Ranch Rush 2: Sara's Island Experiment Review

Pros
- High replay value, 3 game modes and 160 levels make for great value
- Great graphics, audio and game play
- New features add fun without compromising game play

Cons
- Collector's Edition not worth the money

Review
Sara, after saving Jim's nursery with her successful farmer's market in Ranch Rush, finds herself constantly mired in paperwork and stuck tending to her and Jim's newfound fame instead of the fields. The agricultural pair head off to a tropical island for some much needed downtime. But, of course, they instead find an opportunity to expand their business when they discover the island is suspiciously lacking in farmers. They buy a plot of land and this is where your game begins.

Ranch Rush 2's game play is virtually identical to the original, so if you have played the previous version you know what to expect. For those unfamiliar with Ranch Rush, the game is set up in a 10 week time frame. Monday through Friday you fulfill specific orders. On Saturdays, the farm turns into a market where you get a short amount of time to sell off anything you can grab for huge profits. Sundays are for fishing, which also yields extra money. Fishing, in my opinion, was the best addition to Ranch Rush 2. It's slightly challenging at higher levels but is mostly just good, quick fun.

Your farm will carry over every day, so if you deplete all your crops and products you will find yourself in a bad spot the next day. This adds a nice layer of challenge to each level, because you are not only rushing to get orders filled but you also are trying to set yourself up for the next day or for the Saturday market.

Ranch Rush 2 does a great job of gradually increasing the difficulty, just like the original. Once you hit a certain point in Casual Mode, Expert Mode unlocks, allowing you to play all 160 levels all over again at a higher difficulty. A fun new feature, though I did not make use of it, is that you can share your trophies on Facebook with your friends. There are also decorations that you can add to your farm, but I found that this did not really interest me or add to the value, although it certainly did not detract either.

Sara's Island Experiment was a lot of fun to play and is a game I would highly recommend to anyone who enjoys the time management genre. I will say, however, I do not think the Collector's Edition is worth the extra $13.00. The only extras that are included with the Collector's Edition are extra trophies, special titles, Freeplay mode and some "Easter Egg" that I have not discovered yet. I feel the Premium (or regular) edition for $6.99 is the better deal but both version have enough levels and high replay value to be solid purchases.