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Wedding Dash 4-Ever
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Graphics & Sound:
Anyone who knows me knows that I love my Dash games. Diner Dash, Hotel Dash, Wedding Dash - you name it, I typically love it. Sadly, that wasn't the case with Wedding Dash 4-Ever. I didn't hate it, I just wasn't as crazy about it, but more on that later.
As far as the artistic style of Wedding Dash 4-Ever, it is both the same and different than previous versions. The same happy and bright colors adorn each level, whether you are throwing a wedding in a greenhouse, a tree house, a Japanese garden, a wine vineyard, or even a lover's promenade. Quinn just looks very different in the animated comic storyline parts. I can't put me finger on it, but her face just looks wrong.
As far as sound effects and background music is concerned, it's all good. You'll hear dishes clanking as food is prepared and served, chatter when guests use the microphone to offer best wishes, the occasional dog barking (yeah, I've never heard of that at a wedding before either) and dancing music once the guests begin hitting the dance floor. Of course, you'll also hear the guests expressing their dismay if you aren't quick enough, so get used to that. |
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Gameplay:
So here's the rundown: Quinn's mom, a former Miss Texas herself, has it in her head that Quinn and her (former) boyfriend, Joe are getting married and Mom aims to do the event up in grand style. The catch is that Quinn and Joe aren't together anymore, but Quinn can't seem to tell her over-excited Mom the truth. Plus, her Mom has some great ideas about fantastic venues for the weddings Quinn is planning, so she lets her do her thing for a while, with Flo shaking her head at Quinn the whole while.
Just as in Wedding Dash, in Wedding Dash 4-Ever, Quinn's job is to plan the perfect wedding and make sure things go off without a hitch, so to speak. That means making sure the guests and the happy couple stay happy. However, they've taken out the part of the game where you listen to the couple's requests for their wedding and select the menu, flowers, cake and venue. I really enjoyed this part and was quite sorry to see it go. Instead, you'll see a snippet about the couple and based on their style/occupation/tendencies, you'll have a mini-game within the wedding ceremony going on. Maybe the groom is a florist and his vases have gone missing. Maybe the couple wants a cell phone-free wedding and you have to round up the cell phones. Regardless, there's always some hidden object sub-game within a level and while you aren't penalized for not finding all of the extra items hidden about, if you do, the couple will give Quinn a gift. If and when Quinn obtains a gift from each couple in the 50 levels she'll have to get through, it'll be time for her big day, and then what will she say to her Mom?
Aside from this, you'll be tasked with a number of things that are both familiar and foreign to the world of Wedding Dash. The player controls both Flo and Quinn for different tasks throughout the reception. Flo will need to seat guests at the tables they prefer, serve them their appetizer, main course and wedding cake upon request, move the Bride and Groom to either the table of their choice or next to the guest of their choice, and finally, drag each guest to the dance floor upon completion of their meal. Quinn will be responsible for avoiding disasters like falling bridal decorations, a guest who goes into a crying fit when she loses her dog, stopping a guest from spraying too much perfume, waking up a sleeping elderly guest or even escorting a wedding crasher to the exit. She'll also have to restock the food items when Flo needs them faster than the cook can prepare them, she'll take photos of the guests and the happy couple, and also tote the microphone to those guests wanting to give a toast. While I liked that they were trying to come up with new and creative disasters and things for Quinn and Flo to do, I didn't like the tediousness of some of the tasks. Why should I have to drag someone to the dance floor after they've finished eating? This seemed stupid and illogical to me. Why allow someone to bring a dog to a wedding, then when the dog starts barking and the woman starts crying, you can't simply grab the dog and drop him back into her lap. First, Quinn must solace the woman, and then and only then can she drop the dog off. This seemed like a way to intentionally slow down the player. Also, there were points when the Bride or Groom wanted to sit next to someone who was already out on the dance floor. If you previously missed your opportunity to seat them where they wanted, they will just fume until the ceremony ends. Sometimes I felt damned if you do and damned if you don't. Finally, one task that really irked me was an elderly and forgetful guest who didn't ask for his food items. You simply had to remember to go offer food to him and remember which item he was waiting for or face his ire. Again, extending the gameplay but not in a fun way doesn't work for me.
In addition to the typical levels in Wedding Dash 4-Ever, you'll also have Conga Lines and Seating Arrangement levels in the mix. The Conga Line levels are pretty quick and are really just a puzzle. You'll have Quinn at one end of the room and the Bride and Groom at another end; Quinn must click on the guests that are within a straight shot from her to add them to the conga line. The goal is to get everyone in the line, but you can still succeed on the level without getting every single person. At first, it's fairly easy, but in later levels they give you multiple choices of people to select and you need to think the entire line through to succeed. Seating Arrangement levels consist of a large group of people and depending on their preferences, you seat them on either the Groom or the Bride's side. They might want to sit in a specific row or next to a particular person, and they may or may not specify pink or blue for the Bride or Groom. |
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Difficulty:
You can select to begin Wedding Dash 4-Ever on either the Casual setting or the Firecracker setting. For a good portion of the game, they are identical, however when Firecracker is selected, certain levels are deemed Firecracker levels and they are considerably harder than the regular ones. The guests are more demanding and the monetary goal is a good bit higher, so you have double trouble. If you want a typical Wedding Dash experience, I suggest the Casual setting, but if you find yourself getting bored, you can always change to Firecracker in between levels.
As I mentioned earlier, I found certain aspects of Wedding Dash 4-Ever to be tedious and difficult, not because they offered more exciting challenge, but more because they were difficult just for the sake of being difficult. I'm never a fan of a game who extends it's gameplay by throwing more kinks in the works - especially kinks that don't make logical sense like needing to physically drag people to the dance floor - instead of finding more clever ways to stump a player. |
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Game Mechanics:
Your mouse is your friend in Wedding Dash 4-Ever. Everything will be done with the mouse and it's an easy game to get the hang of. You will left mouse click to select a guest to seat and drop them where you want them, then click on them to take their present and drop it off at the gift table, deliver their food items to them at the appropriate times, drag them to the dance floor when they are finished eating, and address any other needs that arise, like falling wedding decorations, the need for a microphone to give a toast, the desire to take their picture with the Bride and Groom, etc.
To make things a little easier, you can purchase upgrades in between each level, assuming you have enough money, which you earn by pleasing the couple. You can get speed upgrades for Quinn, Flo and the cook, you can upgrade the food items so Flo can pick up more at a time, and you can buy decorations and seating that will make guests more patient, whether they are waiting in line or at their seat. However, for me, even when I had maxed out my upgrades, I still found certain aspects of the game to be tedious and not enjoyable. There are a number of Dash games that I go back to regularly, just to kill time when I am on the phone, etc. Hotel Dash is a prime example. But I honestly can't see myself going back to Wedding Dash 4-Ever because it just isn't fun after the initial few levels. It's merely more of the same stuff and just feels hum-drum. If you are a Dash fan, you should try the demo before you buy, although an hour may not give you enough time to make a true determination, but it's a start. |
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-Psibabe, GameVortex Communications AKA Ashley Perkins |
Minimum System Requirements:
OS: Windows XP/Vista; CPU: 1.2 GHz; RAM: 256 MB; DirectX: 9.0; Hard Drive: 45 MB |
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Test System:
Windows Vista, 2 GHz AMD Phenom 9500 Quad-Core Processor, 8GB RAM, Realtek High Definition Audio On-Board Sound, NVIDIA GeForce 8300 |
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