As I sit here drinking a cool refreshing Dr. Pepper™, typing on a Dell™ computer with an Intel™ Pentium™ Processor, I check my Omega™ sports watch and realize it's time for another edition of the JayIsGames™ Vault™. (Lets all pause a second to have a hunger-satisfying Snickers™ and to lace up our Reeboks™) This week, we feature three of the best advergames from our archives. If only all commercials could be this fun!
- RSVP - Admittedly I haven't watched much Lifetime TV since they cancelled Supermarket Sweep... though I think I saw the movie they did about the dangers of casual-gaming addiction. It must not have taken, since I still can't tear myself away from This Is Pop's RSVP. The party-planning show it was created to hock is long gone from the airwaves, and so we are left with one of the best card games ever put on the web. The retro visuals and classic gameplay could fool you into thinking this game was invented in the Nineteen-Fifties rather than the Twenty-Aughties and the easy-to-learn mechanics makes for a excellent difficulty curve. Planning a seating chart has never been more enjoyable!
- Jack the Groove - John Moore once said "It's practically impossible to look at a penguin and feel angry". Well, give that penguin some friends, a hat and a Hawaiian shirt, and it's practically impossible to not have a good game. Jack the Groove, also known as The Malibu 9 Rescues Mr. Malibu (and 6/9 of the Deepfried Posse), is a rhythm platformer that makes me smiley. Is it the techno soundtrack? Is it the surreal landscapes and enemies? Is it the flamingo in a sombrero? I don't know, I just love it. I doubt I'll ever get to Club Malibu, it being in Sweden and possibly no longer in existence. Still, this game definitely deserves a round on the house.
- Telescope Game - Dyson... maker of quality home appliances and, apparently, quality simple idea puzzle games. I suppose Telescope Game makes for a poor vacuum advertisement since it doesn't suck at all. It's a game of push and pull as you use the power of telescopic extension to move a silver ball into the hole. Sadly, as far as I can tell, some of the level packs once available have disappeared from the Dyson site. However, the 25+ levels still up are more than enough to tease your brain for a half hour. Also, while you're there, those interested in action-based vacuum-shilling fun should check out Dyson's Ball Game.
While we welcome any comments about this weekly feature here, we do ask that if you need any help with the individual games, please post your questions on that game's review page. Well, what are you waiting for? Get out there and rediscover some awesome!
More great picks, Jack the Groove and Telescope are highly memorable games. It made Dyson a household name way before they became known for their vacuum cleaners.
So adverputt wasn't old enough to be entered here?
[We select only 3 games from the Vault each week. -Jay]
Oh dear! I had forgotten about RSVP. I can't leave it alone!
I remember playing both RSVP and Telescope back when they were new...really drives home how long I've been following this site. :-)
For the next advergame themed Vault, I'd propose Breaking Bad (https://jayisgames.com/archives/2010/05/breaking_bad_the_interrogation.php). It was fun, solidly made and actually did perfectly it's intended job; before playing it, I didn't have much knowledge at all about series, but fun game made me get interested and now I'm a devotee..
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