing lots of games in one.

The minigames really help the game atmosphere, it’s really like if you’re living the life of a soccer player, not just playing the match, like most other games. You’ll have to manage your relationship with friends, media, girlfriend and more, if your personal life suffers so will your performance on the field.

That’s really what makes me unsure what genre this game exactly fit. Sure, is a sport game, but not “just a sport game”. It’s also a life simulation, a sort of Kudos Soccer! that’s what really makes this game stand out from the group.

This latest version features a full 3d soccer field, and while the game control might seem a bit hard in the beginning, once you’re used to it you’ll be able to control exactly what kind of shot/passes you want to make.

Download the game demo