Maggie’s Movies Review: Cinematic Surprises

Maggie’s Movies takes the same addictive time management formula we’ve come to know and love in recent years and brings it to the silver screen. Instead of slinging spaghetti as you might in a competing game like Delicious Emily, you’ll …

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Maggie’s Movies takes the same addictive time management formula we’ve come to know and love in recent years and brings it to the silver screen. Instead of slinging spaghetti as you might in a competing game like Delicious Emily, you’ll dole out scripts, props, movie tickets and more, all while following Maggie’s journey in the movie industry and beyond.

Maggie has a long history with the cinema. She grew up in her grandfather’s theater, sitting beside him to watch every film he ever showed. When it came time to choose a career, there was no doubt in Maggie’s mind what she wanted to do: make movies. The aptly named Maggie’s Movies kicks off with our protagonist working behind the scenes to make cinematic magic a reality. As is often the case with games of this nature, things never go quite as planned. Fortunately Maggie is both patient and persistent, willing to do whatever it takes to make her dream a reality.

Anyone who’s played a Delicious Emily, Fabulous Angela, or Heart’s Medicine title will feel right at home with Maggie’s Movies. The game shares a lot of common structural elements with these competitors, including art style and gameplay flow. You guide Maggie across 60 levels of time management frenzy, assembling goods for customers and actors, putting together snacks for patrons, or even lending a hand shooting actual movie scenes. Everything is handled through a flawless point and click interface. All you have to do is be fast and prioritize customers with low patience and you’ll do just fine.

You earn points and tips for almost every action in Maggie’s Movies, racking up extras for things like combos, full orders, and fast service. Points go towards a star ranking, but tips give you raw cash. Between levels you can spend your dough upgrading furnishings to speed things up or help keep clients patient. Each of the six themed worlds has its own set of furnishings to upgrade independently, giving you plenty of opportunity to strategize and customize.

Outside of the main loop of play, Maggie’s Movies features some extra incentives to keep you performing at your best. Achievements unlock characters in Maggie’s family theater, creating a heartfelt gallery of momentous occasions in both your and Maggie’s life. You also earn diamonds that can be used to purchase famous movie props like the legendary Excalibur or a suspiciously sort-friendly Wizard’s Hat.

Maggie’s Movies has all the heart and soul you could want from a casual game, feeding you perfectly tuned time management levels that challenge without being overwhelming. You’ll come for the click-friendly gameplay, you’ll stay to see what happens next in Maggie’s whirlwind movie career.

Maggie’s Movies is published by iWin, who also own Gamezebo. iWin did not contribute or otherwise have any input into the content of the article.

The good

  • Heartwarming story with a great cast of characters.
  • Familiar gameplay with just the right amount of originality.
  • Balanced difficulty that always keeps you alert.

The bad

  • Doesn't break the mold established by similar time management games.
100 out of 100
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