Storm Tale 2

Genre: Match-3 Puzzle

Players: 1

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Review:

Storm Tale 2 is a Match-3 Puzzle released on PC in 2021 and ported to Nintendo Switch in 2022. This game takes the basic gameplay of Puzzle games like Bejeweled and uses it to create a challenge where players must clear specific spaces from the board to complete a level.

After the terribly lacking presentation in the first Storm Tale, Storm Tale 2’s presentation is refreshingly nice. Once again presenting a medieval fantasy theme, Storm Tale 2 features cartoony 2D character designs, beautiful painted backgrounds, and some occasional 3D elements all combine to make a pleasant, polished look. These visuals are joined by somewhat mediocre voice acting and a pretty good instrumental soundtrack. Overall, I’d say this is a huge improvement over the first game, and all-around quite good, though the mobile-style interface still persists here.

This game fixes the control issues that were present in the prior game, though the on-screen cursor it uses this time is far from ideal. Otherwise, the gameplay is very similar to the previous game. That means this is a pretty good take on the Bejeweled formula that’s surprisingly compelling, but the prominent role that luck plays in making sure you get a piece you need to complete a level is frustrating. It’s made even more so this time by the presence of multiple types of currencies, which just reeks of a game that previously had microtransactions that were pulled out at the last minute, but left their annoying mechanics in their wake all the same.

It’s a shame that Storm Tale 2’s gameplay is ruled by these elements of luck and the apparent vestiges of microtransactions, because there’s a genuinely good Match-3 Puzzle game underneath that, albeit one that’s not especially unique or original. Players with the patience to deal with occasionally being forced to restart levels due to poor luck may find this game worth playing, though it’s far from the better entries in the genre on Nintendo Switch.

tl;dr – Storm Tale 2 is a Match-3 Puzzle game like Bejeweled, and both the presentation and controls have received a huge improvement over the prior game, but it’s still lacking in originality, and the gameplay still depends far too much on luck. Puzzle fans may find this to be a fun time-waster on Nintendo Switch, but you have numerous better options on the platform.

Grade: C+

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