Are we sick of match-3 puzzle games yet? Can we even handle match-3 puzzle games that seem to borrow their name from a nearly decade-old Snoop Dogg meme?
I absolutely would’ve thought the answer was probably “yes” to both questions, but Spinzizzle’s unique gameplay and eye-popping visuals have me convinced otherwise.
Spinzizzle, which is free, takes the match-3-like colors format that half of the iPhone puzzle games use, but flips it on its head by placing the puzzle on a rotating disk. Instead of moving the pieces to create the matches, the player rotates the disk so the pieces slide into alignment. It is a novel way to take a match-3 puzzle game and bring something new to the genre. As an aside, I am very glad that developer PressOK decided we didn’t need to turn our phones to turn the game board.
Helping along the new format are some really nicely rendered background environments. Throughout the main game mode’s 21 levels, you’ll see a variety of multi-colored, multi-tiered backgrounds. The tiered backgrounds work to create a kind of 3D illusion that looks great. Combine that with a great use of vibrant colors, and suddenly Spinzizzle could warrant a Style Magazine cover.
Aside from the main mode, where you’ll play 21 levels against a timer as you attempt to rack up enough points to advance on to the next level, there is another mode where you’ll simply play to rack up as many points as you can before the timer runs out.
This “Action Mode,” as it’s called, isn’t really much different from the main “Story” mode, which is a bit of a disappointment. Some sort of additional way to play that switches up the format would’ve been a welcome change, but that seems like a small complaint to register when the actual game is as fun as Spinzizzle.
