I'm the first to admit that I'm not a huge fan of Match-3 games, so, for me to award one with anything over 3 stars is a pretty rare thing.
But, there was just something about Laruaville that captured my attention and kept me hitting that play button over and over again.
Laruaville offers two different styles of play, relaxing mode and a timed mode. At first, I tried the timed mode, thinking that perhaps the thrill of racing against the clock would offer up a bit more excitement to the boring match-3 game I was expecting. However, I quickly realized that there wasn't really anything boring about Laruaville and the timed mode was just giving me anxiety.
Thank goodness the game lets you switch between modes, although, if you're in the middle of a level, it will start over.
The game starts off pretty easy, as you work your way through the basic mechanics of the game, swapping tiles, matching up 3 or more objects, and collecting the coins.
However, it quickly begins to increase the difficulty as different types or obstacles and power-ups become available. Pretty soon, it seemed like every level was introducing a new obstacle to overcome... some coins were trapped in ice, others were on fire, while others were trapped in branches.
Each obstacle required something different to remove it. Fire was particularity perplexing, as you needed to cool the coins down first by matching droplets of water to adjacent tiles.
What I did like about Laruaville is that the gameplay was difficult, but it wasn't impossible... unlike certain levels in Candy Crush Saga where you feel like if you don't purchase a Powerup, you'll never beat the board. These may take time to complete, but I always felt with a little patience and perseverance, I would be able to beat the level.
In addition to the match-3 play, they included some puzzles and hidden object scenes that were optional to play and rewarded you with more coins. The coins were used to buy upgrades and buildings for your little ghost town... which brings me to the story...
The whole plotline to Laruaville had me scratching my head a bit... I really didn't see the point, but I thought perhaps there was something to the legend of ghosts that was lost in translation somewhere that I just wasn't getting.
The basic gist of the game is this... there are ghosts out there in the world. They are friendly and happy creatures... think Casper not Poltergeist... and they need someplace to live. So that explains why you're building this town and collecting coins in the Match-3 games... Okay... whatever... that's a little weird, but just go with it.
Graphics were cute, little acorns, leaves, cherries, it definitely had a very organic feel to it, and the backgrounds were nice to look at as well. Nothing jaw-dropping or awe-inspiring, certainly, but definitely one of the better designed match-3 games I've seen in awhile.
Music... not too much to say in this department. It was appropriate without being too annoying... a lot of cymbals and bells that helped make the whole gaming experience a pretty laid-back and relaxing one.
Overall Laruaville will definitely resonate with Match-3 fans. It features exciting, challenging, but not impossible gameplay that you can sit back with and enjoy a few relaxing, stress-free hours.