To be honest, I was mentally prepared before opening this game. Nowadays, any game dares to call itself "free". If you enter it, you will either make an initial charge or a monthly pass, or else you will be stunned by the physical limitations. It turned out that this "Happy Mahjong Continuous Match" was actually free of charge. At that moment, I was so moved that I almost dropped my phone. 😂
The game itself is very simple, just the classic Lianliankan gameplay with mahjong elements. I didn't have high expectations at first. After all, there are so many elimination games of this type. But after playing a few levels, I found that this game is actually quite hardcore. It turns the mahjong tiles into a clearance mode, such as big three yuan, thirteen yaons, and nine lotus lanterns. What you eliminate are sets of real mahjong combinations. You think you are playing Xiaoxiaole, but you are actually studying the theory of Mahjong tiles.
My wife saw me holding my mobile phone and said to me, isn't this the same thing you played on Wenquxing when you were a kid? I said yes, but at that time there were no nine major modes and multiple card types. There are only keys, no dice, it is purely about eyesight and calmness.
What I find most interesting is that it mixes Mahjong and Lianliankan, two things that Chinese people are familiar with. There is no need for novice teaching or watching tutorial videos. I started to break through the levels within the first minute of playing, and I was stuck on the seventh level for nearly twenty minutes. I actually got serious about playing a finger game. The obsession of "You must have missed it somewhere, don't worry and look for it again" has not appeared in mobile games for a long time.
Of course, do you think there is any innovation in this game? Not really. But this is what makes it valuable. It doesn't require you to check in every day, it doesn't ask you to invite friends, and it doesn't force you to recharge to draw characters. Just lie there quietly, play a game if you think of it, and throw it aside if you don't want to play. This sense of solidity is, to be honest, even rarer than independent games now.
It's a lot like that box of fermented bean curd that's been in your refrigerator for a long time. It's not a precious thing, but it just doesn't taste good when you eat it without porridge one morning. The same goes for this game. It's not amazing or show off your skills, but it's just a bowl of comfortable hot porridge. 🥣
Also, I would like to mention that the Nine Lotus Lantern mode is really poisonous. I went to bed last night thinking about winning a handful, but ended up working until two in the morning and several hairs fell out. If you are someone who likes to curse people and can't put down your phone, I recommend you try this level. 🥴