iPad: Puzzle Blade!

[Silversteez]

Hello!

My name is Matt Silverstein and Puzzle Blade is my first iOS game (iPad, specifically). It's a free game with some very reasonable (and totally non-essential) In-App Purchases so I hope you'll give it a chance!

I'm happy to answer any questions people have about the game or anything else. Thanks!

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[slewis7]

I have only played through a single 2 minute match so far, so it is too early to judge. Given that, this game has really nice art with style, cleverly written texts, and good old classic match 3 game play. I think I am really going to like it.

Since the game is free, and not in an annoyingly freemium way, I immediately purchased the $2 special sword. It doubles enemies bounties and removes the totally non-intrusive advertisements. It seems reasonable to me and I am happy to support this indie developer.

Finally, welcome to the developer! Thanks for posting your game and doing it properly (app info). Nice for a first post!

[racingspider]

Remove "Behold, yet another match-3 game, but"

And let it start with, "What's this?". Many people will just stop reading there. It casts the game in a negative light (without you realizing it) - without even getting to the good parts of what's different and sets this game apart.

Start with the "OH! Cool!", not the "I'm a CLONE!".

You could start with "Good ole match-3..."
It is a positive comment. "Yet another..." is not.

Good luck!

[Gabrien]

Originally Posted by racingspider

Remove "Behold, yet another match-3 game, but"

And let it start with, "What's this?". Many people will just stop reading there. It casts the game in a negative light (without you realizing it) - without even getting to the good parts of what's different and sets this game apart.

Start with the "OH! Cool!", not the "I'm a CLONE!".

You could start with "Good ole match-3..."
It is a positive comment. "Yet another..." is not.

Good luck!

On the other hand, there are folks who recognise (and appreciate) a little self-deprecating mockery.

[slewis7]

All of the in-game descriptions use a similar, humorous writing style to the game description which I find amusing. The game play is pretty standard match 3 with really good progression elements which is keeping it fresh for me. I am really enjoying it.

[Gabrien]

Quite impressed with this actually, though I'm still not 100% clear on some of the game's mechanics after a handful of games. Match-3 fans need to be downloading this one though.

[Silversteez]

Hey guys,

Thanks for the kind words and constructive criticism. I definitely thought twice about leading off with "yet another match-3 game", but I decided to go for it. Sometimes you just have to trust your gut, but I can see how some people might be turned off by it.

If you have any questions about mechanics or rules, feel free to ask and I'll do my best to explain. There's a fair amount of logic happening behind the scenes that never gets fully explained since I'm trying to keep it simple for players that aren't interested in all the stats and numbers.

- Matt

[slewis7]

Silversteez:

The maximum enemies that can be killed in a round appears to be 8, even if you have time remaining. I think it would be nice if you added a new enemy or two and extended that or repeated an earlier enemy from the round.

I am finding the Mighty Quest level quite challenging, even with an over powered character (level 9). Is there anything to be aware of to maximize damage besides trying to match the color the enemy indicator shows (I guess when the enemy is attacking)?

What exactly does the speed gems and attribute do?

Some of the power ups you can buy before each enemy fight seem to be rather useless. Heal yourself up but face an enraged enemy? Interesting...

I hope this game does well enough for you that you can keep adding content, although it is pretty great as is.

Thanks! I am hooked.

[Silversteez]

Thanks for the questions/comments slewis7! I'll try to answer below.

Originally Posted by slewis7

The maximum enemies that can be killed in a round appears to be 8, even if you have time remaining. I think it would be nice if you added a new enemy or two and extended that or repeated an earlier enemy from the round.

The maximum enemies for Happy Quest is 8. For Mighty Quest it's 12. For Epic, practically speaking, there is no limit.

I put hard enemy count limits on the early quest difficulties because once you reach a high level it's possible to shred through Happy Quest enemies in one hit. I was worried that it might become possible to exploit the early quests by killing a TON of enemies and earning a TON of bounties, thereby making the harder quests basically unnecessary and useless. Perhaps I could just stop rewarding coins after a certain amount of enemies...

I am finding the Mighty Quest level quite challenging, even with an over powered character (level 9). Is there anything to be aware of to maximize damage besides trying to match the color the enemy indicator shows (I guess when the enemy is attacking)?

You're probably doing all the right things - It's just a big jump in difficulty from Happy to Mighty. Level 9 really isn't overpowered for Mighty although it makes sense that players would feel that way since it unlocks so early (level 5). I could probably do a better job explaining this in-game. Mighty is meant to be challenging until you're leveling well into the teens.

What exactly does the speed gems and attribute do?

Gem speed affects how quickly the gems move. They swap places faster when you swipe, they drop into new positions faster when you make a match, etc. Leveling the gem speed skill is difficult to notice at first, but it makes a huge difference after awhile.

Some of the power ups you can buy before each enemy fight seem to be rather useless. Heal yourself up but face an enraged enemy? Interesting...

Haha. Yea, I can see how that one might seem useless, but there are situations where it could come in handy. Perhaps you're almost dead and have another enemy to fight, but there are only a few seconds left? You'd probably be able to survive the barrage of attacks for those precious few seconds. Or, perhaps you're low on life and surely will not survive the next enemy? It at least gives you a fighting chance to go crazy and see if you can kill him before he kills you. You might even be able to combine it with another elixir to increase your odds of surviving...

Also, some might seem useless while you're leveling up, but might be appealing later if you're just trying to maximize your high score.

I hope this game does well enough for you that you can keep adding content, although it is pretty great as is.

Thanks! I am hooked.

Thanks again, slewis7. I appreciate the sentiments and I hope it does well too.

[slewis7]

Thanks for the quick response, Silversteez. All of your answers are very reasonable and make sense. I don't mind grinding the Happy Quest at all to level up and it is good to know that the struggle with Mighty Quest isn't because I suck.

One idea on finishing all 8 enemies at Happy Quest is to award some small bonus based on remaining time left.