Pokemon Shuffle is unfortunately another example of Free-to-Play meant to cash in on the name alone
Pokemon Shuffle REVIEW
Written By Tyler Pederson
I’ve always considered myself to be a fan of the idea of Free-to-Play but rarely found it striking a balance that is enjoyable and, well, balanced. Nintendo are without question one of the late players entering the umbrella of Free-to-Play, but they seem to be demonstrating a good amount of restraint in their approach. The latest entry, and still one of the first overall, is Pokemon Shuffle. Any fan of the Pokemon Trozei series will be familiar with the overall game, but really it’s a basic match-three game in the same world as a Bejeweled or the like that most anyone will have some level of comfort with from the jump.
The gameplay is incredibly simplified, but can use that basic formula to create some exponentially more difficult puzzles. Each level is a different pokemon. Match 3 like pokemon and the disappear from the board, dealing damage of that pokemon's type to the enemy pokemon. Variables come into play such as enemy abilities that hinder your options, and a lower number of available moves to make before it’s game over.
Each puzzle attempt costs one heart, the primary currency of the game. These hearts are earned every half hour, up to a max of 5 hearts. In my experience, this roughly translates to 15 minutes of game time per 2.5 hours of not playing it, so take that as you wish. You can hold more than 5 should you choose to dive into the available “microtransactions”, which I now feel the need to use in quotations because the term “Micro” implies a small amount of money, and while Nintendo does demonstrate restraint in limiting those under 18 to a maximum of $100 real world dollars spent in the game per month, the fact that $48 of that can be spent in one go outweighs the potential kindness offered. You can’t outright buy hearts, but instead gems that can be exchanged for any number of in game returns, most of which amount to making the game far easier or granting you unlimited play time. These gems too can be earned, but are few and far between.
Including the seven rotating daily levels and promotional Mew level available for another week, The game currently offers 159 levels, of which I have completed 39. If that in any way invalidates my opinion, that’s your call to make. I would have played more to be honest, but find myself quite alright with the few minutes of fun every couple of hours between other activities, meaning I’ve yet to give any money to the game. The puzzles, while not impossible, can be challenging at times, and the cuteness factor grows greater as you collect more and more stylized pokemon to use on the board. Beyond the minor challenge here and there however, the game is a breeze, and the 15 minute periods are easily cut down to less.
There remains time and likely demand for more levels to be added, but whether those too will be free or locked behind a paywall remains unknown. I will likely continue playing it for those 15 minutes here and there, but don’t see any lasting appeal given it’s forced wait or pay period. The potential is still there for Nintendo to get the Free-to-Play thing down right, but Pokemon Shuffle is unfortunately another example of a game that only really fell into that market because it’s likely to cash in on the name alone instead of creating a compelling reason to exist in this form.
Pokemon Shuffle gets a 4/10
