I don’t know about you, but I’m always on the search for some good, quality gaming apps. However, in the puzzles sections, the classics are always either not free or kind of crappy. But rejoice! This one is aesthetically appealing, free, AND it has multiple puzzle games wrapped into one app. The slightly de-cluttered gaming folder on my iPhone is looking pretty nice.
As I said, it comes with different forms of anagram games, crosswords, and word searches. The anagrams, however, definitely have the most variety. There’s even a riddle mode; talk about feeling like Bilbo riddling it out with Gollum in the Hobbit (please excuse the nerd-out. Just trying to be transparent here.) The crosswords and word searches are what you would stereotypically imagine. But gliding my finger over the letters in the word search instead of having to accidentally mess up in pen or highlighter was pretty satisfying.
Crosswords are always a bit of a struggle for me, but I found the easy ones pretty doable. Each of the different puzzles were challenging, but reasonable enough for me to not lose motivation and give up on mid-play. The hints were very helpful in those especially trying times. But use them with tact! They run out pretty fast if you’re not paying attention.
Obviously, with it being a free app, one should expect ads. There are a few pop-ups during the games, but I only experienced a few, and they were before I actually started the puzzle. So no anger over interrupted gameplay caused by pop-ups. Also, there are categories and levels of each type of puzzle that are free, and ones you have to unlock. The only way to unlock them and not pay any money is with your time – by watching ads. I know, I know, sounds terrible, but not necessarily. They were only 4 or 5 seconds long each, mostly unlocks multiple puzzles for one ad, and it’s not super in-your-face like most ads are, so not much time wasted there and not a collectively exhausting procedure.
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I personally just paid the 3 dollars (or $2.99 for those people) and unlocked all of the puzzles, took away the slightly obnoxious ads, and gained 20 more hints. And you may not think the hints are that special, but I spent the 5 or so you are given within the first five minutes of experimenting with the app. *Little glitch: Not a big deal, but one of the words in the word search was spelled differently on the list than in the actual search (something about Shephard/Sheppard dogs.) Not a big deal, but my OCD self sees that one word unfinished and wants to throw my phone across the room. But, in the end, a great experience. Watch the little detailed transitions in between each screen, and you’ll see that the developers weren’t messing around.
The level of attention to detail is rather refreshing, considering the array of poorly executed, constantly glitchy, and straight up ugly free classic game apps there are out there. Very smooth, extremely professional, and it comes with a Day/Night setting (!!!).
