Free - to - turn plot often appear sympathetic , but it ’s unmanageable to know at a glance whether the business modeling is pernicious and fun ruining , or reasonable and deserving pump a few bucks into . With Freemium Field Test , we ’ll take a recent free - to - play iOS game , put it through its paces , and have you do it if it ’s really worth your time ( and money ) .
With past game likeAngry Birds : Star Warsand the Tiny Tower - basedTiny Death Star , we ’ve seen the beloved sci - fi franchise merged with proved iOS game experiences — and the results were somewhat positive in both of those case . Star war : Puzzle Droidsis the latest such amalgamation , and while it ’s notlegallyCandy Crush Saga : Star Wars , that ’s exactly what you get .
This “ tribute ” to the mobile puzzle phenomenon does n’t deviate much from King ’s money - printing design , but it does carry out theStar Warslicense in entertaining ways , plus the challenge rises at a more reasonable and predictable charge per unit . The result , while not original in any way , is an pleasurable , on - the - go diversion that you should n’t feel pressured to expend money for .
The pitch
It ’s Candy Crush , but it roughly follow the storyline ofStar Wars : The Force Awakens .
Have you played any of the Candy Crush Saga games , or perhaps one of the dateless clones that seem to reproduce on the App Store ? If so , then you ’ll sense right at home here , as Star war : Puzzle Droids does n’t make any heavy alteration to the uncouth normal . And if you have n’t , then it ’s really not difficult to pick up in a hurry .
Puzzle Droids is a lucifer - three secret plan that challenges you to link up sets of three or more like - colored ikon on each biz instrument panel . produce a trio in a row or column net them from the circuit board , and then all the others above and around those empty spaces stir to occupy the crack , potentially get more combos in the process . And if you make larger coupling , such as a second power of four icons , a rail line of four or five icon , or an cubic decimetre - shape of five , then you ’ll get some kind of limited token that can help take out larger lump of the card .
You ’ll do all of that to see the specific objective in each horizontal surface , whether it ’s clearing a certain number of peculiar icons , scraping away exceptional tiles that clutter up up the board , or have items drop to the bottom by realise a path below . And in conversant style , you ’ll have a limited turn of motility in each stratum to complete your task(s ) .
Once you ’ve break down a bountiful metal board on the instrument panel , Rey will swing in from the side and snag it .
Nothing here really breaks from the Candy Crush formula , so if you ’re expecting something rotatory from Star war : Puzzle Droids … well , do n’t . What Puzzle Droids does well , however , is do the legal action up with more tempting framing inspired byStar Wars : The Force Awakens . You ’ll link icons while the ever - lovely BB-8 rolls along the top , or clear panels by making nearby friction match and watch Rey lilt on her rope to pull out them from view . Later , you ’ll battle Unkar ’s thugs in the marketplace to try and control more of the board , or make match as TIE Fighters blast hole in the control panel every third turning .
They ’re cagey little adaptation of the film ’s consequence , and for aStar Warsfan , it might be a lot more appealing than the lollipop - sweet aesthetic of Candy Crush and other exchangeable game . It was for me , at least . And gratefully , the game is friendlier too .
The catch
The casual barriers are pretty feeble , since you may just keep play to unlock them .
Puzzle Droids is a devoid - to - play biz , just like Candy Crush and most of the other clone , so it ’s no surprise to see opportunities to spend money , as well as limitations on play .
The energy meter up top lets you amass five quick loss before you ’d require to either pay for a refill or wait for your droids ’ battery to refill — each one submit 30 minutes of real metre . besides , you ’ll run into occasional barriers between levels that immobilize your itinerary unless you wait a few minute , but they ’re easily master : you’re able to just play the “ expert ” edition of past stages to realize surplus coins , and spend those to jump the delay .
What is surprising , given the Candy Crush homage here , is that Puzzle Droids is n’t rottenly hard in the former hours . I ’ve completed more than 60 total story , between the received and skilful versions of stages , and only run into a couple of instance where I had to play a story a few clock time over to finally sweep over the challenge . And I never felt indorse into a corner where I ’d need to pass genuine money on power - ups to bust through a rampart and continue ahead . counterpoint that to last year’sCandy Crush Jelly Saga , which had me ready to give up in half the stage , and that’safterI expend $ 20 on power - ups .
Unless you ’re frequently tote up extra moves with gems , you should n’t involve to drop much money here .
Star warfare : Puzzle Droids is quick to sell you big bundles of premium gemstone , ranging in price from 100 gems for $ 1 to 10,000 gems for $ 75 , and you’re able to drop those to continue a level by adding extra move , or use them to grease one’s palms extra power - ups . But while I usually pass a bit of money in free - to - child’s play game to see how that exchange affair , I did n’t bother here — because I never used up all of my freebie item , and did n’t feel pressured to use many continues .
The verdict
Your experience may variegate , of row , but I do n’t count myselfespeciallyskilled at these secret plan and I have n’t had much difficulty across several hours of play Star Wars : Puzzle Droids . It ’s a light and attractive diversion , essentially — at least across the first few dozen level . That may not be the shell in the later stages , with just over 100 total available as of this penning , but my steady progress so far is encouraging .
Disney ’s latest does n’t do anything particularly daring with the match - three genre , let alone theStar Warsbrand , but its serious-minded touches and attractive storytelling make Puzzle Droids a fun fan pick for low - key puzzling . Besides , we can all use a bit more BB-8 in our lives .
