I'm a big fan of shopping. Whether it's from my computer or walking around an overcrowded pavilion that smells like fast food, I get a big kick out of it. This obviously makes me qualified to build a mall, and why not? I like shopping and it would be cool to own my own mall. I decided to try out my entrepreneurial skills by checking out Mall-a-Palooza, a time management game for the PC where you attempt to build malls to turn the maximum amount of profit.

The concept is simple - you're a mall manager who's been hired by some mall owners to turn each shopping center around to turn a profit. There are eight stages of four levels each, all of which have a different time limit. In each stage, you must build different stores in the empty spaces to create the most lucrative mall possible in the time provided. This means meeting anywhere from two to four goals, which I'll go over later. There are a bunch of different categories including clothing, electronics, music, books, toys and arcades, each with different brands of stores that you can build. As the game progresses, you unlock more of these franchises to build bigger stores that require more upkeep but net you a much bigger profit. Stores get a star rating depending on the appropriateness of its employee, the number of upgrades you give it, whether it's the first store of its kind that you built and whether it's next to another store of the same type. The combined star ratings of the stores add to the daily profit and the overall rating of the mall. Higher ratings means more profit, which is good for you because then you make more money.

As I mentioned, each level has a number of goals that need to be completed. That means owning a certain number of stores, making a certain amount of money or getting a certain star rating either on the mall or the stores that you own, making you play a bit differently for every level. The game gets more complicated when a few tweaks get introduced. You're forced to hire janitors to clean up after the customers, repairmen to fix up shops that have problems and security guards to deter shoplifters. Hiring a staff keeps your profits up and increases your mall's level of cleanliness. Other tweaks include building a bank and ATMs to save up some extra cash, decorations to increase the appeal of your mall, limited events that will increase traffic (and profits) and a movie theater that will give you some extra capitol in return for purchasing movie rights.

The game is obviously very well thought out and incredibly intuitive in terms of gameplay. It's very much a watered down version of a military real-time strategy game with a very limited scope. The fact that you're controlling a few resources makes the game super casual in a good way, making the player feel relaxed as they go through and makes you feel a real sense of accomplishment when you complete a goal by the expert time limit. When you finish each stage, you unlock a bonus level where you can play the game however you want for that stage. However, that's not to say the game is without its flaws.

While you are able to replay every level to get an expert rating, I found myself only wanting to press on to see what else there was in this game. I actually completed the main story in less than a few hours, and don't really feel the need to go back and play any of these levels again. Once you figure out the tricks to the game, it begins to feel much more tedious and repetitive. The tweaks included, while fun, are not really enough to keep anyone less than the dedicated casual gamer interested for more than a few play sessions. However, at a $6.99 price point, I can't really complain. The game gave me more than two hours of entertainment which is much more than I would get had I gone to a movie in the theaters.

If you enjoy SimCity or even just want a game to take your mind off of something for a few hours, Mall-a-Palooza is a nice distraction, but leaves the player wanting for more. Despite an excellent level and gameplay design, this game only scratches the surface of what it could be. If there is a sequel, I'll definitely play it, but it's difficult for me to recommend the game in its current state. For those looking for a $6.99 distraction, it fulfils that job very well.

PROS

- Great gameplay and level design
- Fun tweaks in the main game make it fresh

CONS

- Too short
- Not enough replay value