Sally's Spa (CNET 100: iPhone Apps)

Facials, nail clipping, saunas, and very hot rocks. No, I'm not referring to that vacation in Calistoga, Calif., I've never taken. I'm, of course, talking about my favorite iPhone game of all time, if by "all time" I mean the last two years.

In Sally's Spa you run a spa business with the goal of increasing your clientele so that you can buy better spa equipment, thereby bringing in even more customers and so on. There was nothing l lost more when playing Sally's Spa than time. So the irony that it's considered a time management game isn't at all lost on me. I usually walk to and from work, but Sally's Spa is the first iPhone game I was happy to pay $4 a day to play on the bus. Its addictive quality is beyond legendary.

I've never wanted to own a spa and I still don't. Also, I'm fairly certain it takes a little more than wiping my thumb across a screen or carrying people around with my finger from one station to the next--as you do in the game--but I really feel that if push came to shove, I'd now at least have a point of reference to start my doomed business.

Price: $2.99

Return to main post