Recent reviews by Taskmaster

The game key was given to me, so it was free to me but cost someone. Any level where you would normally be allowed to drag an object out of the way is bugged, Level 6, for example, so if you do not have the patients to match objects just by the fringe edge outline, then don;t bother with this game. It is not great even if not bugged. If you can get it for free, then enjoy, otherwise, you'll regret your purchase!

At the time of this review I am on level 371, with 3 stars on each, having not spent a single penny on the game. It is fun, it is colorful, it is different than many plain Match-3 games. There are many varied levels, many varied "events', animal friends, etc., that make the game unique. Yes, there are just as many marketing messages wanting you to spend money on this or that power up, or unique character costume. I just click "X" and play the next level. There is nothing forcing you to spend money, and spending money is not needed to beat any of the levels. The levels are not even timed, having limited moves instead. I have only encountered a small number of levels that feel too limited (they are marked as hard), but you can get past them within one or two replays, or using a power-up. I have not encountered any bugs (reported by one review). You get out of it, what you put into it.

Update: Now over level 1,100 and still nothing that requires spending money to continue. Levels are more challenging the farther you progress.

First, this is a Match-3 game... period. If you do not enjoy playing many levels of match-3 then find another genre to play. Second, many ignorant folks (just means they don't know) continually refer to pay-to-win, which this is not. In game purchases, for sure, but the game is free. Play it and have fun and don't spend a penny. You will be able to level, advance, enjoy the main quest, hunts, events, kingdoms, seasons, followers, etc., without spending any real money on virtual stuff. There is nearly an overwhelming amount of depth to this game, from honing your gear, to matching sets, to upgrading your spells, minions and followers. So far I am 45 hours in at level 23 and nothing needing my real life cash to get past.

If you don't like this free Match-3 game, then visit Big Fish, IWin, Game House, etc. and play some for an hour for free. You can get your craving met and save your cash for food, shelter and clothing! LOL

First, be aware there is a potentially game breaking bug nearly at the end of the main story line.
It has been mentioned by another reviewer and has a discussion thread in the forum. Apparently not everyone encounters it as there are other reviews that do not mention it. It seems to have to do with the order you solve the steps near that part of the game (trying not to spoil anything).

I did replay the game again taking care to take a different approach at that point in the game. Given I was able to complete the game - even though I had to replay a major portion of it - I changed my review to a thumbs up. If you have other HOGs you are needing to play, you might want to consider buying and playing them first. Then come back to this one if you still want it after that.

I won this game in a giveaway, so it was "free" but not from a company or developer, thus I am not beholden to anyone on my review (I will not check the free box).

The only thing "heroic" about this game is that it takes "heroic" effort to complete it. Not because it is hard, but because it is just not a good game. I enjoy most games in the match-3 genre, but not loving this one. There is no instruction on the "power-ups", such as "horse hoof" or "throwing knives", which you can figure out pretty quickly, but it just indicates the lack of polish. This has potential, but right now it is a "No" in my book.

5-Star Hawaii Resort is a fun, mostly relaxing match-3 game with some resort building tossed in. The levels are not consistent in the difficulty, so at times you will finish a level without even realizing it, while other times you may need to replay it multiple times (and I mean multiple!) to achieve 3 stars, if you care about that. I really recommend playing Hawaii Resort BEFORE playing the newer, and improved, 5-Star Miami Resort. Going backwards may be a little difficult as there are no power-ups in Hawaii Resort.

A fun diversion, with a simple story line, that allows you to interact with a diverse group of interplanetary explores. Help each of them with the quests as you upgrade your home world and learn about who you are. There is nothing overly complicated or difficult. Activities are fun, combat is casual, exploration is satisfying, and so on. This is a unique game worth your time so pick it up on sale (currently on sale for $1.49 during Winter Sale 2020 ).

Kingdom Rush is a ton of fun, has plenty of depth, features colorful graphics, a variety of heroes, a multitude of powerful unit upgrades and is incredibly polished! One of the best in the tower defense genre in my humble opinion.

I concur with the other reviews. It started off well, but by the end I was wanting it to just end!

Mystery Loss is a casual match-3, with a story that - at least in English - makes no sense and is impossible to follow. You would think Steam "quality control" would disallow games like that. Regardless... Levels are very hit-or-miss with no sense of increasing difficulty. That is, the levels can be very difficult without getting lucky or using a ton of "power up", which cost coins, which are very limited. The fun fades quickly to the point I play 1 or 2 levels just to move forward a bit and then quit for a day or two. There are much better Match-3 games out there. The characters a cool for the first 10 levels or so then get annoying.

If you are familiar with Big Fish, go try this game out for an hour for free to decide if you want to buy this game on Steam when it is on sale. If you have extreme patience, then you might find this fun for a while. I'm going to not recommend it.