I've lost track of just how many career-simulation games have been released on the PC over the years, as the genre has literally exploded in popularity, particularly thanks to EA's The Sims franchise.  People seem to love managing cities, railroads, and amusement parks, but they especially love managing the greatest vehicle of all - other people.  The online social phenomenon has also generated its share of popular titles, often using Facebook as the unifying platform to bring fans together for hours of casual micro-managing fun.  Artist Colony for the iPhone/iPod Touch emulates much of these experiences, but too often bogs down the experience with dull characters and an overkill of options that hinder what could have been a very interesting and fun people simulator.

Already a hit game on the PC, Artist Colony gets ported down to the iPhone mostly intact, with much of the same great visual style and gameplay now available in the palm of your hands.  The concept is simple enough, as our heroes (and would-be artists) Ben and Dylan inheriting an abandoned artist colony, and now find themselves tasked in repairing it to its former glory.  The goal here is to create a thriving artistic commune, thereby making it once more an acceptable refuge for like-minded artists and latter-day hippie folk. The better the restoration, the more people you'll attract to your island.  Along the way, you'll also encounter a number of minor characters and loose story details woven in, all of which add to the game's sense of variety...and your responsibilities.

Gameplay begins and ends with one thing - simulation. Playing general manager of this colony is a tough business, but it won't be long before you're also performing love doctor and grounds duties as well.  The touchscreen interface is accurate, and given the slower pace of the gameplay, works well.  Picking out the various characters is as easy as point and click, although I found the in-game menu system a bit more cumbersome than it needed to be.  Perhaps this is due to the smaller viewing area, or the developer's lack of effort in reducing what was originally a full-screen experience down to size.  Either way, navigating through the various menus often means having to pause the game, selecting, and repeating the process over and over.

The game offers a range of different artists to choose from, from Painters, Dancers, Musicians and even Sculptors.  They can increase their levels (up to 10) by spending time in the studio, practicing their craft, with the hope of creating better 'masterpieces' to sell, and therefore bring in more cash for the colony.  They also mimic their real-life counterparts, as they often suffer fatigue and hunger and will require time to rest and eat, which means they'll need some downtime to recuperate. The game can play itself in that respect as artists take their virtual siestas, but it can take them a few minutes before they start taking action on their own, and its often faster to manually drop them into place than wait for them to decide.

Money can be tight, and the artists themselves have to sell their work to make money. It can be a cut-throat game in itself as bidders will attempt to lowball these apparent ‘masterpieces,’ with the hope that potential buyers will overpay for the work.  And just like real artists, they'll be more than happy if that happens, but not so much if their work is 'undervalued'.  Balancing what the available art sells for and keeping its creator happy is yet another layer of micro-management that you'll have to contend with, and a happy artist is often a more productive one.

A crucial aspect to restoring this decaying colony to its former greatness is artist maintenance, which adds a unique twist to the standard simulation, and will require you to keep a close eye on things...and your artists.  Ben and the rest of your charges are always falling in - and out - of love, often betraying and cheating on just about everyone in sight.  While this could be considered parody on the unrequited love of passionate souls, you'll often be tasked with playing matchmaker to various couples, with successful coupling leading to better and more lucrative artwork.  Of course, the opposite is also true, which means you'll also spend time keeping warring couples far away from one other.  While this aspect is a clever idea, managing couples can detract from the bigger picture, and only adds to a never-ending laundry list of responsibilities to manage.

I feel it would have been easier to borrow some elements from other games (such as Roller Coaster Tycoon's grounds keeper) to help with the micro-managing duties and give breathing room for the rest.  The game also supports Facebook integration, such as letting your friends know of your latest masterpieces, love interests, etc.  I can appreciate the sly realism of wanting to share your virtual accomplishments with your real friends, but this felt more like viral marketing than adding to the actual experience.

On the surface, Artist Colony on the iPhone/iPod Touch is an interesting mix of casual-style gaming and people simulator, but the experience is too often bogged down with mundane tasks and severe micro-managing duties.  The game looks great and controls well on the smaller screen, but the interface isn't as intuitive as it could have been.  Still, despite its flaws and personal reservations, I can see how some people might find the experience interesting, and worthy of their attention.  Given its popularity, the original PC game is widely available online, and I would suggest giving that one a try before investing in this portable version.