Eh - call me a whiner. I did it in 7 moves, let alone 25

played the game in relaxed mode. Very much like Atlantis and fun to play. I liked the music, the icons used, and the graphics, also the information for each area. After getting through the game, I would never bother with it again as that creeping sand is a killer. I don't mind a challenge but it is too much for me. I like to see obstacles at the beginning and not have them keep coming. I'm disappointed as it was nice to have different graphics for a familiar game. That sand was too much to deal with. I deleted the game, sadly, and will just replay Atlantis for the same experience. The two most popular games on FB I also stopped because of the same relentless creeping items and timed bombs. I'm happy to see most players were pleased and could handle the sand/bombs but I want to play for fun or excitement and not frustration. thanks anyway; one time through was enough for me.

As another reviewer mentioned, tis is an excellent game, until the sand boxes are introduced, and then it becomes much more of a challenge than it's worth. I didn't know there was a relaxed mode - the timer is always running, but the added feature of the sand, which fills up rather quickly is the deal-killer for me here. This isn't the only game by Playrix where they've thrown a real wrench into the act, and after two or three tries to get through that sand thing, I gave up, and deleted the game. After the last Playrix game quite some time ago where the programmers did much the same thing with some "Mysterious Force" that scatters everything... and there's nothing you can do to prevent that.. I forget which game it was, but it was a LONG time before I trusted a Playrix game again. So, this game is trash, and was trashed, with the warning to all who might chose this one in the future: Don't bother. Too much trouble for what it's worth. It only takes ONE feature by ONE overzealous programmer who thinks it's cool to convert what was a very good game to one that I won't ever touch again.

This is the best game I have downloaded in YEARS! It is actually challenging...Thank you so much. I actually have to force myself not to open it, lol! No problems with installation, it plays very well in windows 10.

I agree. The Time Bonus function will not work for me either.

I apologize WR. You may want to delete that last comment, or put both of these up to make it clear, or just delete both comments. I went back and checked and this flaw won't effect the playability, because it doesn't appear that lives are recorded anyway. And, when you fail a level, it doesn't set you back, like previous games in the series do, it just lets you replay the level you failed, in both modes, regardless of how many times it may take you. I wouldn't have noticed this initially, but when I saw that no lives were recorded, I let a level run out to see what would happen. This is the same as Call of Atlantis: Treasures of Poseidon, though not the same as the original Call or any of the others, but I didn't notice it because I haven't had the time to get far enough in Poseidon to have failed a level. Like I sort of intimated about Around the World in 80 days, I'm pretty good at match 3s.
So, this game is completable, and I'm very sorry I didn't notice that before I posted that last comment. Of course, some may still say this is a damaged version, because they can't replay for a higher score, and would want a redo on the giveaway, but at least it's completable. My sincere apologies!

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

No need to apologise. Your input is always welcome.

Thanks WR, but my point is that the time bonus not being given - AND MUCH MORE IMPORTANTLY - the fact that the score does not add up in the damaged version, but resets to 0 every level - EVEN IN THE RELAXED MODE! - SEVERELY DAMAGES the playability, as more points equal more lives and the ability to replay extremely difficult levels. In this damaged version, I HIGHLY doubt you could earn even a single extra life, so the ability to complete the game is practically nil.

So, therefore, I still respectfully request that you please report this to GGOTD and maybe they will consider a redo in the future. Don't mean to be snippy about it, I just want to make sure you clearly understand what I'm saying and why. In any case, thanks!

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

Please forgive the very late moderation. finally got to bed around 5am last night and ened up sleeping well into the afternoon. Totally forgot about the last few hours of moderation until now (almost 4am Tuesday morning). Better late than never. I probably did misunderstand. The drugs sometimes warp my understanding of things, especially when i'm tired. Have a great week. Hopefully we will see a redo, but can't guarantee it.

Hi!
It downloaded in less than a minute on windows 8.1!! Set up was quick. Graphics are good.
It is similar to others games like this and play is quick if use to them. The lower levels
are not challenging, but as with most of these games a few higher levels can stick you for
awhile!! Play is smooth!
Thanks for another good game and have a great week,
Lee

..............................Moderator Comment.........................................
Thank you for your feedback Lee. :)

I have to confirm, both of the problems with scoring are correctly reported. As I said above, scoring usually - might be different in this game, but I doubt it - significantly effects the playability, in that higher scores earn more lives. The combination of no time score and no additive score practically means that only the most outstanding players in the world will be able to complete the later levels. If any will!

I'm glad for those who can mix and match with the demos - it's a smart idea - but it's not practical for me at the moment, I'm on a bandwidth limited plan while out of work. But, not just because of my situation, but for general principles, I don't feel that needing that substitution is really acceptable. Let me be clear. I'm not remotely insinuating that that is what your suggesting WR. I know you're just trying to give people a way to work around a problem. But, if too much of a workaround needs to be done for the majority, that's really - sorry - a fail!

So, I hope that GGOTD and Playrix will consider a makeup soon on this interesting game. I've never had to face a match 3 that had creeping sand and bombs that blow up the level - if i read the Big Fish reviews correctly - so would love to get a CORRECTLY working version of this game, because I assume I won't be able to substitute a copy of the demo somewhere down the road when I have enough spare bandwidth to download it.

In any case, thanks GGOTD and Playrix.

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

I gave up on the mix and match; it didn't work for me. My saves from the demo were transferred over to the giveaway version, but as with other community members, the time bonus was set to zero, still, I too don't bother about scores.

Good game, even has a relaxed mode. Thumbs up!

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

:)

Can't get it to install. I've tried 5 times and every time it just pops up saying the file is corrupted. 5 times is my limit I guess. I give up.

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

Hi bi young, did you check the FAQ's thread over in the game discussion forum sticky section? There are some fixes related to this problem. I'v linked to the thread in the problems section of my review. see comment number 1 for details.

Thanks, GGotD and Whiterabbit, for another great game download. This is yet another solid Playrix game, with the graphics and playability they usually deliver. Installed and played "America" levels -- runs fine on Win7 64-bit.

That opening (and the transitions) are weirdly cute -- sort of Twilight Zone meets Salvador Dali.

I had to laugh, WR, at your Steam shopping saga -- I do the same thing, spending many happy hours poring through the big sales there, then forcing myself back to reality. Come to think of it, now that I've brought in firewood and chopped kindling, that wouldn't be a bad way to spend the rest of the afternoon...

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

:)
Haha.

Actually I had every intention of buying every game, but decided enough was enough. I've been buying on average a few games every days for the past several years. Partly because new games seem to help with my pain management better than a game I'm familiar with. But I've recently been expanding into other hobbies as buying games is getting rather expensive for me, even with all of the sales. I'm going to restrict myself to indie bundles and the odd AAA when they are released, (only RPG's and FPS games). In the mean time I have an embarrassingly large backlog of unplayed games to work through. I've calculated, that if i spent a couple of hours on each of my unplayed games and only played a couple each day it would take me in excess of 8 years to complete them all.

Downloaded and installed with no trouble in Win7 Pro 32 bit. Great for when i need a short break . Thanks, Stephen and GGOTD!

I don't know if _anyone_ can finish that game unaided! Buried in the GGotD forums from a few years back, there's a "cheat" that makes it manageable -- you can go into the game data and give yourself more time. It also works for the Atlantis games, sort of. So, I have finished 80 Days, finally -- it's a great game, but beyond difficult.

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

I've never been able to complete 80 days. Still after the last two screensavers.

2 quick comments:

I notice the developer also added the trophy option on this. Meh. Trophies just window dressing in most games, frankly. If it doesn't increase playability, I'm not interested in it.

Also, this doesn't have the historical tidbits on every level that the Atlantis series had. I understand, the developers job is to develop games, not historical research, so I'll just say it's not a detriment here, but a bonus in their other games.

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

Thanks for your feedback watcher. :)

No, sorry. I apologize. You good folks were right. I'm having the same problem. No time bonus registering in the time mode. Hope this can be fixed or fixes itself. But unlikely in time. But, it doesn't bother me as much as I'm a survival, not a score player. But, obviously, it does effect survival too, as more points means more lives.

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

Wondering whether a mix and match from the demo will cure the problem. I definitely got time bonuses while playing the demo. see the images of the two end of level stats.

Reneggers are the worst! You go to ALL that work for NOTHING! But that's what they do! Neggers neg and neg and neg again!

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

We were glad they reneged. Our agent said from the outset they were going to be difficult. They didn't move in because we didn't replace the tiles in the main bathroom. we did everything else such as a new bathroom suite, new bathroom furniture and cleaned all of the grout and put in a new radiator, but they were adamant that we had promised them a new bathroom despite nowhere in the tenancy agreement saying we had agreed to re-tile the bathroom (the agent had said to us they only wanted a bathroom suite). We actually did a lot more to the house, spending over £5000 on re-decorating, putting down laminates downstairs, new curtains, repairs etc.. I think their main problem was that they were coming down from a £2000 a month five bedroomed house to a four bedroomed house at almost half the monthly rent. Rentals in the UK are strange. Our rental property is a comfortable four bedroomed house built in the late 70's, if you go into the inner city area's you'll still pay around £600 for a two bedroomed terraced house with no gardens, and poor schools and usually in poor condition; for less than double you'd be getting a good quality detached house with gardens front and rear and in a good area with top notch schools.

@Playrix,
I agree with everyone here; there is a bug in this version. We never receive any time bonus (ALWAYS says 0 despite relaxed mode being turned off)! Tried turning on relaxed mode but that completely removes the time bar; turning it back on again put the bar back on again and the bar still decreases as time goes by but the total for time bonus is always 0 when the points are tallied.

I like the sand! The way it grows is threatening - but then once you start clearing it, the pieces above it fall so quickly.
= =

The challenge for Italy 1 looks to be pretty tough - clear two rows of boxes AND get the pieces down in 25 moves? Time will tell, I guess.

Dave.

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

Thanks for the feedback dave6d6ky :)

Just a shout out to WR!! Been downloading games for a couple of years. I was stuck in match 3's forever but have recently expanded my experience and its been amazing. So thank you for all the great games you give us and even the not so great ones. Hey ya never know, if you don't try them how do you know you won't like them.
Very happy with this weekends selection. Keep up the great work!!

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

:)

Before I started downloading games from the game giveaway site, (actually it was the giveaway site before the game giveaway site was up and running at the beginning of Nov 2006), I only played/bought breakout/arkanoid clones and shmups with a few brilliant platformers such as Gish; (not taking into account AAA games such as RPG's, FPS games and strategy games). Thanks to the giveaway and gamegiveaway sites I now love playing virtually every genre there is. TM games are about the only arcade genre I don't enjoy, though even from that genre there are some I like (e.g. most of the Farm Frenzy and Rescue games).

One of the reasons I devote so much time to this site is as a thank you to the giveaway team for opening up my horizons to the world of arcade games and giving us so many excellent games over the last 9 years. I can't believe it's been 9 years.

Yes, looks like this, unlike Call of Atlantis, for example, doesn't mix mode types. Like no hidden object puzzle, as an example.

You didn't notice in Whiterabbit's review, I think, that this is a feature of relaxed mode. If you want to earn time bonus points, you have to play in challenge mode. After all, how can you compute a time bonus if the level is not timed?

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

Good point :)

I finished Around the World - still my favorite - in both 1st and 2nd times around (2nd time adds rock "debris") ;). But it took me months! :P You're right. It's fiendishly challenging. Though I think not as hard as their first, Atlantis Quest, which didn't include the Sun/Amulet, etc. power up.

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I rarely complete most arcade games. I didn't play arcade games until after my accident, and rarely complete them, but I think that's partly due to the number of games I've purchased over the last several years. Prior to that I played AAA games only. I found arcade games were good for short bursts. I wasn't able to play for extended periods of time post accident for almost a year, so arcade games became more attractive. I really got into breakout games, pin ball clones and space shooters. They reminded me of my miss-spent youth in the arcades of the mid to late 70's where I spent all of my paper round money and the money my grandma' gave me to supplement my habit. :)

Thanks for offer, review and comments. Like these but usually they do get quite hard as levels rise. Still worth a shot just to get to the middle levels even knowing I'll quit about then.

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

:)

Add me as another. I finished one level in 18 seconds, but 0 time bonus.

Great match 3 game great game play defiantly a keeper and would be worth buying. Thank you.

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

:)

Hi Whiterabbit, thanks for another great game from Playrix. Installed and plays well on win 8.1. Like Jerry we have not received any time bonus but are well within time limit. The total score does not appear to work as it only displays the score for that level. Are we missing something? ps does the baby dragon have a name????

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

I've only played the demo, not had time to boot up the full game today, been too busy getting the rental property ready for our second new tenants. The last ones reneged on the contract last month.

Set the options to Relaxed Mode and it shuts off the timer. However, when you play in that mode, you get zero points for a fast game.

Relaxed mode. That's for me. Thanks WR and thanks GGOTD

Downloaded and ran well on HP desktop/Core I-3/Win 10 64 bit. Although there are new features introduced at each level, I'm seeing the same match-three program on every screen. I've only gotten past the 2nd "country" level, but it still looks like it could get monotonous really easily. Most of these have a "side-game" of some sort between, just to break things up, I'm not seeing this yet. All in all, however, the graphics and control are all up to the usual Playrix standards. I'll be keeping this one for a while, if only to see if it does any branching of game-play.

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

Thank you for your feedback bebop :)

This has happened to me as well :-(

Same with me. Even with the early levels that I finished in seconds, there was no time bonus.

YAY the description says there's a relaxed mode--at least I won't tear out my hair trying to play LOL Like the previous poster, this was what flummoxed me about Around the World in 80 Days, so I'm a happy camper about today's game. :-D

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

:)

Downloaded and installed with no trouble in Win 7 Home Premium. REALLY APPRECIATE that there is a relaxed mode! :-) :-) Played through the America level. I love these little classic Match-3 games. Great for a little break from work. Thanks, Stephen and GGOTD!

Thanks, as always, for the great review, Whiterabbit.

Gameplay is solid with this game. It installed and ran without issue on my Windows 10 laptop. I suspect it uses a slightly older version of their match 3 game engine as you need to wait until the previous move completely plays itself out before you can make your next move. On some more recent versions of their match 3 games, you can make the next move while tiles are still falling from the last one. That detracts only a little from the game, however.

The voice over and music in the game introduction have an absolutely epic sound to them. :-)

Thanks to Playrix for offering their software through Game Giveaway of the Day.

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

Thank you for your feedback Gary, appreciated :)

So ein Scheiß Software ist Virenverseucht.
Vielen Dank auch

I agree! I never could finish that game....(ARGH...LOL)

Thank you Playrix and GOTD. I tried this out and will enjoy this very much. Installed fine on Win 7 64 bit. No issues. I like this has a relaxed mode. My mind is not as quick as it use to be. Takes away the frustration.

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

:)

Downloaded and runs fine on my Win 7/64 laptop. As Stephen said, this is very similar to the Atlantis games. The sound effects are extremely similar, if not the same. (Don't know about the music - I generally turn that off.) I'll keep it because it's been a long time since I played the Atlantis games, but I'm getting a very strong feeling of deja vu.

Not that I'm complaining since it's free :P
But isn't this game just like "Call of Atlantis Treasures of Poseidon" with new graphics?

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

Yes, very similar. :)

installe this game on my windows 8.1 sytem. When I went into settings and changed it to windowed mode both my screens went blank and became unresponsive to mouse/keyboard. I restarted computer (hard reset)and played the game in full screen (windowed moe had not saved) At end of the first level therewas a video which I clicked on to skip but the screens went blank/unresponsive again. Uninstalled after another hard reboot.

Er... Stephen, I think "thanks to Immanitas" (at the end of your first post) must've been left over from yesterday's...

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

Yup! :) Thanks for pointing that out, I wouldn't want to offend our friends over at Playrix Entertainment.

Every level I've played I have scored a "Time Bonus" of exactly zero even though there has been plenty of time left. Strange.

First game that I have downloaded from GOTD that I will keep since ALL the way BACK BACK BACK (It's a homerun!) to Gardenscapes 2. Relaxed (Ahhhhhh!) mode is absolutely a must for a game such as this. I could still kick the gamemaker's butt for not adding a relaxed mode to Around the World in 80 Days (ARGH!)

is it a timed game?
I mean, are you timedd out and have to redo the puzzles?
If so, can that be switched off?

Bonjour,
Pour ceux qui veulent jouer en français…
1-Télécharger la demo gratuite :http://www.bigfishgames.fr/jeux-a-telecharger/26390/call-of-the-ages/download.html
2-Installer la démo
3-copier le dossier : "C:\Program Files (x86)\Call of the Ages\Base"
4-le coller dans le répertoire de jeux : "C:\Program Files (x86)\Playrix Entertainment\Call of the Ages\Base"
(Le fichier existant doit être conservé et renommer Base_EN pour le cas où...)
5-Lancer le jeu … en français


Hello,
For those who want to play in French ...
1-Download the free demo: http: //www.bigfishgames.fr/jeux-a-telecharger/26390/call-of-the-ages/download.html
2-Install the demo
3-copy the folder: "C: \ Program Files (x86) \ Call of the Ages \ Base"
4-paste it in the game directory "C: \ Program Files (x86) \ Playrix Entertainment \ Call of the Ages \ Base"
(The existing file should be stored and rename Base_EN in case ...)
5-Start the game in French ...

This is a good game, except that, even in Relaxed Mode, the levels with the spreading sand bars are reeeaaallly difficult for me to get through. You have to be careful to make matches adjacent to the sand tiles, because whenever you make matches that aren't next to at least one sand tile, the sand tiles multiply, and you can't get past them. I've had this one from Gametop for a while, so have gotten far enough to run into trouble (or for the game to get really challenging, depending on one's perspective...)

Is this the Premium/Collectors' Edition, with bonus levels as shown in one of the earlier screenshots? Now I'll have to go back and check my version.

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

I was using the demo of the game to write up this review. I had the Collectors Edition, and took lots of screen captures, sorry for the misunderstanding, didn't think. The CE version has an extra entry in the main menu entitled Extra's, which the giveaway version doesn't, so it is the standard version. :(

Call of the Ages: Standard Edition:


I used the CE demo version to write up today's review, so there may be some screen captures that show the CE version. I wasn't thinking at the time (around 4.30am this morning). Todays giveaway is the standard version, not the Collectors Edition.

Installation:

Call of the Ages downloads as a 175 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 among 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. The install path is:

C:\Program Files (x86)\Playrix Entertainment\Call of the Ages

There is a desktop and Start menu shortcut installed. 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 193 MB in size

If you have any problems installing or registering Call of the Ages, check the problems section below and if none of the fixes work, it is available free from Gametop 24/7 HERE and from MyPlayCity HERE. Do take care when installing from such sites as you may install toolbars or have your home page or browser provider changed. Make sure you uncheck all check boxes during installation. :)


You can play the game for free online, so, if you are a community member with capped downloads, you could try the game first via THIS link





Introduction:

Save the Earth by restoring an ancient calendar in a breath-taking game Call of the Ages! The Calendar of Ages brought balance to the world, but since it has been destroyed the whole planet is about to plunge into eternal chaos. You are the only one who can find the 8 artefacts needed to restore the Calendar. You will take an amazing journey through different epochs; in each of them you will find the pieces of the artefacts. In this thrilling Match-3 game you will be putting tiles in a row, getting exciting bonuses and trying to complete the level as quick as you can. Prepare for an enchanting journey through time with the game Call of the Ages!

Reference accessed HERE Nov 29th 2015

Mini Reviews:

You can see some short reviews from Big Fish community members HERE - scroll down to the lower part of the page for the reviews. :)


The Game:

Call of ages is a standard match three game on the lines of the Atlantis series, with similar levels, similar power ups and similar quests. There are two modes of play, timed and relaxed. The game play will be familair to most (if not all) community members; where you combine three or more matching tiles by moving one either vertically or horizontally to create the match. Combining 4 or more tiles replenishes the charge on the Amulet of Ages which can then be used to destroy several randomly chosen tiles once the amulet is fully charged. The amulet can also be charged when more than one set of tiles is removed in a single move of a tile, the amulet is not carried over to the next level, so use it whenever it has been charged for maximum effect. As you progress through the levels you will be introduced to different types of tiles, for example box tiles. These can only be removed by creating matches next to the boxes. Any tiles above a box will remain in place until the box has been destroyed. If there are several boxes on the screen, it's best to remove the higher ones first. Chains lock a tile in place. Unlike the wooden boxes, these will move if tiles below them are destroyed. try to remove them before they reach the lower end of the field as it will be harder to remove them. Tumbleweed also moves when tiles below it are removed.

You can pause the game at any time, when paused you should see the view of the country you are in. There are seven countries that you pass through as you progress through the game. Once you complete a country, (after collecting all of the pieces of the artefact from that country, you can progress to the next country. Each country is introduced with a short video, telling you a story related to that countries artefact, for example, America's artefact is the peace pipe and Italy's artefact is the Atlas of Claudius Ptolemy

From level 6 onwards you will be introduced to the first of four power ups, the first being the bomb. You have to move the bomb to the bottom of the field to collect it, then it can be used to destroy a few tiles. Power ups can be carried forwards to the next level; however, it's worth keeping them for later and harder levels as they are not present in every level. the second power up to appear is the lightning bolt, which makes its apperance at level 9. You can destroy all of the tiles of the same type by first clicking on the lightning bolt, then selecting the type of tile you want to remove. Early on in the level it's useful to get rid of the tiles with the largest number on the field, but later on, you may find it more useful selecting tiles that are preventing an artefact piece from falling. you can't remove special tiles like the locks, tumbleweed and wooden boxes
You can review the artefacts you have already collected by clicking on the artifacts button in the lower left corner of the map, and if you wish to see what a particular tile is, hover your cursor over the tile and wait for a few seconds to see a description of that tile.

Video:

You can see several videos of game play HERE, HERE, HERE, HERE, and HERE.



Music:

If you don't like the music you can change it by replacing 8 of the ogg files that can be found via the following path:


C:\Program Files (x86)\Playrix Entertainment\Call of the Ages\Base\sound\Music\x.ogg

where x = match3_1.ogg to match3_7.ogg and Music_Map.ogg

You will need to convert your MP3's or other music files that you wish to use to the .ogg format and you will need to rename the files to match3_1.ogg to match3_7.ogg and Music_Map.ogg. Save the originals just in case there is a problem' at least until you've thoroughly checked the game to make sure it still works as a full version game.







System Requirements:

OS: Windows XP/Windows Vista/Windows 7/Windows 8
CPU: 1.4 GHz
RAM: 1024 MB
DirectX: 9.0
Hard Drive: 211 MB









Conclusion:

A decent match three, with similar elements to the Atlantis series. Well worth downloading as it has both a timed and relaxed mode. The graphics are decent and game play gets progressively harder as you move from country to country. The short videos describing the particualr artefacts related to that country was quite informative and didn't break continuity between each section of the game, plus you can skip the videos and return to them by selecting them on the world map that appears at the beginning of each level. You can play the videos at any time when this map appears, but you can't replay a level unless you create a new profile.

Scoring:


Gameplay ------ 8
Graphics ------- 8
Audio ------- 7
Replayability ------- 7
Originality ------- 6
Fun Factor ------- 8
Features ------- 8


Total = 52 out of 70 which equals 7.4 out of 10

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Problems:


If you have any problems installing or getting Call of the Ages working, 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 think the game is infected - IMPORTANT - PLEASE READ

For those of you who are getting hits by your anti malware suites; it's because they are picking up the Themida based protection, which was put in place to protect the game from unscrupulous community members that were hacking the giveaway wrapper which then gave them unlimited access to a registered copy of the game, which was being put on peer to peer sites. Some community members were even uploading video tutorials on You tube telling you how to do it yourself.

Themida based applications are sometimes seen as a threat by anti-malware. I can assure you this game and hundreds before, that have given community members cause for concern have been totally safe. The game giveaway team have managed to secure well over a thousand games for us since they first started giving away games back in late 2006; firstly via the main site (Oct 2006), then via the game giveaway site (early December 2006). There has never 'ever' been an infected game given away.

If you are able to configure your anti-malware suite to allow the 'seemingly offensive' file through security, the game should then install normally. if you can't, or don't know how to, then the other way would be to temporarily turn off your protection. You do so at your own risk, but please do take into account what I've already said above; in a nut shell, every malware occurrence reported here since the game giveaway went live in Dec 2006 have been false positives due to overly sensitive anti-malware suites.

It would be against the teams best interest to allow such an occurrence as it would destroy their good standing with the big search engines and I'm sure many who have frequented this site for a long time would leave. The giveaway team use several anti-malware suites to test every game given away here.


Another thing to consider when you think the game is infected, if it really was, there would be hundreds of community members posting about the infection; we rarely more than a few posts for any particular game; though, since the gcd file that contains the Themida code was introduced in 2012 I have seen many more community members reporting infections due to the Themida based code found in the giveaways wrapper protection. However, out of the thousands of downloads each week, those numbers are insignificant and supports the fact that the results they are getting are actually false positives. They have always been proven to be so.

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 Call of the Ages 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 (I usually post a comment about approximately how large a file is, though if I'm particularly busy I may neglect to do this). It 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 among all community members, downloads can become excruciatingly 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.

A download manager can help speed the download up and also protect the download in case of an interruption. There's nothing as frustrating for those with really slow connections to have the connection break after an hour or so, then have to start from the beginning again. I would ask community members if you do have decent bandwidth please avoid using a manager as it does add to the number of downloads occurring at any one time, for example some download managers will download your requested file in up to 32 packets simultaneously, that will take 32 download spots, thus slowing down everyone else's download speeds. For those with slow downloads (due to having a slow connection e.g. a 2MB Broadband connection or less) I would advise using a download manager if the file is larger than around 200MB. My broadband connection is 100MBs, so I don't need to use a download manager, (I do have one called Internet Download Manager, but don't use it when downloading files from the giveaway site). For me a 1GB file usually downloads in about 1.5 minutes or less. My connection is quite a long way from the provider so it is slowed a little, but is still quite good at a download speed of around 12 to 14 MB's per second.

I hope the above goes some way in explaining 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, but today's isn't among them. However, it is available from it is available free from Gametop 24/7 HERE and from MyPlayCity HERE. I didn't check 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 recommended here. :)


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 license. :)

You just have to look at the sites track record since the game giveaway site was created back in December 2006. No games given away here since the inception of the gamegiveaway site have been infected with malware, there are no toolbars installed, nor home pages hijacked or browsers changed. There is one slight annoyance, but that only occurs if a community member isn't paying attention; i.e. when the final window pops up after installing a giveaway, called 'the Software Informer' installation window. 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's a big sale on over on Steam with thousands of games on sale. This is the pre-Christmas sale which ends on Monday. Deals range from 10% to 90% off. There's bound to be a game for everyone in this sale. I went through my Steam wish list when the sale went live (I have almost 3000 items in that list). It took me almost 3 hours to work through every game and when I'd finished I had just under 150 games in my shopping list, all with 50% off or more, and totaling nearly £600; suffice it to say I removed over a hundred games from the list and am still contemplating whether to even bother with this sale as i still have loads of un-played games I've previously purchased in sales. (It will be the first time since I joined Steam in 2009)
There are too many great deals to mention here, just check out the specials section for all the games on sale HERE.

There's loads more in the weekly sales and the 48 hours sales to choose from; and almost certainly something for everyone. The next set of weekly sales starts on Monday with usually a few hundred titles added. :)





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

GreenManGaming They usually have coupons to the value of 23% and sometimes more off pre ordered games. I've just pre ordered Just Cause 3 XL and XCOM 2 using a voucher and saved £22 on the price paid in the Steam store
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 months. The servers are still live (at least until Bad JoJo's subscription to the servers has ended, Bad JoJo are the owners of Desura and Indie Royale, or were until filing for bankruptcy). If you own any games via Desura I advise downloading all of the drm free games you have on that platform and on the Indie Royale site before the sites are 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 Planetary Annihilation (when this was first released last year it was selling for nearly £60 for the deluxe version and is well worth buying, especially for less than $2).
Colonize solar systems, annihilate homeworlds, and exterminate your foes in epic interplanetary battles with multiple players and thousands of units. Planetary Annihilation takes strategy gaming to a never-before-seen scale -- and gives players powerful tools to control the action.

Blow up everything, anywhere; dominate with punishing spacecraft, robots, and other futuristic machines of war. Arm asteroids and send them on planet-destroying collision courses. And take over an entire galaxy in a dynamic single-player mode with procedurally generated content. Don’t just win, annihilate!


You can get the game for $1; pay over the average to get the Deluxe version. (The price at the time of writing was £1.63 and rarely goes above $2 unless the bonus content includes a second or third game).
The deal ends Monday 30th Nov 2015 5am (GMT)



The latest DIG game is Alum:

Guide Alum on his spiritual journey through the dangerous, icy, "Land of Tide". Help him discover the truth about his city, Kosmos, and the mysterious epidemic known as "The Vague". As the tale unfolds, it will keep you enthralled all the way up to its epic conclusion.
Alum is an original point-and-click adventure game. It has the nostalgic feel of classics 90's Lucasarts, Sierra games mixed with modern game-play elements and pacing that caters more towards this generation. The world, story, and characters lean towards a RPG-esque style, while the game-play mechanics and puzzles stay true to the classic point-and-click genre.
- Features -
- Full length game (roughly 7-10 hours of gameplay)
- Over 70 hand-drawn backgrounds - Including a map screen to travel across the "Land of Tide"
- All original soundtrack (live recorded instruments mixed with electronic elements)
- Intuitive puzzles that are logical, balanced, and rewarding (no pixel hunting)
- Full voice acting
- Gratifying frame by frame animations
- Retro classic resolution

Pay £0.99 for the game or you can get two keys if you pay more than the average of $1.01 (at the time of writing ). One Steam key to share with a friend or family member perhaps? You'll find that deal HERE. They also have five bundles of several games that'll cost you less than $1.50 each HERE (DIG Bundles 46, 47 & 48, reBundle 9 and Greenlight 3). You get Steam keys for all of these games except the Greenlight bundle, however, if a game is Greenlit, you will get a Steam key.
The single game deal ends just after Midnight Tuesday 1st December 2015 and will be replaced with a new game.

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. I highly recommend the first four sites as they regularly change their bundles, at least weekly. Bundle Stars is the most prolific, usually with at least 10 bundles, but sometimes a lot more. some bundles stay for months, others for only a few days. I also recommend buying the Greenlight bundles as you will get quite a few being greenlit and save a large amount of money on newly released games. I reckon at least 75% of the games from those bundles have been Greenlit since I purchased my first Greenlight bundle. (I've bought at least 50 bundles with only Greenlight games and they have never cost more than $3 to $4 per bundle, with savings up to 90%. The flying bundle is the only one that will inform you when a game has been Greenlit and will send you your Steam keys, the rest you have to check your accounts page to see if they have added Steam keys. sometimes it may take several weeks after the game has been released before you get your keys, but generally its either the same day or a few days at the most.





Bundle Stars (26 bundles)
Groupees (3 bundles)
Indie Gala (5 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 (1 bundles)

The free game from Origin is one of Command & Conquers later games Red Alert 2 plus you get the expansion Yuri's Revenge. This is another AAA game, well worth having if you are into strategy war games.

The world erupts in conflict as Soviet forces invade American soil in Command & Conquer: Red Alert 2. Time travel has helped to eliminate the German threat, and now the Soviets are expanding into the West unchecked. You are the Supreme Commander. Arm yourself to the teeth with top-secret technologies and lead the Soviet or Allied troops to victory.
Plus, defeat an army of mind-controlled Soviet forces in the expansion Command & Conquer: Yuri's Revenge.

Game Features:

Many ways to play. Lead Soviet or Allied forces in a gripping single-player game or a Skirmish game, where there's no particular objective other than destroying everything else on-screen. Who will win the war for world domination?
No need to play nice. You'll need to pull out all the stops if you're going to win this war. Thankfully, you've got a well-stocked arsenal of legitimate and illicit technologies from Prism Tanks and Terror Drones, to Psychic Mind Control devices and Soviet Cloning Vats. Use them.
Deliver the fury. Dominate land, air, and sea battles with the help of over 80 units and structures. Plus, you'll benefit from a enhanced veterancy system that turns newbie forces into battle-hardened war machines -- and brings you closer to victory.

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.

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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 Playrix Entertainment for sharing and to the game giveaway team for getting these games.

Regards

Whiterabbit aka Stephen