Release Date: 14/03/2012
Played On: PS4
Available On: Droid / iOS / Mac / PS4 / PSV / Win / WP / XBO
Time Played: 6h 37m
Progress: Completed.
Developer: 10tons Ltd
Publisher: 10tons Ltd
Straight up, I've never played the first Azkend and I only gave this one a go because it was a Playstation Plus game at some point. It's easy to try something that just shows up in your library unexpectedly, but I like this match-three adventure enough to write something about it.
The first thing I have to mention though, is how terrible this kind of game is to play with a gamepad. Of course I was using my DS4 controller, which is a fine gamepad in itself, but holy cow there were times I wished for a mouse. I even tried plugging a mouse into my PS4, but it wasn't recognised by the game and I was forced to continue with the cumbersome d-pad and analogue stick inputs.
I guess it's a drawback to a whole lot of genres when they end up on console. I can't imagine what it would be like trying to play a real-time strategy game with a gamepad, but I suppose I never considered match-three in the same way. Probably because these genres are often at opposite ends of the casual/hardcore spectrum, so they rarely have anything in common.
It's not that these games are unplayable with a gamepad, but it's like a more pronounced version of the difference between FPS games on pad or mousey keys. There's a big difference between using a control method that feels suited and well designed, and using one that's barely anything more than functional.
To that end, the controls in Azkend 2 on the PS4 are functional at best, but they only bring the experience down. It's perhaps the worst part of the game, which is actually a compliment in a way. Honestly though, I would never have tried a match-three game on a console if I hadn't received it as a PS Plus game. So with that out of the way, is it any good?
The short answer is yes, with a bit of a "but" as it has a lot of stiff competition. I've only ever been completely convinced by two other match-three games, the biggest of course being Bejeweled. You can get Bejeweled for little to no money at all on most platforms these days, so it's hard to compete with it on a value and quality level. Anything anyone has ever thought to put in a match-three game has been put into Bejeweled at some point, so we need to accept that the height of match-three games has already been reached.
On the other hand, the second match-three game I've played a heap of is Puzzle Quest, which took match-three and really made an epic RPG adventure out of it. Puzzle Quest iterated on the genre in such a unique way, as it turned a straight-forward puzzle game into something strategic and tactical. In fact, I'd rate Puzzle Quest higher than Bejeweled in the match-three universe, as it manages to escape the trappings of its genre in an evolutionary way.
Hence, this is the context with which I approach Azkend 2 with gamepad in hand. Mechanically it's the kind of match-three where you can match more than three, so maybe it's not even a match-three. Instead the board is made up of hexes and you can match as many connected symbols as you can find. Of course, the more you match, the greater effect it has on the rest of the board.
There are power ups that appear after big matches or combos, which range from bombs that clear an area, to modifiers that you select before each level. In fact, the modifiers might be the most interesting part, as they can greatly change the flow of the game. Some will slow down the timer each time you make a certain match, others will make more power ups appear on the board. It's a neat little system and can really make a difference in some of the more challenging levels.
Overall though, there's little to differentiate Azkend 2 from many other matching puzzles. It has the same features like tiles that are locked until an adjacent tile is matched. Other tiles need multiple matches to be made on them to break and clear the board. Some boards even feature bugs that crawl from bottom to top and can only be banished by adjacent matches.
It's standard fare for these kind of puzzle games, along with a story that ties it all together. I can't really speak on the story too much, as I quickly grew tired of it and skipped most of the last two thirds of it. It's something about exploring placed and finding clues that lead you to the next place. Each clue needs to be solved by clearing a board or meeting a condition within a time limit. It's pretty generic and even as someone who usually loves a bit of story in games, I couldn't help yawning and skipping all that text.
I suppose I don't really need a story to contextualise matching puzzles, even if Puzzle Quest was incredible. It just goes to show how well some games can bring in an interesting story, but others would be better off without. For my money, I think Azkend 2 is the kind of game that would have been just as entertaining without all the useless story scenes.
Thankfully though, the core loop of matching tiles and clearing the board is compelling and challenging. I mentioned the modifiers before, which help customise the gameplay to your own liking, but I found them invaluable in later levels. Some boards took me multiple attempts to clear, as I swapped out modifiers to see which loadout worked best. It turned out to be a good way to encourage repeating the same board over and over until you succeed. Even if I kept losing, I knew there was a different set of modifiers I could try that would make a difference.
Throughout the game the difficulty ramps nicely, which meant I felt like it was my fault when I failed a level. Even after finding the ideal configuration of modifiers, I still had to practice and get better and faster to beat some of the more challenging boards.
I'm usually not one for banging my head against a wall of difficulty until I manage to fluke a win, so it says a lot that I stuck with Azkend 2 through to the end. There was enough progress and side-stepping to keep the treadmill going through the hard parts, so it never felt hopeless.
What's more, the whole thing looks pretty good as well. Sure it won't be winning any awards for graphical intensity, but there's a nice amount of polish. I've tried lots of puzzle games that focus entirely on mechanics instead of aesthetics, which makes sense in a puzzle game. Although, as someone who will avoid games that simply look unappealing, I appreciate the effort to make everything keep to the same aesthetic dialogue.
In games like this it's all the little things that make a difference. Like the wobble of tiles as they fall into place, or how they spark and explode when matched and cleared in a huge chain. It might sound petty, but it actually makes all the difference to me. I don't need it to be a piece of art, I just want there to be some care taken over making everything visually comfortable.
I think I've mentioned it before, but there's some kind of merit to be had from any game that I've completed from start to finish. Even though I tend to enjoy most games I play, I have been known to stop a terrible experience and uninstall it from whatever system it's on. It might not mean a whole lot, but it means something small if I've been compelled enough to play all the way through a game at all.
Azkend 2 might not be the greatest matching puzzle game to ever be released, but it does everything it sets out to do in a competent and enjoyable way. Even the story ends up being fine if you're after that sort of thing, although I was happy enough to ignore it and get to the meat of the gameplay.
It's a small, simple little game that's nicely made, which is pretty decent in the grand scheme of things. Even Bejeweled has been tarnished for me by microtransactions and free-to-play monetisation models.
Perhaps Azkend 2 could be the puzzle fix you're looking for, as a straight up game that has nothing to hide.