There are so many great things about this game. I love the characters, the artwork, crafting, decorating, the story, completing quests. However, the events are impossible to complete without spending real money. I know people complain about the energy costs in a lot of games. I have played a lot of different games of this kind. This is one of the best, but absolutely the worst when it comes to the energy system. I have a max energy of 76. I use the in-game things to generate more, I watch all of the ads I can. I get up to maybe 400 energy. I chop down 150 energy in rocks and bushes only to find that the path is still blocked by another 150 energy. I clear that and collect ONE of the 12 items I need to complete ONE of the quests in the event. That is so frustrating and not fun at all. If I can only log in twice a day I cannot even complete ONE quest of a 2 day event. I made the mistake of spending real money on one. I don’t mind paying a little to support a good game. I logged in several times a day, watched tons of ads. Sixteen dollars got me a few more steps in, but not even close to completing the event. Please fix this this. It really could be a five star game if the energy system was reasonable. I will not spend any more now that I know it does not help. I work hard for my money and have a budget. I just threw away my my monthly “entertainment” money for a few rocks and bushes.

It has been a pleasant surprise. I downloaded this because I was bored and happened to come across it. That said, I think it’s pretty good and I feel the pace of racking up energy isn’t bad (especially if you’re using this to fill time between tasks during the day) but I’m also spending all that energy in the events not the actual gameplay piece. The gameplay piece I’m more creating things and selling them to the merchant or order board. The events like starry realm however, are just too short of a time frame especially if you work. I was able to complete the market one at the cost of about a day on the weekend. Starry realm I managed to log on a couple times and go till I ran out of energy (about an hour) which is all I have time for in a weekday for things like this. I was really disappointed when they notified me it was over because I didn’t feel like I had a good chance at it since it was only a couple days. Definitely geared toward people who have time on their hands.

However recently the developers created a special quest that cannot be completed without spending $25 after having spent $5. $30 to complete a 5 day quest is ridiculous. You see there are these rare tools you can collect. They take forever to save up for them. After depleting all of my special tools to get more energy, I come to a place in the quest where I cannot complete the quest without spending at least $25 to unlock a required piece. This had never happened before. Customer service responded they felt bad but basically too bad for me. After taking my money to play the quest they intentionally then made the event impossible to finish. Also customer service send they sent an apology gift but did not. I am sure because this was an intentional scam on their part. This WAS my favorite game. Now it’s deleted and they will get not a penny more from me. Nor will I ever play a game from this unethical developer again! Update, I foolishly gave this game another chance. They increased the energy, but, shortened the quest period. So same investment required but now more often. Additionally, their quests have twice crashed and reset. Then they don’t return what you used or money you spent on said quest. They give you a “compensation prize” that does not cover what was spent. I have never had to report a game to Apple for fraud before but these developers are literally committing fraud. DO NOT PLAY THIS GAME!

Rating this game is such a challenge because in essence it is a five star game: fun, creative, lighthearted. I have poured hours of time, money (much to my husband’s chagrin), and energy (in game and out) into designing my estate and decorating my house into the perfect little magic escape that I love with my entire gamer heart. Unfortunately, I just can’t invest any more into a game design company that so obviously doesn’t reciprocate my respect and appreciation. With every event it becomes clearer that they are significantly more interested in making money from their consumers than providing them with a rewarding gaming experience. Despite numerous reviews and criticisms that highlight the disparity between energy cost and energy provided, each event continues to increase the first and decrease the latter, making any progress or reward out of tangible reach without spending ridiculous amounts of money. For this reason I will be saying a fond yet bittersweet farewell to this game and advise anyone thinking of downloading it not to become too attached; it’s a dead end relationship that will end with you heartbroken and destitute. Instead I recommend similar games like Sarah’s Adventures, California Escapades, and Tuscany Adventure where the affection between game and game is mutual.