A Review of Bejeweled 3

This is another fun and addicting game that I had yet to play until I wrote this article. When you first launch the game, you are given four game modes to choose from: Classic, Zen, Lightning and Quest. You will also find pods for four secret games, which will not be unlocked until you reach a certain level in that particular game mode.

The object of the Classic game mode is to score as many points as you can until there are no more moves left. Swap gems to make rows of three. You get standard points for those matches. If you match 4 or more, you will earn specialty gems that will earn more points. Make an L or a T match to create Star gems, which will blow upon making another match, clearing the board of gems that surround it. While I liked this mode overall, I didn't like how quickly I ran out of moves.

Lightning Mode requires you to match time gems to earn extra time. These extra time gems are added to your next round, where point values increase. The object of the game here is speed. When the time is up, it will use the time gems that you have collected to give you extra playing time. If you run out of time, the game is over.

The Quest Mode contains 40 mini-games. These games include Balance, where you have to match 15 red and 15 blue gems while keeping the board balanced.

Zen Mode is the best mode for beginners to Bejeweled because you can practice building your skills without running out of times or moves. I played this mode for the majority of my demo period and thoroughly enjoyed the relaxing music that played in the background. If you don't like the background music, you can replace it with sounds of nature. The sound effects for the jewels were okay, but the male voice will have to go if I get the paid version of this game.

Earn badges for tasks that you complete. For instance, the Blaster badge is earned for destroying 60 gems in a single move. There were about a dozen badges, although I never got the chance to see what they were for before the demo time ran out.

Bejeweled 3 is a fun game. I would recommend it to anyone who has either played any of the versions of the Bejeweled game out there on the market, or anyone who would like hours of fun gameplay. Highly recommended.