I interviewed for a position with local game developer Krome Studios here in Brisbane a wee while back, and after a call to say that the position had been filled internally, I was left wondering if I would ever be able to break into the gaming industry again.
Then, the HR Manager called back about a week later out of the blue, offering me the position. Success! And then... panic stations. I felt like I had been so out of touch with the gaming industry, particularly for entertainment. I started feverishly reading through news posts and reviews to try and get back in the headspace.
Two days in, and I know that I have got some serious gaming time ahead of me.
My dive back into gaming has been more of a 'dipping of the toe in the water', with the first game I have played in ages being 'Fishdom H2O: Hidden Odyssey'. Its a popular hidden object game which I got through Big Fish; the follow up to the original bright and shiny Fishdom which was a Match 3.
I love these games. It's another Playrix special, and they have beefed up the story element. The coolest thing about this game is how easy it is to get started - there are practically zero barriers to entry. It could be a little more difficult - the only point I really felt challenged was trying to spot 50 gold items in 30 seconds, but that was basically the 'let's test your tendancy for RSI' level.
The cut scenes are nice, although you can't speed them along (I still like to read them rather than skip them completely). On the whole the look and feel is similar to Fishdom, though I prefer the new menu/tank screens and transitions to them. It's a nice touch that you can use your aquarium as a screen saver in these games - sometimes its nice to just watch the fish swim by.
I'll gradually work my way up to a current FPS - baby steps.
