Sorry WR, didn't see your replay until today. Maybe you should consider the laser surgery. Talked to my Dr. about it. What I was told is you should wait until your eyes stabilize before you have it. In other words, if people are considering it in their early 40s to correct near (short) sightedness, they should wait, because they will likely develop far sightedness later and will be back to using spectacles again. Since, as you probably know - the near (or far, or astigmatism, etc.) sightedness of youth is caused by abnormalities in the eye shape, while far sightedness in older years is caused by stiffening of the focusing lenses and/or weakening of the focusing muscles - you can be both near and far sighted, as you likely are. The point is that if your doctor can likely tell you that little change in your vison is expected over future years, then the surgery is a good choice. My far sightedness had stabilized over 7 years between exams (not intentional to wait that long, American medical system and my only slowness to seek medical aid through our Veterans Administration) my Dr. tells me that, at 58, I'm still a viable candidate for the surgery. Now the only problem is how to pay for it. :P If your Dr. can tell you your vision has reached a stable state, then you might be an excellent candidate for the surgery. Hope so. Good luck! Diane might consider it too.

Ein herzliches DANKE an Whitherabbit und Anu für Eure Antworten und dazu auch noch in Deutsch !!

Habe daher meinen Virenschutz kurz deaktiviert und spiele seither das Spiel total begeistert.
Nochmals lieben Dank für Eure Hilfe und fürs SPiel. Schönen Restwochenende Euch Allen.

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

:)

Love it! At first my shortcut didn't work but just created it again and ta da! Love the music, the three different variations of play and the samurai warrior's kinda cute for a cartoon character. Thanks GOTD!

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:)

I've now tried three times and on two computers, one running Vista and one running w7, to open and instal this game. I get as far as connecting to GGOD and then get a message "failure to open file". What gives? Super frustrating.

This game is excellent! I agree with Swamp Thing that the building thing is boring but it was boring when I rebuilt Rome and Greece and a multitude of aquariums but a lot of people like it. The match 3 part is great fun. I was also very impressed with the multitude of languages available but was surprised that Japanese wasn't one of them :)Well done Immanitus!

Hi!
The game downloaded quick on windows 8.1 and opened easily. The story unfolded and play began easily.
The play is very similar to the Greek/Roman styled games. I have only played a few levels, so unsure if there
will be any variations. I did feel a hesitancy with play and changed off the custom cursor to the regular, which
made play easier. It is still a little stiff. Loading between the mode of game matching and building is a little
slow, but I can be a bit impatient, lol!
Thanks for another good game!!!
Have a great week!!

I like this game! It's fun! The rotate feature is really Cool! I wish other match 3 games allowed one to do that.

The city building part, though, is quite lame! LAME I SAY! You really don't get ANY choices at all the way you do in FISHDOM (sigh!) You can't even decide where to place you buildings. LAME SAID I! A waste of time!

Nice game! Good graphics, nice music, vivid and bright. Running on Dell laptop Win 8.1. Thanks, GGOTD!!

This is a very nice match three. I usually need the time challange to get motivated to play a game, but the challenge of finishing in a defined number of moves is enough challenge for me to really enjoy the game. It does allow you to replay if you can't finish in the right number of moves, so that takes pressure off. The music is soothing and the challange makes you use your brain instead of just making every match you can furiously in order to finish in an alloted time. This is one of the most different match threes I have played and I really enjoy it. Thanks so much for it.

I absolutely love this game. Thanks to Immanitas for this nice gift today. I love how the pieces on the board move. The sound effects are an added plus. I've never played a Match 3 where I can rotate the board....what a relief. It's a really nice option which I definitely used. I like the shuffle option also.

The overall setup of the game is very well thought out. My hat goes off to the developers. I like the graphics and the music sets the mood. I can see myself replaying this one. It gets a thumbs up!

Thanks Stephen, I read your review which always helps out tremendously. Thanks GGOTD team for offering another great giveaway.

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

Thank you for your feedback Paula

Thanks so much for this game, just the kind I like. It looks beautiful. I've installed and tested it, but won't have a chance to play until tomorrow. It looks like a lot of fun. Thanks again!

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:)

Downloaded fast and installed well on W7 pro. Looks like an unusual match 3 - should be fun :-)

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:)

I have bifocals AND computer glasses for the mid-range. The mid-range of the progressive bi-focals isn't wide enough and I make my neck sore moving my head up and down all the time.

It's using my little Fire tablet that I often remove my glasses. I'm near sighted and without glasses it's easier to see things like that (or my cross-stitch).

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:)

Jenkat only does "trials". Originally they were with BigFishGames but now they seem to have switched to iWin. All their downloads are re-directs. If you want the game that bad -- go to the primary site - don't use redirects!

Don't feel too bad WR. I have bifocals, but have to remove them to use the screen. Neither lens works for that. :P I asked my Doctor, and he said there's nothing wrong with working on the comp without the glasses. He didn't think there was any need to adjust the lenses or give me another set. So I'm lucky in that sense.

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To be able to look at the stars like I sed to and see sharp pinpoints of light. Maybe I should have laser surgery. :)

Looks like a great game. I played for a while and there was plenty of variety as well as some tricky bits. I like that it has a relaxed mode, as some match 3 games tend to be a bit too frantic. This game can be played in short bursts and the various modes keep it from becoming too tedious. This is a keeper! Thanks Stephen for the review and the sponsors for providing another great game.

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Glad you like it DJ:)

Not sure I have the courage to try challenge mode - took me forever to clear some of the levels even with unlimited moves. Like the different match modes too for adding variety. Classy beginning with unexpected (and really good!) voice-over - makes me want to try other languages just to hear them. One change in the game I think would add to the fun is if Relaxed mode showed you the Challenge # of moves so you could compare how you'd done compared to a "good" score. Thanks to Immanitas and GGOTD for a fun game.

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I tend to go for the easy option these days, but did play challenge mode for three levels and really enjoyed playing it. Makes you analyze every possible move so as to maximize the chances of c9mpleting the level. Succeeded, but went back to the relaxed mode so that I could get more screen captures to post for the review. :)

Installed and plays fine so far on Win 8.1; attractive, well-made match 3 with elements of strategy (haven't really learned those yet) and resource building and management. Not totally sure about when to use the rotate, but just so far doing it when I want to get some gold tiles in a better place. Advantage over the mindless match 3 games I love so much :). Thanks.

Great game.Combines a good challenge with nice graphics.My old eyes are happy that it's full screen too. Thanks a lot!

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

I know what you mean about old eyes. I have to have three pairs of glasses now, one for long distance, one for reading and one for monitor work.

I have a bit of trouble seeing which tile is under the ice, so it takes a bit of extra work to see what's happening there.

The ongoing goal in the game is to collect gold so you can build the structures. I'd like it if there was something I could do in a level to increase the amount of gold earned that level. It's always a constant: 50*the number of tiles. If I do it quickly, or with less moves - it doesn't matter.

I like the spinning of the board. Sometimes you can plan it to get a free mini-shuffle, or you can use it to have the bombs travel towards your remaining tile; or put the remaining tiles at the top to get better mix-up after each match.

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

Thanks for the feedback and suggestions. Earning extra gold is a good idea. Makes the village building less predictable. :)

This game IS available on the freebie circuit. It's available on GameTop.

One other note, Stephen. You still list FreeGamePick in your list of what I call the Freebie Circuit. I dropped them months ago because their install downloads change over time depending on how long you've had the file. Sometimes it installs a version that refuses to play until you install a toolbar. Kinda funny when the original install had no note of toolbar. They also refuse to respond to emails. They were determined to be no longer a reliable or satisfactory site.

However, I have added MyRealGames to my list of sites and to the Freebie Circuit so I still have 4 sites that I track.

Downloading from GameTop is not a real problem and it's only drawback is the tendancy to open your default browser upon closing the game but it is circumventable if you just look carefully at the install folder. I do have to say "Make New Folder" when I install to my own location instead of it's default of Program Files (x86) or it puts it at the root GameTop level instead of a sub-folder.

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Thanks for the info Diane, I've not downloaded anything from FreeGamePick in a couple of years and didn't check Gametop today. Good to know that if someone misses today's game they can still get it. Surprised neither MyPlayCity or TooMky Games don't have it. Do you know whether Jenkat Games is safe to download from yet?

Every once in a while I download this game off one of the freebie sites and play it. It isn't my usual HOG genre so I am always looking out for whether or not the game I'm playing can continue appealing to my interest level (doesn't help to have ADHD). The mix of a match 3 with building up a city (Heroes of Hellas is a series I play a lot)is appealing but only in this game or games like it, I am not a fan of TM or SIMS and this isn't one thankfully. I found the graphics are polished very pleasant to view; at the start it appears this is a game aimed at women or having a female touch but, it isn't overtly female minded (from a male's perspective) like some other Match 3's I've played (Season Match comes to mind, it uses jewels and is a story around Snow Queen's tantrum over having broken her mirror as if all women cared for such things). I haven't had any hiccups playing on my Win 7 or 10. Since formatting my hard drive (long story), I don't have the game installed, so I will be partaking in the download today. Thanks GGOTD. Happy New Year to you and yours Whiterabbit.

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

Thanks for your feedback Deborah. I hope you have a pleasant and successful year as well. :)

Hallo strickliezel

Wie Whitherabbit schon geschrieben hat: Es kann vorkommen, dass du dein Virenprogramm kurz ausschalten musst, damit das Spiel aktiviert werden kann. Der Themida-Wrapper (von manchen vehement als Schadsoftware bezeichnet) wird oft als falscher Alarm erkannt, da er gewisse Gemeinsamkeiten mit Viren aufweist. Er ist jedoch nicht gefährlich, sondern dazu da, dass das Spiel nur im bestimmten Zeitraum aktivieren kannst.

Ich habe hier schon viele Spiele herunter geladen und noch NIE etwas schädliches herunter geladen. Versuch es bitte.

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Vielen Dank für Ihre Unterstützung Anu :)

Download and installation without a problem and fast on Win10.

Beautiful game - very nice to be able to choose different languages and a relaxed mode. Also nice you can choose between 3 match-3 variations to solve the levels.
The graphics are beautiful.

The changing between the screens is a bit long - when you see the Geisha - but nothing bad.

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

Thanks for your feedback :)

"add a large dose of strategy to the game instead of usually relying on luck" that part adds dimension to this time worn genre. Challenge mode requiring total board scanning-thinking could be worth a try but especially like the untimed option. Thanks for lengthy solid review.

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Thanks, it's rare that I've enjoyed playing a giveaway so much, and enjoyed writing the review as well :)

I agree with you " a little gem of a game "

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:)

Match 3 is my favorite genre of game. And this one is VERY enjoyable!! It was quite a shock to see that when matches were made, sometimes the tiles did not get refilled with an object! Love the shuffle option which actually rotates the board instead of just rearranging the objects! And I love that we can switch which way to make the match - swapping objects or by choosing contiguous objects.
This game is definitely a keeper!

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:)

I love this game! I've never heard of it before, but it has everything I enjoy in a match 3 game:
it's HARD from level 1, there's a non-relaxed mode, the music is soothing, and there are twists that make it more interesting. I love being able to rotate the board when I'm stuck, I love being able to choose what kind of match 3 mode to play.... I love absolutely everything about this game! I tried really hard to come up with something to tell the developers I'd like improved... and there's really nothing! Thanks for a great game!

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:)

Very nice game. I like the change in the tiles. colorful, good graphics, smooth play. It's cool that they let you choose your match style. That bombs are free spots in connect3 mode is fun. No complaints or suggestions yet :-)

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:)

ich erhalte beim installieren den hinweis: failed to launch the programm.

.................................Moderator Kommentar......................................

Hallo strickliezel , die Spieldateien enthalten eine Themida basierend Wrapper, der häufig als Bedrohung von einigen Anti-Malware- Suiten zu sehen ist , weil Themida Code kann auch verwendet werden , um Malware zu verstecken werden kann ; aber in diesem Fall ist der Schutz der Spiel ausführbare Datei aus , die von skrupellosen Community-Mitglieder gehackt.

Um das Spiel zu installieren, müssen Sie möglicherweise vorübergehend deaktivieren Sie Ihre Sicherheitssoftware.

Bonjour,
Quelle bonne surprise de trouver le choix de la langue dans les options...
Pour ceux qui voudraient jouer en français...rien de plus simple : Options choix de la langue.

Quelle joie de trouver ce jeu aujourd'hui car j'avais joué en anglais sur une démo.
Ce que j'aime :
Le choix des 3 modes de jeu (match3, chaines, explosif), du mode "détente" et du mode "défi", de l'originalité de pouvoir tourner le plateau de jeu. Tout cela dans un mode aventure qui permet d'avoir une progression visible dans le jeu par la construction d'un village et de ses ressources.
En bref j'aime :
pouvoir jouer en mode "détente" et changer le mode de jeu
ou
jouer en mode "DEFI" et avoir tout le temps de réfléchir au coup que l'on va jouer pour atteindre les objectifs.

De plus les graphiques sont agréables et dépaysants.
Je joue beaucoup aux jeux d'objets cachés et de match3 et celui-ci est un de ceux que je vais garder le plus longtemps possible.

Merci GAOTD et GreenSauceGame


Hello,
What a surprise to find the choice of language in the options ...
For those who would like to play in French ... nothing easier: Options choice of language.

What a joy to find this game today because I played a demo in English.
What I like :
The choice of 3 game modes (match3, channels, explosive), mode "relax" mode and "challenge", originality can rotate the game board. All this in an adventure mode that allows for a visible progress in the game by building a village and its resources.
In short I like:
to play in "relax" and change the game mode
or
playing in "CHALLENGE" and have all the time to think about the shot that we will play in achieving the goals.

Also the graphics are pleasant and scenic in.
I play a lot of games and hidden objects match3 and this is one of those that I will keep as long as possible.

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

Thank you for your feedback bricolou. I think this is actually a little gem of a game. I'm surprised that after 6 hours live we only have my review plus 2 comments. hopefully we will see more comments later in the day. Who knows, maybe everyone is so engrossed ......... lol

Looks like an enjoyable game to spend some time with puzzling it out. Downloaded quickly and without any hiccups on my Win 10 pc.

Thank you for what looks to be a keeper!

Tales of the Orient: The Rising Sun:

In Brief:


Tales of the Orient: The Rising Sun is a decent match three game with three modes of play, two difficulty levels, a small dose of simulation as well as some unusual features I've not seen in a match three before that add a large dose of strategy to the game instead of usually relying on luck. The game was donated by Immanitas Entertainment.

Installation:

Tales of the Orient: The Rising Sun downloads to a 58.7 MB zip file that unpacks to a read me and a wrapped setup activation file (the orange colored file with the key symbol), plus there's a setup file with security (setup.gcd) that's protected from being hacked. This file may case some security software to alert the user to a possible malware attack, but it will be a false positive. The game giveaway team check all game giveaways 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 installed game is 141 MB in size and is installed via the following path.

C:\Games\TalesOfTheOrientTheRisingSun_Game


There is no desktop shortcut installed, so you will need to create one yourself. Once installed you can delete the giveaway setup files. I've only tested the game on Win 8.1 and Win 10 and it works on both platforms.

Introduction:

Travel to the Edo period in Japan and help Satsu and Miyamoto in an epic adventure to preserve ancient Japan. Prove your skills in Challenge mode with limited moves. Experience the excitement of building an ancient Japanese village in this engaging Match 3 game. See the beautiful scenery while listening to relaxing music inspired by this period in Japanese history. Dive into an epic story of honor and courage and help a Geisha and a Samurai save the day in Tales of the Orient: The Rising Sun!

Reference accessed HERE 9th Jan 2016







Reviews:


You can see some Big Fish mini reviews of Tales of the Orient: The Rising Sun HERE and forum discussions HERE.

The Game:

From the options menu you can choose to play either in a relaxed mode or a challenge mode. Neither mode is timed, instead the challenge mode has a limited number of moves. As you progress through the levels they get progressively harder, however so long as you complete certain tasks you are awarded extra moves, though these moves are kept separate. When the main moves indicator shows that you have run out of moves a message box will open up saying 'you have run out of moves'. You will then be asked if you want to use any of the extra moves you've earned. You can use these in increments of 5. You can ignore the number of moves when playing in relaxed mode, take as many moves as you wish :) When playing in challenge mode you can see how many moves you have left at any time via the counter at the bottom middle of the playing field. It is sandwiched in between the 4 task indicators. The extra moves are earned by completing the various building projects that appear throughout the game. to complete a building project you need to have earned enough gold to pay for the project, for example to build the Geisha Temple you need 4100 pieces of gold. Gold is earned by destroying the gold tiles in each level. The more projects you complete the more extra moves you can earn. You can also select to have hints and/or help messages appear during game, usually when something new is introduced. Unless you are an aficionado of match three games, I'd keep the hints and help checked as there are a few new innovations included with this game for example the shuffle and the rotate (actually the Montezuma match 3 games include a shuffle button as well), as well as various power-ups. The rotate button (there are two, one for clockwise and one for anti-clockwise) can be used as many times as you wish, when you wish, whereas the shuffle needs to recharge each time it's used. You will need to use both of these functions frequently due to the size and shapes of the levels you will encounter. There is no penalties for using either of these tools. :)

There are several language options available with this game, these include English, French, Russian, German, Polish, Czech and Portuguese. (Yeah!)

There are three match modes:

Swap - create matches of 3 or more items of the same type by swapping adjacent tiles

Chain - create matches of 3 or more items of the same type by clicking and dragging your mouse over adjacent tiles

Pop - create matches of 3 or more items of the same type by clicking on groups of tokens

Each level is preceded by a task window that lists the various tasks you must complete to finish the level. Each level will have four tasks to complete for example in level 1 you need to match 15 bonsai, 15 scrolls, 15 geisha's and collect 28 gold tiles, whereas in later levels there will be other tasks such as destroying crates or collecting other token types. During game play you can rotate the board to fill empty tiles by clicking on the green leafy arrow to the top right of the game field. You can also shuffle the tiles on the board using the shuffle feature located just above the rotate arrow. Both of these functions are useful for creating new matches, and for various strategies (e.g. moving bombs to a better position for optimum destructiveness)

There are four main power-ups available in game; these can be found to the left of the playing field. The first to be unlocked is the Katana, which is unlocked at level 2 and enables you to destroy one tile of your choice. The second to be unlocked is the Shuriken, which destroys five random tiles on the board. The third power up is called the Kunai power up which will destroy all tiles on a chosen row and the fourth power-up is called Dragon's Breath which destroys all tiles on a chosen column and row. The power-ups are unlocked by building the various buildings (e.g. sawmill and geisha temple) and other amenities such as the well. To be able to use the four main power-ups you have to charge them up by creating a specific number of matches that fill an indicator located next to the power up symbol with the number of tiles (tokens) of a particular type destroyed. Once you have filled the indicator it will disappear and the power-up symbol will glow slightly to indicate that it can be used. Once charged to use the power -up select the tile or tiles you want destroyed, the only one that has no need of selection is the shuriken. There's also another power-up called the bomb that is created whenever you create a match of five or more (easier to create when playing in Pop mode); however, no bomb will be created when when creating matches of 5 or more where obstructive blocks such as ice packs are included. The bomb will appear at the point where you select the match three. Inside the bomb you should see a pattern, this indicates the bombs destructiveness, i.e. a cross will destroy two tiles to the top and bottom of the bomb and the two tiles to the left and right of the bomb as well as the tile where the bomb is placed. As yet I've not progressed far enough in the game to see if there are different patterns of destructiveness or even different types of match made power-ups.

As you progress through the levels you will rebuild the destroyed village starting with a saw mill and later other essential buildings and amenities such as a water well. Each of these items requires gold to purchase. This is obtained by destroying the gold tiles that can be found underneath the various tokens. Also new tiles such as the crate will be introduced. These tiles can be destroyed by creating a match of three or more next to it.

Video and Slideshow:

You’ll find videos of game play HERE, HERE and HERE.

You can also see a large selection of screen captures (59) showing various hints and help comments as well as levels as a slideshow HERE. The images are in no particular order.



System Requirements:


OS: Windows XP/Windows Vista/Windows 7/Windows 8
CPU: 1.0 GHz
RAM: 1024 MB
DirectX: 9.0
Hard Drive: 87 MB


Conclusion:

A decent match three with some new features I've either not seen or only seen in a few games of this genre (e.g. shuffle and rotate), plus you can play this game in three different modes, which adds a lot of replayability to this game. The challenge mode can get really difficult in later levels due to the number of moves you can make, thankfully extra moves are awarded by attaining the tasks. The graphics are okay, though not the best I've seen in a match three. The audio is pleasant and doesn't distract from the game.

What I liked about this game was the strategies you had to employ to manage to complete a level in Challenge mode. With a limited number of moves you really do need to consider all available moves so as to complete all of the tasks. The only downside for me was if you ended a level before it was finished, the next time you started the game up you had to start from the beginning of that level, otherwise I found this game one of the most entertaining match threes I've played in quite some time.

Scoring

Game play: 8
Graphics: 7.5
Audio: 7.5
Replayability: 8
Originality: 7.5
Fun Factor: 8

Total = 46.5 out of 60 which equals 7.75 out of 10.

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

Problems:


If you have any problems installing or getting Tales of the Orient: The Rising Sun 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 giveaway 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 today's 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 (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 and Toomky Games is highly recommended. Unfortunately todays game isn't available from any of the free game sites that I check out.






If you do download any games from these 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 and yet more 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. :)


As always, you download from those free game sites at your own risk. The gamegiveaway site is the safest site I know of where you can get free software and games. (BitsduJour is also great for free applications). 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 are 279 games on sale this week, with a new batch of games to come on monday. you can find all of the games on sale HERE. I won't bother listing any of the games, but it should be worth visiting as there are games for all tastes. Of course you do need to install the Steam client, but IMO it is well worth it. There are lots of free games (not just free to play online games) available plus there are always games on sale.



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:

Toomky Games
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 The Dwarf Run

The Dwarf Run is an old-fashioned RPG with elements of point-n-click adventure.

The story tells of an expedition to the ancient underworld temple undertaken by young dwarf Dalain Stonecruncher with party of friends and numerous adventures that followed.

Dalain, Zenn, Ionor, and Barbados are about to meet the strangest beings, join the rebellion, investigate conspiracies, defeat the most powerful of demons, become champions of the arena, and even travel into space.

The Game Features
* Linear story line full of humor and unexpected twists and turns
* Manual and automatic control of turn-based battles
* Original rule set that makes leveling a challenging and interesting task
* Point-n-click adventuring with light inventory-based puzzles
* Choice of cinematic, top-down and third person views
* Range of individually balanced difficulty modes
* 15 hours of game play, 100 enemy types, 140 unique items, and one ending

And there is no
* Cutting edge bloomy graphics
* Scaling of enemy levels
* Abstract puzzle solving
* Level cap

You can get the game for $1; pay over the average to get a bonus pack for the game. (The price at the time of writing was $1.57). The game includes a Steam code as well as a drm free download.


The deal ends Monday 28th Dec 2015 5am (GMT)



The latest DIG game is Nightmares from the Deep 3: Davy Jones

Nightmares form the Deep 3: Davy Jones - get ready for the final chapter of the epic pirate trilogy! Become a fearless museum custodian Sara Black to face your greatest enemy, the legendary pirate Davy Jones. Discover his greatest secret and save your daughter!

After a series of mysterious notes give Sara the evidence she needs to prove to the world the existence of the historical figure of Davy Jones, she calls a press conference to reveal what she has learned; that both Davy Jones and his mythical treasure are real, hidden away on a cursed island.

Suddenly Davy Jones’s sails appear on the horizon, and the undead pirate enters the museum to kidnap Sara and her daughter.

They are taken to the hold of Jones’s ship. In order to save her mother, Corey Black agrees to sign a dark pact with the Sea Devil himself…

Sara Black must face her hardest task yet: in order to save her daughter from the soul-stealing pact with Davy Jones, she must find a way to cancel it.

Will she succeed? Who is the voodoo witch who lives on the cursed island? Or the brilliant alchemist? Why does the ghost of a beautiful young girl roam Davy Jones’s island, and what is her connection to the legend?

Pay £0.99 for the game or you can get two keys if you pay more than the average of $0.99 (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 47, 48, 49 & 50, reBundle 9 and DIG Greenlight Bundle 3 ). You get Steam keys for all of these games apart from the DIG GreelightBundle. If any of those games are added to the Steam store you will get a Steam key, in the mean time, you can download DRM free copies.
The single game deal ends just after Midnight Monday 11th Jan 2016 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)

FREE GAME:

The free game from Origin is Jade Empire: Special Edition (Highly Recommended).

Step into the role of an aspiring martial-arts master and follow the path of the open palm or the closed fist. In this multi-award-winning action-RPG, your choices and actions will determine the fate of the entire Jade Empire. Will you prevent the destruction of this beautiful land, or will you crush it beneath your heel? Are you a warrior who uses his strength and fighting mastery to bring peace, or will you instead use your power to bring pain and ruin?
The choice is yours.

Game Features:


The Original Award Winning Jade Empire
An incredible, engaging story that makes you the noble hero or the treacherous villain!
A wealth of fascinating characters to interact with.
Beautiful, mysterious lands to explore, discover, and save...or conquer.
A rich blend of role-playing and exciting real-time combat.
New monsters and enemies.
New fighting styles.
Customizable, intuitive controls including support for game-pads and keyboard/mouse.
Increased graphics resolutions and new visual effects.
Improved combat AI and difficulty levels.
New world map interface.

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

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