Best Fiends - Match 3 Puzzles in IOS

App Store Editors’ Notes

Decent game but dirty tactics

I’ve enjoyed this game for the most part. Over time it’s become abundantly clear that there is some programming in the game that prevents you from winning at certain times. Once you get past level 1,000 it’ll take dozens of tries on a level to beat it. Then out of nowhere everything will line up perfectly and you’ll breeze through. This isn’t just random because each new level will then again take hours to beat and then magically you’ll get it to all line up perfectly. I get the app has to make money but you kind of feel cheated because you realize that there is no possible way to beat that level other than playing it over and over until you get the “easier” layout. It is a fun game and definitely worth playing for a bit but I am frustrated that it’s not skill or strategy that gets you past levels in this game, it’s money and time. I have a also noticed on many, many occasions that you will be extremely close to beating the level with 5+ moves left. All of a sudden the board goes dry. There are no colors or matches you need. Then you use your last turn and all of a sudden that play you were trying to attain for several turns magically shows up but now you have to pay 10 gold to continue. This isn’t random. It happens too frequently to be random. I think the game is programmed to do this and it’s sad that they use this to try to trick people into spending more money.

Challenging game in all the wrong ways

I played this game for years, but stopped after the levels started getting too hard to beat without making purchases. But during the pandemic I started up again, and found it to be an addicting game once again. But over the last few months I’ve become more frustrated with the game than enjoying it. They are constantly popping up packages for me to buy, and often I have to click through seven or eight pop-up screens before I can finally start playing a level. And I can’t count the number of times I’ve been just one move away from beating a level, but yet run out of moves so I have to start all over again. It also has issues when it isn’t constantly connected to Wi-Fi. Being in New York and mostly playing on the subways, I’m in and out of coverage. The game doesn’t like this and has issues with saving my progress. I’ve lost gold and other extras and had to repeat levels I’ve already been, and if I close my phone in the middle of a game because I need to do something else, there’s a 50-50 chance that the game will just restart when I open it up again, losing any win streak I’ve built up. To make it all worse their customer service is not that great and quite repetitive when it comes to fixing issues I presented to them, they just keep sending me the same things to try that aren’t really related to my issue. So I am now on the hunt for a new game.

It’s Changed

I have been playing this for years. I loved that you could progress without spending real money. I would buy gold bars here and there because it wasn’t that expensive in real money $1.99 here 3.99 there. I Stopped playing for a while and just started it up recently and now it goes from 5 bars of gold for the first 5 extra moves to try to win a level to 18 bars for a second round of 5 extra moves. It used to be 5 bars for each extra round. Levels have gotten harder to win unless you spend real money on boosters and extra moves using gold bars. I get the developers designed this to make profit, its a gaming business but to go for years and years having it be fair, fun, affordable and playing without spending a lot to now having to, it’s sad to see. Maybe it’s not the original owners. I didn’t mind dropping real money here and there for gold and then used them sparingly on levels i didn’t want to keep playing over and over before winning it, but i will stop playing probably once i use up my current gold bars and I will never drop 18 of them to win a level with 5 more moves. They do bombard you will events, ad specials to and when you get a 5 min or 10 min booster you use up at least 30 seconds clicking through stuff before you even start a level. 5 min should start as soon as you start level and zero time wasting windows in between levels until your 5 min or 10 min is used up.

Why Two Stars?

Why two stars you ask? Well, to ME it’s a bit boring. I would have rate this game a one star, but I know how much the developers worked, so I gave ‘em a star for effort. I know your probably saying this person is stupid for this review! But here me out. The ad is bad. I have suggestions, and my reasons. So first, don’t use two different people for your ad. I just makes the person think, “Oh! They obviously have a script and might not really feel that way. Their mom or family is probably NOT addicted to this game.” Second, I don’t think you should put a person to say it, because then it just makes it even MORE obvious that they have a script. Now your thinking, “Well, wouldn’t everybody’s day have a script; even when there is no person.” Yes, that’s true, BUT! It’s always a different feeling when you see somebody. Third, since you had two people do the ad, don’t use almost the same exact words. Choose different words! Use that opportunity to explain more about the game! Well, that’s all for the ads. Now, the game. Please, please, PLEASE, make it more interesting in the beginning. That’s how you catch attention. Second, well there is no second. The beginning of the game is a BIG role in the game. Now to the good things about the game. It’s better than other puzzles at least. If I download a puzzle game, I seem deleting it the next day. What can I say? Beating “evil” slugs can somewhat be fun! Try it out! See what I mean. Thanks for hearing me out, if you did.

Too many events—feels like a chore

I don't know what it is with games these days, but the never-ending events have got to go. They end up making playing feel like a chore, and like I don't have much say in how I play the game, since pretty much everything I do revolves around completing tasks. I hoard keys, I don't level up fiends unless asked, I don't play lootballoon levels unless asked, I don't try for harder earthworm levels, I only play the fiends' quests when asked, etc. It's exhausting and demotivating. I spend most of a month frantically trying to finish all of the tasks (which now are thirty lists of three tasks each, instead of, like, ten lists of three tasks each). Then I get two days where I don't have to look at it, rinse and repeat. I'm starting to lose motivation. I really, really like the mechanics of the game and the different daily events and special levels, but I just don't feel like I get to enjoy them. A few events a year should be plenty, and keep them feeling special. But twelve events in twelve months (for a total of 24 prizes) is excessive. I don't feel like I can play the events casually; either I'm going to try to get the prizes, or I'm just not going to play. I have deleted plenty of games before for this, because they just stop being fun. I'm nearing that point with best fiends. My heart just sinks every time a new event starts, and that's just not how I want to feel when I open a game I like. The game would be five stars if not for that.

Games that last days…

On the most recent series i just want to say that them telling you you have 5 more days left to that series, after noting they keep changing the amount of days before 24 hours has passed! This is not legal and very unfair! Also if they are tanking us by wins,and you are not using paid for aids, your ranking is ALWAYS going to be lower. They charge tax on each purchase take days to place them on your bill and never group them if you made the purchase on the same day. I now play without aids and find that winning is just a matter of luck, the way they set up the board and eventually you will win it just takes playing until they provide a winnable board! I like the challenge but dislike the dishonesty, if your giving us 14 days to win a series, make the days 24 hours. Mine went from 8 days to 5 in two legal 24 hour time increments, it was very obvious it was being played with and for someone who plays at the same tome each day, it was startling to become aware of it!! The developers are CHEATS on something so little as giving you a certain amount of time to finish and then they adjust it! There is no time of day on the game, so my taking a photo is useless, it hides your time, on the phone, so again useless. I am a creature of habit so it’s my word against theirs they took time away from the game!

Fun game to play but...

It is a fun game to pass time. I’ve played it since it came out. But since that time the developers have moved buttons that didn’t require you to spend gold bars or buy things to buttons that do. You have to be mindful on each update. The epic critters are now $30 each? Meaning parents could drop $150 on an app???!? Sorry but that’s a hard no. I can go buy a couple of Xbox/PS games for that price AND take them to GameStop and get some money back. You can’t do that with apps. If you can’t use gold bars to get anything decent, there’s no point in collecting them during the game or buying them. Even the 2020 Black Friday “sale” wasn’t worth it - you had to buy one just to see what the other two offers were, and they really weren’t anything different than the offers that are done daily. I’d like to see if they are even looking at analytics to see if anyone is even finishing the monthly challenges 100% cause unless you play this game 8 hours every day, you’re not going to get them. I think there’s also a clear miss the developer should incorporate: It would be neat if they had an “info” card about the types of bugs & animals in the game so kids could see “oh this is what a axolotl or a Hercules beetle really looks like”. Connect with zoos or something to encourage learning about these bugs & spiders and turn fear into fascination.