Hello again fellow Time Wasters! The first order of business is to apologize for the lack of a Time Waster last week. I know it’s my job to give you all something to waste time on but a wedding can take a lot out of a person. The second order of business is to tell you all about this week’s time waster.
So this week I played Enchanted Cavern 2 from Alawar games. I’ve played a few games from Alawar in the past and I’ve noticed they have a good feel for casual games so I wasn’t surprised when I started playing Enchanted Cavern 2.
Enchanted Cavern 2 is a classic match three game much like Bejeweled and so many other of its clones. Unlike the Bejeweled clones out there though Enchanted Cavern 2 brings an extra bit of spice to the table.
The main goal of every level is to clear away stones. This is done by destroying a set of three or more gems that are adjacent to the stone. As the game progresses there are different requirements for the stones to be broken. For example some will have to be broken using a certain color gem or others will have chains that have to be broken before the stone itself can be broken.
Adding to the chains and such are random variances in the gems. These appear as a sort of upgraded gem that when destroyed causes an effect special to that gem. Some are really simple like bombs that destroy all the gems around it. Others are a bit more powerful and can really help with racking up points and destroying mass amounts of blocks.
Another small change to the game occurs during certain levels where there are special circumstances must be met for the level to be completed. A prime example of this is during the second area of the game where each level has a flame placed somewhere in it. Around the flame are different colored squares and when a gem is broken within one of these squares they will fuel the flame and make it burn brighter revealing more of the level. These little additions make it extra challenging and add that extra spice I was talking about earlier.
Graphically speaking the game looks great. All the destruction animations and falling animations for the gems go off without a hitch and the overall presentation of the game comes across as appealing. This is only further aided by the inclusion of high detail backgrounds that serve as the basis for the "story" of the game.
Complimenting the already great graphics are the sounds in game. From destruction of gems to breaking of chains everything sounds great. What is even more important though is the music. I’m surprised to say that I found the music of Enchanted Cavern 2 to be amazingly satisfying. This is partially because much of the music make me reminisce about Wild Arms, a game from my childhood that I still go back and play today.
Overall Enchanted Cavern 2 is an amazingly fun casual game that I found myself getting lost in for hour after hour.
Enchanted Cavern 2 earns a more than satisfactory 4 out of 5 GiN Gems!