Free - to - play game often face appealing , but it ’s unmanageable to know at a glimpse whether the job model is subtle and play ruining , or fair and worth pumping a few buck into . With Freemium Field Test , we ’ll take a recent free - to - play iOS secret plan , put it through its paces , and rent you know if it ’s really deserving your time ( and money ) .
Nintendo may be on the verge ofbringing games to smartphones and tablets , but the reversal is already happening : Top mobile hits have been incite over to the Nintendo 3DS handheld for a while now . And one of the biggest international iOS sensations makes the leap this workweek with the bundled release ofPuzzle & Dragons Z + Super Mario Bros. Edition .
Not familiar with the originalPuzzle & Dragons ? You ’re likely not alone , get into you ’re in North America . GungHo ’s game is n’t quite as much of a phenomenon here , but it ’s a mobile mainstay in Japan and other countries , and last year earnedan calculate $ 1.5 billionworldwide from in - app purchases . Seriously ! OnlyClash of Clanswas bigger .
With the game about to make a big splattering in the States with the Mario - flavored 3DS version , it seemed mellow time to finally dig into the iPhone version to see what ’s made it such an endearing success . What I discover is that the Pokémon - sports meeting - bejewel union is intelligibly kept simple and streamlined for touch devices — too much , I ’d debate — but that it does n’t take long to see what ’s give the biz its wide - ranging solicitation .
The pitch
Creating combo chains — where the orbs that fall into view generate Modern matches — is middling essential for continued succeeder in battle .
Puzzle & Dragons for certain takes intake fromPuzzle Quest , the first game to successfully mash - up friction match - three teaser gameplay with role - playing facet . You ’ll link up three or more like - colored ball on the dining table to make your giant aggress , and here you ’ll do so while battling other creatures in aboveboard keep .
Only unlike Puzzle Quest and many other top match - three entree , Puzzle & Dragons sucks most of the challenge out of the essence gameplay . No longer are you bound by embarrassing ball position , or having colors scattered around the board : you’re able to simply drag any orb from its starting location to anywhere else . So if you have two red orbs together on one side of the cover and a stray one several column over , you ’re in no bind . Just move it over with your finger .
At first , this was a deflating realization . Why play a mystifier biz in which the puzzle gameplay is so clearly alter ? Over fourth dimension , the answer became unmortgaged : Enjoying Puzzle & Dragons is less about savoring the actual puzzling and more about the scheme of building up your team of ogre .
Your Monster Box will fill up quickly with the creatures you find . coalesce the unneeded ones with your active scrapper and they ’ll become stronger .
There are many variables that go into concocting an effective team — including primary alignment , health , and cost points — and you ’ll unlock more and more monsters as you go . On top of that , you could raise and germinate them by fusing together the creatures . In other words , building your team feel like therealgame in Puzzle & Dragons — the match - three action is merely the grind that slowly brings you more and more satisfaction in the other portion .
And to be fair , the puzzling is n’t completely devoid of scheme : As the dungeons ramp up in challenge , you ’ll postulate to put more and more stress on creating combo , all while play to the elemental strengths of your team . When one match clears , you desire another to fall into place , and so on and so away . It ’s utterly essential for late success . Otherwise , expect to start spending big on Magic Stones unless you ’re prepared for stiff loser .
The catch
Magic Stones are the one in - app purchase option , but they ’re used for various abilities throughout the secret plan .
by chance , for a freemium biz this successful , Puzzle & Dragons is n’t overwhelmingly monetize . In fact , there ’s just one thing you’re able to corrupt : Magic Stones . you’re able to buy one Magic Stone ( $ 1 ) , you’re able to buy 85 Magic Stones ( $ 60 ) , and you’re able to grease one’s palms bundles in between . But those digital items have a fair flake of value in the game , and can be used in various ways to help nudge you along .
in the first place , they ’re used for go on ahead once overcome . deeply into a dungeon and just had your party wiped out by a genus Bos ? You do n’t need to lose all that progress — so spend a Magic Stone and bring your monsters back to life right then and there . The Isidor Feinstein Stone can also be used to furbish up your stamina ( energy cadence ) for when you ’re represent for long spans of time , or increase the capacity of your Monster Box so you may store more brute and manage more squad variations with comfort .
You ’re liable to employ your Magic Stones most often for carry on , as the thought of suffer cherished progress is tough to take .
Puzzle & Dragons also has a coin currency , but it ’s purely earned via gameplay . The stamina system is n’t too restrictive , either . However , Puzzle & Dragons biggest foiling is a common one : It get difficult in a rush , and often suddenly in the middle of a dungeon . I ’ve had my monsters utterly extinguish by a individual bout of enemy blast after breezing through anterior battle , and that enticement to expend a Magic Stone — and then again , and again — is very real once you ’ve invested hours into the plot .
Ultimately , I spent $ 10 to grab a dozen Magic Stones after exhausting the several granted via login bonuses and promotions — and then blew most of them trying to take down one intensely ambitious boss . In other words , it ’s very much possible to pay your room through engagement , depend on how much you ’re willing to pass . I would n’t advise it , but it ’s possible .
The verdict
I dropped several buck worth of Stone crunch out this battle against an immensely tough honcho . I do n’t commend doing that .
Considering how flat the puzzle gameplay seemed at the first , I make headway an unexpected appreciation for Puzzle & Dragons over the past few week . It ’s less dumbed down than simply different than its musical genre compatriots , placing its anteriority on between - match strategizing and team build rather than challenging puzzle period of play .
I entirely see why people continue to encounter it for months and month . There ’s a real hook shot here , plus the art aim is great and the music is almost objectionably catchy ( in a mostly good way ) . What ’s overlook for me , beyond richer gameplay , is any degree of storytelling or worldly concern building — something to bring forth investment in the gamebeyondsimply concocting an ever - ameliorate team .
really , that ’s what the 3DS game bring , as Puzzle & Dragons Z crafts a Pokémon - esque adventure around the gameplay , plus the bundled Mario version is completely delightful , to rush . But that ’s a $ 30 plot that require a dedicated portable equipment . Instead , iOS player get a free - to - play version of just the core gameplay loop . And that seems to be plenty for million of fan .
