Introduction
One of my favorite things to do as a game designer is play games. This should be surprising to no one.
But for a game designer, playing games is not just about fun, it’s about research. There are a staggering number of games being released each year (digital and non-digital alike) and I think there is value in learning from their successes and failures.
So lets turn a critical eye towards a popular mobile game and understand how its designed and why it succeeds (or doesn’t!).
This week: Gardenscapes.
What Is It?
Gardenscapes is a Match-3 meets Invest/Express hybrid game by Playrix for iOS and GooglePlay. While this if the fourth Gardenscapes in the series it is the first entry to mobile (the previous iterations were all PC-based).
Players complete Match-3 puzzles in order to revitalize and customize a large outdoor garden.
The Story
Players inherits a mansion from some distant relative, but upon arrival find the gardens to be a crumbling mess. The player teams up with Austin, the butler, to revitalize the estate. Throughout the process players meet friendly character, make decisions and solve mysteries.
While the story is somewhat cliche it does a great job of centering gameplay and giving context to actions.
Sure we’ve seen the “Help me fix up this old place you inherited” story a million times in games. But the developers do a great job of making a fun and interesting story. And you have to admit this game looks great!
The Gameplay
Gardenscapes features two distinct gameplay systems: Invest and Express and Match-3.
Within the Invest and Express feature players repair parts of the dilapidated garden and then customize it. Each “customization” offers the player a choice between three options. For example: when adding accent flowers to a fence players can choose between yellow tulips, bluebells and red roses. The choice the player makes has no effect on gameplay and is purely superficial.
Each repair and customization is gated by Stars. Stars are collected by completing levels in the Match-3 system and then spent on the repair.
The Match-3 system functions with rules that are standard to the genre. The player is presented with various sized and shaped gridded gameboards. The boards are populated with puzzle pieces which the player can move one space vertically or horizontally. When the player matches three or more of the same puzzle piece those pieces disappear and the adjacent pieces fall into their new locations. The player’s gameplay is most often limited by the number of moves that can be made.
Each Match-3 level gives the players different requirements to win:
Collect X number of points before you run out of turns.
Collect X number of a specific piece(s) you run out of turns.
Get X number of pieces to the bottom of the gameboard before you run out of turns.
The player is gated from playing the Match-3 by hearts. When the player loses a level a heart is consumed (though a heart is not consumed when a player successfully completes a level. Hearts regenerate after a set amount of time for a maximum of 5 hearts banked OR the player can purchase hearts.
By completing levels players earn Stars and Coins. Stars are used to make repairs around the garden. Coins are used to purchase power-ups and, should the player need them, additional moves at the end of a level.
The Match-3 core loop looks like this:
Meanwhile the Invest and Express system doesn’t really form a loop, it’s more a straight line coming off of the Match-3 loop.
Not so much a “Core Loop” as a “Straight Line”
How Does This Make Money?
One of many opportunities to spend money in Gardenscapes.
Coin Purchases
Gardenscapes players can purchase coins for cash. This would be a popular purchase for players who are consistently using additional moves at the end of a level.
Heart Purchases
The player can purchase hearts will will allow them to circumvent the energy regeneration time and keep playing.
Bundles
Players can purchase bundles - a combination of coins and power-ups for the match-3 game.
Watch for Coins
Players can watch videos in exchange for a limited number of coins. The developers earn a set amount of money for each video that is watched.
The Good
Gardenscapes is a highly polished experience. From the visual designs to the animations to the UI the entire experience is a pleasure to look at and highly engaging.
Both components of the game are solid. When building a Match-3/Invest and Express hybrid it would be easy to let one play-style suffer to bolster the other. Gardenscapes does not do this - both the Match 3 and Invest and Express features are thoughtfully designed and fun to play with.
The game has elastic qualities. Whether I have 30 second or 15 minutes I can have a meaningful interaction with this game.
The difficulty leveling seems spot on. The game creates ebs and flows of gameplay by pushing the player’s skills and patience. Gardenscapes does a great job of being “fun” frustrating, not “I am going to quit this stupid game” frustrating. This is not an easy line to walk.
The Bad
Too much dialog for my taste. Some sections of dialog feel very very long (and many sequences are not able to be skipped).
The Invest and Express features feel a little too linear for my liking. I would have liked more freedom when choosing the order in which I restore my garden estate. The current progression does not give you much opportunity to forge your own path.
While the gameplay features two distinct mechanics (“Invest and Express” and Match-3), the link between the two mechanics is one-way. While I need to play Match-3 to advance in the Invest and Express gameplay, my Invest and Express gameplay has no impact on my Match-3 experience. I would have liked to see a meaningful reciprocal link between the two.
Takeaways
Hybrid games are gaining traction. By mixing proven genres developers have the potential to not only differentiate themselves in a crowded market, but find new types of players as well.
Easy to learn, difficult to master. The hallmark of a good game is that it is easy to learn, but difficult to master. To me this is the perfect encapsulation of the Match-3 genre and why it is so enduringly popular.
The Verdict
A charming, polished game that gently blends two popular mobile game genres. Check it out if you are Match-3 fan, but don’t expect the Invest and Express mechanics to blow you away.