Nice, casual gameplay. Graphics are great! A lot of tutorial levels, the option to skip through the advisor's comments is appreciated.

This game is fun, laid-back and it looks very nice.

Yes! A building/tycoon/time management game! And it's a good one that I lost when I got the new computer.

First out of the gate, it installs and runs fine on Win7 Home Premium service pack whateveritis.

Second, this one is challenging. Even on the lower levels, it's hard to hit gold. Including replaying it several times. There is one level, I can't remember which one, that I just can't hit gold on no matter what I do. Which is good! I play enough of these that finding ones that are a challenge to work with is great.

Third, the graphics are decent. Not great, but good enough to not be annoying. I actually like the way they show the building as it's unique compared to what else is out there. But what is there for the buildings and such is almost retro looking and flat compared to the life-like backgrounds. That can easily be improved.

Fourth, the sounds aren't annoying! In fact, I really like them, especially the background ambient music. It's soothing and doesn't distract from what you're doing or make you feel harried like some do.

There are a few complaints, of course. One of which is the builders take too long to both get there and build or renovate. I do like that they show the progression of what their doing so you know how long it takes. I also like that you can line up the tasks. The 'intruder' is a little hard to get rid of as he moves while you keep clicking, sometimes vanishing behind things to reappear. It's the same for grabbing money from the ones you can do that with. If you could make those easier, it would be far better. The playing field needs enlarged a bit to get a better view. My eyesight isn't the best, even with the huge monitor, so the tiny people and other things are a bit hard to see at times. There needs to be a better way to tell what you own and what you don't. That's almost the same looking, something that doesn't help. The graphics could be better the same with what the buildings look like. They aren't nearly as impressive as what is out there for some games. Though I like the scenery! It's soothing and very fitting.

Overall, this is a great game that gets a big thumbs up from me. Like most of what Alawar puts out, it's good. I've played all the ones in this 'series' and this one is actually my favorite. Though they've 'improved' the ones after this, this one holds my attention better and is fun to play without getting too hectic and making you snarl. The only suggestions for improvement I have are the aforementioned speed, making, maybe, some more choices for what you can build and allowing us to zoom in on the playing field so you can get a better view of what everyone is doing. Extra kudos for the not annoying music and sounds! That is wonderful!

Thanks for a great giveaway!

Nice Game. Simple gameplay, difficulty increases with each level. I think a german version would increase the number of sales :)

We're getting ready to switch everything from insecure M$-XP to Ubuntu-OS. Does anyone know how these games actually perform on Linux with the W.I.N.E. driver?

Thumbs up! Easy to install. Fast startup time. Easy to understand. Graphics are good. Price is reasonable, but could be a few d's less. I'll recommend this to others, along with Alawar's other offers I've enjoyed trying out.

Thanks Alawar! Thanks Stephen (whiterabbit-uk)and GGotD!

Alawar games are almost always great, and in my opinion, are among the best brands offered on GGOTD. Thanks and Happy Easter.

Loved it until it shutdown on its own around level 6. Did it twice. Uninstalling. Too bad because I love these types of games. Do not normally have an issue with Alawar games. I will download again and reinstall to see if that fixes the issue. Hope it does. TY

#6 (Jim) -- your link gives a red WOT warning!

Some people have had issues with Jenkat installs and it's not the games. It's the installer. There is never a complaint about the games. I do know that if I leave the installer for a game in the recycle bin, Malwarebytes even complains there!

Jenkat has been notified of the problem but it seems like only a few users get complaints on it.

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

Thanks Diane

I am unable to install (extract) this game. I get the message: Error encountered while performing the operation. Archive is either in unknown format or damaged.

I tried re-downloading with the same result.

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

Hi Teri, I hope I catch you in time. Try using a different file archiver. I've posted links to several in the FQ'ssection that I've linked to in my review.

I enjoyed Ski Resort Mogul, so I was glad to see today's game. Many thanks to GGOTD and Alawar for a new strategy/TM game to keep me busy! <3

@Stephen,
"Last Galaxy Hero"? LOL (read your registry editing instr.)
Must've been a copy and paste? Sorry, couldn't resist a little poke...


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

copied most of the review from my previous review of the game, but I did edit and add more information.

I'm a fan of time management games and this is a bit different to the ones I normally play. It was a bit of fun trying to work my way through the first few levels. I like the challenge of trying to change bronze medals into gold ones. Thank you GOTD for this bit of amusement.

Not as interesting as Farm Frenzy or Rescue Frenzy but a pleasant diversion. Two issues I had (neither affecting gameplay) was that the sound levels are quite low, thought I had no sound til running the levels nearly full up, and the option for screen size is greyed out at 1024x768, but it still looks decent on a 23" wide screen.

Thank you Alawar and GGOTD. Summer Resort Mogul is a very good time management game. Alawar makes great games!! It is gracious of them to make this game free for us. Thanks again!!

Always enjoy time management, and have enjoyed the others in this line, hopefully this one will be good too.

None of GOTD's recent game giveaways have floated my boat or blew my sail. They haven't baited my hook or reeled me in. They haven't pulled me under like the undertow. In fact, they have left me stranded in the Sea of Mediocrity.

Whatever happened to those cool lil physics games that we used to have offered every few weeks? They haven't shown up in almost a year now. I miss those games!

Whiterabbit, you provided a download link to Jenkat games. And I'm providing a "warning" link to anyone thinking of installing their download software. I'll let everyone else be the judge of their credibility.

http://www.securitystronghold.com/gates/remove-jenkat-games-arcade.html


.........................Moderaor Comment............................

Thanks for your warning Jim; It's odd that no one has found this problem in the several months I've been posting links to Jenkat games, and one community member has been posting about Jenkat games regularly in the forums for a couple of years now. I don't download many games from any of the free sites, but have found Jenkat to be the least unobtrusive of those. Never had a problem before.

Will check into this when I have the time to see how valid it is.

I seem to remember a similar Mogul game focused on realty [building houses]. If it interests anyone Bigfish has their games 1/2 price, while Playrix has an e-mail offer for their 3 Gardenscapes games at $3 each -- sign up for their e-mails & you'll also get 2 free [older] games. Amazon sent out an e-mail advertising lightning deals on games this coming Tuesday.

Good looking game, installs fine on W7 64. Looks typical Time Management fair, but will undoubtedly get more difficult as the levels progress. Thanks GGOTD and Whiterabbit.

Looks promising, I'll have to check this one out for the meticulously detailed levels. Looking at the captures it's not too far off. It's probably really deep and spiritual since they know their stuff over there. I hope it's not too localized since you can learn a lot here. Just look at that hat! A download just for the mystique alone.

.....Deleted by moderator.....................

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

There's no need for such a comment. If you don't like a game why don't you expalin why in an adult way. Please remember the games given away here are commercial games and are being offered free by the developers. . Why be so negative?

In Brief:

A time management game based around a holiday resort. Try to attain gold trophies for each level< strong>

Introduction:






This is the first time Summer Resort Mogul has been given away, though we have had similar games, for example Hotel Mogul and Hotel Mogul previously (last year)

Summer Resort Mogul places the power to create a world-class getaway in your hands! Start small with a couple of bungalows and a restaurant, and then add movie theaters, dance clubs, swimming pools and more to entertain your guests. Once money starts rolling in, make smart decisions with regard to workers and supplies, upgrade the buildings you own to make them even more profitable, and do a little marketing, and before you know it, your resort will be second to none! Just keep one eye on your competition, as he's got his eye on your resort. Begin building your dream vacation spot today!

Reference: Accessed HERE 20th April 2014

Installation:



The downloaded zip file is 30.3 Mb in size that unpacks to a read me and a wrapped setup file (the orange coloured file with the key symbol), plus there's a setup file with security (setup.gcd) that protects the giveaway from being hacked (this was implemented because the previous giveaway system was easily cracked and many giveaways ended up on peer to peer sites within minutes of the giveaways becoming available). This file may cause some security software to alert the user to a possible malware attack, Any positive hits you may get (as one community member did with last weeks games) 'WILL' be false positives.

The game giveaway team check every game giveaway for malware using several well known anti -malware suites. There has never been a game giveaway infected with malware since the project started back in Dec 2006. The owners know that allowing such things would compromise their business, so they make sure all software given away via the gamegiveaway sites are thoroughly checked for all types of malware before allowing community members to download any files.












If you have problems installing today’s game there are several things you can do. These are detailed in the FAQ’s section of the game discussion forums which I’ve linked to at the end of the game review and before my suggestions for other games. (A good trick is right clicking on the orange coloured set up file and select Run as Administrator – that often sorts many running problems out).

The game installs to C:\Games\SummerResortMogul_game

The installed game is 24.2MB in size. There is no shortcut installed to either the desktop or start menu, so you will need to make a note of the above installation path so that you can create your own shortcut.

During the installation wizards progress you are given the opportunity to select your own installation path if you wish; (it's highly recommended, especially if you have a second HDD or a partitioned drive as it will help to keep your system running smoothly - the more you fill your root drive (usually the C: drive), the slower your computer will run – if you’ve got a decent sized hard drive of more than a few hundred Gigabytes it’s always a good idea to partition it into at least two drives so that you can keep the operating system and other essential applications separate from other programs and games.

There is no uninstaller included; so, if you decide the game isn't for you, you can remove Summer Resort Mogul by manually deleting the installed folder. It's self-contained which means there shouldn't be any entries in the registry(apart from references to the zip file and unpacking the giveaway) and there are no files written to other areas of the computer. (I’ve checked the registry and found no registry entries related to the game once installed) If you still wish to check the registry for yourself to see if there are any orphan entries you can open the registry editor by typing regedit in the run command (in XP) or typing in the search box (in Vista/Win 7 and Win 8/8.1).

It's always a good idea to create a restore point before you make any changes to the registry just in case you mistakenly delete something you shouldn’t have. (I've been editing the registry since Win 95 and to my knowledge have never caused a problem due to deleting registry keys). Once the registry editor is open, click on the computer icon that’s situated above the five registry hives ( HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT, HKEY_CURRENT_USER ....... etc.; then click on Edit, (which is situated in the toolbar along the top of the editor); from the drop down menu select Find or Find next then type in the key word/s, in this case Last Galaxy Hero, then click on Find next. If any registry keys associated with Last Galaxy Hero are found (right click on the entry in the left hand pane/column of the editor and select delete, or in some cases in the right hand pane/column (if in doubt, leave the key - you can always post a request for help here, or later over in the forums).




The game definitely works on Win 8.1, Win 7 and Vista. I no longer have XP installed, so can’t confirm whether it works on that platform.

The Game:




We've had similar games given away previously such as Hotel Mogul and Hotel Mogul: Las Vegas; and there are others such as Ski Resort Mogul, Vacation Mogul, Loco Mogul, all of which are related to the Build a Lot and Tycoon games. This is a more recent game with isometric views of your hotels.

The options menu gives you the usual music and sound sliders, so you can turn the music off if you wish. There's no way to edit the music in game unless you are into coding and have the appropriate software to open up the games executable. If you choose to play the game in a window, you can change the window size from the very small 512 x 384, through to 640 x 480, 800 x 600, 896 x 672, 1024 x 768, 1154 x 864 and 1280 x 960. You can also change the custom cursor (set as default) to the standard system cursor and check vertical synchronization (V-Sync) - It's unlikely you'll need this, but, if the graphics look a little awry then try checking V-Sync to cure the problem. It has something to do with the framerate of your monitor and the frame rate of your graphics chip.

The V-Sync option basically If you check the VSync option it restricts the video card to producing frame rates no higher than the refresh of the monitor. If your video card has frame rates in excess of the monitors frame rates and the V-sync isn't checked, you may get artifacts and tearing on the screen (depending on how significant the gap is between the two frame rates. for all intents and purposes most modern computers won't need this checking unless you are using an ancient monitor with your brand spanking new computer.

You and your NPC (non playing character) are the only relatives of a deceased uncle who owned the summer resort. As he didn't know both of you very well, he couldn't choose who would inherit his business; so, he prepared a special task for you. You and the NPC will control a part of the resort each.

The one who shows the best results ends up inheriting the whole company. You start with very easy goals: building only one bungalow and one bistro. Once this is accomplished you need to attract two guests. To finish a level you must complete all of your goals, in any order. On top of the accommodation you also need to provide entertainment for your guests . To do this click on one of the two groups 'Leisure' or 'food'. These allow you to build different attractions such as restaurants, cafes, bistro's, cinema's (movie theatres), swimming pools, dance clubs as well as other attractions. For a guest to stay in your resort you have to keep them entertained by keeping them within a specific range of influence, marked by a yellow circle. The larger the circle, the greater your chance of attracting guests. For example for guest to use the bistro, it must overlap with the guests accommodation for the guest to use that attraction.

To attract more guests you can either build another bungalow or upgrade ones you already have. If space is at a premium, the latter is the best choice as this will allow you to keep attractions within the sphere of influence. As you progress through the forty plus levels you will need to think strategically with respect to where you place your accommodation and attractions to make the most of potential earnings and achieving your goals as quickly as possible. .

You can win one of three awards for each level you play, these are gold, silver and bronze cups. When building attractions you can choose to buy them outright if you've earned enough cash. When it's possible to purchase, a cell phone appears above the attraction. Click on the attraction, then select buy from the icons along the bottom of the game filed.

To increase the range of influence of your attractions you upgrade them. This will increase the radius of the sphere of influence and allow you to build accommodation further from the attractions. The more living quarters you have within a shere of influence, the more cash you will earn.

If you need an injection of cash quickly you can earn it by selling some of your properties. If the buildings are in need of repair, it's worth renovating them first before you sell them because you will get more money if the building is renovated; for example, a broken down bungalow would sell for $5000, spending $500 on renovations increased the property value to $10 000 effectively doubling your profit (minus the cost of renovations). That said, it's not always guaranteed that a client will offer full price. in this case you can decline the sale and try again later; it will depend on how fast you need the cash. You may also require materials to renovate your run down buildings. You can purchase these via the materials button; when clicked this will bring up several choices. All those you can afford will be highlighted. If you don't have enough money they will be grayed out. You need to think about how much you need as you may also need money to hire other workers. Hiring other workers will allow you to carry out tasks much faster because you can work on more than one building. To hire more click on the workers tab that's located next to the materials tab. The cost of one worker is $20 000, 2 workers cost $30 000 and 3 workers cost $40 000.

All buildings added to your resort will increase the resorts luxury rating, with leisure buildings increasing luxury more than the others. Upgrading buildings will also increase luxury ratings.

Once you've passed the first three levels to win a gold trophy you will need to complete all tasks within a certain amount of time . To attain gold you only have three minutes to complete all tasks. If you fail to finish in three minutes you'll get an extra minute to earn the silver trophy; if you fail that it's the bronze trophy. You get an unlimited amount of time to earn this one. :)

There are other tasks to carry out such as cleaning your accommodation; leaving this task will reduce earnings and luxury ratings.



As you progress through the levels of Summer Resort Mogul you will get more goals and your tasks will become more complicated, making it harder to attain Gold.

If you miss today’s game, lose it to a format or decide you want it after the giveaway has finished, the good news is that it’s available for free 365.25 days a year over at Jenkat Games and MyPlayCity (MPC)

For those who are not familiar with MPC games, your browser is always opened when you shut the game down, though there’s no malware installed. If you don’t uncheck the boxes during installation you may end up with a toolbar and or your home page changed to MyPlayCity; you may even get your internet browser changed from say Google to ask; so, ensure the appropriate boxes (if presented) are unchecked before allowing the game to be installed from these providers.

Download link for Jenkat Games (my preferred download site for free games)

HERE

You can also get this game from MyPlayCity HERE







Video:

You can see what the game looks like by checking out the following You Tube videos

HERE, HERE, HERE and HERE. These videos show various levels so can be considered spoilers (levels 11, 12, 20, 22 and level 44)




System Requirements:


• CPU……………………………..........CPU: 1.0 GHz

• Operating System………………..……Windows XP/ Vista/ 7/ 8

• 3D emulation…………………….…....DirectX: 8.0 or higher ….

• System RAM…………………….……RAM: 256 MB

• Video Card RAM……………………..32 MB Video RAM


• Hard Drive space………………..……..30 MB












Music and Sound Effects:


If you like in game music but find today’s games music annoying unfortunately you can’t change the music via editing, but you can play your own music via your media player and turning off the in game music via the options menu. That said I found the music quite mellow and unobtrusive, especially turning it down to a low level.



Conclusion:


A simple resort building time management game. There’s nothing special, but worth downloading especially if you are into TM/Tycoon build a lot style games.

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Problems with the game?:

If you have any problems installing or playing today's game please go to the game discussion forums where you'll find a FAQ's section HERE. It may also be a good idea to post details of any problems you have over in the game discussion forums. You can find the thread HERE. I've included a return link to this comments section over in the game discussion thread. :)

If you see someone’s query and are able to answer them, would you please also post over in the thread I’ve linked to above because moderation is going to be very sporadic today and queries and answers may not appear for many hours.

Thank you in advance to anyone who takes the time to help. :)

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If today's game doesn't take your fancy then check out the game discussion forums and the free games synopsis. We’ve posted a couple of thousand free games over the last four years, many of which are excellent alternatives to their commercial cousins.

The latest deals over on Steam


Today's 48hr deal is Tropico 4, you can get the game for only £2.24 (85% off) or the Tropico 4 complete pack that includes all dlcs for only £4.49. The dlc alone usually costs over £42, so this is a bargain. (Tropico 5 will be released very soon), yesterdays 48hr deal is still active until 6pm (GMT); that’s 33% off T he Next Car Game (from the developers of the Flatout a demolition Derby and racing game). This game is still in early development, but is already shaping up to be a classic game with fantastic destruction physics. Well worth buying if you like racing games. The Flatout series is amongst my favourite racing games. I highly recommend this game. The two main weekend deals are 70% off the RPG Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning and 80% off Frozen Synapse. You can play this game for free until Sunday at 1pm PDT (9pm GMT), There’s over 100 games on sale at the moment, including the weekly deals, which include 75% off the amazing ArmA franchise (a first person shooter simulation with amazing environments and a more realistic take on shooting games compared to the likes of the Call of Duty series) . I recommend getting the ArmA X Anniversary Edition which includes all of the franchise apart from ArmA 3. It also includes the original Operation flashpoint released over 10 years ago (the name has been changed to ArmA Cold War Assault). There’s 70% off Septerra core, 50% off cortex Command, 50% off Strike Vector, 50% off the brilliant Beat Hazard Mega bundle, 50% off Quest Run, 66% off 1953- KBG unleashed, 50% off Ace of spades: Battle builder, 70% off Fate, 50% off space Rangers HD: A War apart, 75% off Ring Runner: Flight of the Sages. You’ll also find some new additions to the Steam catalogue that see the return of some old classics such as Freddie Fish and the case of the missing Kelp Seeds, 50% off Pajama Sam: No Need to hide when It’s Dark outside plus loads more fantastic deals.



There's also quite a few decent deals over on Desura, Greenman Gaming as well as other game distributors such as Gamersgate and Gamefly. Finally, you'll also find loads of indie bundles live. You can find details of all the bundles still available over in the game discussion List of all current Game Bundles thread HERE Most of the current bundles are listed in the first comment. Just click on any one to link to the comment linked to that bundle. I’d check through a swell as I’ve not finished updating the thread. These bundles are the best way to get bargains as you can often get $100 plus worth of games for around $5 or less. (e.g. back in Nov/Dec 2012 THQ sold their entire recent catalogue worth almost $500 for less than $6 and Origin sold at least $400 worth of games for a similar $5 price)

The latest IndieGameStand game is Luna’s Wandering Stars an action-puzzle game that centres around real Newtonian physics and various ways to control celestial bodies. You’ll find details and a link to the deal over in the game discussion forums HERE. If you pay above the average, which at the time of writing was $1.62 you'll get a second game called Loving Life plus the music to both games.

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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.

Regards

Whiterabbit aka Stephen

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