[b]daydream mosaics[/b] is essentially [b]jewel match nonograms[/b]. hardly surprising, as they share a developer responsible for some stuff there and pretty much everything here. and they're very much commendable for [b]adding a new game mode upon request[/b] (even if it took a year) to make things work like in a proper nonogram, and not only providing it for the latest 3rd entry, but patching it into the first two games as well.
there are [b]108 levels[/b] divided into 3 chapters, levels are unlocked one by one, [b]going up to 25x25[/b] (or thereabouts, nothing bigger than that), each with multiple colors. solving a layer or even just a few lines might help with another one, so make sure to switch around if you can.
it looks like all those style over substance efforts with no basic functionality, but even in its initial form this was better, as [b]it has mid-level saving[/b]. and of course [b]numbers get crossed off one by one (sometimes, see below), the timer only appears on the level complete screen and no guessing is necessary[/b] after a patch fixing a few iffy levels, though [b]there are power-ups (sometimes)[/b] to help you out if you want, hidden under random cells. [b]no way to reset/restart just one color though, only the full level.[/b]
so there are [b]4 game modes[/b] now. in [u]relaxed[/u] mistakes are checked and revealed but no level reset after a few, [u]normal[/u] is the same but the level fails after 3-5 mistakes, and [u]advanced[/u] is again the same but highlighting a bunch of cells doesn't stop after the first mistakes, so make a few in one selection and you're toast, plus in this mode numbers only get crossed off when the entire line is solved. [u]freestyle[/u] would be the bee's knees, with [b]no mistake counter/highlighter and no power-ups or hints[/b], but unfortunately [b]clues don't fade out one by one here, as they should[/b].
[b]controls are abysmal as well.[/b] left click to color a cell, right click to mark it, right click also clears cells in freestyle mode. it should be left to color/remove color, right to mark/remove mark, and maybe the current one as an alternative method. dragging the mouse over multiple cells brings up a cell counter, always handy, except [b]marked cells are overwritten if you drag the mouse over them[/b], big ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ no. it doesn't work like that with other colors, so dragging a white line won't interfere with yellow or whatever, 'only' within the same color. and if you start dragging with left click and leave the current line, the whole selection gets canceled, while doing it with right click marks cells all over the place like a drawing tool.
the overall presentation is very jewel matchy, [b]crystals collected on levels unlock cosmetic sanctuary upgrades[/b], the local equivalent of castles. settings, also while playing a level, are separate volume sliders (music is nice but very repetitive), different looks for tiles, a help screen explaining the basics (literally the first word is 'guess' in a game involving no guessing), a windowed mode toggle with a smaller, non-resizable window, custom cursor and the really useful 'mask revealed pieces' toggle. basically, it hides solved layers, so they won't interfere with figuring out the current one. with up to 6 colors things can get messy, though there's also a 'colored number background' toggle. the unskippable dev logo after the loading screen wasn't a good idea and [b]the divider after every 5th cell is barely visible when they are filled[/b].
there are better (and worse) values for money, but even after all the extra effort, [b]sadly, it's not something to recommend[/b]. most players should be fine with what's on offer here if they enjoy all the other subpar efforts for some reason, and as I said, [b]with mid-level saving it's still better than about 96% of nonograms on the market[/b]. something like [url=https://steamcommunity.com/id/dohi64/recommended/1207310/]the gizmos series[/url], close but no cigar.
