Have you always wanted to be a pirate? Who doesn’t have aspirations of being the next Captain Morgan? But that is an entirely different conversation. I am here to tell you about World Cruise Story by Kairosoft (developers of Game Dev Story). Ok so maybe that was a little bit misleading, let me restart that introduction. Have you always wanted to be that brave captain from the movie Titanic with the beard, hat and everything? That is of course if you are man (or woman) enough to take the helm in the first place. In World Cruise Story that is exactly what you are going to be doing, you will be the captain of your very own cruise ship. In this casual/simulation title you get to play host to the various people who typically go on cruises, from the tired grandmother to the house-mom-on-retreat. Your goal is to attract as many people as possible while also making enough money to maintain your cruise liner that you get to name whatever you want.
Naturally, the game is a little bit slow but the effort it takes to be successful is what drives you. The whole business management aspect is not as tedious as most games and the graphics are definitely way cuter than most simulation titles. Initially you start off with about four to five visitors who you must convince to spend all of their hard earned cash at vending/lotto machines. It is hilarious because either they don’t care or they don’t realize that those machines are the only entertainment on the entire ship when you start off. Of course you can expand which, trust me, is a relief to witness because your cruiser basically transitions from an empty shell to a casino, a ballroom and so on. In turn, you don’t feel guilty about your on-board entertainment.
The UI and touch screen controls are pretty solid, not bad but definitely not great. The games have become a lot more interactive since the earlier releases. Staring at your screen for hours doesn’t feel like your staring at a screen for hours, which is a symptom of video-game-addiction. But that is OK because we are all shamelessly addicted to what we love. The best part about World Cruise Story is that there is so much to do at all times; you will always be working towards that next upgrade or ship expansion. Unfortunately for Kairosoft it seems like this formula is the only formula that they can pull off. If this is your first Kairosoft game that is completely fine and I am not saying that you will get tired of their games (yet) but just keep in mind that the game mechanics only change slightly with every release.
World Cruise Story is fresh and probably one of the better simulation games with a nautical theme to ever hit the market. The graphics are cute and fun to look at but the game can drag on at some points which probably won’t keep you up well past bed time. The price is $4.99 which is well above the comfort zone. World Cruise Story is a good game for getting your feet wet in the genre but I advise you to poke around a bit before committing.
