Release: Fall 2006
Pros:
- Humorous situations
- High replay value
- PDA to keep track of deadlines
Cons:
- No Windowed Mode
- 24 Hour Clock (can be hard to remember 4 PM = 16:00)
"Ciao Bella" Features
- 13 levels, each giving you specific tasks to complete.
- Manage Elena's personal and professional lives, while keeping her well-fed and healthy.
- Find the right balance of taking care of motives (eating, sleep), while trying to make Elena's family happy.
- Solve problems at work for Elena.
- Go shopping for Elena's date requirements and for gifts for friends and family.
- Win over Elio and get married.
- Buy items and have the required levels (health, culture, family, work, etc) to impress Elio at their weekly date.
"Ciao Bella" Review
You have 13 weeks (or 13 levels) to capture Elio's heart. Elena will go on one date per week with Elio and have to be at her best, and sometimes have purchased certain items, like a dress. During the week Elena has to maintain her health, eat 3 times a day, and make sure to sleep enough, while making sure the work done and her family's problems are solved.
The game is played by choosing options given to you at which ever location Elena is at. At home the options include eating, sleeping, reading, watching tv, cleaning, and visiting the family business (the cafe). It's a similar setup for the rest of the locations, you'll have to deal including the gym, church, the mall, and Elena's job at her Uncle's construction company. Navigating through the places of Elena's life is easy to learn. Point, click, and your own your way!
One thing "Ciao Bella" doesn't lack is variety or laughs. The situations are so ridiculous (I mean really, the family does nothing for themselves). Chances are you first run through you won't play through it perfectly. The replay value is there - even if most of the replaying I did was the same week over and over again.
"Ciao Bella" is not a substitute for a life sim with plenty of depth like "The Sims." You only play Elena and get only 13 levels. Those 13 levels are loaded with hours of playing time, as you repeat and repeat trying to find just the right combination of activities or the "key" that unlocks the problem. Like I mentioned before, beseeching takes care of many money problems. "Ciao Bella" has enough levels, range of situations, and problem solving to make it a must-have for casual gamers.
