I love Aquascapes --- but I do wish the fish would stop hassling me to get another aquarium (one is a handful) and stop hassling me to get another fish (I confess, I sell the fish and buy another one). Also, a limit of 12 fish - well, there are 18 varieties, it would be nice to have 2 each.

I wasn't going to bother downloading this game as I'd already got Fishdom H2O Hidden Odyssey and it looked as if it was virtually the same game.

However, being at a loose end yesterday evening I D'Ld it and my goodness, am I pleased that I did so! I started playing it and when I looked at my watch I realised I'd been playing for two hours!! It's a lovely game: excellent graphics, wonderful colours, great music, totally addictive and charming. I'd recommend it to anyone who wants a break from the stresses of everyday life.

I was interested to find that so far, all the music has been different from H2O except for one track that I recognise - nice to hear an old friend...

An excellent game, to the high standards that Playrix always seems to offer. Thank you to all at GOTD and Playrix Games.

THANKS! That was really nice of you to find that for me. I've never changed anything in a game before, but I'll give it a try. Have a great week.

Norton Security got upset when the Aquascapes setup file created a Win PE file in a temp folder. It seems unlikely that a Playrix game is a security threat, so I'll temporarily shut down Norton and run setup.exe again. Norton security doesn't often register false positives, but the PE file set off alarms. It would be nice if the developers could stop using those PE files. I've posted and image of Norton's report at https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B7O1s8QkhhHMa04yRDVjTWtvcXM/view?usp=sharing .

Another great game from Playrix. I already bought this one when it first came out from Playrix. Played again tonight to give a review. I love that the music and sound volumes are independent. I usually turn the music way down or off but like to hear the game sounds. The graphics are well done as with similar playrix games. The hidden objects vary in difficulty which makes play enjoyable and not too easy. This is another game where they restrict access to fish and decorations based on level. I don't enjoy that as much as just playing to earn the money I need to buy what I want. I also like to have tons of fish but am limited in this game. Overall another great game from Playrix, looking forward to the next! Thanks Playrix, GGOTD and Whiterabbit for making this available. Wish there was an Android version to download.

...........................Moderator comment............................

Thank you for your feedback Michele

Hi,
Download took a little time, but not too much and loaded easy! Play is very easy!
The graphics are great, as with most Playrix games. The interaction of the fish etc.
makes it a bit more fun. I like the extra option of adding to the background this time.
I'm not crazy about this and the one before having the food and sponge to take care of inbetween.
I liked it better when just bought them in the earlier games. Went through a couple of
tanks already! Thanks for another great game
and happy Labor day weekend to those enjoying!! Wow! saw above 6000 already earlier!
Nice for the site!
Lee

.............................Moderator comment.........................

Hi Lee, just under 15 000 downloaded this game. :)

Win10 Home 64bit. Loaded just fine like other Playrix games. Like Gardenscapes but Fishdom. The game did shut down while I was playing it, but just loaded again and away I went. Thank you.

Great little combo- Hog etc. game, and wishing would be some indication of the size of installed game, or running size of ones that unpack each play, hard on some drives. So with the zip file, folder, temp installer and the finished product in at 1.1GB, plugging ny drive over 2 GB just before install completes, ouch, bit of overhead on a crowded disc. will do some cleanup after install on other machine.

Hello Fishdom & Gardenscapes!! Love this one! As you said Stephen, it's very relaxing and pretty. Although I like the cut and chase of TM games I always go back to Fishdom, etc for just a quiet unwind. This will be another keeper. Thank you Playrix, GGOTD and Stephen for this one.

..........................Moderator comment............................

:)

I like this game! I prefer HO over Match 3, so this game is much more enjoyable to me than the Fishdom given away prior. The visual style is the same as Fishdom, but the fish, decorations, and plants are all different and I find that I like the items in this game better.

I'm actually enjoying the HO scenes interspersed with the aquarium decorating, whereas in the Fishdom series I seem to get annoyed with the change. I think it's because of how my brain works the match-3 as opposed to hidden object - shopping for stuff is more similar to HO, so it doesn't feel like such a startling jump in thought. I also feel that the HO scenes don't feel so dragged out as the match-3. Once you find something, it is found. In match-3, you might be making 20 matches just to clear two tiles.

The only thing I don't like about the HO scenes is that the game doesn't list all of the items needed at once. There is only space for 8 items, so if you need to find 12, when you find an item listed, another takes it's place. With a complete list, I usually read it over and as I'm looking for something in particular, if I see something else on the list, I'll be able to click it. With this type of list, I often find myself thinking "I know I just saw it", but I have to search again & it seems to be more difficult to find the thing. It makes the game more challenging for me in a way I don't care for, but I may just need to get used to this uncommon (for me) style.

The HO scenes look good, the items are neat and clean and many of them have animations based on if you move the mouse cursor over them or click anywhere on the screen. It makes the scenes visually stimulating instead of the usual static images.

You can choose a timed or relaxed mode. As in the Fishdom game, the fish all have names that you can change when you purchase them. You still have to clean the tank and feed the fish, but I actually like this little, occasional distraction.

Overall, I'm VERY happy with this game. This is one game I probably would never have bought, thinking that I wouldn't like it because it is so similar to the Fishdom games. However, now that I've tried it, I find that it is a very good game worth playing, especially if you prefer HO over match-3.

..........................Moderator comment............................

Hi Melika, thank you for your feedback. :)

Very nice game! Thanks Playrix and GGOTD. Plays well on my Dell laptop running Win 8.1. Very nice color/graphics. Music is nice. Is going to be, I am sure, a very nice time-waster:)

A great relaxing game really nice having the fish interact great graphics thank you.

I had the same situation about 3 weeks ago, when I first started getting the "Failed to connect" message, however many times I tried and at whatever time. For me the solution was to turn off Online Armor which I normally have running. I didn't need to do that previously. It might be an antivirus or other security program that is causing your issues.

Issues with this game. Had no problems when Fishdom 3 was offered. Usually don't have problems with Playrix games. I'm able to download the file, when I go to launch Setup.exe it says 'failed to connect, try again later'. I tried several hours ago, and again now with the same issue. I've gone to the FAQ section and those remedies did not fix the issue. This is not the first time I've had problems getting the Setup.exe to launch from this site. Usually I just have to wait some time and re-launch it. It isn't working however. Sad because I always enjoy Playrix games.

Thank you for yet another great game! Installed and is running fine on my older Vista machine.

why the last 3 games I tried to download won't. It seems to go perfectly well, registers but then I get a message File is corrupted download file again.

..........................Moderator comment............................

Hi Claire, check the FAQ's thread that I link to in my review. see the problems page at the end of the review (see comment number 1). have you tried rebooting your modem and clearing out your internet cache :?: Sometimes cookies may become corrupted and can interfere with downloading from that site.

Yesterday for my first time ever, and now today for a 2nd time = "Failed to connect. Please try again later." over and over, no matter when I try, no matter if security settings in numerous areas are reduced. I have never encountered this with GAOTD on any of my multiple computers for years and years now... Something has changed - either the URL that is contacted, or some sort of virus software change on my computer, or something in the Setup.exe or Setup.gcd, or ... ??? Bummer...

..........................Moderator comment............................

Hi CheeseMonkeyboy, there's almost been 10 thousand downloads of this game so far today, that said, there does seem to have been a larger than normal number of community members having problems. I can't explain that as I had no problems downloading this onto three PC's and a laptop. Check the FAQ;s thread to see if there are any suggestions that can fix this problem. Have you tried rebooting your modem and clearing out your internet cache :?: sometimes cookies may become corrupted and can interfere with downloading from that site.

Hi Stephen,

Being a fan of Fishdom makes Aquascapes a no-brainer -- I've already spent an hour playing. There are some nice different elements (HOG vs match-3, collecting shells to purchase some items, new themes/ornaments/fish, additional features for each tank theme like Mt Rushmore for the Wild West), some things are identical or very similar to Fishdom 3 (icons, dialog, cleaning/feeding). I'm getting tired of some of the comments the fish make about the food, although it seems like this game has more variation. I would like to be able to see a list of the fish in my aquariium, and would prefer not to be limited to only 12. Thanks to you, GGOTD and Playix for another great game.

Cara in NC

.............................Moderator Comment........................

:)

A virtual clone of Fishdom H2O, which is not a bad thing, I bought H2O years ago and still enjoy it. Aquascapes has nice graphics, pleasant sound (with a volume control), and a casual mode (always welcome); objects are well hidden but not obscure, clues are straightforward though often require some thought (finding three bats may entail a baseball bat, a flying rodent, and the word "bat" penciled on a wall ...not sure how this would translate for those not fluent in English). I intended to play a few minutes, and suddenly got the pop-up that i'd been playing an hour ...definitely a keeper.

Two minor issues:
- having to pick up my gold at the end of each level does not enhance gameplay for me
- twice I've had to resort to hints when the item was completely washed out by the scene lighting; for example an object in a window so obscured by the bloom of the lighting that I couldn't see it even after the hint pointed it out (I just clicked in the area til I hit something)

..........................Moderator Comment...................

Thankyou for your feedback jgf

For those interested but having problems here, this game is not available from MyPlayCity but it is available from MyRealGames and GameTop -- both reputable sites and the hardest part of playing these games is they sometimes open your default internet browser at the end. They do not hijack, nor do they try to force other software. In addition, in many cases, it is fairly easy to bypass the browser opening.

For those faced with the problems, it is a definite alternative.

I have it from a CD bundle so I don't have any problems -- It is a keeper!

Another nice little feed-the-fish game . . . They're all similar in some ways, but it is nice to be able to give all the fish their own individual names. Especially since they're all polite enough to address me by mine.

And I have to say - it's so much quicker, easier and a lot less effort to muck-out a virtual tank than a real one . . . !

I was very dubious about the Fishdom Clan when I first spotted them, to be honest. I'm not hugely interested in the real thing, and even the promised screensavers weren't really enticing. But once I'd downloaded the first one and started playing, they became more and more addictive, so that I've got at least half a dozen now, this being the latest addition.

Like its forbears, Aquascapes is bright and colourful, easy to learn and to play. The music is on the horrible side, but that's easily switched off, and then I can explore the tranquil underwater searching in peace.

It's a gentle, lazy game in which to pass as much time as you're prepared to give to it. You can play just the one level, or wander through ten or twelve at a time . . . as I'm afraid I've just done. There is a timed mode if you're one of those people who need to be in a hurry, but since I'm not . . .

Thank you for another pleasant time-waster, Playrix, GGAOTD and of course - the Man himself - Whiterabbit, who keeps us all informed and in order!

Must feed the real fish - sorry, cat - now, before I dive in again.

;-D

..........................Moderator comment............................

Thank you for your feedback Basilica

Hi, I'm back from month-long fabulous holidays abroad with family and without access to my laptop, internet, games..:) Did I miss it all? Being really busy otherwise you don't, and such breaks are truly needed (and recommended!), but.. once we settle again into home reality there is always lots of excitement, catching up, sifting through mail, sites we visit daily, seeing what we missed etc (that naturally includes both GOTD and GGOTD in my case).

I'm glad this weekend welcomed me with 2 fantastic additions to Games!:) - both yesterday's and today's Gifts couldn't be more interesting and pleasant, I mean it!!
Away from strictly HO Games (that's my favorite type) - Word Games are among our regular favs that my husband and myself enjoy playing together in the evenings (like 'Weave Words' we first bought ages ago for RealArcade and played ever since on every machine we had..), and Aquascapes which seems to resemble 'Fishdom H2o Hidden Odyssey' - again the only such Game my husband will tolerate HO scenes (within 'anything fish', that's perhaps why, haha)

Thanks very much therefore for this weekend Giveaways tailored for both of us as it happens:), and as usual - excellent Presentations and Reviews! I downloaded 2 suggested sound Files from Your link Stephen, and intend to see what can be done to place them as background tunes in Aquascapes, thanks for these tips and Playrix for another quality Giveaway!!

..........................Moderator comment............................

Hi Fran, sound like you had a fantastic time. I've been back from mine for just over two weeks and already it's like a faded postcard memory. :) Thank you for your feedback

First of all, White Rabbit, I look forward to the weekends just to see what the games are. That said, I'll get to Aquascapes.

I just love the interactivity of the game. I was in one screen and the starfish moved. I had to smile. I really like that aspect of the game.

The fish gave me compliments. Could this be for food? I can use all the compliments I can get. A nice addition to the game. Although this stuff might be minor, I also like the schools of fish the swim by in the screens.

I do have one suggestion. When buying fish, it would be nice to actually have the words Male and Female instead of the symbols. The young players could have a real problem with this. I don't think it would stop them though. As a matter of fact, they might not even notice.

Thanks Playrix for another great game. There are beautiful graphics as always. Thanks White Rabbit for comment #1. I gave Aquascapes a definite thumbs up.

..........................Moderator comment............................

Thank you for your feedback Paula :)

Initially, I was having difficulty - it said 1.5 hours to download. So, I rebooted my router, and rebooted my laptop, and now it is only taking less that 6 minutes. It was definitely a problem at my end. So, I also suggest rebooting everything and see how it goes. This looks like a GREAT game and was bummed if it was going to take over an hour to download! All that wasted playing time! So, now I am happy that I get to play in one more minute! WhooHoo!! :)

.......................Moderator Comment......................

Glad you got it sorted AZExplorer :)

Thank for this great game! No trouble downloading and installing as usual. I love this game like the Fishdom games. Thanks for providing these wonderful games each week!!!

.......................Moderator Comment......................

:)

Downloaded fine on Win 7. Installation went well. I really like these games. Thank you Playrix and Game Giveaway of the Day for offering this game to us.

I love HOGs. So it saddens me that the download is complete and the setup file keeps crashing.

.......................Moderator Comment......................

Check the FAQ's thread that I link to in the problems section of my review, you may find a solution there :?: Check your event logs immediately after trying to install the game to see if any error messages are left. Those can give a clue as to what the problem is.

It may also be your security suite. Turning this off temporarily has helped many giveaway users install a game that they wern't able to install while their anti malwre was live. The downloaded files contain a Themida based file that is often seen as a threat even though it is safe. It may be this that is stopping your installation. Also have you tried rebooting your modem and clearing out your internet cache? sometimes a cookies related to the giveaway site may become corrupted and can interfere with downloading from that site..

The giveaway project has been giving away games since Dec 2006 and there has never been a game infected with malware, so you should be fine turning off your security until the game has been installed.

You would be doing this at your own risk though..... (see comment number :1: for the link to the FAQ's thread) :)

Yeah, we gotta clean the tanks. (See the sponge in the screenshots?)

.......................Moderator Comment......................

:)

i keep getting a download failure and I have tried downloading on 3 different machines.

.........................Moderator comment........................

Hi Allen, We've already had over 6 thousand downloads so far today, with no one else having problems downloading. If you aren't able to download on three different computers it possibly points to a local problem. I'd check your local area network first, reboot your modem/router. If your router has protection, it may be blocking the download becasue it does contain a file (setup.gcd) that is Themida based. Themida based files are sometimes seen as a threat, so the download my have been blocked. If that doesn't cure the problem contact your provider; there may be a problem with the connection between you and the nearest node.


Also, have you tried clearing out your internet cache? sometimes a cookies may become corrupted and can interfere with downloading from that site. :?:

I hope you get the problem solved as todays game is well worth having.

I like that the fish have names and are more interactive than in the Fishdom games (which I love!). I would prefer if, instead of music, there was just gentle water bubbling sounds, like from my real aquarium. I almost always turn the sound off on games since the music is annoying and repetitive, but I wouldn't turn off gentle water sounds, like a babbling brook. This game is relaxing and fun and makes me smile. Thanks, GGOTD.

.......................Moderator Comment..........................

Hi Lucky, you can change the music found in the following folder:

C:/Program Files (x86)/Playrix Entertainment/Aquascapes/Base.orig/Sound/

If you can isolate the correct music file you could swap it for a sound file with babbling brooks & sea shore sounds etc. You would need to convert the file you want to use to the .ogg format and rename it to the sound file you are replacing.

I think the default windows media player will play ogg files, so locating the right file to swap should be easy enough, then Google for free sounds of streams etc:

I found one for you that looks safe to download from which includes wave and babbling brook sounds taken from the public domain:

http://soundbible.com/tags-babbling-brook.html

If you don't have a sound converter there are plenty of freeware ones available, just Google. :)

Thank you Playrix and Game Giveaway of the Day! This is a wonderful game. I love this kind of hidden object games.

..........................Moderator Comment.......................

:)

Had no problem downloading and installing on my laptop -- Win10 Home. I have a touch screen and my cursor would not work with this game at first. Had to select options and turn on "custom cursor" and then I was able to use the mouse and pointer or the touch screen. Game seems to play ok so far and since I love HOG, had to try this. I did notice that when downloading it on Win10 I no longer have the option to click on "save as". Now I have to figure out how to get that back in Win 10. Thanks for this game!

.........................Moderator comment......................

I'd not noticed, but then, I use Internet download Manager and haven't bothered to Save As since installing it several months ago. Glad you got the game to work okay. :)

My installation was a little different. I had two desktop icons and a start menu item added. This is a Playrix game. Theirs is always an installation process. I prefer a simple extraction. I like HOG games and look forward to playing. Thank you GGOTD team, the moderator, and Playrix Entertainment.

.......................Moderator comment........................

I have a basic review document that has all the titles, and things that are repeated every week, such as the game links etc. I'd foprgotten to update the installation process to include the fact that Playrix games always install a desktop shortcut. My review has been edited to include this infor. Thanks for pointing out my omission. :)

Another great game from Playrix! Thanks GOTD! I'm still holding out for a rerun of Towers of OZ that I missed on account of being out of town last year. ;)

Hey, Swamp Thing, it's Fishdom!

.........................Moderator comment............................

:)

It's Playrix, so it's gotta be good. ;)

I just hope they DON'T make us clean the tank in this game!

Aquascapes:

Installation:

Aquascapes downloads as a 233 MB zip file that unpacks to a read me document that contains the terms and conditions and a wrapped dual activation and set up module and a security set up file (setup.gcd). Just for the newcomers amongst today’s users that means the game will be registered once it’s gone through the set up process, so there’s no registering the game with an activation code.

C:\Program Files (x86)\Playrix Entertainment\Aquascapes

There is a desktop shortcut and a link to Playrix installed to the desktop.

Sometimes I've found the installation path shows the previous game I installed from this site, so to be sure you don't install the game inside a previous game, check the installation path when you start the installation. You can usually find where it's supposed to go by looking in the read me file that comes with the download. To stop this happening, clear your cache. The installed game is 1.09GB in size









Introduction:

Explore the incredible underwater hidden object world of Aquascapes. Take care of your finned friends. Play with them and watch as they interact with each other. Engage in unique gameplay as you earn money to customize your tank. Choose from a variety of vibrant backgrounds and charming decor to turn your tank into a design masterpiece. But that's not all! Each fish has its own fun personality, who will be your favorite?

Reference accessed HERE 6th Sept 2015

The Game:

Aquascapes is an aquatic hidden object game with just a touch of aquarium management thrown in. It’s almost like a simplified spin-off of the Gardenscape series, though instead of complicated time management interludes you can just sit back and stare at your virtual aquarium. It might be a little thin on features, but it’s a clean and relaxing game that’s perfect for the younger crowd.

The goal of Aquascapes is to build a beautiful aquarium populated by happy swimming fish and decorations you purchase and arrange yourself. It’s a bit like owning a real life aquarium, only you never have to worry about coming home to find your little fish buddy floating upside-down in the tank. Everything is bright, shiny and happy in Aquascapes, and chances are you’ll feel the exact same way whenever you spend time with this simple diversion.

In order to have a fun aquarium, you need some fish, right? Purchase new pets through the store menu, selecting fish based on price, appearance, and your current experience level. Once obtained, fish swim around the tank and need a bit of maintainence in order to stay healthy. This is largely relegated to sprinkling some fish food every once in a while. Decorations can also be purchased through the store, and there’s quite a lot to choose from. Most items feature some form of interaction, such as clicking to start a quick animation, and can be placed anywhere on the screen. The fish even swim by and check out the things you bought, which is a surprisingly charming addition to the game.

Hidden object scenes are where you earn money to spend on the cool stuff you can’t wait to buy. You’re presented with a standard menu of items and must sift through screens of aquatic-themed debris to pick out everything on the list. No real surprises here, and the difficulty is a bit on the low side, so don’t expect too much of a challenge.

Over time your tank will blossom into a lean, mean, fish-housing machine. Eventually you’ll move on to own multiple tanks with different background themes you can decorate as you please. It adds a little extra in the form of long-term goals, turning you from an aquarium owner into some sort of aqua-mogul.

When trying out a game like Aquascapes, keep in mind it isn’t designed to be an end-all hidden object or aquarium simulation experience. The content, while vibrant and fun, always feels thin, and you’ll often wonder if you’re playing a browser or a Facebook game instead of a downloadable title. That’s when you should just sit back in your chair and relax. Aquascapes is simply a diversion. It’s not one of those games where you’re supposed to do a mad rush to get all the trophies and achievements in a single go. Instead, it’s a relaxing game with a bit of challenge and a whole lot of personality.


Reference accessed HERE 6th Sept 2015

Video - spoiler alert:

You can see a video of game play HERE, HERE and HERE,



Game System Requirements:

Windows XP/ Vista/ 7/ 8
CPU: 2.0 GHz
RAM: 1024 MB
DirectX: 9.0
Hard Drive: 1075 MB

Conclusion:

An excellent Hidden Object game with aquarium simulation. Great for the whole family. There are two modes relaxed and timed


Scoring:

I've included new categories to reduce the the scoring bias that is inevitable when a single person is scoring a game. Scoring will be added once I've had time to play the game.

Game play ------- 9
Graphics ------- 8
Audio ------- 8
Replayability ------- 8
Originality ------- 7.5
Fun Factor ------- 8



Total = 48.5 out of 60 which equals 8.01 out of 10.

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Problems:


If you have any problems installing or getting today's game to work please go HERE for help. I've posted most of the common problems and solutions in a FAQ thread, which you can find in the sticky section of the forums by following the above link.




If you are posting late in the day I would also suggest posting in the main giveaway forums; in the game discussion section, because I cannot moderate 24hrs a day over the weekend. I've created a thread HERE for that purpose. If you've installed the game but it doesn’t work for some reason, it should still be registered, so someone may be able to help at a later date. Unfortunately if your problem is actually downloading it, once the giveaway deadline is reached you will no longer be able to download the game unless you've already started downloading it before the cut-off. Sometimes you can still register the game after the giveaway has ended so long as you managed to start the download before the giveaway ends. I've tested this and the grace period lasts for up to 1 hour. Apart from the above instances; i.e. already installed, but having problems running the game, (with the possibility of receiving help from the community via the giveawayoftheday game discussion forum); or still downloading after the cut off period, but within the 1 hour grace period, or registering within an hour of the cut-off period. Once the giveaway period is over there’s nothing that can be done to get the game (unless its available from one of the free game sites) until the game is given away again (though that isn't always guaranteed).

It's worth checking the giveaway game discussion forums the day before the giveaways go live to see if we are getting a large sized file; this is especially important for those who have slow connections and even more so if the game is popular. We can have up to forty thousand (40 000) community members downloading over the 24 hour period, with the bulk of community members downloading in the first 12 hours of the giveaway going live, there is always a massive strain on the giveaway servers. The bigger the file size, the more community members will be downloading at any one time. Because the bandwidth is shared equally amongst all community members, downloads can become excrucatingly slow, so if you do have a slow connection, its important to start your download as early as possible to avoid disappointment. Because these games are free, the giveaway owners cannot invest in more bandwidth without compromising the whole project, so we have to be satisfied with what we have at present.

I hope the above goes some way in expalining why we sometimes have really slow downloads.


It’s always worth checking out the free games sites because sometimes the games we get here are also available for free from them. MyPlayCity (MPC) has the most with over 1000 games to choose from. Today's game isn't available from MPC HERE. I've not checked the other free game sites.

If you do download any games from MyPlayCity, Gametop or the other free game sites please 'do' watch out for toolbars etc. Make sure you un-check the check-boxes during installation, and, in the case of MyPlayCity, every time you boot the game up, (this may have changed now as these free game sites tend to change the format frequently)....... I've posted links to all of the common free game sites below in the games, games games section. If you do download a game from any of these sites you do so at your own risk. We cannot be held responsible for problems arising from an installation. :)

For now I won't be recommending you download games from Jenkat Games. They have changed the way you get games from their site. Diane has posted information about this over in the game discussion forums. If I have time or remember, I'll link to it. TooMyk Games are now safe to download from. They have removed the games that were suspect and have cleaned up their act. As always, you download from those free game sites at your own risk. The giveaway site is the safest site I know of where you can get free software and games. The only disadvantages with downloading from here is you have to download and install within the day of the giveaway (apart from the instances mentioned above and if and when you upgrade or buy a new computer legally you aren't allowed to transfer games given away previously, unless they are being given away on the day you upgrade, or if you've purchased a licence. :)

You just have to look at the sites track record since the game giveaway site was created back in December 2006. Zero games given away have been infected with malware, there are no toolbars installed, nor home pages hijacked or browsers changed. There is one slght annoyance, but that only occurs if a community member isn't paying attention when the final window pops up after installing a giveaway. That is the software Informer installation. some community members have complained that they were given no choice in its installation. That is not true; when the final window pops up, there are two buttons, one asking if you want software informer installed and the button to close the giveaway window down. Some community members have clicked on the wrong button, probably because they weren't paying attention. Thankfully software Informer is a genuine application, that can easily be uninstalled by the usual means. It's actually a useful piece of software, especially if you have a lot of applications running on your computer. Basically the program will list the programs that need updating, or programs that have available updates. They wont be automatically installed (thus cancelling many giveaway registrations); you have to click on individual buttons to update each program/application. :D

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Games, Games, and yet more Games:





There are 406 games on sale over on Steam this week, ranging from 10% to 90% off, there's also a Focus Home Interactive sale on, with discounts up to 80% (e.g. Farming simulator 15, Farming Simulator 2013 Titanium Edition, Mordheim: City of the Damned, Pro Cycling Manager 2013, 14 & 15, Cities XXL, Cities XL Platinum, City Life 2008, Space Run, Styx: Master of Shadows, Sherlock Holmes: Crimes and Punishments, The Testament of Sherlock Holmes, Bound By Flame, Blood Bowl® Legendary Edition, Blood Bowl: Chaos Edition, Etherium, Virtual DJ - Broadcaster Edition, R.A.W. Realms of Ancient War, Faery - Legends of Avalon, Game of Thrones, Wargame Franchise Pack, Wargame: Airland Battle, Wargame: European Escalation, Wargame: Red Dragon, Silverfall: Earth Awakening, Another World – 20th Anniversary Edition, Rotastic, Contrast, Loki, Runaway, A Road Adventure, Runaway, The Dream of The Turtle, Runaway: A Twist of Fate, Final Exam, Mars: War Logs, Pix the Cat, Of Orcs And Men, Confrontation, The Next BIG Thing, or the Focus Selection Pack (2015) that contains 21 of the above games for a massive discount £109.99 down to £21.99)

You can find a full list of all sale items HERE.



You'll also find some excellent deals over on the following Game sites.

GreenManGaming
Gamersgate Summer Sale
GOG (DRM free games)
Gamestop
GameFly (soon to be sold off)

I've removed the Desura link because the owners are bankrupt and there has been no activity on the site in a couple of weeks. If you own any games via desura i advise downloading all of the drm free games you have on that platform before the site is taken down.




Free Game Sites:


MyPlayCity (over a 1000 games to choose from)
Gametop
FreeGamePick



To be honest there are too many game deals around too list them all. Just visit the sites I recommend above and I'm sure you'll find something that suits you for a very decent price. If like me you prefer Steamworks games, many of the above sites also sell steamwork games.

If that's not enough, check out the Game Discussion forums HERE for details of other games either free or on deals such as the Indie Game bundles (there's over 20 of them - If you purchased all of them you'd be paying around $80 for around a thousand dollars worth of games); or check out the four day sales at IndieGameStand. you'll find the indie bundles thread HERE. The thread is outdated, but all of the links will still take you to the latest bundles.






The latest IndieGameStand game is called Royal Bounty HD a fantasy RPG in the feel of the great old 1990 King's Bounty.
You control a hero to gather gold and armies, level up5nd upgrade your stats, and complete quests across a huge map with 4 continents.


*180 creature types of 7 factions: Knight, Barbarian, Necromancer, Sorceress, Wizard, Warlock, Varangian.
*114 artifacts
*You control your hero, gather gold, conquer enemies and new lands, and fight your opponents.

The average price stands at $1.65 at the time of writing (5.10am). The deal ends Monday 7th Sept 2015 5am (GMT) If you pay above the average price you'll also get a Steam key for Dwarf Tower. The usual price for these two games is just under $9



The latest DIG game is Global Ops: Commando Libya
January 21, 1968... A B-52G bomber crashes in the Arctic Ocean and an atom bomb goes missing. It has remained missing... until now... The CIA has learned that a notorious Russian mafia boss, Yebievdenko, has the weapon and wants to sell it to a ruthless Libyan ruler. As a member of a special unit, you must stop this deadly arms deal. The destiny of the world is in your hands!

- A special kind of third-person action shooter: set out in breathtaking pursuit of dangerous terrorists!
- Diverse missions and a series of new assignments: complete all the challenges; action-packed combat missions, stealth missions and hot pursuits in vehicles!
- A massive arsenal of different weapons and vehicles: use all the means available to you to catch the criminals!
- Hours of gameplay fun: either solo or with friends: complete 9 single-player levels and show what you're made of in 3 different online Multiplayer modes!
- Detailed graphics: fight in realistic settings from Greenland to Libya!
Pay £0.99 for the game or you can get two keys if you pay more than the average of $1.11 (at the time of writing ). One key to share with a friend or family member perhaps? You'll find that deal HERE. There is also five bundles of several games that'll cost you less than $1.50 each HERE (DIG Bundles 36, 37, 38 & 39 plus Re-BUNDLE 8). You get Steam keys for all of these games . The single game deal ends just after Midnight Sunday 6th August *tonight) and will be replaced with a new game; (details haven't been posted yet)

Most of the bundles available retail for around $5 give or take a few dollars (apart from the Daily Indie bundles that only cost $1.49 for six games), but you can pay as little as a dollar for some. There are some excellent bundles out at the moment. Check out the following:

Groupees (5 bundles)
Indie Gala (? bundles)
Humble bundle (2 Bundles)
Indie Royale (this bundle is no longer live)
Bundle Bandits (0 bundles)
Blink Bundle (0 bundles)
Play Injector (0 bundle)
Get Loaded (0 bundles)
Games Rage (0 bundles)
Flying bundle (0 bundles)

The free game from Origin has changed to Zuma's Revenge the sequel to the excellent Luxor style marble popping match 3 game. This is one of the better Marble poppers. Check it out HERE.


You do need a free Origin account and install the Origin client to get these free games. Once you've installed the Origin client and signed into your account select 'On the house' from the 'Free Games' drop down menu. Then select download now. The game will then be registered to your Origin account permanently.


If you like Breakouts, something unpresedented has happened the other day, two breakouts were released on Steam at the same time, both are decent games though still under developement via Steams early access project.

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A Request for help:

Developers rely on good feedback to improve their games. If you download this game please take some time once you’ve played it a while to leave some constructive feedback either positive or negative. The more constructive feedback we get, the more likely developers are going to give more games away. The giveaway site already has a very good standing with the search engines. Developers want their products out there on the WWW, this site has the potential to do that. The game giveaway project gives away on average between 9 to 17 thousand downloads for each game depending upon what genre and how obscure the game is. That’s a lot of homes these games are being downloaded into and a lot of 'potential' cash that’s being lost by the developers. If we get better games because of better feedback, the community are likely to continue to benefit from the generosity of the developers. Satisfied community members are then more likely to visit the home sites of those developers and purchase games that they may not have bothered with before they discovered the developer via the game giveaway site, thus giving the developers more incentives to give away even more decent games.

Please leave some feedback once you’ve checked the game out. It can be positive or negative, but please explain what your reasons were for the feedback you post. You could also leave suggestions for improving the game, for example, this game could do with more block types for the levels editor, add more power-ups, describing the ones you think would be suitable, add some mini games (which seem all the rage in some arcade games now) or enable the user to be able to change the in game music easily.

Thank you in advance to all those who take the time to post a constructive comment, and a big thank you to immanitas games for sharing and to the game giveaway team for getting these games.

Regards

Whiterabbit aka Stephen