I definitely recommend Hospital Heat, for those who are new to time-management games, and those who aren't, it's a fun way to pass the time, and the story and cut scenes are a new welcome to the form! The story, this time, seems much more light-hearted than the previous installment, which is funny, since I was expecting to have my heart broken this time around, whereas in Time to Heal, I was completely blind-sided by the feelings the game made me feel. There's plenty to do, with fun minigames, sixty levels, thirty bonus levels, two hidden minigames, and a chance to refurbish your apartment, and the story manages to be witty and engaging as well. Going from that, out of Time to Heal and Hospital Heat, I do prefer Time to Heal, mostly because it seems much more polished, story wise. The graphics between the two games stayed the same (which is no problem for me, since I think the graphics are really cute), and the music as well (which I personally love), but the story this time around, as other reviewers have pointed out, focuses much more on the love triangle between Daniel, Connor, and Allison. Stemming from that, I do have a few problems with the game, centering mostly on its credibility. Now, I understand, this is a time-management PC game, and more than that, it's a fictional medical drama, so I wasn't banking on it to be super realistic in the form of its story. The amount of medical knowledge is awesome, and I really enjoy visiting all of the new hospital wards. But I did have a few problems -- mainly -- Allison somehow manages to perform brain surgery -- by herself, mind, which is dumb in of itself, since she's just an intern -- while the hospital is burning down? No smoke inhalation for her or her mother, who is getting major brain surgery done? Really? I would understand, maybe, if the fire had been further away from them, but when the camera pans out, and we see they're surrounded by fire, that's when it became a bit too much for me, and then, somehow, Daniel manages to burst through a solid wall using only an axe (I think), and practically carries two women out of the hospital, not to mention the fact that Mathilda had BRAIN SURGERY moments before? Uh, no, I don't think so. Concerning the love triangle, Allison seems perfectly happy with Connor, so it's very bizarre to see her pull a complete one-eighty when Daniel comes back around. Now I understand she's in love with him, blah blah blah, but they could have, at the very least, shown us her missing him or having some sort of doubt in her relationship with Connor, but no, she just goes from Connor to Daniel in a split second, and all because of a misunderstanding. And, if Connor really loves her as much as we're led to believe, then we're really supposed to just accept the fact that he tries to give her one rose, sees her with Daniel, and calls it quits? I don't know about that one... And then, the story sort of alludes to the fact that Allison misses Connor, so we'll probably see this storyline yet again in the next game. I love romance as much as the next gal (just look at the games I have in my library, if you don't believe me), but even I tire after seeing the same love-triangle three games in a row! Give us something new, or, at least, a new couple to squeal over. We had Sophia and Joe, but then they decided to crush everything good in this world with his death (but let's be honest, I knew he was going to die, because this is a medical drama and no two characters can be that happy and stay that happy), and the game is sort of hinting at Sophia and Chance (or, at least, Chance having feelings for Sophia), but I wouldn't mind seeing a different couple sprinkled in there, too. If you're going to push another season of Allison-Connor-Daniel, at least give us a moderately happy twosome to ship! Sometimes, the characters act like they've never seen the clichรฉs this game likes to pull. And even though the story and its plotlines are clichรฉ, the characters and the execution are charming enough to let it slide. But Sam, who is a licensed psychiatrist/therapist doesn't see the clear signs of PTSD right in front of her, and instead labels it off as anxiety? Um...okay... and then Allison comes across a crying Sophia after having learned of her pregnancy and asks "What's wrong?" GURL, what do you think is wrong?? Her husband died only months before and now she's having his baby! Also, it did bother me that Allison and the other girls couldn't see how lonely and upset Sam was every time they all came to congregate in her office. Allison, Sophia, and Ruth are all show to be kind and compassionate people (albeit, in different ways), but none of them could see how uncomfortable Sam was to have them all congregate in her office without inviting her, and how lonely she is? Jenny I get, because that's her character. She's sweet, but naรฏve, and a bit ditsy, but especially, she's a little oblivious to almost everything, I get how she couldn't really pick up on that. But the others? No. Now, Victor's disappearance did sort of irk me, since it's like he's gotten off scot-free, even though he's endangered two generations of the same hospital, and even if he died, I think that's being merciful to him and his character, because he should have to deal with the consequences of his actions, however, that's not why I'm mad. I'm mad because the game is hinting that Chance did it. Now, I may be reading too far into it, but when Chance is relaying his "dream", he smiles at the end, in a satisfied sort of way, giving me a feeling that he may have done it after all. Besides, if it wasn't important, the game wouldn't have shown it in great detail, like they had. Instead, they could have had him just casually mention that he's been having strange dreams. My problem with this is, Chance is such a level-headed and kind character, and now, suddenly, he's this deranged guy who killed somebody? I understand anybody is capable of murder when pushed too far, and maybe he wanted justice for all Victor caused, but that still rubs me the wrong way, not to mention the fact that he pushes being "relaxed" and "level-headed", so this makes him a MAJOR hypocrite. But honestly, it just feels like the writers said, "Hey, let's add some more drama by making this character we built up to be this stand-up guy to murder somebody in cold blood! That'll be cool!" and went with it. Maybe if they had shown him showing some homicidal tendencies beforehand, it could have been more believable, but at this point, I'm just annoyed. And finally, my biggest gripe with the game, Sam, or, more importantly, Sam being terrible at her job. Now, like I've said before, this game is no stranger to clichรฉs, and it has no qualms about making the most of them, so yeah, I wasn't all that surprised at Sam being a down-on-her-luck character, who falls for the vain and attractive jerk, is being bullied by a beautiful colleague, has low-self-esteem, and basically no friends. In fact, I found myself a little endeared toward her because the execution of her is downright adorable. However, SHE GAVE DANIEL UNPRESCRIBED PILLS. SHE'S A GODDAMN DOCTOR AND SHE GAVE HIM UNPRESCRIBED PILLS. ARE YOU KIDDING ME?! First, she fails to see that he has PTSD after he saved two people from a burning hospital, an honest mistake, but then she just gives him pills she always carries around? I just. I CANNOT with this. I'm not a doctor, nor will I ever be, but even I know that you don't give someone pills they haven't been prescribed to by a doctor. You could say this is a rookie mistake, especially because Sam is so quiet and nervous, hence the anxiety pills in the first place, but she seems fairly competent at her job (for most of the game, at least), and then this happens. I'm just at a loss for how the writers thought this was a good idea to just sneak in there. My God.
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