Kingdom of Gnester, from Another Castle Studios, adds a kick to the classic game Bejeweled 2. Through different obstacles and surprises, Kingdom of Gnester is a great game that is well worth the dough.
Kingdom of Gnester Pros:
- Three different modes keep you playing for hours
- OpenFeint integration make it easy to store high scores online
- The controls are simple and easy to learn
Kingdom of Gnester Cons:
- Small gameboard makes it hard for bigger fingers
- Soundtrack loop can get annoying
Kingdom of Gnester offers three different game modes: Story Mode, Puzzle Mode, and Gnester’s Ranch. In Story Mode, the object is to protect Gnester from tricky obstacles and terrifying enemies. To get through these levels, you need to get powers by matching three or more like gems on the board below Gnester. To match the gems, simply drag each gem up, down, left, or right. As in Bejeweled 2, once you get three or more gems matched, the prize is rewarded. Each brightly colored gem represents different powers that you unlock as you progress through the game. If you don’t survive a level, the punishment is starting the whole level over again. We hope Another Castle Studios will incorporate checkpoints in a future update. Checkpoints would make it easier to complete each level without the risk of having to start all over. As the game progresses through Story Mode, levels get more challenging. The key to the game is avoiding distraction while focusing on both the gem matching and the deadly enemies above.
Puzzle Mode challenges players with a classic gem matching game. In this mode, Gnester is not present. It is just the gameboard to match shining gems on. The matching has the same concept in Story Mode and Puzzle Mode. A unique feature to this mode that we haven’t seen in any other similar match-3 games is the ability to move gems even when the movement does not make a match. This is a nice feature, but makes it easier to perfect.
We were astonished at the amazing work that Another Castle has put into Kingdom of Gnester. The color schemes are very appealing. Great graphics and color make it entertaining, amusing, and well worth the money. Kingdom of Gnester has some poor animations, however. Gnester seems to “hop” from place to place instead of “move”. Gnester seems to disappear and then pop out of nowhere. Besides the disappointing animations, Gnester kept us playing for hours.
Due to the great graphics, unique game concept, and original idea, Kingdom of Gnester receives our 4-Dimple rating.
