Camp Funshine: Carrie the Caregiver 3 - sun, kids and fun!

Camp Funshine: Carrie the Caregiver 3 is another sequel to the series of time-management games about Carrie, a nice girl who is very much into caring for children. After travelling around the world, adopting a daughter and getting married Carrie is back to her favorite work, now acting as a Head Counselor in Caregivers International summer camp for 7-13 year olds.

If you have played the first two titles of the series, you already know Carrie and know what to expect from the game in general.

As you might guess, the third part has some features that distinguish it from the first ones. But let's start from the very beginning.

As I already mentioned, in Camp Funshine Carrie appears as a married lady with two adopted children - Safi and Peter, the son of her husband Will, who are both teenagers at the moment. She receives an offer she can't refuse from her old friend, Nurse Nancy Grettle, and departs to Caregivers International summer camp for 7-13 year olds as a Head Counselor together with Will. Safi and Peter accompany them as Counselors in Training, so our heroine anticipates two months in the sun with the whole family.

Your main task in the game is to keep all the kids happy and occupied while helping them master such fun activities as S'mores Shack, Build a Bird-House, T-Shirt Tie Dye, Buddy Bracelets and Flower Power. The game play is quite characteristic of the genre. You have a line of kids wishing to try the current activity, a limited number of seats for them and a sequence of actions to perform for each of the kids. The actions are unique for each activity. For example, in Buddy Bracelets you have to seat a kid, then give him some thread, then some beads of the required color, then hand him a moon or sun shape he asks for, then fix the bracelet and take it to the box for finished items. That's the essence of game play in a nutshell. But there is much more about it that adds enormous diversity to your game experience.

First, at the very moment of choosing a seat for a camper you have a chance to earn a bonus by matching the color of his shirt with the color of seat. There are also some seats for two, where the kid will ask for a partner. For a specific one, actually. For instance, 7-year old boys mostly prefer 13-year old girls, etc. If you manage to make a perfect match, you get a bonus. But if there is no proper candidate, just use one of the Counselors in Training. As you progress in the game, there will be more colors and, consequently, the seating process will become more and more tricky.

As you play, you will get more and more ways to pacify the campers, starting with a
possiblity to play them some music, add them a heart by catching a butterfly or a worm, letting them play with a bunny or sit a bit while waiting. All of these will be extremely useful in later levels, when you'll have many kids waiting for their turn at the same time.

Tip: Don't try to give a heart to a kid in the line - he won't take it and you'll lose time.

As they are kids, sometimes your campers will have crisis states such as being uncertain or distracted, chatting, fighting or even flirting with their partner. Watch for these, otherwise your seats will be occupied forever.

There is one more wonderful feature in the game which is surely worth speaking about. Every level has 3 goals to achieve - regular, advance and expert. If you fail to reach even the first one, that is fail a level, you have a chance to train in a mode where campers don't lose hearts and improve your skills.

The game also offers you a choice of two modes - Carrie's Career and Endless Campers. Which one to enjoy is up to you.

The visuals and sounds of Camp Funshine: Carrie the Caregiver 3 are quite adequate to the game itself. If you like time-managements, I would say this one is a nice variant to try.

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