Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

A Good Game to buy

If you are like me and pass too many hours playing games on your iPad you will have found “The Perfect Tree”, yet another match 3 game to add to a highly saturated market. This one has been thoughtfully made though and is not such a cheap money waster.

It has 200 levels, each of which can be played 3 different ways. Relatively good quality Christmas music plays during the game, and it changes each level. I particularly like the twinkling icy sound effects when matching snow flakes, and the power-ups are great.

In-game currency is the stars you earn whilst matching, and what makes this game great is there are no in-app purchases, you pay $2.99 when you unlock, and you are done. The stars you earn are used to buy decorations for your christmas tree, which is backdropped with an ever evolving snowy scene.

This is a good game with a fair price. It will keep the kids quiet after lunch.

A Game To AVOID!

Candy Crush Saga is diabolical! The makers behind this game have pushed every psychological button they can find and charge you for it. In a time when most apps are going for free or selling for $.99 Candy Crush Saga pretends to be so reasonable.

It is another match 3, but does not follow the same business model that we have become used to.

There is no in-app currency. Each level is either played and won, where you move on to the next level, or lost, where you must re-try. You are given 5 lives. When you run out you can buy a couple more for $.99 or ask your Facebook friends (none of which play the game) for a life.

This is all fine at first, your lives refill in a couple of hours and off you go again. But then you find that after a few enjoyable and addictive levels you are asked to buy into the next section, again $.99. So you do, because the game is challenging and fun, and you just crave the “Sugar Crush”.

Now it gets nasty, as you progress further into the game it gets harder and more fun, and to win a level you have to buy power-ups, and the ones that work (you discover after already buying all the cheaper power-ups and still failing the level) cost somewhere between ‘quite expensive’ and daylight robbery! Don’t let your children anywhere near this one!

I reached level 74, which probably cost me around $20, mainly spent trying to win level 74. I had to delete the game from my iPad because it was frustratingly addictive and the only way I could win level 74 was by buying the ‘stripe painting power up’ for $41.99. And I knew that once through to level 80 I would be up for another $.99 to get to the next section, where who knows what expenses lay in wait for me.

This game takes advantage, and it does not have to. Its actually a really good matching game. But don’t buy it unless you have superhuman self control.