My Horse Farm

Details: Category: Computer; By ccgr; 01.Jun; Hits: 10286

System Requirements Windows 98/Me/2000/Xp 500MHz CPU 128MB RAM 650MB disk space DX7 compatible sound and graphics

A horse tycoon game?

This game is ideal for any horse lover. Granted I never asked for a pony as a kid but I did play with My Little Pony toys. The goal in this game is to start and maintain a successful Horse Farm. You are given $4,000 to start with, and you must make smart business decisions to be successful. You can purchase land, buy supplies, upgrade existing facilities and hire help. Advertising is a must to bring guests to your place. You can advertise by fliers, magazine, radio and television.

Let?s get started!

To begin the game you must first create your character. You can choose the look of your character?s face, hair, clothes, etc. You also choose the gender, but I am assuming the target market is for girls. Once your character is created it?s time to get your farm going. You are given a list of objectives, many of them offer cash rewards upon completion. The objectives are gaining your horse?s trust, completing basic training, breeding your horse, generating $1500 in income in one day, and winning championships.

How do I make money?

Your farm generates money from your guests and boarding horses. To keep the money rolling in, upgrade your stables and guesthouses. Most of the structures go up to a level five and the cost of upgrading increases over time. By boarding more horses you?ll have to keep lots of feed on hand. With the upgraded guesthouses it allows more guests to stay overnight. Another thing that attracts guests is to upgrade your obstacle course, and by doing so you?ll have more guests over at once.

How do I make horses?

You are started off with one horse. In my case it was a mare. You can go to town and pay to have her bred or you can buy a breeding pasture and a stud and let nature take its course. Why it doesn?t work in a regular pasture is beyond me. Once the horses have mated (you don?t see anything just a heart with two horses), take your mare to the vet for a pregnancy test. I never thought I?d see a game with pregnancy tests in it! The mating doesn?t always take but you can try again the next day. You can also perform surgeries to make your horses infertile. My curiosity got the best of me and I checked to see if the game allowed inbreeding and it did let me breed the father and his daughter, eiiiiwwww!

Riding the horses

There are two game modes; there?s the tycoon mode and the horse-riding mode. You need to have a player/horse created in order to ride though. When riding your horse there are several factors to keep your eye on. You need to pay attention to the horse?s speed, power, endurance and trust. If your horse runs out of power your ride is over. If you fall or make the horse trip not only do you lower your horse?s health but also it?s trust in you. It?s okay to ride fast with your horse but keep an eye on the endurance and power; you can?t run on high speed all the time.

Graphics

This is the first tycoon game that I have played that?s cartoon like and not using some nifty graphics engine. It took me a while to get used to it, but it does do the job well. The interface is pretty easy to use. Everything is clear to read and you can even tell when your horse doesn?t trust you. (It won?t look at you if you enter its stall) The game?s resolution is 800x600, if the game closes/crashes unexpectedly you have to change your desktop settings back yourself.

Sound

The sound was disappointing in this game. It uses music loops in certain areas and some of the loops don?t mesh very well. The voice narration is good but I?ve had it cut out at times. The horse noises and background noises are good though.

Appropriateness

This game is rated E for everyone and I agree with that rating. The breeding is done in a tasteful manner. As far as game play goes; young and old alike can enjoy this game.

Final Thoughts

If you know someone who likes horses or tycoon games, this title would be worth looking into. The cartoon graphics may attract a younger audience but it can be fun for adults too. The sound could have been better but it doesn?t subtract from the fun at all.