Puzzle World 3
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| Puzzle World 3

Harry Potter is probably – for the moment, at least – the world's most famous wizard. Throw in the likes of Gandalf, Merlin, and that chap from Oz and a pretty good illusionist Top 5 is starting to conjure itself up. But where on this list does our friend from Puzzle World 3 sit, you're no doubt asking?

Well so far he isn't even on the radar, but developer FDG is doing everything in its power to make sure he at least gets his own Top 5 games into the mobile mainstream continuing with this, the latest instalment of the Puzzle World series.

This third outing for the franchise takes you to Toyland, and you have to use a combination of sorcery and quick wits to survive. For those unfamiliar with the Puzzle World formula, you play a wizard's apprentice who has to reach the end of each of the game's 50 levels by collecting a large array of magic powers and using them to match up blocks, thus making them disappear and opening the exit at the end of the level. Pretty standard fare then, right?

Well, in the case of Puzzle World 3, yes. Nothing much has really changed since the second package bar the background toy-themed setting. Admittedly, some of the puzzles can be thought provoking, requiring you to magnetise and warp blocks to align them properly, but alas, the majority are a little frustrating.

For example, a lot of them early on will require you to freeze enemies to use as stepping stones for your blocks. Sounds simple, until you consider the restless nature of the enemies, which, like hyperactive vampire children, are forever getting in the way and killing you.

The reset option will be your friend throughout the entire game. You simply can't progress without it as it allows you to browse the layout of a level, get used to the spells needed, learn the patterns of the enemies and work out a strategy.

Should you really be playing the same level a minimum of five times though? It leaves you wondering if carrying on is worth it – until, that is, you come across the later levels, which let you warp and push blocks from a distance. The variety of spells really is the saving grace for Puzzle World 3 as some of the challenges can be confounding. We just feel that the mix of platforming and puzzling needs cleaning up as, currently, neither sits very well with the other.

Part puzzler, part platformer, if there's one thing that Puzzle World 3 doesn't do it's raise the bar in either genre. It's simply another spoonful of what you're used to. What it does do, however, is give you the chance to occupy the odd spare half hour. It's not magic, but it'll do.

Puzzle World 3

Puzzle World 3 fails to put us under a spell, but with some slight tweaks and improvements it could establish itself as a strong series for mobile
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