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jp's Bermuda Triangle: Saving the Coral (DS)

[May 24, 2022 07:09:58 PM]

I just noticed the game's subtitle...and I guess it's thematically appropriate? I mean, this is a game that's sort of about saving the coral but not in any meaningful way. It's a match-3 type game, but...with a twist.

The game is upside down from what I'm normally used to. And it's like puzzle bobble/snood in that the field fills up over time and your job is to keep things under control. If things get too full (here if elements get to low on the screen - deeper underwater), then you lose. What's unusual is that in most of these games you're at the bottom firing stuff to the items that are dropping...in this game you're at the TOP and you get to place a new item wherever you want along the top row. If the space is not empty, then whatever is there gets shifted down (and might also go diagonal a bit). It makes sense because you're a boat, so you're sort of dropping these things on the surface, and that makes everything underneath that sink lower..and adjust. Things disappear when you match of course and the matches must be in a straight line (diagonal or horizontal, you can't have a vertical line because the grid is basically hex-based).

There are different colored elements (they kind of look like sea urchins? Some with spikes and others without) and you're supposed to clear a certain amount (get to a 100% completion) to clear the stage and move on to the next one. This wasn't that interesting... THere are also at least four items you can use to make things easier - like bombs that explode, color balls that make all the elements of a color disappear, and the like. The strangest are the anchors you use to take out these snails that slink along the bottom and pause to munch on coral. All this does is sets you back in your completion rate - so I guess the things you're dropping into the water to match are "coral" that might get eaten by these snails? Oh, the usual "drop" that happens automatically here takes place from the bottom up - stuff floats up making the entire structure hang lower (and thus closer to your losing).

Using objects is a bit annoying in terms of the interface - you have to tap to bring up an item selector list, tap the item you want and then, for the anchor, tap where you want it to drop. Hopefully the snail hasn't moved. So, I mostly ignored the items as I played may way around the 1st island (there are at least four). THere's also a squid that "inks" items so you can't make matches..it's a bit annoying, but the game is rather chill - not very difficult from what I played, but still.

I guess as a twist on match-3 it is interesting and worth taking a look at. I enjoyed not having to aim - as you have to do in other games of this style (e.g. snood).