Ads vs. Gameplay (Zen Match Review)
Ads on the left, gameplay on the right.Ā
This is a tile-matching game somewhat similar to mahjong. You start out with a board of overlapping tiles and when you select tiles from the board they go to the row at the bottom that can only hold a certain amount of tiles at once. Tiles are cleared from the bottom area when you match three of the same tile and you lose if too many tiles accumulate at the bottom. Similarly to mahjong, some tiles are trapped/hidden under other tiles and you canāt select them unless you clear the tile(s) on top of them first.Ā
Something I really like about this game is that itās actually pretty challenging and makes you think ahead and select tiles carefully. The most obvious selection (ex. choosing two of the same tile in a row) isnāt always the best move, you want to pay more attention to the hidden or grayed-out tiles trapped under other tiles so you can ensure youāll be able to clear enough tiles a few steps ahead to avoid failing the level. The boards get more challenging as you progress through the main levels.
I also like the simple straightforward layout and the nature-y backgrounds of the levels that change as you progress through stages - along with the background music, it does give a very āzenā atmosphere. You also unlock new tiles as you go along which adds additional variety to the levels. I originally thought this was the game with the ad showing someone playing on an iPad/tablet with an Apple Pencil/stylus although now Iām not sure because although the ads I found for this game are very similar I didnāt find the Apple Pencil one in my search for this review. Either way, I originally started playing this game on my iPad with my Apple Pencil but then I switched to my phone and I actually think itās better on the phone, especially with the haptic feedback features of my iPhone 11, which gives a satisfying clicky feeling when you select tiles. The game also lets you sync progress between devices which is a plus.Ā
The only downside I really had from this game was the interstitial ads, which are skippable after a few seconds but still annoying. I understand games have to make money but Iāll never be a fan of these ads that pop up between levels. Iām not as opposed to ads that just display in the menu or on the edges of level screens (the latter of which this game also has), as well as ads that you can watch voluntarily to earn some coins or stamina or what have you. In fact, reward ads would have been really helpful in this game since it runs on a stamina system where you lose a heart every time you lose a level, and if you love all five hearts you need to wait at least 30 minutes to regain at least one more heart. I looked around to see if I could watch an ad to earn a heart but you can pretty much only regain hearts with money or maybe coins (which you can buy with money or only gradually save up from completing levels). Kind of a nitpick but the frustration of having to wait 30 minutes sure messed with my zen lol.Ā
As for the ads, I would label them partly fake, the levels do not contain this endless mass of tiles filling the entire board. Some of the ads also show tiles with different designs like dice or numbers, Iām not sure if these show up later in the game but after 100 levels Iāve only ever seen the nature-themed tiles. The closest things to the ads might be the daily challenge levels which still arenāt the same as the ads but involve larger, more complex boards and a time limit. (P.S., I suggest playing the daily challenges at the end of any play session because theyāre a lot more difficult to pass and will quickly eat up your hearts lol.)
Ad Honesty Rating: 4/5 (not heinously fake but not fully accurate to the game)
Overall Rating: 4/5 (pretty good game and fun to play, just not perfect or amazing)
Thanks so much for reading to the end! š„³ If thereās any specific type of content youād like to see on this blog feel free to make any suggestions! Have a great weekend!
