Bewitched, Bothered and Bejeweled 3
If you happen to be on my Facebook and you play Bejeweled over there, then you know the extent of my crazy. Yes, I admit, I'm a gamer.
In fact, I can waste so much time on games that I finally had to disconnect myself from gaming systems. Goodbye Nintendo, it was fun while it lasted... except for that time when my Duck Hunt Game lasted for three hours and it was like I just couldn't freakin' die even though I really really really wanted to stop playing but couldn't because have you seen my high score? I am epic! Take that you stupid, snarky, giggling hunting dog!
I like puzzle games (and first person shooters, don't you judge me!) and for some reason, the one I play the most often is Bejeweled. I remember playing it back when it was called "Diamond Mine" and it was a relaxing way to zone out while thinking about other stuff... provided you're in endless play mode. If you're in the lightning mode, then between all the beeps and sirens and explosions, it's enough to make you jump sky high. Especially if you happen to be me and subsist entirely on coffee-related beverages (dammit, stop judging me!)
Lately, I've been playing Bejeweled Blitz on Facebook because the games only last for one minute, which should limit my gaming time (assuming you only play one game, rather than around 100+ at a time. Oh, stop looking at me like that, Judgey Mcjudge.) However, even without Facebook, I was still playing Bejeweled.
Bejeweled is a matching game. You get a board of jewels and then you can make two adjacent jewels swap places in order to make rows of 3 or more of the same color, which will disappear off the screen. I've got a game called "Fairies" which is pretty much the same, only you have fairies rather than jewels. In Jewel Quest the background changes to gold when you swap jewels and the goal is to make the entire board gold, but it is still pretty much the same game. I've played other variations where you try to empty the board. Still, despite the graphics, you're still doing the same thing you do in Bejeweled or close to it.
In Bejeweled 2, you can make special gems by matching 4 or more jewels. This adds another element to your game play because it's an added goal. You can clear gems a lot faster and raise your score by blowing up an area of the screen, taking out a row or an entire color. The later versions of Jewel Quest also have a function where you can take out an entire color, by the way.
Bejeweled 3 is the newest version of Bejeweled. It was released yesterday. As of right now, I have played through every single game in it and unlocked every single level. Why? For science, obviously. Oh just shut up, you shut right on up, you judger, you.
I don't own Bejeweled 2. I tried the free download and there really wasn't anything in there that got me all that interested to be honest. The puzzles were kinda meh and I didn't feel like the full game was all that much better than the freebie online one which included exploding gems and all that. I have no idea whether or not there's a free online Bejeweled 3 because I went straight to the free trial of the download version. Why? Two words. QUEST MODE.
Fairies is Bejeweled with Fairies and a "goal." You free fairies. Then you see pictures of Fairies. Then you free more fairies. Then you win. It's all "lightning mode" gameplay in the quest, but there are options for endless play and non-quest timed play. If you liked timed play, you might as well stick with the stupid quest. Outside of having to wait around for the pictures to form (which is fine the first time but kind of boring the second time around) the quest is more interesting because it ups the difficulty level with each round. Also, the little fairies in jars are pretty cool.
Bejeweled 3's Quest Mode makes you play a bunch of different games in order to advance. Some of these can be unlocked for regular play and others are just in the Quest. You can, however, go back and play them once you complete the quest.
My free hour got me about 4 games away from winning the quest. This is what happens when you're the kind of person who can't rest unless you're in the top six on your leader board. I can quit anytime I want to, dammit. Stop laughing, judgment clown. There were several that took me a couple of tried to figure out. Alchemy is pretty much Jewel Quest. Or Alchemy, only with jewels and explosions. In Butterflies, you have to keep the butterflies from reaching the top of the board where a spider is waiting to kill them. They tremble when they start to get close to it. Seriously, I had to hit restart because ZOMG I can't let the poor thing die and I have no decent moves left! Poker was interesting because you are trying to make "hands" from the colors of the gems you match. Playing through the Quest Mode unlocks "Diamond Mine" where you dig for treasure by trying to make matches at the bottom of the screen to clear out a layer of dirt.
The other main modes are Zen, Classic and Lightning. Zen is an endless mode that has no timer and plays "soothing" music. The problem is that it's set up in levels, so after a certain amount of time, the jewels fly off to some new realm. This is a waste of my damn time. Just let me pick a background and play the stupid game. I don't need levels in endless mode, idiots. Playing Zen unlocks a Butterfly game that allows for longer play.
Classic is your typical Jewel Quest 2 where you progress from level to level after reaching a certain score. It is timed, obviously, and also includes the animation where the gems fly around but it's less annoying here. I want levels, after all, and the backgrounds are nice... not that I look at them much when I'm playing. This one unlocks Poker for regular play. Poker is probably my new favorite game. You not only have to plan your matches, but you have to plan which colors the matches should be. It adds another strategy element and it's not timed, so you can ponder over the board.
The last mode is Lightning which is pretty much the same as ever. You play and the time counts down. There's an addition of time gems which give you more seconds on the clock. I actually think that makes it more fun. The worst part of Lightning was always having the game end just when things were fast and furious. The extra seconds let you play the cool bit longer. Playing Lightning unlocks Ice Storm where ice creeps up the board unless you knock it back by making matches. The one odd part for me is being allowed to make matches between iced gems. In other games with a similar premise, the iced gems would be locked into place and you had to match around them which added to the difficulty. In many ways, Ice Storm is much like playing a Lightning Round with the addition of having to make an occasional match on one side or other of the board... but really, all you need is to detonate a special gem every so often and the ice takes care of itself.
If you're like me, and crazy (like you would even be here if you were all that sane yourself, but I don't judge) you can play through the whole game in an evening... assuming your evening lasts until 2am. It happens. Luckily, there's a reason to keep on playing after you've completed the quest and tried all the levels. Badges. The game has a board of badges and you get a badge for reaching certain levels and point scores. The bronze badges are pretty easy to get but the silver and gold (I haven't checked if there's anything above gold) take some doing and it's an incentive to come back and play.
So, in conclusion, if you enjoy Bejeweled or are OCD and can't stop playing (can't. stop. playing. help. me. someone. help. me...) Bejeweled 3 is a nice addition to your puzzle game collection.
In other news, I bought Epic Micky for my sister. OMG you guys, now I want it too. I think I have to get a Wii...
Stop judging me!!!
In fact, I can waste so much time on games that I finally had to disconnect myself from gaming systems. Goodbye Nintendo, it was fun while it lasted... except for that time when my Duck Hunt Game lasted for three hours and it was like I just couldn't freakin' die even though I really really really wanted to stop playing but couldn't because have you seen my high score? I am epic! Take that you stupid, snarky, giggling hunting dog!
I like puzzle games (and first person shooters, don't you judge me!) and for some reason, the one I play the most often is Bejeweled. I remember playing it back when it was called "Diamond Mine" and it was a relaxing way to zone out while thinking about other stuff... provided you're in endless play mode. If you're in the lightning mode, then between all the beeps and sirens and explosions, it's enough to make you jump sky high. Especially if you happen to be me and subsist entirely on coffee-related beverages (dammit, stop judging me!)
Lately, I've been playing Bejeweled Blitz on Facebook because the games only last for one minute, which should limit my gaming time (assuming you only play one game, rather than around 100+ at a time. Oh, stop looking at me like that, Judgey Mcjudge.) However, even without Facebook, I was still playing Bejeweled.
Bejeweled is a matching game. You get a board of jewels and then you can make two adjacent jewels swap places in order to make rows of 3 or more of the same color, which will disappear off the screen. I've got a game called "Fairies" which is pretty much the same, only you have fairies rather than jewels. In Jewel Quest the background changes to gold when you swap jewels and the goal is to make the entire board gold, but it is still pretty much the same game. I've played other variations where you try to empty the board. Still, despite the graphics, you're still doing the same thing you do in Bejeweled or close to it.
In Bejeweled 2, you can make special gems by matching 4 or more jewels. This adds another element to your game play because it's an added goal. You can clear gems a lot faster and raise your score by blowing up an area of the screen, taking out a row or an entire color. The later versions of Jewel Quest also have a function where you can take out an entire color, by the way.
Bejeweled 3 is the newest version of Bejeweled. It was released yesterday. As of right now, I have played through every single game in it and unlocked every single level. Why? For science, obviously. Oh just shut up, you shut right on up, you judger, you.
I don't own Bejeweled 2. I tried the free download and there really wasn't anything in there that got me all that interested to be honest. The puzzles were kinda meh and I didn't feel like the full game was all that much better than the freebie online one which included exploding gems and all that. I have no idea whether or not there's a free online Bejeweled 3 because I went straight to the free trial of the download version. Why? Two words. QUEST MODE.
Fairies is Bejeweled with Fairies and a "goal." You free fairies. Then you see pictures of Fairies. Then you free more fairies. Then you win. It's all "lightning mode" gameplay in the quest, but there are options for endless play and non-quest timed play. If you liked timed play, you might as well stick with the stupid quest. Outside of having to wait around for the pictures to form (which is fine the first time but kind of boring the second time around) the quest is more interesting because it ups the difficulty level with each round. Also, the little fairies in jars are pretty cool.
Bejeweled 3's Quest Mode makes you play a bunch of different games in order to advance. Some of these can be unlocked for regular play and others are just in the Quest. You can, however, go back and play them once you complete the quest.
My free hour got me about 4 games away from winning the quest. This is what happens when you're the kind of person who can't rest unless you're in the top six on your leader board. I can quit anytime I want to, dammit. Stop laughing, judgment clown. There were several that took me a couple of tried to figure out. Alchemy is pretty much Jewel Quest. Or Alchemy, only with jewels and explosions. In Butterflies, you have to keep the butterflies from reaching the top of the board where a spider is waiting to kill them. They tremble when they start to get close to it. Seriously, I had to hit restart because ZOMG I can't let the poor thing die and I have no decent moves left! Poker was interesting because you are trying to make "hands" from the colors of the gems you match. Playing through the Quest Mode unlocks "Diamond Mine" where you dig for treasure by trying to make matches at the bottom of the screen to clear out a layer of dirt.
The other main modes are Zen, Classic and Lightning. Zen is an endless mode that has no timer and plays "soothing" music. The problem is that it's set up in levels, so after a certain amount of time, the jewels fly off to some new realm. This is a waste of my damn time. Just let me pick a background and play the stupid game. I don't need levels in endless mode, idiots. Playing Zen unlocks a Butterfly game that allows for longer play.
Classic is your typical Jewel Quest 2 where you progress from level to level after reaching a certain score. It is timed, obviously, and also includes the animation where the gems fly around but it's less annoying here. I want levels, after all, and the backgrounds are nice... not that I look at them much when I'm playing. This one unlocks Poker for regular play. Poker is probably my new favorite game. You not only have to plan your matches, but you have to plan which colors the matches should be. It adds another strategy element and it's not timed, so you can ponder over the board.
The last mode is Lightning which is pretty much the same as ever. You play and the time counts down. There's an addition of time gems which give you more seconds on the clock. I actually think that makes it more fun. The worst part of Lightning was always having the game end just when things were fast and furious. The extra seconds let you play the cool bit longer. Playing Lightning unlocks Ice Storm where ice creeps up the board unless you knock it back by making matches. The one odd part for me is being allowed to make matches between iced gems. In other games with a similar premise, the iced gems would be locked into place and you had to match around them which added to the difficulty. In many ways, Ice Storm is much like playing a Lightning Round with the addition of having to make an occasional match on one side or other of the board... but really, all you need is to detonate a special gem every so often and the ice takes care of itself.
If you're like me, and crazy (like you would even be here if you were all that sane yourself, but I don't judge) you can play through the whole game in an evening... assuming your evening lasts until 2am. It happens. Luckily, there's a reason to keep on playing after you've completed the quest and tried all the levels. Badges. The game has a board of badges and you get a badge for reaching certain levels and point scores. The bronze badges are pretty easy to get but the silver and gold (I haven't checked if there's anything above gold) take some doing and it's an incentive to come back and play.
So, in conclusion, if you enjoy Bejeweled or are OCD and can't stop playing (can't. stop. playing. help. me. someone. help. me...) Bejeweled 3 is a nice addition to your puzzle game collection.
In other news, I bought Epic Micky for my sister. OMG you guys, now I want it too. I think I have to get a Wii...
Stop judging me!!!