Play Spirits of Metropolis and travel across several constellations as you match together multiple gems to create massive explosions. FREE game on GOTD!

#29

Very late to comment.. installed properly. I've played up to level 2.2 and have been stuck for two weeks on this thing... there needs to be an option to skip an unbeatable level.

Reply | Comment by Opal – 10 years ago – Did you find this comment useful? yes | no (0)

#28

Downloaded, installed and ran the game on windows 8 - works great! Every now and then it does hang on closing. Busy system perhaps? Also, just a thought here, you may want to consider a seizure warning along side the color blind options. Even though the game is incredibly beautiful at times the light to color patterning seems just right as trigger.

Reply | Comment by Mikki – 10 years ago – Did you find this comment useful? yes | no (0)

#27

Very interesting variation on match three games, graphics and sound are fine ...but really needs a casual mode, or at least longer time limits. I completed a mere five levels and stalled (and never did figure out that "time extended" bit where your puzzle is shuffled and you're given 5-10 seconds to meet your score).

Reply | Comment by jgf – 10 years ago – Did you find this comment useful? yes | no (0)

#26

I stopped the download midway because I read the part about where it installs. I hate not being able to install in a folder of my choice. All my games go into a folder named - guess what - Games.

Reply | Comment by kalmly – 10 years ago – Did you find this comment useful? yes | no (0)

#25

For some reason I had to try 3 different times to download this. It got stuck at 71%. No idea why. No time to actually look at it much right now but someone said they wanted a windowed view... there is one under options. I will spend more time looking at this later but I am working at the moment.

Reply | Comment by Lonni H – 10 years ago – Did you find this comment useful? yes | no (0)

#24

Found this game very confusing and not for me. Will be uninstalling it. Thank you anyway.

Reply | Comment by rosella – 10 years ago – Did you find this comment useful? yes | no (0)

#23

My download of SpiritsofMetropolis.zip is corrupt. Downloaded 3 times, files differed each time at about 20 single bytes, all fail 7zip and Win7 built-in zip extraction.

It took 2 attempts to get MegaWorldSmash.zip, and 2 for ParagonDC14Compact_x64.zip, but at least the second one was valid. I've never had a problem with your website before.

Reply | Comment by plee – 10 years ago – Did you find this comment useful? yes | no (0)

#22

I am using Windows 8.1. I could see the sky pattern, a sort of blurry game name, the lower part of the screen was black, and there were some buttons I could see that could be selected when moving the mouse over them but they were not labeled. The mouse pointer was also large and left a trail. I had to use Compatibility Mode Windows XP (Service Pack 3) to get this to work.

Reply | Comment by Edward Symons – 10 years ago – Did you find this comment useful? yes | no (0)

#21

First, thanks for the free game. :) But after playing it, I've uninstalled it. I love connect 3 games and play them all the time but this one just isn't fun for me.

Pros:
I did enjoy the music (I usually turn it off)
Tutorial was easy and pretty thorough
Game is original in how the connect 3 occurs

Cons:
Way too slow ... in that I mean that it takes too much thinking, planning, etc before you can make the chain. I lost interest pretty quickly.
The graphics are really very rough (even with the settings at their highest to smooth things out) and make the game seem more like a project than a finished game.

Suggestions:
Make the chain game a game within the game and make the main game more a traditional connect 3 (or 4). Definitely spruce of the look of the game ... the gems, the fonts used to display the progress, ect. Now it reminds me of a Retro game like Space Invaders.

Again, thanks for the free game. :)

………………………Moderator Comment…………………….

Thank you for your feedback jbdean :)

Reply | Comment by jbdean – 10 years ago – Did you find this comment useful? yes | no (0)

#20

I love match threes, but this one ain't no Fishdom. Changing the gems colors just seemed tedious to me. Keeping it due to its small footprint, in case others others point out hidden charms to me.

Untimed mode would be good.

Reply | Comment by FeAudrey – 10 years ago – Did you find this comment useful? yes | no (0)

#19

Installed and activated on Windows 8.1 64 bit, no problems. Went through tutorial, easy to play, I'm sure I'll get better with practice. Good game, thank you for sharing!

Reply | Comment by GrannyNay – 10 years ago – Did you find this comment useful? yes | no (0)

#18

AVG Viruserkennung nach der Installation.

.................................. Moderator Kommentar .............. ...................

Hallo, Es wird ein falsch-positiven, möglicherweise der setup.gcd Datei, ist die Einstellung auf Ihren Virenscanner. Das Spiel verschenken Überprüfung der Mannschaft alle Spiele gründlich mit mehreren bekannten Virenscanner.

Reply | Comment by marge – 10 years ago – Did you find this comment useful? yes | no (0)

#17

I agree with Swamp Thing (#5). I do not play games to "win." In a past life, I was VERY COMPETITIVE! I was taught in childhood that the ONLY goal was to win, and if that takes cheating, then this is OK (my mother, God rest her soul, really taught me this). After I was married, my wife refused to play anything with me due to my attitude. It took me years to realize you could play for fun and that was much nicer. It is the only way I will play now.

I will try this game, it looks like it could be fun. But if those competitive juices start flowing just because of a timer - out it goes! Thanks for letting us download and try out your game. But do think about the fact that a LOT of people play these games "just for fun." Please put a "relaxed" option for people like us! We don't care about beating the thing, we are just enjoying the fruits of your labor - isn't that one of the reasons you made it? (I mean besides the money you get from selling it). By the way I won't buy a game unless it gives me the option of just "playing it".

Thank you for your consideration on this issue.

………………………Moderator Comment…………………….

:)

Reply | Comment by John – 10 years ago – Did you find this comment useful? yes | no (0)

#16

Downloaded,Installed and Activated with no problems on my Win7x64 machine. I tend to like match 3 games if they are interesting and have a different twist to them, like "The 7 gates - Path to Zamolxes" recently offered at GOTD (although I detest Bejeweled!) & I don't find sim games appealing. I tend to use games to mindlessly unwind at the end of the day, usually while watching a tv program, movie, or listening to the radio. I like the fact that there is an option for colorblind players, although I am not colorblind. I also like that it is very reasonably priced. However, like Guiseppe Madre, I found it to be a very odd game. I am not a big "gamer," and found it not to be very intuitive for me. I went through the tutorial, and then spent another hour trying to figure out what exactly to do; unfortunately, I didn't get the point, and didn't feel interested enough to continue pursuing it. I just didn't get the concept of "stringing the gems together like Christmas lights." I appreciated the fact that there was a tutorial, but found it's delivery and instructions to be somewhat vague and cryptic; an animated tutorial may have been more helpful. The graphics seemed a bit primitive to me, having an "80's" feel to them. I would have liked to skip through the drama of explosions and lights going on at the end of each game--it just seemed sluggish to me. I really didn't like the music or sound effects at all--I found them very grating, and although I tried and tried to turn them off in the Options menu, there were still loud sound effects leaking through. This issue may be particular to me, since I like to choose my own music or radio programs to listen to while I am going through a game. This game did seem to be sluggish on my computer when other programs were running. I really wanted to and thought I would like this game, but it took more work than pleasure to figure it out; I uninstalled it. I appreciate the developers giving it to GOTD; it just wasn't my cup of tea. Thanks anyway! Thanks to GOTD as always!

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

Thank you for your feedback Blue Boomerang

Downloaded,Installed and Activated with no problems on my Win7x64 machine.  I tend to like match 3 games if they are interesting and have a different twist to them, like "The 7 gates - Path to Zamolxes" recently offered at GOTD (although I detest Bejeweled!) &amp; I don't find sim games appealing.  I tend to use games to mindlessly unwind at the end of the day, usually while watching a tv program, movie, or listening to the radio. I like the fact that there is an option for colorblind players, although I am not colorblind.  I also like that it is very reasonably priced.  However, like Guiseppe Madre, I found it to be a very odd game.  I am not a big "gamer," and found it not to be very intuitive for me. I went through the tutorial, and then spent another hour trying to figure out what exactly to do; unfortunately, I didn't get the point, and didn't feel interested enough to continue pursuing it.  I just didn't get the concept of "stringing the gems together like Christmas lights." I appreciated the fact that there was a tutorial, but found it's delivery and instructions to be somewhat vague and cryptic; an animated tutorial may have been more helpful.  The graphics seemed a bit primitive to me, having an "80's" feel to them.  I would have liked to skip through the drama of explosions and lights going on at the end of each game--it just seemed sluggish to me.  I really didn't like the music or sound effects at all--I found them very grating, and although I tried and tried to turn them off in the Options menu, there were still loud sound effects leaking through.  This issue may be particular to me, since I like to choose my own music or radio programs to listen to while I am going through a game.  This game did seem to be sluggish on my computer when other programs were running.   I really wanted to and thought I would like this game, but it took more work than pleasure to figure it out; I uninstalled it.  I appreciate the developers giving it to GOTD; it just wasn't my cup of tea.  Thanks anyway!  Thanks to GOTD as always!

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

Thank you for your feedback Blue Boomerang

Save | Cancel

Reply | Comment by blueboomerang – 10 years ago – Did you find this comment useful? yes | no (0)

#15

I downloaded this the last time it was given away. At first I didn't have high hopes for it, but it after learning the rules it ended up being one of my favorite games from this site. It has a variety of different modes (including some non-timed ones) and I completed all games at the highest ratings. I even played the High Score modes until I had bettered the default high score lists for each variation. I've spent more time playing this than any other GGotD game.

There is very different from most match three games, in fact it's a bit misleading to even call it a match three imo. Strategy is a much bigger component than the typical match 3 and I like the combo of speed and strategy required for most of it's variations. To me it's more of a strategy game than a match three.

If you're a fan of games that require both strategy and speed, this is one that's well worth the time to download and learn to play.#

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

Thank you for your feedback LakeLivin :)

Reply | Comment by LakeLivin – 10 years ago – Did you find this comment useful? yes | no (0)

#14

This is an awesome game if you go through the tutorial. I have had so much fun building matches and watching the explode. Great game for those how have imaginations. Thanks for a great game today!

Reply | Comment by Sir Nebo – 10 years ago – Did you find this comment useful? yes | no (0)

#13

I agree with "Swamp Thing". Please add a "Relaxed Mode" (No Timer) for us old folks. I tried to put this in the "How Would You Improve..." but it kept saying I entered the numbers wrong at the bottom, which I didn't.

Reply | Comment by Sarge – 10 years ago – Did you find this comment useful? yes | no (0)

#12

Thanks for review Wr. Pass for me. Game just looks too much like work and I do too much of that already. Just me, prefer the quick pick up put down shooter or little easy play thing when can squeeze in time. Messing with all the circles & puzzles not my style.
PS as an ironic twist, today's utilty giveaway LinkCollector has a reviewer mention http://www.getactualbookmarks.com/en/
That site has little prg that will search/organize your bmarks and also try to find the new site of a moved link as well as point out the dead ones. Untried but looks handy.

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

Thank you for your info re link collector. :)

Reply | Comment by beergas – 10 years ago – Did you find this comment useful? yes | no (0)

#11

The game sounds interesting, but while downloading/installing was without incident (except for the incredibly slow 50-75k/sec midday download speed) all I can get when running it is "Unexpected error occured when running the game." Not much to go on for troubleshooting (BTW, "occured" is spelled wrong).

Thanks for your enduring efforts, Rabbit friend -- just wanted to pass along that the developer description at the top advises us to be "weary" instead of wary, and that one of the paragraphs you've been posting for a few weeks says there's never been a game giveaway. ;) (It doesn't matter as much that there's no closing parenthesis because you can still make sense out of that part.)

"There has never been a game giveaway (The owners know that allowing such things would compromise their business, so they make sure all software given away via the giveaway and gamegiveaway sites are thoroughly checked for all types of malware before allowing community members to download any files."

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

Thank you for pointing out the error. I've not proof read my recent posts. simply too busy at the moment. :)

Reply | Comment by Dan – 10 years ago – Did you find this comment useful? yes | no (0)

#10

The puzzle packs can still be downloaded via their blog:
http://www.vertigogaming.net/blog/?cat=27

However, though I followed their directions to install them (just go ahead and directly extract them into the "customfiles" folder in your game installation as the directions just tell you to move them there after extracting anyway) I can't access them. They are supposed to be under "Puzzle Challenges" but at the moment that menu item is locked. I don't know if you have to beat the game first or just a portion to unlock it.

Anyway, thanks for the giveaway. I do miss the regular two per weekend, but in the past that often meant one Wheemplay game, so no Saturday game means about the same thing ;)

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

Thank you for your feedback QM. :)

Reply | Comment by QM – 10 years ago – Did you find this comment useful? yes | no (0)

#9

Suggestions for a better game: have less screens to go thru before playing/logging out, be able to window the game, have clearer font and a less monotonous background

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

Thank you for your feedback.

Reply | Comment by lia – 10 years ago – Did you find this comment useful? yes | no (0)

#8

Downloaded,Installed and Activated with no problems on my Win7x64 machine.
Match three is one of my least favorite genres but I always have a few on my machine for the odd 45 minutes/hour of casual play. This one sure seems like it will have a permanent place on my C drive! A different kind of match three game than what you're used to, unless you've played 4 Elements of which this is similar. I've only played the first couple of levels so far but really like it and as I said earlier will be keeping it. The lack of a relaxed mode on this particular game is not troubling to me and I urge any fence sitters about this game to give it a try. The only quibble I have and its a quibble, is the low level of the graphics. Granted, you don't need a lot of eye candy for this type of game but the low level of graphics may put off some, as it looks kinda........ unpolished, I guess is the word I'm looking for. Even us casual gamers have come to expect beautiful rich colors and textures. (Thanks Playrix and Alawar!)

Final verdict from me : Yay! A match three thats different enough to be thoroughly enjoyable to us non-match three'ers but similar enough to be playable for those who DO like the genre.Very Good gameplay but the low level of the graphics may put you off a little. Get it!

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

Thank you for your feedback indianacarnie ;)

Reply | Comment by indianacarnie – 10 years ago – Did you find this comment useful? yes | no (0)

#7

Thank you for this game :) :) :) This game is a breath of fresh air, so to speak :) It downloaded perfectly on my windows 7 64 bit. I strongly suggest to the players, to take the time and go through the tutorial because once you have, this game is well worth the play. I found it a teeny bit sluggish at times, but could be an asset especially when you are timed... It does have an easy timed mode [ I guess that is their version of relax mode ] and frankly, it is ample time :) I applaud the author for creating this game :) Well thought out :)

Annie :)

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

Thank you for your feedback Annie

Reply | Comment by Annie – 10 years ago – Did you find this comment useful? yes | no (0)

#6

Got a message from Windows that the game needed DirectPlay installed when it tried to start after installing. DP install went smoothly and game launched once it was complete. (Windows 8.1 Pro x64)

Very odd game - I'm not really getting the concept. Not sure I'm willing to waste the disk space on keeping it - I'll give it another try or two, but will most likely uninstall unless it grows on me after playing it more.

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

Thank you for your feedback guiseppe. :)

Reply | Comment by Guiseppe Madre – 10 years ago – Did you find this comment useful? yes | no (0)

#5

I have a couple site questions before I comment on the game:

1. Why does the size of the setup.gcd change with each program downloaded? Shouldn't it be the same size all the time?

2. If you can delete everything from a program simple by deleting the folder it's in, why couldn't you move these games from computer to computer by simply copying and pasting the folder?

I like Math 3 games. (FISHDOM, dudes!) BUT:

I LIKE the IDEA of a puzzle editor. HOWEVER, I have NEVER actually used a puzzle editor. Wouldn't it be very likely that you would wind up creating a board that is impossible to complete? I I I don't have an EYE EYE EYE for that kind of stuff!

I am NOT color blind. Do I have to go out and buy a special pair of glasses to play this game or something? Seems like an awful lot of work to me!

"Time, in this game, isn’t nearly plentiful enough." NO! NO NO NO NO NO! This simply is NOT acceptable! Relaxed mode (so relaxing - ahhhh) is NEEDED, all you developers who thing other people are as good at your on games as you are. WE AREN'T! This is going to be the ONE thing that keeps me from playing this game.

I don't think I have ever choosen a game because it has good music. I almost always turn the sound off on my games anyway. Usually the television is on while I am playing.

My conclusion? No relaxed mode = no download.

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

The gcd program contains the games set up program, which should explain why each gcd file is a different size. As for your second question; some games do write activation details to the registry for example Alawar games, so if you try to transfer the game to another comnputer, all you'll get is the demo. The rest are free standing games. I can't (not allowed) say any more than that.

p.s. thanks for your continued support (by always posting a comment). :) It's appreciated.

Reply | Comment by Swamp Thing – 10 years ago – Did you find this comment useful? yes | no (0)

#4

comment removed due to innappropriate comment.

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

Part of your comment implies that many of the games given away here are freeware. There has never been a game giveaway that was freeware. You may be confusing freeware with games that are available from sites like myPlayCity. those games aren't actually freeware. The owners of those sites pay the developers for allowing them to give them to you. They are still commercial games available to purchase from several sites. the difference is that they have additions such as opening up your browser when you close the gamew down, as well as the potential to add toolbars and change your home page. all to force you to visit their site. Every time you visit they get income from the adverts placed there. this pays the developers of the games they give away, but they aren't freeware games.

Reply | Comment by denunziant – 10 years ago – Did you find this comment useful? yes | no (0)

#3

I get a 404 missing page error following your link to downoad the extra puzzles at http://www.vertigogaming.net/blog/category/spirits-of-metropolis-packs/

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

Sorry about that. I didn't check the link. The link was from an earlier posting, it must have been removed. I don't know whether the additional packs have been added to the game or whether you still have to download them separately. The game size has increased 45.2Mb to 52.7MB which could indicate that the packs have now been added to the game. I've hnot had time to check.

Reply | Comment by crisu – 10 years ago – Did you find this comment useful? yes | no (0)

#2

Hello Whiterabbit,
you can pull out your previous review as this is the same version given away before (1.10).

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

Already done; though I've had to re do the images as the original image uploads had been deleted , plus i've updated parts of the review. It wasn't a full review, just an information review. :) It's taken me over an hour to update.

Reply | Comment by Nobody – 10 years ago – Did you find this comment useful? yes | no (0)

#1

Spirits of Metropolis

In Brief

Spirits of Metropolis is an Match 3 that's different from the usual crowd and in my opinion well worth downloading, even of you don't like match three's. There's a color blind mode, and you can download extra puzzle packs from the developers site (Vertigo Games). You'll also find unlockable hints and tips that can be unlocked by completing various game milestones and medals (I've posted an image of the easiest to win in the slideshow {see below for link}). :)

Installation:

The downloaded zip file is 52.7 Mb. The game unpacks to a dual activation and setup module a security module (setup.gcd) plus a read me.

The zip file unpacks to a read me and a wrapped setup file (the orange colored file with the key symbol), plus there’s a setup file with security (setup.gcd) that’s protected from being hacked (because the previous giveaway system was easily cracked). This file may cause some security software to alert the user to a possible malware attack, but it will be a false positive.

There has never been a game giveaway (The owners know that allowing such things would compromise their business, so they make sure all software given away via the giveaway and gamegiveaway sites are thoroughly checked for all types of malware before allowing community members to download any files.

Some community members have been having problems installing games since the security wrapper was added last year but you can work around it at your own risk by tuning off, your security software temporarily. This is not recommended but considering that there has never been a single game giveaway infected with malware since the project started back in Dec 2006, the risk is probably insignificant. The game giveaway team check all game giveaways for malware using several well known anti -malware suites; however, this doesn’t guarantee that future games are safe.

To register and install the game, click on the orange colored icon. The installed game requires 118MB of disk space and installs to the following path:

C:\Program Files\Spirits of Metropolis v1.10 (32 bit)
Or
C:\Program Files (x86)\Spirits of Metropolis v1.10 (64 bit)

Introduction:

I’ve only posted a basic information review today

Authors introduction

When I first started to design this game, I had one goal: create a title unique in a genre that was flooded with unoriginal, me-too casual games. That genre was the match-3 gem genre, one that has been dominated by such casual titles as Bejeweled and Puzzle Quest.
Over a year later, I think we've succeeded in bringing a totally new type of game that's unlike any puzzle game out there. Being that this was our first major commercial game (we have made over a dozen titles previously for PC over the last seven years) we wanted to make sure to start out with a bang. Not only does this game have over 120 levels, but it has ten unique game play modes that completely changes the nature of the way the game is played, with three difficulty settings each. Spirits of Metropolis also has a puzzle level editor to make and play custom puzzles, and not only does this game have an assortment of options, it has a colorblind editor that allows you to change the color of each gem to your preference, including an option to use shapes. The colorblind editor was actually designed with help from colorblind gamers, making sure that it would have maximum effectiveness.

The Game:

From the main menu you can access extra content that includes links to free downloadable content such as the puzzle packs. At the moment there are seven puzzle packs available for free (see links below for download locations and include the following;

Fred the Monkey
SOG (Sandbox of God)
Shellblast HD: Day 3
Patriot
Cubed (see image via the slideshow)
Spring Meridian
Abstract

The author has made available several puzzle packs as DLC’s (downloadable content) HERE.

You can also access the tutorial at any time which is also a compulsory part of the Journey mode when you start the game. As new modes are unlocked more tutorials will be added to the tutorial menu. You access tutorials via the star next to the name of the tutorial. At the start of the game there is only one tutorial available.

There’s also a tips and hints link, but none are available until you’ve started winning medals or unlocked milestones. There are five pages of these; each one requiring a specific number of medals or milestones. For example to unlock the fifth page of hints and tips you have to win ten medals or pass 10 milestones. I’ve posted an image of page one of these tips, which is relatively easy to win. It’s right at the end of the slideshow, which contains 51 images. If you want to skip the slideshow just hover your mouse near the bottom of the page. Then click on the grid button. That will bring up all the images posted on one page. You can zoom in slightly, but to see individual images just click on it. You have to complete level 1 and 2 before the first medal is awarded, then you can access page one of the tips and hints

There are 36 medals to win during the game Once you’ve completed the compulsory journey mode tutorial, the puzzle mode will be unlocked. There are over 50 puzzles to play, or you can create your own via the puzzle editor, you can also download more puzzles HERE

You’ll find the above link via the puzzles menu so you don’t need to copy it into your bookmarks/favorites. As mentioned elsewhere there are several puzzle packs available to add to the 50 + that you already have.

The options menu, which is accessible from the main menu contains several toggles which enable you to customize the graphics or improve the look of the game via Anti-Aliasing, V-sync, or changing the color of the gems for colorblind mode. You can also turn off the visual effects and city spotlight. (This may be necessary if the game runs slowly on your system). You can also change the look of the gems as well.

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Puzzlelicious Review posted by the author:

When I first saw a screenshot for Spirits of Metropolis I have to admit that I thought Oh god, not another Bejeweled clone. You can't blame me if you've seen the game. It features multi-colored gems arranged into patterns, and the purpose is to eliminate them in lines. Sound familiar? The only difference seemed to be a late-night aesthetic, the kind you find in techno clubs and jazz joints. Luckily, I was wrong. So very wrong. Spirits of Metropolis is a unique experience, and an excellent one at that.

Spirits is a puzzle game, predictably enough. You need to eliminate lines of gems. The difference between this game and all the others, however, is that this requires just as much strategic thinking as it does speed. True, you need to move quickly, but you also need to plan out your line eliminations carefully the more points you get, the more time you get. And time, in this game, isn't nearly plentiful enough.

All play revolves around a white crystal. It constantly puts out pulses of light through the strings of surrounding gems. Those pulses only persist, however, if you line the gems up according to color: like a string of Christmas lights, if one bulb/gem doesn't work/isn't the right color, the rest down the line won't light up. Fortunately, this problem is offset by the fact that every third gem will explode when the time comes to set the lines off, transferring its power to all the surrounding gems. Build more strings off each exploder and you'll score major points. Somewhat like Tetris, strings are built by laying down gems, and the game's kind enough to display upcoming gems.
Matters would get boring with just that over and over, naturally, so Spirits throws in roadblocks to keep itself interesting. The time limit is usually the biggest obstacle, and can prove a quick killer in some levels. It's so limiting, in fact, that you might throw the game down before giving Spirits the chance it deserves. Beyond the timer there's also set limits on moves, black gems on the board that need to be filled, unchangeable gems and boards that get smaller and smaller.

I thought for sure the pleasing look of Spirits would wear off or, at best, mask a mediocre game. I'm happy to say now that Spirits is an excellent experience with a lovely face on it. The menus, the game board, even the background is nice to look at, with an early morning city passing slowly by in the distance. You'll quickly realize that the exploding gems resemble streetlights, and suddenly the whole thing makes a lot more sense.

Supporting this is the real star of this game, the soundtrack. With one or two exceptions I LOVE the music in Spirits of Metropolis. Ranging from techno thumping to some beautiful guitar work, Spirits has a diverse selection of tracks that you'll never want to turn off. This goes to show that having a smaller budget than the big leaguers doesn't stop a game from pleasing the ear.

Slick, beautiful, charming. The only fault I find in Spirits is an unforgiving difficulty level in the first few stages. Other than that, this is a fantastic game, and I highly recommend trying it. I'd buy it. 4.5/5

Reference accessed 22nd July 09

Other reviews worth reading:

Positive Review:

HERE

Negative Review:

HERE

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Features:

• Over 120 levels spanning ten different modes of play.

• Colorblind editor allows you to change the shape of gems, as well as change their color value.

• Puzzle Editor allows you to create and share your own brain-bending levels.

• Medals & Milestones system awards you with fresh content by beating challenges and progressing through the game.

• Ranking Mode allows you to compete for the high score in a variety of modes.

• Journey lets you experience all the different modes of Spirits of Metropolis as you choose your own paths throughout the game.

• High quality soundtrack that lets you change music on the fly.

• Support for multiple profiles, visual options and lots more!

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Video & Images:

You can see video of game play HERE, HERE, HERE and HERE. You can also see a slideshow showing tutorials menu screens plus some in game images HERE

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Conclusion:

From playing the demo for a short time I was impressed by the interactive tutorial and the number of modes you have available. The graphics remind me a little of ShellBlast, but the game play is totally different. I’m not overly enamored by match three games. They usually have to have something special about them to hold my interest, for example Treasures of Montezuma or Puzzle Quest. This one definitely intrigues me, but I’ve not played it long enough to justify giving it a score out of 10. That would be unfair. That said I am impressed enough to continue playing it, so will keep it in my library at least on a temporary basis until I’ve had the time to explore the game further.

Scoring:

Game play - 8
Graphics – 7.5
Sound - 7
Replayability - 8
Originality – 7.5

Total = 38 out of 50 which is equivalent to 7.6 out of 10

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Additional Information:

Music:

If you wish to change the in game music you can do so by converting the music you choose to ogg files. There are loads of free converters available online for example Audacity which can be used to convert your MP3’s to ogg.

You’ll find the ogg files located via the following path - assuming you have your operating system installed to the C: drive (mine is installed to the F: drive):

C:\Program Files\Spirits of Metropolis v1.10\oggfiles

Ensure the files you replace have the same name as the original files. I’d also recommend backing up the files just in case you want to revert back to the default music. If you forget to do this you can always download the demo and transfer the ogg files from the demo as they should be the same.

Problems with the game?:

If you have any problems installing or playing today's game please go to the game discussion forums where you'll find a FAQ's section HERE.

I've also previously posted this review in the game discussion forums HERE

If the game runs slow try installing Game booster, which is free from Iobit/Razer. It turns off all the unnecessary windows programs that are running in the background plus also enables you to specify other programs that you may have installed other than windows applications. It works very well and once you've finished playing your game you can revert to normal windows functioning by clicking on the return button. you can get it HERE

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Free games similar to today’s game:

If you like match three games there’s loads of commercially available games that are being given away over at Gametop, Jenkat Games, MyPlayCity and Freegamespick. I’ve posted a thread over in the forums that specifically deal with Match three games though I’ve not updated it in a couple of years. You’ll find the best of these free games sites below I’ve tested all the games I’ve downloaded from these free game sites and all come up clean using the latest Kaspersky antivirus program:

Giveawayoftheday Forums
Gametop
MyPlayCity

Jenkat Games

If todays game nor match threes interest you, there’s still loads of games on sale around the web. Check the didimatic site via THIS link for some brilliant deals.

Steam weekend deals include 75% off Torchlight II, 80% off E.Y.E. Divine cybermancy, 50% off Godius, 50% off The Typing of the Dead: Overkill (48hr deal), 75% off Torchlight, 75% off Guardians of Graxia, 50% off The Cities in Motion 2 collection, 50% off Air Conflicts collection, 50% off Anodyne plus around 70 other deals.

There are plenty of deals over on the Green Man Gaming site plus 25% off selected titles. You'll find the deals HERE.

You'll find many more game deals from Gamersgate, Gamefly, Gamestop, and GOG; some of which you can find via the Didimatic site, which I've linked to above.

To be honest there are too many game deals around to list them all. Just visit the sites I recommend above and I'm sure you'll find something that suits you for a very decent price.

Check out the Game Discussion forums for details of other games, either free or on deals such as the Indie Game bundles, (there's at least 5 or 6 bundles live at the moment plus regular bundles such as the Humble Weekly Sales and the Bundle Stars bundles (at least six of those are still live) including Groupees. You'll find links to all of these bundles in the Game discussion forums HERE All of the indie bundles are amazing value.

The latest IndieGameStand game is Dungeon of elements an RPG dungeon crawler with combat inspired by some of our favorite classic puzzle games like Dr. Mario or Tetris. In Dungeon of Elements (DoE), core meets casual as we combine many different styles of gameplay in a fun, immersive experience. There's a DRM free download, it's on Steams Greenlight project, so you could get a Steam key later plus if you pay more than the average, which stands at $1.35 at the time of writing you'll also get a Desura key the music, and an art book. This deal ends on Wed 15th January around 5am GMT.

There are small indie bundles available over at Indiebundle.org. Each bundle has three games and costs $5 each for the basic bundle plus a few dollars more for extra games. Check the Indie bundles HERE

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

A Request for helpl>:

Developers rely on good feedback to improve their games. If you download this game please take some time once you've played it a while to leave some constructive feedback either positive or negative. The more constructive feedback we get, the more likely developers are going to give more games away. The giveaway site already has a very good standing with the search engines. Developers want their products out there on the WWW, this site has the potential to do that. The game giveaway project gives away on average between 9 to 17 thousand downloads for each game depending upon what genre and how obscure the game is. That’s a lot of homes these games are being downloaded into and a lot of 'potential' cash that’s being lost by the developers. If we get better games because of better feedback, the community are likely to continue to benefit from the generosity of the developers. Satisfied community members are then more likely to visit the home sites of those developers and purchase games that they may not have bothered with before they discovered the developer via the game giveaway site, thus giving the developers more incentives to give away even more decent games.

Please leave some feedback once you’ve checked the game out. It can be positive or negative, but please explain what your reasons were for the feedback you post. You could also leave suggestions for improving the game, for example, this game could do with more block types for the levels editor, add more power-ups, describing the ones you think would be suitable, add some mini games (which seem all the rage in some arcade games now) or enable the user to be able to change the in game music easily.

Thank you in advance to all those who take the time to post a constructive comment.

Regards

Whiterabbit aka Stephen

========================================================

Spirits of Metropolis

In Brief

Spirits of Metropolis is an  Match 3  that's different from the usual crowd and in my opinion  well worth downloading, even of you don't like  match three's.  There's  a color blind mode, and you can download  extra puzzle packs from the developers site (Vertigo Games).  You'll also find unlockable hints and tips that can be unlocked by completing various game milestones and medals (I've posted an image of the easiest to win in the slideshow {see below for link}).  :)

Installation:

The downloaded zip file is 52.7 Mb.   The game unpacks to a dual activation  and setup module a security module (setup.gcd) plus a read me.

The zip file   unpacks to a read me and a wrapped setup file (the orange colored file with the key symbol), plus there’s a setup file with security (setup.gcd) that’s protected from being hacked (because the previous giveaway system was easily cracked). This file may cause some security software to alert the user to a possible malware attack, but it will be a false positive.

There has never been a game giveaway (The owners know that allowing such things would compromise their business, so they make sure all software given away via the giveaway and gamegiveaway sites are thoroughly checked for all types of malware before allowing community members to download any files.

Some community members have been having problems installing games since the security wrapper  was added last year but you can work around it at your own risk by tuning off,  your  security software temporarily. This is not recommended but considering that there has never been a single game giveaway infected with malware since the project started back in Dec 2006, the risk is probably insignificant.    The game giveaway team check all game giveaways for malware using several well known anti -malware suites; however, this doesn’t guarantee that  future   games   are safe.

To register and install the game, click on the orange colored icon. The installed game requires 118MB of disk space and installs to the following path:

C:\Program Files\Spirits of Metropolis v1.10  (32 bit) 
Or
C:\Program Files (x86)\Spirits of Metropolis v1.10  (64 bit)

Introduction:

I’ve only posted a basic  information review today

Authors introduction

<blockquote>When I first started to design this game, I had one goal: create a title unique in a genre that was flooded with unoriginal, me-too casual games. That genre was the match-3 gem genre, one that has been dominated by such casual titles as Bejeweled and Puzzle Quest. 
Over a year later, I think we've succeeded in bringing a totally new type of game that's unlike any puzzle game out there. Being that this was our first major commercial game (we have made over a dozen titles previously for PC over the last seven years) we wanted to make sure to start out with a bang. Not only does this game have over 120 levels, but it has ten unique game play modes that completely changes the nature of the way the game is played, with three difficulty settings each. Spirits of Metropolis also has a puzzle level editor to make and play custom puzzles, and not only does this game have an assortment of options, it has a colorblind editor that allows you to change the color of each gem to your preference, including an option to use shapes. The colorblind editor was actually designed with help from colorblind gamers, making sure that it would have maximum effectiveness.</blockquote>

The Game:

From the  main menu you can  access extra content that includes  links to  free downloadable   content such as the puzzle packs.  At the moment there are  seven puzzle packs available for free  (see links below for download locations and include the following;

Fred the Monkey
SOG  (Sandbox of God)
Shellblast HD: Day 3
Patriot
Cubed (see image via the slideshow)
Spring Meridian
Abstract

The author has made available several puzzle packs as DLC’s (downloadable content) <a href="http://www.vertigogaming.net/blog/category/spirits-of-metropolis-packs/" rel="nofollow">HERE</a>.

You can also access the tutorial at any time which is also a compulsory  part of the Journey  mode when you start the game.  As new modes are unlocked   more  tutorials will be added to the tutorial menu. You access  tutorials via the star next to the name of the tutorial.  At the start of the game there is only one tutorial available.

There’s also a tips and hints   link, but  none are available until you’ve started winning medals or unlocked  milestones.  There are five pages of these; each one requiring  a specific number of medals or milestones.  For example to unlock the fifth page of hints and tips you have to win  ten medals or   pass 10 milestones.   I’ve  posted  an image of  page one of these tips, which is  relatively easy to win.  It’s right at the end of the slideshow, which contains 51 images.  If you want to skip the  slideshow just hover your mouse near the bottom of the page.  Then click on the grid button.  That will bring up all the images posted on one page.  You can zoom in  slightly, but to see individual images just click on it.   You  have to  complete level 1 and 2  before the first medal is awarded, then you can access page one of the tips and hints

There are 36 medals to win during the game Once you’ve completed the compulsory journey mode tutorial, the puzzle mode will be unlocked. There are over 50 puzzles to play, or you can create your own via the puzzle editor, you can also download more puzzles <a href="http://www.vertigogaming.net/blog/category/spirits-of-metropolis-packs/" rel="nofollow">HERE</a>

You’ll find the above link  via the puzzles menu so you don’t need to  copy it into your bookmarks/favorites. As mentioned elsewhere there are  several  puzzle packs available to add to  the  50 + that you already have.

The options menu, which is accessible from the main menu  contains several  toggles which enable you to customize the graphics or improve the look of the game  via Anti-Aliasing, V-sync, or   changing the  color of the gems   for colorblind mode.  You can also turn off the visual effects and city spotlight.  (This may be necessary if the game runs   slowly on your system).  You can also change the  look of the gems as well.

Puzzlelicious Review posted by the author:

<blockquote>When I first saw a screenshot for Spirits of Metropolis I have to admit that I thought Oh god, not another Bejeweled clone. You can't blame me if you've seen the game. It features multi-colored gems arranged into patterns, and the purpose is to eliminate them in lines. Sound familiar? The only difference seemed to be a late-night aesthetic, the kind you find in techno clubs and jazz joints. Luckily, I was wrong. So very wrong. Spirits of Metropolis is a unique experience, and an excellent one at that.

Spirits is a puzzle game, predictably enough. You need to eliminate lines of gems. The difference between this game and all the others, however, is that this requires just as much strategic thinking as it does speed. True, you need to move quickly, but you also need to plan out your line eliminations carefully the more points you get, the more time you get. And time, in this game, isn't nearly plentiful enough.

All play revolves around a white crystal. It constantly puts out pulses of light through the strings of surrounding gems. Those pulses only persist, however, if you line the gems up according to color: like a string of Christmas lights, if one bulb/gem doesn't work/isn't the right color, the rest down the line won't light up. Fortunately, this problem is offset by the fact that every third gem will explode when the time comes to set the lines off, transferring its power to all the surrounding gems. Build more strings off each exploder and you'll score major points. Somewhat like Tetris, strings are built by laying down gems, and the game's kind enough to display upcoming gems. 
Matters would get boring with just that over and over, naturally, so Spirits throws in roadblocks to keep itself interesting. The time limit is usually the biggest obstacle, and can prove a quick killer in some levels. It's so limiting, in fact, that you might throw the game down before giving Spirits the chance it deserves. Beyond the timer there's also set limits on moves, black gems on the board that need to be filled, unchangeable gems and boards that get smaller and smaller.</blockquote>

<blockquote>I thought for sure the pleasing look of Spirits would wear off or, at best, mask a mediocre game. I'm happy to say now that Spirits is an excellent experience with a lovely face on it. The menus, the game board, even the background is nice to look at, with an early morning city passing slowly by in the distance. You'll quickly realize that the exploding gems resemble streetlights, and suddenly the whole thing makes a lot more sense.

Supporting this is the real star of this game, the soundtrack. With one or two exceptions I LOVE the music in Spirits of Metropolis. Ranging from techno thumping to some beautiful guitar work, Spirits has a diverse selection of tracks that you'll never want to turn off. This goes to show that having a smaller budget than the big leaguers doesn't stop a game from pleasing the ear.

Slick, beautiful, charming. The only fault I find in Spirits is an unforgiving difficulty level in the first few stages. Other than that, this is a fantastic game, and I highly recommend trying it. I'd buy it. 4.5/5</blockquote>

<a href="http://www.vertigogaming.net/game/spirits" rel="nofollow">Reference </a> accessed 22nd July 09

Other reviews worth reading:

Positive Review:

Negative Review:

Features:

•	Over 120 levels spanning ten different modes of play.

•	Colorblind editor allows you to change the shape of gems, as well as change their color value.

•	Puzzle Editor allows you to create and share your own brain-bending levels.

•	Medals & Milestones system awards you with fresh content by beating challenges and progressing through the game.

•	Ranking Mode allows you to compete for the high score in a variety of modes.

•	Journey lets you experience all the different modes of Spirits of Metropolis as you choose your own paths throughout the game.

•	High quality soundtrack that lets you change music on the fly.

•	Support for multiple profiles, visual options and lots more!

Video & Images:

You can see video of game play <a href="http://www.vertigogaming.net/blog/2009/07/15/spirits-of-metropolis-dlc-update/#more-298" rel="nofollow">HERE</a>, <a href="http://www.gametrailers.com/video/debut-trailer-spirits-of/44298" rel="nofollow">HERE</a>, <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kbXW25mFZAA&fmt=18" rel="nofollow">HERE</a> and <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=--bgAjmqTAQ" rel="nofollow">HERE</a>. You can also see a slideshow showing tutorials menu screens plus some in game images <a href="http://s571.photobucket.com/albums/ss160/Whiterabbit04/Spirit%20of%20Metropolis/?albumview=slideshow" rel="nofollow">HERE</a>

Conclusion:

From playing the demo for a short time I was impressed by the interactive tutorial and the number of modes you have available.  The graphics remind me a little of ShellBlast, but the game play is totally different.  I’m not overly enamored by match three games.  They usually have to have something special about them to hold my interest, for example Treasures of Montezuma or Puzzle Quest.  This one definitely intrigues me, but I’ve not played it long enough to justify giving it a score out of 10.  That would be unfair.  That said I am impressed enough to continue playing it, so will keep it in my library at least on a temporary basis until I’ve had the time to explore the game further.

Scoring:

Game play - 8
Graphics – 7.5
Sound - 7
Replayability - 8
Originality – 7.5

Total =  38 out of 50 which is equivalent to 7.6 out of 10

Additional Information:

Music:

If you wish to change the in game music you can do so by converting  the music you choose to ogg files.  There are loads of free  converters available online for example  Audacity  which can be used to convert your MP3’s to ogg.

You’ll find the ogg files located via the following path - assuming you have your operating system installed to the C: drive (mine is installed to the F: drive):

C:\Program Files\Spirits of Metropolis v1.10\oggfiles

Ensure the   files you replace have the same name as the original  files.  I’d also recommend backing up the files just in case you want to revert back to the default music.  If you forget to do this you can always download the demo and  transfer the ogg files from the demo as they should be the same.

<size=4>Problems with the game?</size>:

If you have any problems installing or playing today's game please go to the game discussion forums where you'll find a FAQ's section <a href="http://www.giveawayoftheday.com/forums/topic/11647#post-101133" rel="nofollow">HERE</a>.

I've also previously posted this review in the game discussion forums <a href="http://www.giveawayoftheday.com/forums/topic/7955" rel="nofollow">HERE</a>

If the game runs slow try installing Game booster, which is free from Iobit/Razer. It turns off all the unnecessary windows programs that are running in the background plus also enables you to specify other programs that you may have installed other than windows applications. It works very well and once you've finished playing your game you can revert to normal windows functioning by clicking on the return button. you can get it <a href="http://www.iobit.com/gamebooster.html" rel="nofollow">HERE</a>

Free games similar to today’s game:

If you like match three games there’s loads of commercially available games that are being given away over at Gametop, Jenkat Games, MyPlayCity and Freegamespick.  I’ve posted a thread over in the forums that specifically deal with Match three games though I’ve not updated it in a couple of years.  You’ll find the best of these free games sites below   I’ve tested all the games I’ve downloaded from these free game sites and all come up clean using the latest Kaspersky antivirus program:

<a href="http://www.giveawayoftheday.com/forums/topic/3846#post-41420" rel="nofollow">Giveawayoftheday Forums</a>
<a href="http://www.gametop.com/category/match3.html " rel="nofollow">Gametop</a>
<a href="http://www.myplaycity.com/free_match3_games/" rel="nofollow">MyPlayCity</a>

<a href="http://www.jenkatgames.com/free/match-3/" rel="nofollow">Jenkat Games</a>

If todays game nor match threes interest you, there’s still loads of games on sale around the web. Check the didimatic site via <a href="http://didimatic.com/dd/en/onsale/steam/" rel="nofollow">THIS</a> link for some brilliant deals.
 
Steam weekend deals include 75% off Torchlight II, 80% off E.Y.E. Divine cybermancy, 50% off Godius, 50% off The Typing of the Dead: Overkill (48hr deal), 75% off Torchlight, 75% off Guardians of Graxia, 50% off The Cities in Motion 2 collection, 50% off Air Conflicts collection, 50% off Anodyne plus around 70 other deals.

There are plenty of deals over on the Green Man Gaming site plus 25% off selected titles. You'll find the deals <a href="http://www.greenmangaming.com/hot-deals/" rel="nofollow">HERE</a>.

You'll find  many more  game deals from Gamersgate, Gamefly, Gamestop, and GOG; some  of which you can find  via the Didimatic site, which I've linked to  above.

To be honest there are too many game deals   around to list them all.  Just visit the sites  I recommend above and I'm sure you'll find something that suits you   for a very  decent price.

Check out the Game Discussion forums for details of other games, either free or on deals such as the Indie Game bundles, (there's at least 5 or 6 bundles live at the moment plus regular bundles such as the Humble Weekly Sales and the Bundle Stars bundles (at least six of those are still live) including Groupees. You'll find links to all of these bundles in the Game discussion forums <a href="http://www.giveawayoftheday.com/forums/forum/17" rel="nofollow">HERE</a> All of the indie bundles are amazing value.

The latest IndieGameStand game is Dungeon of elements an RPG dungeon crawler with combat inspired by some of our favorite classic puzzle games like Dr. Mario or Tetris. In Dungeon of Elements (DoE), core meets casual as we combine many different styles of gameplay in a fun, immersive experience. There's a DRM free download, it's on Steams Greenlight project, so you could get a Steam key later plus if you pay more than the average, which stands at $1.35 at the time of writing you'll also get a Desura key the music, and an art book. This deal ends on Wed 15th January around 5am GMT.
 
There are small indie bundles available over at Indiebundle.org. Each bundle has three games and costs $5 each for the basic bundle plus a few dollars more for extra games. Check the Indie bundles <a href="http://indiebundle.org/" rel="nofollow">HERE</a>

A Request for help:

<blockquote>Developers rely on good feedback to improve their games. If you download this game please take some time once you've played it a while to leave some constructive feedback either positive or negative. The more constructive feedback we get, the more likely developers are going to give more games away. The giveaway site already has a very good standing with the search engines. Developers want their products out there on the WWW, this site has the potential to do that. The game giveaway project gives away on average between 9 to 17 thousand downloads for each game depending upon what genre and how obscure the game is. That’s a lot of homes these games are being downloaded into and a lot of 'potential' cash that’s being lost by the developers. If we get better games because of better feedback, the community are likely to continue to benefit from the generosity of the developers. Satisfied community members are then more likely to visit the home sites of those developers and purchase games that they may not have bothered with before they discovered the developer via the game giveaway site, thus giving the developers more incentives to give away even more decent games.

Please leave some feedback once you’ve checked the game out. It can be positive or negative, but please explain what your reasons were for the feedback you post. You could also leave suggestions for improving the game, for example, this game could do with more block types for the levels editor, add more power-ups, describing the ones you think would be suitable, add some mini games (which seem all the rage in some arcade games now) or enable the user to be able to change the in game music easily.

Thank you in advance to all those who take the time to post a constructive comment.</blockquote>

Regards

Whiterabbit aka Stephen

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