You know the song, "Old MacDonald has a farm"? Well, you are Old MacDonald, and there's a farm that needs tending. Farm Frenzy is a sim game of management, reflexes and making money. The premise is deceptively simple: You own a farm and have goals to meet. Meeting those goals inside the time limits is much trickier than you might think. I love working under pressure, and this game will give you that in spades. Attention to detail, resource management and forward thinking all are tested.
Each level has a goal, such as producing four powdered eggs and earning $300. Or perhaps you need a sheep, one thread and $1,000 to complete the level. And working against a timer, the sooner the chores are done and the quota is met, the better the score. This earns money and stars, both of which are needed to upgrade your buildings.
Like any farm, it has animals: ducks, sheep, cats, dogs and cows. Ducks lay eggs, sheep produce wool, a cat gathers items, dogs protect you from bears and cows give milk. The last animal is the bear, which runs around the farm kicking the animals into the sunset. Bears can be caught and sold for money. Later in the game, they aren't worth capturing, but early game, they are good money-makers.
Dogs and cats are good utility animals; they don't produce anything, but they make the farm run smoother. The cat is the better choice, as it goes about and collects the items produced by the other animals or the various workshops. I found them to be invaluable in later levels as you have many things going on and can easily miss the stray egg or bag of wool. Ducks are the big producers with sheep coming in a close second. Eggs are volume; wool is quality. Milk is a class by itself.
The farm will always have a well and a storehouse to start. Other buildings may or may not be present and might need building as you progress. The well has water, which makes grass grow, which feeds the duck, sheep and cow. To make the grass grow, you click on a space in the farm yard, and a patch of green appears. The well needs to be refilled after five uses. Eggs, wool, bears, etc. are kept in the storehouse to be sold or used in other workstations. It becomes the Grand Central Station of the farm. Having enough space always seems to be an issue, but you are able to upgrade and store more stuff. And there is always a need to store more stuff.
Buildings allow you to process goods into other goods, which make you more money. Eggs can be turned in powered eggs, which can be turned into cupcakes and then sold at the city for big bucks. Upgrading buildings is essential, allowing you to process four eggs at a time into four powered eggs into four cupcakes. Remember the mention of stars? Between levels you are allowed to buy upgrades to buildings and other items. Some of these upgrades are needed to continue, such as having a level two bakery to get the next level. This might involve replaying a previous level to earn the needed stars.
Farm Frenzy is an engaging game. I was thinking on my feet, looking for solutions and planning on what to sell or produce or buy. Should I upgrade my storehouse or hold on to the money? Do I need more ducks or less? Six ducks is a good measure to keep a level three egg solids plant and bakery in full operation. And make a little extra to sell on the side if thread or wool isn't taking up space. Pacing can get a little crazy at times, especially when you have multiple workshops going, a dozen animals, plus bears and having to sell to the city. But I liked the pressure, and the time limit was a challenge to beat. One more tip: The most obvious answer, is not often the best solution. I had to think outside the box in a few cases to slip in under the time limit.
I highly recommend Farm Frenzy as a nice way to getting some gaming time in and not worry about committing to a long session.
