New Software To Be Reviewed Review

After all of those strategy intensive games I've been playing and reviewing, it's kinda nice just to sit back and enjoy a nice, simple puzzle game.

Age of Japan is just that. All you have to do is match up at least three of any similarly shaped items. You do this by clicking on an item, and clicking on another that's immediately next to, above, or below it. You earn points for x2 and x3 items, and for combos. It's a simple, easy-to-understand game.

And it's a very beautiful puzzle game. The interface is simple - then again, it needn't be complicated for the kind of game it is. As one could guess, everything is made in a Japanese or Oriental theme. The blocks are all in the shape of Japanese and Asian items - paper fans, tea leaves, chinaware, that sort of thing.

There is only one background - a serene view of a Japanese shrine with sakura (cherry trees) in the foreground. Blossoms casually drift to the "ground" as you play.

The music is Oriental (or psuedo-Oriental), and very gentle. It gives you the sense that you can take your time playing.

And, depending on which mode you choose, you can. There are two: Arcade mode is the faster-paced, where you have to get the points you need before the clock runs out. Puzzle mode, the slower, more relaxed version, gives you a certain number of moves you can make before you lose, allowing you to plan out the best strategies to get the points you need.

Overall, this game is one of the more relaxing games I have played. If you need to relax and can't get outside, this is a good game to play.

In fact, you don't even need to buy the game - it's readily available for play all across the Internet.

But I would not choose the YoudaGames version to play because it is a poorer quality, more pixelly version of it which hardly does the makers justice. Fortunately, as I said, you can find it all across the Internet for play.

And, of course, if you like what these guys made, I would suggest you buy it so they can make more great games in the future.