Viva Piñata

The Good
Viva Pinata is a simple little Sim great for burning large amounts of time. It is non violent, generally slow-paced and relaxing. The colors are vibrant and the pinatas are nicely detailed to the point you can even see the way the strips of brightly colored paper hang down from them.

The Bad
This game chews up large amounts of time very fast. It's also a little easy to get lost in all the menus at first. It's definitely a family/kids game, so don't expect any realism here, though some people like the whimsical nature of things. The Pinata AI isn't the best and often pinatas you want to enter the garden won't find their way in if you have large amounts of water or any other obstacle bordering things. Also, it is hard to get a full collection of Pinatas without an Xbox live subscription, so if you don't have one you may want to consider it.

The Bottom Line
Even though this game is a major time-eater aimed at kids, it's actually not a bad game if you have lots of time on your hands and are looking for something fun and relaxing to do. Even though it can be frustrating sometimes and nearly impossible to complete without Xbox Live, Viva Pinata is a nice alternative to the traditional Sim for those looking for something different .