Feel rich with this iPhone game's jewels.
Diamond Twister is rough, but its luster shines through. This match-three puzzle clone adds a pointless story and misses with many of its game elements. But the ability to twist the iPhone to re-orient the board at any time multiplies the game’s strategy.
Players swipe jewel shapes with a fingertip, exchanging adjacent pieces. When three match, they vanish, and new jewels fall into the gap from above. Bonus pieces appear when four or more shapes match. With this in mind, we developed strategies to twist the iPhone at 90-degree steps before making matches, squeezing clusters of similar gems together until we could connect four. This literal twist to the game makes an average puzzle title unique.
Unfortunately, the rest of the game doesn’t match this mechanic. Individual levels are over too quickly, win or lose. The point system for beating boards relies too much on bonus squares and not enough on chain reactions, where one match caused another. And our touches were occasionally misread.
Diamond Twister’s rotating gameplay spins a crowded game genre on its ear.
Twisting mechanic creates unique gameplay. Challenge mode adds additional ways to play. 
Could have put even more emphasis on the twisting mechanic. Levels end abruptly. Story adds nothing to game. Touches occasionally misread. Between-level interface doesn't follow iPhone orientation.
