[b]alchemy: origins[/b] is a very basic matching game, exactly like [b]doodle god[/b] and the rest but less mobiley in nature. that franchise (and developer) doesn't exactly set a high bar anyway.
you start with 4 elements (you are captain planet!), gotta create [b]400+ items[/b] in all sorts of categories by pairing them up. air + air = wind, water + salt = sea, bird + corpse = vulture, bread + hole = bagel, etc. categories include plants, animals, people, food, tools, and so on, and of course can be filtered as such, but a [b]search function wouldn't hurt[/b]. matches mostly make sense if you think about it (livestock + cloud = sheep), though getting grape from wine was a bit weird. maybe I could've reached grape first via a different combinatory route, as many things have multiple pairs of origin.
an [b]optional and replayable tutorial[/b] explains the basics, tooltips on mouseover help identify icons. if you get stuck, up to 3 [b]hints[/b] are available, then you have to wait for more (it starts recharging as soon as one is used). further handy features are a [b]history of found matches[/b] and one that turns up after finding every combination of a certain item. after that you can leave them be, [b]gray them out or hide them[/b]. the upper half of the screen can be shrunk a bit to make room for more combinable items on the bottom and [b]progress is saved when you quit[/b].
it's [b]not a bug-free experience[/b], though nothing major. [b]both the hide items and hint buttons reset when you quit[/b], the former is whatever, 2 clicks, but quitting with all 3 hints available and getting a big bowl of nothing with a cooldown next time is not great. [b]browsing items is even worse after a while.[/b] it must disregard hidden stuff or something and instead of putting the next 27 items on the following page, it only adds a few more, so there are way more pages to flip than there should be and it got old fast. also, the game says 408 pairs but there are 409 and one of the achievements doesn't kick in, gets stuck at 49/50 after finishing the game.
simple mouse controls, click, click, see if they match, next. there's a [b]lock button[/b], so you can keep one thing in place while trying it with everything. brute force isn't exactly puzzly but it's an option. or you can limit yourself to whatever makes sense, then it's just a handy way to save on clicks.
good enough presentation with decent music, wherever it's from (nobody's credited with audio). I found the annoying incorrect match sound appropriate punishment for clicking through everything with reckless abandon. settings-wise it has the basics available anytime: separate volumes, resolutions, windowed mode, a few languages and v-sync. different player profiles or save slots would be nice to keep progress separate.
if you like the concept, [b]try the demo[/b], and if you're convinced, [b]grab it on sale[/b]. progress carries over, you might even learn something, but 4 eur is way too much for something like this even if bugs get fixed. still, better support this developer than joybits (doodle series among other lazy trash) and their broken/abandoned games, mobile shenanigans, dlc spam and price ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥. a very similar game from this dev is [url=https://store.steampowered.com/app/2445700/]rpg alchemy[/url], might be more involved than this (or not) and has a demo as well.
