To be honest, from the "Bejeweled" in the Saipan era to the various match-3 mobile games now, the only one that can keep me playing for more than three years is "Fantasy Garden". Without bragging, today I will talk about this game with the old guys and compare the advantages and disadvantages of similar works.
Let's talk about the match-3 gameplay itself first. Most of the match-3 games on the market now, like Candy Crush Saga, have increasingly crazy level designs that will block you in dozens of levels and force you to spend money. The level difficulty curve of "Fantasy Garden" is relatively smooth. Although there are a few abnormal levels in the middle period, at least it will not make you feel that the planner is deliberately trying to mess with you. What's more conscientious is that it combines elimination with garden decoration very naturally - you get stars every time you pass a level, and you can add fountains, benches or flower beds to the garden. This real sense of accomplishment is much more comfortable than simple score ranking.
Among similar games, "Dream Home" is actually made by the same team, but to be honest, the interior decoration freedom of Home is not as high as that of Garden. The outdoor scene of the garden includes dozens of areas such as lawns, paths, flower beds, etc. You can match them according to your own aesthetic. Although you cannot completely customize the layout, at least every piece of land you unlock is like putting together a puzzle. As for the fish-raising gameplay of "Dream Aquarium", it feels too repetitive in the later stages. I got tired of it after playing the 150th level.
In terms of plot, the butler Austin in "Garden of Dreams" is definitely the highlight. This old man is poor-talking, loves to complain, and occasionally engages in small conspiracies. He is much more flesh and blood than those NPCs who only say "you are awesome". In contrast, although the plot of Playrix's "Dream Town" is also very exquisite, the pace is too slow. It takes more than a dozen levels to progress in one episode, which makes it easy for people to get interrupted.
There are no shortcomings either. The biggest problem is that you don't have enough stamina in the later stages. Veteran players from the Android 5.0 era should all know that stars are accumulated slowly and the garden gets stuck halfway through upgrading. In addition, the activity levels are becoming more and more frequent, which kind of kidnaps online time. However, considering that it is completely free and ads are not mandatory, I can tolerate this minor problem.
Finally, let's talk about nostalgia. I remember that it was 2016 when I first started playing. I played a few levels every day before going to bed and watched the dilapidated garden become beautiful little by little, as if I was taking care of a real small yard. Although the picture is more refined now, the pure joy remains the same. If you are tired of playing those skin-changing match-3 games, you might as well try this old friend, maybe you can get back the feeling of playing games in the first place. 😊