Pros: Simple and fun gameplay, easy to learn, highly addictive, plenty of challenge...
Cons: ...some levels are quite difficult (though still beatable)
The Bottom Line: Diner Dash 2 is an excellent game, but Playfirst has already released the third game in the series. I'm looking forward to another bout of addiction.
donkee's Full Review: Diner Dash 2: Restaurant Rescue for Windows, Mac
About a year ago I fell in love with a little game called Diner Dash. Every once in a while I'd go through a "Diner Dash spurt" when I'd play the game non-stop until I completed all the levels. Though I was more than content with the original game, I was beyond thrilled to find out that the creators of the game had made a sequel, Diner Dash 2: Restaurant Rescue.
Though I believed the original game couldn't be improved upon, Diner Dash 2 proves to be even better than the first game. Challenging levels, new customer types, and more obstacles have made the game into another one of my favorites.
Plot/Story
After successfully opening five of her own restaurants, Flo is back in action as she helps four of her friends save their own restaurants from being destroyed by a greedy tycoon, Mr. Big (who hopes to demolish their restaurants and replace them with a larger food plaza).
Gameplay
One of the best things about Diner Dash 2 is that the game continues in its simple format. Once again you play as Flo, and the game still has two options available: the Career Game or the Endless Shift. The Career Game begins with a tutorial (which you also have the option to skip- which wasn't available in the first game) that explains the game; the beginning of the shift starts with two customers waiting to be seated. There are also two tables, and by clicking on each customer, you can drag them to a table and "seat" them. Once they've settled in, you can hand the customers their menus and wait for them to order. After they've finished ordering it's time to take their meal tickets over to the chef and wait for him to finish cooking the meals. Then you bring the meals over to the table, wait for the customers to finish eating, leave them their checks, pick up their plates and the bill and (if you've served them well) a tip.
This new game is a bit harder than its predecessor. After the tutorial, more customers crowd the diner and you'll have to move fast to keep up with all their needs. There are also fewer tables at times, and customers will be left waiting in line, much to their dislike. You can tell how satisfied a customer is by looking at a set of heart icons about their head; a customer content with service has a full set of hearts, but once they've waited too long in line or for their check to be given, a heart will empty. Once a customer's hearts have completely emptied, they'll storm out of the restaurant- costing you a certain amount of the day’s profit.
Each level has a cash goal that you must meet in order to complete the round. By seating customers, serving them their meals, and collecting their bills and tips, you can usually earn enough money to advance to the next level. However, poor service will keep you stuck in the current level until you've done well enough to advance. Once again, you are offered upgrades and other fun options if you've done well in a level. Most times you'll be given a choice of two decor upgrades (and three if you've gotten an Expert Score) to redecorate the diner. You can pick new door frames, carpets, and even flowers or statues to give the restaurant a new look. In later levels you even have the option of hiring someone else to help you for part of the shift; a mariachi band can keep customers in line happy, while a drink server will go around to all the tables and give customers refills while you attend to whatever else needs to be done.
There are also new customer types. In addition to the teenage girls, senior citizens, and business women, there are now families and joggers (making a total of eight different customer types). Families usually come in groups of three or four and the parents always make sure to bring their crying infant with them. After seating the family, you'll want to hand them a highchair, or else the baby will cry throughout their entire meal. Other customers won't want to be seated next to them because of the child's crying, and during the meal, the children will often make spills and you'll have to rush over and mop them up. The joggers are less of a hassle; these groups of athletes have their headphones on and don't mind being seated next to noisy families or cell phone addicts- but be sure to serve them quickly because they're quite impatient.
The customers still come dressed in colors, and you'll receive bonus points for placing customers in a matching seat (i.e. a red jogger should be placed in a red seat). You can still serve drinks to customers to keep them happy, and there are also desserts (pies, cakes, ice cream, etc.) that can be served to keep everyone's hearts completely filled. A new addition to the game are appetizers like chips or onion rings, which can also be served to the customers, but only by request.
If you thought the original Diner Dash was hard, this one is much more difficult. Of course, part of the fun is running around through a shift and trying to please everyone, but after playing for a while, you'll be glad that the game isn't real. Even more customers come to the diners and the days seem to go on longer. Seating arrangements become quite tricky when there are a limited number of tables, and certain customers don't want to be seated next to others. Between filling orders, delivering meals, bringing bills, cleaning tables, handing out menus, bringing snacks and deserts, you're also expected to bring high chairs to families and clean spills. Some customers take longer to eat, which means that other customers have to wait in line longer, and you'll probably struggle through a few of the higher levels (I know I did!), but you'll eventually catch on and learn how to work your way through the game.
There are four restaurants that Flo helps save (including a Chinese food restaurant and a pizzeria), and after completing ten levels in one round, you get to move onto the next restaurant. There are over 60 levels in the game, which equals a lot of game time, and you'll still want to go back and perfect your score on levels you've already completed. There is again a secret fifth restaurant that is only opened after completing the rest of the game.
The Endless Shift mode is exactly the same as the Career Mode, however, Flo's shift never ends. The game plays as a continuous night of serving customers, and the game ends if your restaurant loses all four of the stars that it starts off with (whenever a customer leaves the restaurant unhappy, you lose a star).
Graphics
There have been no improvements on the graphics, though I don't think it would've been necessary anyway. The graphics are still very cartoon like, though there seems to be more detail. You can see exactly how a customer feels about the service by looking at their faces (if they're happy, they smile, and if they're not, you'll notice them wearing a grimace). Food still disappears from the plates as the customers eat, and you can even watch the fire flicker in the hearth in one of the later levels. The restaurants are also nicely drawn, and provide a great background for the game.
Sound Effects
The sound effects are pretty standard. The theme music for each level continues to be upbeat and jaunty (as well as appropriate for the theme; the pizzeria has Italian sounding music playing). There are also other sounds to be heard in the restaurant; the cell phone addicts blabbing on their cell phones, the babies crying, or the grumble of unhappy patrons.
Overall Diner Dash 2 is such a great game. By continuing with the simple and fun formula of the original and adding in new challenges, the game has become a minor addiction for me (and anyone else who plays it!). Children will love to try their hand at running a shift with Flo, while adults will love to fall into Flo's life as a waitress. And when the shift gets too hard, it's always great to know that the "quit" button is only a click away.
System Requirements
Windows 98/ME/2000/XP
700MHz processor
128 MB RAM
Free hard drive space: 17 MB
Sound Card
SVGA Graphics Card
Play Diner Dash 2 Here:
http://get.games.yahoo.com/proddesc;_ylt=ApZ.ssUgpDoSPD1pPZd.3fszRQt4?gamekey=dinerdash2
When Flo Was Just Working Her Own Way Up In The Restaurant Business: Diner Dash
Diner Dash 2 - Restaurant Rescue lets you join Flo as she returns from Nirvana to help four fellow restaurant owners defeat the greedy tycoon, Mr. Bi...More at J&R Music and Computer World
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