Two days ago, the cool cats at PopCap Games released the long-awaited Bejeweled 3. The newly released title features beautiful, high-definition graphics, amazing sound and music, four additional game modes from its predecessor, and an unlock and achievement structure centering around 65 achievement badges to be earned through gameplay.
In short, your brain, Mac and free time once again belong to a Bejeweled game.
In spite of its sequel status, the core gameplay in Bejeweled 3 remains much the same as the original: shift the jewels around the board to form identically colored chains of three or more in order the clear the jewels, score points and move on to the next level. As classic as this may be, the designers over at PopCap went several steps further, dreaming up a slew of new games modes that both retain the core gameplay of the series (as well as its incredible simplicity) while adding in new ways to play and achievements to unlock.
Without further ado, here's what several hours of wonderfully wasted game time were able to divulge as to how best to play the new modes.
Mastering the jewels chains is the key to racking up points. Creating chains of three jewels will remove the pieces from the board and award you points--business as usual--but creating chains of four will activate the Star Gem, which can wipe out nearby jewels in both vertical and horizontal directions. If you create a chain of five jewels, you'll activate the Hyper Cube, which targets and destroys all similarly colored jewels on the board, clearing space for new pieces to fall and change the pace of the game.
Granted, this may not be the sexiest game mode to show your friends, but it will get you back into the fray, accustom you to what lies ahead and have you realize "wait…I can do this awesome thing. Ok, that'll be helpful." and get you used to beating the clock to move on to the next level.
For practice with Bejeweled 3, there's nothing better than "Zen," an untimed mode in which you can play to your heart's content without having to work against a clock. Zen combines classic gameplay with relaxing music and allows you to sit down, begin playing and begin to develop strategies on your own.
Yes, the pace is slow and this is the definitive practice mode for Bejeweled 3, but this also buys you the time to learn to learn lessons, get faster, spot where combinations can be set up and help you get in the habit of spotting where longer chains can be created and how best to use the specialized gems they created to quickly clear the board for additional points.
This will drive you nuts, but you'll love the creators of Bejeweled 3 for it. In "Lightning" mode, you'll work against a clock, having to score a certain number of points within a 60-second time frame. Achieve this and you'll receive an additional 30 seconds to work with as the game pushes you to think on your feet. It's in this mode that practice in the "Zen" and "Classic" modes pays off and allows you to keep cool when the world seems to be crashing down around you.
When playing, remember to stay calm and don't go for the easy three jewel combinations. Go for the changes to create four or five jewel chains to clear the board for additional points, and remember that the pause button exists for a reason: when in doubt, stop the game, come back to it after you've stopped panicking and see what you can do with the pieces available to you.
If you wondered why Bejeweled 3 took a while to come out, it was because PopCap was developing the "'Quest" mode, which will drive you crazy in some fairly interesting ways. In "Quest" mode, you'll work through 40 puzzles and 11 mini-games with varying goals such as preserving certain gems on the boards, digging through terrain to unearth diamonds and balancing the number of red and blue jewels you collect to advance to the next puzzle.
What needs to be remembered here is that no matter how alien the level's appearance or goal may seem, everything hooks back into basic Bejeweled gameplay. If you can work quickly, keep relaxed, try to see the whole board (and not get frustrated while searching for a combo in a given area of the screen) and form four or five jewel chains, you'll be ok. Yes, the game style may change with each new level, but if you can keep a level head, you'll prevail and unlock an increasingly cool set of achievement badges in the process.
As you progress through the Classic, Zen, Lightning and Quest modes and collect the requisite achievement badges, you'll gain access to the Secret Modes (Butterflies, Diamond Mine, Ice Storm and Poker), which are about as unconventional as anything you've ever played in the Bejeweled universe. Stay calm and remember that even if you don't pass the level on the first try, you can always learn from the experience.
If a level looks incredibly different from what you're used to, just remember what the goal of the level is and combine it with classic Bejeweled gameplay. Also remember that unless there's a specific time constraint built into the level, this isn't a race. Take your time, plot the next move, wait until the moment everything clicks in your mind, then tear into the game like it's your favorite meal after finishing a charity 5K with no one watching…
When in doubt, go for a longer jewel chain for additional points and more damage.
(Because you can never go wrong with more damage...)
purplemaizenjm
December 12, 2010 at 4:08pm
I loved Bejeweled 1 and 2, now I have to try Bejeweled 3 this game is very additicitve. Thanks for the heads up!
