TouchMaster is a monster load of games tucked into a tiny little chip, just for our gaming pleasure. Initially, I was unsure what to expect. I had never heard of it before. The opening screen just says TouchMaster and has a little picture of a Nintendo stylus on the screen. It turns out that the little picture captures the experience perfectly. Every game included, all twenty-three of them, require the use of that nifty little stylus.

TouchMaster opens with main menu containing five options on the right: Favorites, Cards, Skill, Puzzle and Options. The left side of the touch screen lists four games with a little scrollbar.

Options allows you to setup you're preferences if you'll be using the Wi-Fi option to compete against other players. I didn't have anyone else nearby with the game so I didn't use this option, but you can create, delete or change users; add or delete a competition; post a score; setup your Wi-Fi connection; or check out the game credits.

There are so many games to choose from in TouchMaster. If you like casual games at all, there has to be something in here for you. I like that the games are sorted into general categories initially because it's not always obvious by the title what kind of game you'll be playing.

The Favorites section is your only mixed area. The most common comment I hear is that these are all common bar games. I don't get out much so I can't say how they compare in that regard, but I know I'm having fun.

In any game you pick, you'll have some setup options and the chance to look at the trophy room. The setup options vary somewhat by game. Some games let you pick single, two, Wi-Fi or competition play, while other games let you set a level of difficulty. In any case, you'll see an image of the game screen in the top window of the DS. If the initial look at the game doesn't appear interesting, you can pop back to the main menu with a quick tap of the stylus.

You'll find nine different options in the Cards section of the game. Of course there's the classic game of Solitaire, but you'll also find Target 21, 3 Peak Deluxe, Go Wild, Phoenix 13, Triple Elevens, Uplift, Power Cell and Double Take. I admit that I had never heard of most of these games, but each one started with a short introductory screen describing the game. If I wanted a more in depth description of the rules, I could tap the little blue question mark at any time for further information.

The Puzzle section includes Crystal Balls, Mahki, Pairs, Times Square, Mah Jong Pairs, Gem Slide and Wordz. I'm currently addicted to Crystal Balls...okay, and about every other game in this section except Pairs, which is my daughter's current favorite game. Pairs fills the screen with some billiard balls and you touch matching pairs to remove them. When you've matched all the adjacent pairs, you rack them up again. Ultimately, you're trying to clear all of the balls. Wordz is sort of like Wheel of Fortune in that you're guessing a phrase from a given category. I love having a little Mah Jong game to go. The tiles are kind of difficult, but you do have the option of using the original characters or alphabet letters.

The Skill section has games that, as you might guess by the name, that are somewhat less random and take a bit of skill. I'd argue that the two dice games, 5 Star Generals and Pick Up 6 are random - but there's still some strategy involved. The other skills games are Pond Kings Checkers, Artifact, Hot Hoops, Trivia and Word Search. Of them all, I really didn't get Artifact. I won one game but I'm not quite sure how I managed. The trivia game was brutal (for me) and I didn't do all that well in general, though my mommy levels have lent me some skill in the 'Kids' area. Word Search worked really well and made great use of the stylus. I didn't have to circle the words so much as draw a line across them with the game providing the circle graphic.

I thought the sound effects were quite appropriate for all of the games. The music was bouncy. The graphics were appropriate for a DS title. They were attractive and got the job done. All of the games had a timer attached, and good scores combined with fast play generally opened up bonus levels of the same game.

If I know I'm going somewhere that's going to require some kind of wait, I generally slip my DS into my purse. I think TouchMaster is going to be my new favorite waiting-room game. The games load quickly and play moves along at a good clip. The ongoing play is engaging and fun, but it's not like an adventure game where I might lose my progress if I have to turn the game off and put it away when my name is called. I definitely recommend TouchMaster to anyone that enjoys quick, casual puzzle games, and at just under $20, the price is right. Enjoy!