Free-To-Play Puzzler Gems Of War Is Out Now On Switch

From some of the folks behind the brilliant puzzle-match3-RPG games PUZZLE QUEST 1 and 2, so definitely worth a shot for free. However, I have heard some mixed comments about the game on mobile due to the in-game transactions. Basically, wish there was a way to strip all that out and just play PUZZLE QUEST 2 on Switch, lol!

I'd say so. Played this a bunch of PS4 back in the day. Not once felt the need to pay any real money, and the "Puzzle Quest" style combat is very addictive. Would recommend.

@Lroy I felt it was similar to say Clicker Heroes in the department of MTX, you can pay to get access to certain things sooner, but it in no way is a forced grind paywall like a lot of AAA games nowadays.

Oh and someone needs to get a port of MIGHT & MAGIC: CLASH OF HEROES onto the Nintendo Switch. Undoubtedly, the absolute pinnacle of puzzle/RPG hybrids. A fantastic game on Nintendo DS. There’s a spruced up version on PSN and other platforms too but the DS had the benefit of no load times.

@XenoShaun Thanks for sharing that information. Not heard of CLICKER HEROES myself. But I get what you’re saying about not needing to spend cash to play the game properly. I’ve got it downloaded and gave it a go yesterday. I’ll certainly stick with it and see how I get on. Just really miss PUZZLE QUEST 1 and 2. Hoping this can live up to that strong legacy for these types of games.

Yep, this is fun. I’ve not been pestered to buy anything, either.

@Lroy Very much so. I adored the first Puzzle Quest. The space one.. Galactrix? I found pretty fun as well. Don't think I got too much into the second, though I believe I have it either on PS4 (PS2 bc) or XB1 (360 bc?).

Is it a joy con exclusive or can we use the regular controller?

@Xaessya Store page says Pro controller is supported.

More shovelware

As someone who played the heck out of Puzzle Quest back in the day, I didn't think twice, especially for free and with barely over 500 Mb of storage needed. Some features are recognizable from the aforesaid predecessor, some from the traditions of many modern freemiums, including the ever gacha-friendly CCG component that allows for team battles instead of Puzzle Quest's one-on-ones - the catch, of course, is that now both sides can incapacitate the enemy's available skills as they knock out the respective creatures. Not sure yet if there's a stamina bar involved, since the game is unlocking features and literally menus on level-ups.

And if you're allergic to freemiums, Puzzle Quest itself remains a damn worthy alternative, playable on PSP and DS and, more importantly, still purchasable on 3DS eShop (DSiWare section, I think).

I absolutely loved Puzzle Quest, so this was a no-brainer download. It's great! I played it for over 4 hours last night and I haven't hit a paywall yet.

@Lroy Oh didn't know that. This explains why it felt so familiar looking at those screens. Great!

As a fan of Puzzle Quest (arguably the best match3-game in my eyes) I tried out Gems of War yesterday evening for 4 to 5 hours.
As far as I can tell (playing it only this short time) there's a good and a bad:
The Good: In nearly every point it feels as an even more polished and well-defined game as it's predecessor. Addictive gameplay!
The Bad: It's free to play but if you want to have any good options for the fights ingame then you have to make a step into the microtransactions-hell.
It's like [put in any CCG of your choice here]. I was willing to buy the two "starter packs" for 25€ in total (because of Puzzle Quest) but it was easy to see that this is just the very beginning if you really want to get in the game.

@Lroy Might and Magic: Clash of Heroes is an awesome game that deserves to be played by more people. I would happily buy it again for Switch!

@LinktotheFuture
if UBI would port it I'd triple dip in no time despite being it an UBI game!

It's worth it as long as you are ready to walk away if/when you hit a pay-to-win wall.

I loved Might and Magic: Clash of Heroes so I was happy to stumble across a new take on it for mobile the other day called Solgard. It's a pretty passable take on the same gameplay with some mobile microtransactions layered in. Definitely worth a try if you played the heck out of Might and Magic like I did. Especially since the mobile version of MaM isn't very well ported and may not even be in the store anymore.

Gonna download this tonight. If it’s good then result! If it’s pants I’ll delete it with no harm done. Win - win.

@XenoShaun GEMS OF WAR is definitely channeling a lot of PUZZLE QUEST 2 in terms of aesthetic. Although on initial impressions it actually looks uglier than PUZZLE QUEST 2 which is surprising given its age now.

@nhSnork I never knew the original PUZZLE QUEST came to DSi ? I own it on Steam and PSP on Vita but I’d buy it again on 3DS for sure. Will have to check to see if the DSi store is even still accessible on 3DS. I did buy that Steam World Tower Defence game off the DSi store for 3DS but that was a good few years back now.

@PhantomJedi Thanks for the tip, I’ll look into SOLGARD(?)

EDIT: Installing Legend of Solgard on iOS now 👌

Turns out I dropped 108 hours on this on Xbox couple years ago. Had a blast playing it and never spent a penny.

Puzzle quest 2 makes me seeing match3 patterns everywhere and match3 inducted dreams...
so glad to play it again !

Taking one look at the screenshots, I believe that this is a cheap mobile game that has ads everywhere

Hopefully im wrong

Gave it a try since Puzzle Quest was great, but ugly looking UI and overall poor presentation, typical for freemium games, scared me away almost immediately. Call me once they make a proper game.

@PBandSmelly No ads

Played this to death on PS4. It's a lot of fun building different combat teams and there's lots to do, and I never spent a dime on it. I'm not sure I feel like starting from scratch on Switch but it's free, so who knows.

This doesn't sound too bad, actually...

The game is great! I've played it on PS4 since it arrived, and still do continue to play (currently at level 458). I've never bought any of the micro transactions...ever, and it's still very enjoyable! Join a guild, get more money for your team and power-ups, battle against others, collect a ton of cards...it's a great puzzle-RPG that doesn't get old too fast! I've even been re-playing it on the XBONE, so I'll definitely be downloading on the Switch!!!!

Please get it. Spent tons of time on this game on the mobile version. One thing to beware though is the cheating AI in later stages.

Contrary to popular belief, you don't actually hit those pay to win walls in this game. You just have to change up your strategy with which troops you wanna try since you can combine their unique abilities to benefit eachother (or hinder if you don't have varied types) and there's little more satisfying in these games than when you overcome a challenge based on how well you built your team.

For those worried about 'neccessary microtransactions'.._there are none. Would it give a bit of a leg up? Yes. Is it NEEDED? Not at all. Yes it will take longer to level your troops etc without spending real money, but in no way do you have to. I've had accounts on mobile and ps4.._and now on Switch. I personally spend $30 to get to VIP 3, and support the devs, but its never necessary .

@Highlar The devs are fantastic, you can chat with them in-game and they're always updating the game with new content. I feel I should update my status in that regard as well, they have more than earned it.

@Lroy DSiWare should work just fine and I don't recall any announcements to close it anytime soon. It's pretty much like Wii games on Wii U shop or PSP ones on PS Store. And it has a bunch of neat stuff from DS times, including Little Red Riding Hood's Zombie BBQ and Shantae: Risky's Revenge.

It should come with an addictiveness warning .

@nhSnork Found it.

https://www.nintendo.co.uk/Games/Nintendo-DSiWare/Puzzle-Quest-Challenge-of-the-Warlords-860567.html

Looks like the same version that was released on cart for the DS. I’ve actually already played this version, might even still own it. It plays fine but does lacks some of the (admittedly now dated) sheen graphics wise of the PSP and Steam versions.

...I miss Puzzle and dragons...we never got X localized. :c

I loved Puzzle Quest: Challenge of the Warlords (DS) when I borrowed it. I loved it so much that I bought the Wii version for myself and replayed all of it. I also tracked down and put lots of hours into the sequel Puzzle Kingdoms (Wii) when I found out about its existence.

I don't like Gems of War as much, still like it a good bunch though. This new F2P rendition is different, but kinda fun too.

After playing it for a bit, it's not AWFUL or anything, but it's inevitably stuck in the shadow of Puzzle Quest and its sequels. If the company just put out a collection of all the PQ games — PQ 1 & 2, Galactrix, Kingdoms, and Chronicles — on the Switch, I would call that an instant buy.

The core gameplay here is solid, it just suffers from the lack of features its predecessors had.

Absolutely brilliant and adictive, one of the best free to play games on switch.

I'm loving it so far and haven't had the need to complete any microtransactions to progress.