Jelly – wobbly, lacking significant substance, and really quite unique.
All of which is just about the complete opposite of how you’d describe JellyBalls.
The new puzzler from HyperBees is the very definition of solid, with few discernable weaknesses other than a general lack of excitement.
Fitting the mouldIt’s the kind of match-three puzzler we’ve all seen and played dozens of times before. You tap combinations of coloured balls in order to make them disappear, causing the balls above to drop into the gap.
There’s the additional twist of accelerometer control, which lets you twist your handset to change the pull of gravity accordingly. Even this neat feature isn’t particularly original, as we’ve seen it before in such games as Puzzle Blox.
Along the way you’ll encounter special balls, such as the Percentage bonus ball, which grants you a chunk of the points necessary to move on to the next level, or the Extra time ball which… well, you can probably guess.
JellyBalls has few, if any, surprises up its sleeve. Still, it’s got plenty going for it, such as some crisp and elegant (if unspectacular) presentation and a healthy array of gameplay modes.
A la modeThere are five altogether, spread between Arcade and Logical varieties. Arcade levels are more urgent, time-based affairs. These include Continuous (keep going until you drop), Break the Shield (a large screen covering most of the balls must be driven down) and Look Up at the Ceiling (balls drop from the top, Tetris-style).
Logical levels don’t push you for time, but require you to be far more methodical. Classic requires you to reach a set point target with a limited number of balls, while Get Them All is pretty self explanatory.
It’s a generous and nicely varied package. Scoreloop integration adds further replay value, giving you some online scores to aim for.
JellyBalls is an accomplished match-three puzzler, and should certainly be considered if you’re lacking such a game on your Android. If you’re well versed in matching coloured blobs, though, there’s nothing here you won’t have seen before.JellyBalls
An accomplished, polished match three puzzler that simply lacks any defining quality other than general competence
Jon Mundy
Jon is a consummate expert in adventure, action, and sports games. Which is just as well, as in real life he's timid, lazy, and unfit. It's amazing how these things even themselves out.