For a match-3 it seems pretty primitive. It's a group of standard match-3 puzzles where you have to either fill up a bar or figure out a puzzle. Gets tired fast.

Getting in a bit late on this one. I wanted to say thank you and this was a nice game. I have certainly played worse. The storyline was interesting to me and I will not just let it sit I do not think for long. It is a bit repetitive, but I can ignore that by listening to music or having a movie run in the background. It is pretty rare for a game NOT to have a sound slider!! UGH. That is a pet peeve of a lot of folks. Not everyone has a sound program that lets you choose what to turn the volume down on. I am lucky though. I liked the voice acting and the artwork, but the gems needed a bit of work. I did like the introduction of keys and that bombs can take them out. Pretty cool. I have played some great ones like Puzzle Quest, but this one is pretty decent. I have to find out what happens in the story.

Thanks again for a great offering!!


.......................Moderator Comment...........................

Thank you for the feedback Pixiey

Hello everyone,

Downloaded and installed without any problems on Win 7 x64. It installed to the folder I chose and from there, I sent a shortcut to the desktop. I don't understand why people say there's no choice in the pathway of the installation. Always worked fine for me.

This isn't a bad Match 3 game although pretty basic. If I may, I would suggest the developer of this game the following(that's if they're looking into improving this game) :

1. First have controls for sound and music to turn it up or down not
just on or off;
2. Have the levels numbered instead or...door of your choice;
3. Have bonuses when terminating a level in the allowed time;
4. Have mini games or puzzles in between;
5. Have a counter for the score (for the more competitive ones);
6. More points when you make match 4 and higher;
7. Maybe coins or $ to buy bombs, extra time, lives, strength, etc;
8. Option of a screen saver or something when reaching a certain
level (gives a certain sense of achievement);

I played a few levels but didn't feel like I was getting anywhere although I finished all the levels I played before time ran out. Well almost all of them. The story isn't bad but as far as I'm concerned, I didn't feel it matched with the match 3 because it could have been any old story in there. Anyway, that's my 2 cents for this game.

Thanks GGOTD, the developer and Whiterabbit. Have a wonderful evening.



.......................Moderator Comment...........................

Thank you for the excellent feedback Weezie

Frist game I had to dump!
Game downloaded and installed OK, but started with a window comes up to say "Experiment - v 1.0 has stoped working."
"Check online for a solution and close the program." or
"Close the program"


.......................Moderator Comment...........................

Hello William, did you check the FAQ's section over in the Game Discussion sticky section? I've linked to it in my review @ comment number 1. You may find a fix there. :)

This is a beautiful game. I even loved the beginning screen. However, after I closed the game the first time I was not able to start it playing again - it would crash.

I will reinstall to see if it helps.



.......................Moderator Comment...........................

Hello Maria, check the FAQ's section that I've linked to in the problems section of my review @ comment number 1. Hope you find a fix.

AND - while I agree with everyone's comment that the hint comes a bit too quickly: I really like that they just show you the one piece - you still have to figure out which way to swap.

Very pretty visually, story is engaging, and - YAY! - they have a relaxed mode in story mode. So many times there is only timed in story mode! I can't play these things timed! I also love the music and sound effects. Very soothing. I like the various types of play, it is more interesting than straight match 3. Good game! Thanks!

I downloaded and ran this on my Win7 64 bit Acer and my Win7 32 bit HP. It runs well on both. My only comment is that I cannot play for very long before I have to stop and take care of an item on the "Honey-Do" list. The only option I see while playing is "Quit". I would prefer a "Pause" or something like that so I don't have to go back to the main menu to quit, then re-start it later.


.......................Moderator Comment...........................

Hi Horse,

Try pressing the Esc key. It brings up a pause menu that allows you to either return to the game, go to the main menu or go to the options and achievements.

Using Windows 7 Starter. The program says it installed but it would not run.

One more thing:
When you get the 'No More Moves' - most match 3's I've played just do a shuffle of your existing pieces. This one seems to do a reload of the board. Normally that'd be ok. BUT - In the mode where you're trying to only match the 7th element - half of beating the level is just getting enough of the 7th element even ON the board to be able to match them up. Getting a 'new set' is frustrating.

And - I was surprised: When you're getting the 7th element to the bottom - getting it the last square on the bottom can be done using an illegal swap - a 3-match is not needed.
(Two things - wait - amongst our weaponry....)



.......................Moderator Comment...........................

Thank you for the extra feedback Dave :)

I usually love match 3s but this one is not a keeper for me. The fatal flaw is that the "quit" button is at the bottom of grid at the right. I kept hitting it during play and then get the message about was I sure I wanted to quit. With my game style, I will hit it multiple times in a grid or I have to play concentrating on the other half of the grid.

I also did not like that the rocks are moveable. If they are meant to be a hindrance to play, by being able to move them (even if matching them does nothing) it really does not present much of a challenge.

Thank you for the opportunity to try something new, even if I did not really care for it.



.......................Moderator Comment...........................

Thank you for the feedback Pacifica, tomorrows game is something different, hopefully upoi will enjoy that one. :)

I have the 39.4 mb game downloaded and installed / ran it successfully on Windows 7. The music is clear and quite nice. Kind of reminds me of the movie Aeon Flux. The graphics are nice and the story is ok. I did the relaxed mode for about half an hour. I'm really excited that it's a game from Big Fish Games but it's more than a bit boring. Some of the levels consist of filling the meter or matching keys to open locks. Others just tell you to blow up the bombs but you don't have a list of how many you have left to destroy. Occasionally I'd still have bombs and the level would tell me it was complete while other times it would say I'd lost and started over. It's fun but just something to waste time if you're really bored.



.......................Moderator Comment...........................

Thank you for the feedback Keisha (I agree)

I think Experiment is more interesting than most match-3 games. I like the graphics, the story, the music and the puzzles. I've never seen match-3 puzzles before, so they seem original to me. I suggest that Ede Tarsoly should focus on the puzzles and the story, and discard all the conventional match-3 elements. Without the conventional match 3 elements and with more puzzles, Experiment would be far more distinctive in this very overcrowded genre.

I also agree with just about everything that karolb and Dave said earlier about problems with the interface.

Thanks to Ede Tarsoly and GOTD for today's giveaway and to Stephen for his (always much appreciated) review.



.......................Moderator Comment...........................

Thank you for the feedback Emily :)

Re:34

Your LIKES are ones I forgot to add (blonde moment...lol) so yours can be my 6, 7 & 8. :D

Thanks for a nice relaxed match 3 game. I have to say that I wanted to like the game more than I do though. Things I liked:relaxed mode, soothing music that didn't get on my nerves, nice color palate and game was quick to respond to mouse. Things I don't like: The hint coming up to quickly, the way the tiles kind of manage to blend into the background, the way some tiles get a swirl around them w hen you have just matched near them- there didn't seem to be a reason for them as you can't always match them so why do some get them and some don't?, the lack of any scoring mechanism and most importantly the inability to tell where you are on a level, are you about to clear the door or do you have a gazillion more boxes to clear? It became repetitive very quickly and I LOVE match 3 games. Someone mentioned that it didn't give them the "just one more level" kind of experience and I agree with that. Normally, I find it hard to quit games like this but with this game it was easy and I think it is that I felt like I was playing in a vacuum much like the character. I didn't know why I was doing this or how many more screens I would have to clear to be allowed into the next room which I feared would be just 5 more rooms of the same seemingly endless clearing of screens. I think a BIG improvement would be just adding a progress board that would tell the player where they are at- would just a few more boards clear the room? Then I might keep playing and having cleared that level go on to the next room ect. I'd like to see this game add progress bars and maybe scoring and come back for another test drive. I will probably keep the game for those moments when I just want to play a little and not get caught up in the "one more level" frenzy but it could be a GREAT game with a few tweaks. Whew, that's the most I've ever written about a game before!



.......................Moderator Comment...........................

Thank you for the excellent feedback Wendy :)

Like this game. It works well on windows 7 (no need to start in xp mode) and it is, for me, set at the right difficulty, therefore probably too easy for most. I don't know what the music is like as I turned it off due to the sad fact that I was watching/listening to Celebrity Big Brother at the same time. Playing in the timed mode but I like that if you fail you just get another go. It's my sort of easy game.


.......................Moderator Comment...........................

Thank you for the feedback Ann.

p.s. sorry it took so long to moderate. I acxtually moderated it last night but forgot to click on the approved button. (It was late and I needed to sleep).

Thank you so very much for the games, explicit instructions, and opportunity to read what others have to say about the games. Even this 71-yr old lady can download, find, register and use your giveaways. Thanks. (32-bit Windows 7 user)

.......................Moderator Comment...........................

Thank you for the feedback

Didn't care for the game. No sound effects, only music. Got bored quickly. I did like the relaxed mode though. Deleted.

Game downloaded and installed on Windows XP. Works fine.

Seems like a reasonable match 3, although I've almost gotten used to some sort of powerups, which this game hasn't had yet.

The only negative so far: I find the lack of a 'success' screen just a little bit disconcerting. As soon as you finish filling the bar, the screen quickly disappears, going on to the next one. That said: Since there are so many levels, I think it might be annoying if the success screen stayed around very long :-) If it came up and then cleared on a click (with no delays), it'd probably be cool.


.......................Moderator Comment...........................

Thank you for the feedback Dave.

I'm glad that I had time to stop by the GGOTD site today - this one has been on my 'to buy on sale' list for a long time.

Playing it reminded me why I have never gotten around to buying it, though.

Things I like:
1. The music - nice, not too repetitive. Matches the theme well
2. The story - could be interesting. Would like to see a little more of it though.
3. A fair variety of M3 types (and lots of puzzle levels - my fave type)

1. Things that made it less interesting than some other M3s:
The lack of a progress indicator got irritating quickly. Eventually, I started to groan that there was yet another puzzle to go through before the stupid door would open.

2. Lack of dynamic tiles or backgrounds. Give me something interesting to look at or do while I'm planning what to do next. Moving tiles like those in Fishdom or Deep Blue Sea make the game feel less tedious. A beautiful or intricate background (as in Jewel Match) also helps.

3. Lack of variety in board shape or obstacles (although I may not have gotten far enough into the game for this one). If there are lock/chains/frozen blocks, please introduce them earlier in the game to keep things interesting.

As always, thanks to Ede Tarsoly for the game and Whiterabbit for the review, comments, and suggestions.


.......................Moderator Comment...........................

Thank you for the useful feedback karolb. Hopefully the developer will see your comments and perhaps make some changes. I do think this game has the potential to be a lot better if all of the suggestions made today were implimented.

Wow, where do I start? I love match 3 games, but this is very strange. I like the contrasting objects, but with the busy background, it all mushes together. I also like having goals, instead of the mindless clear the board, or break the boxes, but some are so quick, and seem too pre-set. And the story is just creepy, and for what? Also, as noted already, hint is too quick, and sound should have volume control.
Not sure if I will play this one again, but with the great colors, I wanted to like it.


.......................Moderator Comment...........................

Thank you for the feedback Julie. Agree with you on the background. there should be a way to mute the background while playing the match 3 game.

I've played it for a while now, and I just noticed there are no points! Part of what makes match 3 games fun is trying to beat previous scores, or getting bonuses for finishing levels quickly. So I think if you were a zen player, you'd probably really like this game, but to me, it's like playing baseball where nobody gets out and they don't keep score (yes, I just got done seeing Parental Guidance - LOL).

On a positive note though, I really liked the controls. A lot of match 3 games require you to click in exactly the right spot and don't always respond instantaneously. This game responded immediately to my mouse clicks, which is great.

.......................Moderator Comment...........................

Thank you for the feedback Barbara. That's a good point. wonder whether they will update it? :)

Comment on last week's Alexandra Fortune: I enjoyed the game and have played it completely through twice on XP. A problem is that at the end of the game, it goes into a loop of replaying the last scene, rather than saying something like you've completed the game or going into the credits. You do just have to click menu instead of play, but it is a bit annoying because with the play still available, you are naturally inclined to click on play. Otherwise, thanks to Alawar for a fun game.

Using Mozilla, xp7 i think. No problems downloading or playing. you can always control the music and sound using your computers sound. I was able to turn off the music or the sound. No problems with the game. Thank you for the wonderful games you give us to try.

BTW after install - before running this game for the first time - I went to the Game_Experiment install folder and set the Experiment.exe Properties to Compatibility mode > Change settings for all users > [x] Run this program in compatibility mode for... Windows XP (Service Pack 3) -- and THEN created a Shortcut to the .exe in my Desktop\Games folder.

Experiment starts and runs fine in this mode on my Windows 7 Home Premium netbook.

I'm not sure if this particular game needs the XP-SP3 setting, but I've found that an increasing number of the GGOTD (and a few GOTD) offerings require this Compatibility setting before running properly -- so I've gotten quite used to tracking down the actual Program.exe file and changing its Properties for all users (rather than messing about with the Properties of the various installed Shortcut icons).

Otherwise, some programs seem to start up OK but then go into a screen flashing mode where you see glimpses of the splash screen artwork, etc. but then return the Windows 7 desktop without remaining in the new Game/Application... The new app is running (the app icon is "pinned" to the Win7 taskbar), but switching to it is unsuccessful.

Changing the Compatibility mode in the Properties for the actual Program.exe file seems the best fix for me. -- This is something recent in the last month or so and I feel it is related to a Microsoft Windows Update rather than something else I might have installed -- and it's related to previously installed Apps that ran OK without messing with Properties, but NOW need tweaking in order to run again. (Stars Ashes \ Sawoid.exe from mid-November 2012 is one example on my system.)


.......................Moderator Comment...........................

Thank you for more feedback Rosco :)

When I first tried this in windowed mode on my Windows 7 machine, it was too tall. I realized it may have the "resolution issue" with the DPI scaling so I told it to ignore than and it worked fine. The window may be slightly smaller than I would like but for a Match 3, it's fine.

One note -- If you have used winrar self extraction before (not uncommon with these free games), the install may NOT give the default location listed in the readme.txt. Instead, it will use the last specification it was given. That was fine with me. I wanted it to go to "C:\Products\Games\1sies" anyway!

It's not a bad match 3.

.......................Moderator Comment...........................

Thank you for the feedback Diane

Bought this game elsewhere awhile ago but hadn't played it until I saw it as the giveaway today. I was disappointed to see it get what I consider a poor review for such a great game on another game site since I absolutely love it! Assuming this is the same version as the one I have...

What I liked:
1. The story intrigue: how Sophie got here... why does she have to play these games... is Adam a good guy or bad... until it's revealed at the end of the game.
2. Bright and colorful graphics.
3. Ability to switch between timed and relaxed on the fly and not have to start over.
4. Fast gameplay. Tokens fall quickly.
5. Timer is generous in most cases. Only had to repeat a few levels.

What I didn't like:
1. WAY TOO SHORT... LOL

Can't think of anything else I didn't like about this game. Thanks to Ede Tarsoly for giving away this game today and GGOTD for offering another great game! And to everyone else, Happy Gaming! Hope you enjoy it as much as I did! :D






.......................Moderator Comment...........................

Thank you for the feedback TopazMystique. Although I have loads of match threes I consider better than this, i still think its a worthwhile download anmd will be keeping a copy on this computer. I prefer match threes like the Puzzle quest kind, with rpg elements, but also love the Treasures of Montezuma series as well as around the world in 80 days, 4 elements and several others. This isn't outstanding, but it has enough modes to keep me interested. :)

Long time GGOTD enjoy-er - First time commentator :) Am enjoying relaxed story mode very much (should be out shoveling the snow - LOL!) and will probably create 2nd user to have a go at the Arcade mode at the same time -- but I also like to listen to talk-show podcasts while I fritter away the time with GGOTDs -- so I LOVE the ability to set the game music volume to a low level while listening to other stuff.

This game designer gives us a Music / Sounds ON or OFF Option instead of Volume Level sliders. Thanks for the Audio Options -- but at least take the time to implement proper volume controls!... ALL your future game releases (and game enjoy-ers) will benefit!

Thanx!





.......................Moderator Comment...........................

Thank you for the feedback Rosco, nice to see an 'old-timer' posting for the first time. much appreciated. :)

Unfortunately, I seem to have some weird green tint on everything in the game. I took a screenshot of it, but the screenshot was fine, but when playing, everything is green. Anyone have any ideas why this is happening? It is very hard on the eyes, almost unplayable.


.......................Moderator Comment...........................


Hi Mapsking, not sure. no one else has reported it. See if any other game does the same. Also check your graphics cards for dust. dust can be a killer of graphics cards if not removed. I lost a pair a couple of years ago. when I checked the fans were compl;etely stuffed with a soild wad of dust.

Very nice graphics, no download/installation problems (I think!). 1st match 3 is simple then get a message that 2nd screen on and take a look, but nothing responds to any mouse operation or keyboard key press I do, so all I see is the same screen. I do not like games with absolutely no information bout how to play. Perhaps if I were an active game player as many are I might have ideas, but as a irregular game player I do not want to waste my time trying to figure out how to play with zero information. Probably an interesting match 3 if it worked for me. Will delete and wait for another game.

No sliders for music & sound but pleasant full screen and can use kb to adjust volume levels. Pretty yes but geez endless sameness as mentioned. Get old fast. Oh well have Sunday & past good games.
Thanks again for reviews & offers.



.......................Moderator Comment...........................

Thank you for the feedback Beergas

To exit the game, enter a puzzle and click Quit in the bottom right corner of the gamescreen.


.......................Moderator Comment...........................

Thank you for the feedback

I did pick a destination where I wanted it to go when installing, but it didn't go there. I had to search for the directory and make my own icons. Not a problem; you get used to that in the PC world. But I have a couple of complaints about the game itself:

1) I like the music but it's too loud. Not that it's extremely loud, but it's too distracting when trying to play. I wish there were a volume control in the options (While you're at it, you might add a volume control for sound effects too). I ended up turning the music and effects off completely.

2) This one's the dealbreaker: the game is way too slow to respond to mouse movements. I'm playing in relaxed mode, so it doesn't effect gameplay, but I ran out of patience. I shouldn't have to sit and wait for the mouse to move.

I also noticed that sometimes blocks exchange if you drag one, and sometimes they exchange if you click on one and then the other. I never knew if I was expected to click or drag. Perhaps both always work, but I could not tell because the mouse response was so slow.



.......................Moderator Comment...........................

Thank you for the feedback

Hopefully I'll get more time to play later, but so far, as an avid match 3 player, I'm not impressed. It's way too easy and each level is way too short. I like the games where I keep saying, "If I play this level one more time, I'll get it." This game is easy to walk away from because it isn't challenging yet.

And it's a little creepy that this guy kidnapped the girl.

I wish there was a way to turn the hints off - they come way too soon.


.......................Moderator Comment...........................

Thank you for the feedback

And it happened again ;-)

As usual I downloaded the game (was fast!), installed it, started it to try it out and got lost in it...

Works fine under my WIN7 Ultimate - thank you for another cool game!

For the FIRST TIME EVER, I can't play a game that I downloaded from GAOTD! It SAID that it was installing the game to my GAMES folder, but IT ISN'T THERE! I run a search for "EXPERIMENT" and all that is found are the unextracted and extracted folders for the game in my temp folder. This game was installed to an UNKNOWN location with an UNKNOWN name on my computer! THAT LIKE TOTALLY SUCKS!


.......................Moderator Comment...........................

Hi Swamp Thing (did you get the name from the pilot in Con Air statting Nicholas Cage?) Also, check my installation notes in the mini review. You need to look for Game_Experiment or alternatively the read me.

;-)

Wow! A BigFish game! The graphics are good. Sound not too bad. Needs a menu button, though. Thanks again for a really nice game GameGiveAway.

FISHDOM was given away on this site two weeks ago. FISHDOM is the MOST EXCITING and AMAZING game EVER made in the ENTIRE HISTORY of video gaming! I have completed over 100 LEVELS and two COMPLETE aquariums already! The match 3 levels themselves are SUBURB and the aquarium screen savers are ADORABLE! FISHDOM is WITHOUT A DOUBT the VERY BEST NUMBER ONE game EVER offered on GAOTD!

Today's game CANNOT be as WONDERFUL as FISHDOM! That would be ABSOLUTELY IMPOSSIBLE! It might be number 2, though. I just don't know if I could STOP PLAYING FISHDOM long enough to give this one a try though. I'll ATTEMPT to MAKE myself do so.

Installed and works fine on Vista Ultimate. Nice graphics and music. Needs better options for the sound. The ability to lower the volume so you don't have to lower your computer volume would be helpful. To exit the game you need to have a match board showing, on the bottom right hand corner you will see Quit, it will take you back to the game choice menu, choose back and then choose exit game. It would be nice to have an easier exit from the game.

Downloaded and installed no problem
game opened..no problem

3rd screen in.. stuck on
"maybe I should take a closer look at the door"
nothing clickable on the screen.. esc button doesn't work.. no instructions or controls come up.. just stuck

will have to task manage the program closed.

Also installed the game on a Vista computer, in general all goes well. Only the windowed mode does not appear properly. The screen is a little bit smaller than FullScreen but you loose a part at the bottom of the screen, which is annoying!

Also: you can't skip the story.

.......................Moderator Comment...........................

Thank you for the feedback Irene

This installed fine on my Windows 7 64bit. No issues in play.




......................Moderator comment......................

Thank you for your feedback Jeff, deleted parts as requested. :)

I downloaded the game with Windows 8 and did not have any problems at all. I really like the graphics and the music that goes with this game. I did not have any problem finding it after I downloaded it, and for once a shortcut that I made worked correctly the very first time. I have only tried the game in the relaxed mode so far, but plan on playing other modes as soon as I can. I think that about the only thing that I find a bit odd about this game is that there is not a place for the main menu listed, for when you are ready to quit. I finally just hit escape and that took me to a menu where I could go back to a previous screen and then there was a button that was used for quitting. I think maybe the developers could put something in the game that allows you to go to the main menu like most games do, and that would be a little less hassle. Other than that, I think it is a nice Match 3 game, and I can definitely see using it even when I only have a few minutes and just want to kill time. It does download a little slowly, but after the download everything works just as you described in your review Whiterabbit. Thanks to the developers and GGOTD for giving us another great game. I look forward to seeing what comes next.



......................Moderator comment......................

Thank you for your feedback STORM. :)

As requested WR, I've tried it on XP SP3 and it plays perfectly with no problems.


......................Moderator comment......................

Thank you TeeK

This is a nice match3 game, thank you for that.

The tiles to match up are very bright in colour which makes it look a bit childish, however it is harder to find the last match amongst all those colours.

After starting the game some compter screens have to be 'unlocked', you get a series of match3 screens, but you can't see how far you are achieving that. The games are quite repetative so at one moment I thought I was stuck and was send to the start again. (Which wasn't true) The same really for the rooms you have to unlock.

Next I will install the game on a Vista laptop and post here whether that works OK

I found this one to be a very run of the mill match 3 game. I played it in relaxed mode for 20 minutes and was bored, so I began again in puzzle mode which is more interesting, but it still didn't give me that "just one more go" feeling. Match 3 fans will no doubt like the game, but as a very occasional match 3 player, I have others that are more interesting.

Hello Whiterabbit,
I tested under Windows 8 64bit and the game is working fine.


..........................Moderator comment.....................

Thanks nobody. :)

In windows XP: the game is very slow. immpossible exit, block at the first level, block PC

Nice game, apparently there is still something new to this genre of games. IMHO the 'available move' -hint shows too early, before having eyed through the board for possible moves.

Downloaded twice so far, it does look good, but it is just coming up with the message "Failed To Launch The Program". I've tried it with the AV and Firewall disabled, and also downloaded it on my two laptops to try as well, and getting the same problems.

Any ideas?

I'll try again later in case there is a problem with the authentication.
Maybe snow on the internet, lol.


.....................Moderator Comment........................

Hi Rayven, follow the link I've provided in my mini review that takes you to the game discussion forums FAQ section where you'll possibly find a fix for the problem. In brief if you are running Firefox you also need to make sure Internet Explorer is not offline.