League of Mermaids

League of Mermaids is a match three type game with a physics twist, so you drop balls in from the top of the screen to make groups of three or more, and as you clear the other balls fall into place possibly making more triples and clearing. The levels are fairly easy to complete, so the main limitation is trying to get three stars on each level - the second star being for beating the target time (usually fairly well set - you don't need to rush normally, but you can't dawdle either). A third star is dependent on the level - some require a chain of clears (say 9 in one move), some limit you to a maximum number of moves, and some require you to match the three silver hearts. As you progress through the levels a few extra mechanics are added in - frozen balls that need to be matched before they can be moved, and some special bonuses you can collect causing your next ball to explode, or bounce around clearing everything it touches, etc. So mostly the key to the game is how the physics works - and it is completely repeatable (i.e. if you drop two balls down into the same spot, they will bounce the same way, as long as the previous ball doesn't get in the way), however it can be a bit hard to predict the bounce in certain situations, but overall I found once you have played for a while you can predict what will happen fairly accurately most of the time, and it does lead to far more great moments than regular match three games - where you are mostly being congratulated for the right colours randomly falling in, in this case you can see where everything is, so the great moves are far more likely to be intentionally designed rather than luck. In most cases you rarely need to exactly predict the bounces anyway, as most of the time you are firing into chutes, or into a curve that will "catch" the ball softly and direct it the way you want, or on to a pile of balls where the bounce will usually be fairly clear. A couple of minor exceptions are on the flat based levels, when there is exactly one ball thick, it is seemingly impossible to drop it between two balls directly, it always bounces left (or right) 2/3/4 balls, so that can be a pain. There is also a specific level where you collect a bomb and have to fire two silver hearts down the sides and off ramps to be caught at the bottom of the playing field which took me dozens of attempts to get exactly right. So overall it is a fairly decent action puzzle game, but it could be frustrating at first until you get the hang of physics of the balls, which are both the main pro and sometimes the main con of this game compared to more traditional match three games.

I'll be brutally honest, I wouldn't have purchased this if it wasn't for the recent sale. This game has a lot of nostalgia value for me since I used to play the mobile version when I was younger, which is one of the reasons why I paid for it in the first place. However, I don't think it's worth the price you pay for it. It's frustrating, it's not easy, the physics engine isn't amazing, I've sank many attempts into levels and quit out of impending rage and quit the game for the day knowing that I'll probably delete my progress if I keep playing and keep failing objectives and keep restarting the level til my patience runs out. But there's something that keeps it fun despite so many negatives. It's somewhat unique and the graphics are nice and even though the gameplay is annoying at times, it's a rather tranquil experience. To sum it up I would recommend this game if you want a unique Match 3 experience with a nod to titles such as Peggle, but I'd wait until the sales come back around.

stopped playing after 30 seconds. awful

This game is wonderful. The physics are tight. Very addictive. Well Done!

アイディアは良いと思う。 しかし、玉の動きが予想できず、ストレスが溜まる。 玉を狙った位置に落とせない。玉は勝手に転がり、跳ね返り、予想外の場所へ行ってしまう。 難しくて最後までクリアできなかった。 物理演算ONのショットと、物理演算OFFのショットを使い分けることができたら良かった。

Physics-based match-3 dropping balls game. Casual but somewhat challenging. Recommended. Similar to Atlantis: Pearls of The Deep, but more simple.

NOTE: At least some of my play time is not recorded due to the fact it was offline. I really enjoy this game. It is one of those simple but challenging games. I recommend it.