Puzzlewood Quests Premium (by Downcast Systems LLC)

elmogallen · Posted by elmogallen, 01-09-2016

Hey, guys and gals, I'm the developer of Puzzlewood Quests, a brain-training RPG. I recently converted the game from Freemium (ads + IAP) to Paid ($1.99), and I wanted to share the reasoning behind that, as some folks have found it interesting.

Originally, I had planned on Puzzlewood Quests being completely free forever, and I would make money off the In-App Purchases of gold, characters, and puzzle packs. After 8 months of trying that, it just didn't provide enough income, so I decided to try something different.

The new version has been retooled to be a much more satisfying game experience. There is no IAP. (I never liked it anyway.) The magical items are much more reasonably priced now, so there is no need to buy gold. All the characters are unlocked, so everyone can enjoy Lilian’s storyline from the start. All the puzzles are unlocked, so you have every one of the 16 game types available. Each enemy gives you more xp, so you level quicker with less grinding. And there are no ads. (I really didn't like the ads.)

I have removed the free version from the app stores. If you’ve already made In-App Purchases in the free version, don’t worry — you can keep that version, but it won’t show up in the store for new players. They will now only see the premium version.

Overall, I think this is a fantastic update, and it’s how the game should have been. I’m calling it Puzzlewood Quests Premium Edition, and it's available for $1.99 on the App Store and Google Play.

App Store:
https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/puzzlewood-quests-premium/id1071308959?mt=8

Google Play:
https://play.google.com/store/apps/d...dpremium&hl=en

Thanks,
Dave Haynes
https://twitter.com/downcastsystems

indalico · 01-09-2016, 02:54 PM

I never knew this existed. I've taken PRNPLTHRLAKT. Thanks.

This is pretty cool. Brain training type games with an RPG type game. I'm not finding the puzzles to be difficult, but there's a time pressure to solve (and attack) before the enemy attacks. I like the variety in puzzles to do.

elmogallen · 01-09-2016, 03:07 PM

The puzzles get significantly harder as you progress through the worlds too. Thanks for checking it out!

Valentia · 03:53 PM

Yay, for premium! This looks like my sort of thing. If I noticed it when it came out I likely ignored it because I'm not a freemium fan. I'm glad you made it premium and I'm glad I saw it.

A suggestion: Add a link to the download in the App Store. I found it by searching, but easy clicking might mean more downloads.

$1.99 seems a very fair price and I'm always happy to add an interesting premium game to my collection.

Valentia · 05:41 PM

This is extremely enjoyable! Clever, fun, interesting and different. And I really enjoy your sense of humor! Well done--I'm having a lot of fun!

If anyone is hesitating, it's totally worth the small cost--I'm glad I bought this.

A few details, after playing for an hour: A nice variety of fun mini-games/puzzles. Clean, attractive graphics. Charming humor. You can use the the coins you gather in-game to buy the ability to skip the sorts of puzzles you don't like (I haven't yet encountered anything I don't like, so haven't tried it). Dev, I think you could well have left that as an IAP! It's really consumable IAPs and timer passes that people hate. Stuff like a one-time ability upgrade is fine, and a nice way to support a developer. Well, back to the game!

Repulsa · 01-09-2016, 05:36 PM

I love this game, I decided I couldn't wait to buy it later and I have been playing it non stop for the past hour. I have always struggled with math and as an adult avoid it every chance I get but I have yet to use the orb to turn off any of the math games. I think it's good to give the rusty old cogs in my brain a good cranking

great job on this one

Valentia · 01-09-2016, 06:36 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Repulsa

I love this game, I decided I couldn't wait to buy it later and I have been playing it non stop for the past hour. I have always struggled with math and as an adult avoid it every chance I get but I have yet to use the orb to turn off any of the math games. I think it's good to give the rusty old cogs in my brain a good cranking

great job on this one

I'm glad you couldn't resist! It really is a lot of fun.

elmogallen · 01-09-2016, 08:29 PM

Thanks, everyone! I couldn't be happier with the comments in this post. :-) I updated the original post to include direct links to the app stores.

NOEN · 01-09-2016, 09:06 PM

Wow! This is the fist I've heard of this.

Wizard_Mike · 04:29 AM

Wow! Had I known about the game before, I surely would have played it. I'm not even taking the time to read the other posts here, I'm just going straight for a purchase. Love the concept of this, so gotta show my support!