How to Get a High Score on Bejeweled, BJ2, and Bejeweled Blitz

On Facebook, Bejeweled Blitz has become one of my favorite things to play, and you will frequently find my name listed in the top spots for high scores. On WorldWinner, I have made it to where I can earn about $1,000 per month playing video games for about an hour per day, give or take.

I'm frequently asked on Facebook how I managed to get such high scores so consistently, and even once was accused of not being human! Well, I'm very human, and I wouldn't even know how to cheat a game to get a high score, so I'm left with learning the tricks to getting high scores, without cheating. If you want high scores in Bejeweled, Bejeweled 2, and Bejeweled Blitz, this tutorial can help!

Difference between Bejeweled, Bejeweled 2 and Bejeweled Blitz

For the purpose of this tutorial, the things to do in each of the three Bejeweled games really don't differ that much. The only major difference I can give here between Bejeweled Blitz and the other Bejeweled games is that the hypercube (the glowing gem that is earned from making a 5-gem match) is not nearly as important in BJ Blitz as it is in the other two BJ games, so you shouldn't waste time trying to make hypercubes on BJ Blitz if other matches are faster.

Remember, you only have a minute on BJ Blitz, so every second is crucial there. The other two Bejeweled games last longer, so you have a little bit of time to think strategy. With Bejeweled Blitz, move fast and consistently, to keep the multiplier at maximum level. Focus more on matches and less on strategy with BJ Blitz.

Bejeweled High Score Trick #1: Play Down, Look Up

This is the very best advice I can give for Bejeweled high scores. Cascading gems exploding are what gets higher scores. Your goal is to make one match of three or more, and then hope that as the gems fall into place, more cascade matches are made without you having to move more gems. The more cascades you get, the higher the multiplier and the higher the score.

To get the highest likelihood of gem cascades, you want to play as low on the board as you can. However, you have to look up at the board, or you'll miss chances for hypercubes and other high-scoring matches. Play down, but look up at the board!

Bejeweled High Score Trick #2: Play Wide, Not Tall

Making matches of three or more gems can be accomplished either horizontally or vertically--wide or tall. You are more likely to get multiple cascades from a wide match than you are from a tall match. The wide matches will 'shift' three or four or five columns, whereas a tall match will only shift one column. When given the choice between a tall column match or a wide row match, unless there are other cascades you can see, you should always match 'wide' first, then tall.

Bejeweled High Score Trick #4: Exploding Gems

The exploding gems are created whenever you make a match of four gems in a row, or two matches of three gems in one move. Exploding gems usually take with them a section of the board when they explode, giving you more points than just making a match. If you can arrange it so one exploding gem is on the outer boundary of another exploding gem, and that one on the boundary of yet another, one exploding gem match can actually take out most of the board, and the points will skyrocket.

Save exploding gems until later in the game for maximum point value. For Bejweled Blitz, exploding gems can be saved up during play until you have several of them to set off a cascade of explosions. For Bejeweled and BJ2, save the exploding gems until the higher, later levels, because multipliers increase the higher the level. In fact, I often wait until the screen is flashing saying the time is almost up, and then I'll go through and explode all my exploding gems and hypercubes at the last minute.

Bejeweled High Score Trick #5: Hypercubes

There are a few things to say about hypercubes. First, on BJ and BJ2, hypercubes should be used as late as possible on the game. See, the higher your level, the higher your multiplier, and saving a hypercube or an exploding gem for as late in the game as you can increases your chance of scoring higher. I try my best to save hypercubes until I either have no more legal moves except the hypercube or until the screen is flashing that time is almost up.

Exploding gems can also be saved until later in the game, but if you run out of moves, you run the risk of losing your exploding gems and hypercubes. Also, be very careful not to use exploding gems near hypercubes, because the explosion can zap your hypercube. If it comes down to having no moves except the exploding gem near a hypercube, use your hypercube first and then use the exploding cube if you still need to.

Hypercubes are formed by making matches of 5 gems in a row of the same color. Hypercubes are used by swapping them with any other gem surrounding it, and will result in all gems of that color being removed from the board and points given for them as though you made a match. When choosing which gem to swap a hypercube with, you should choose a gem color that has the most on the board, to maximize your points. The one exception to that is if you can see that removing a gem of another color might make a cascade, which would increase points.

Generic Bejeweled Game Play Hints & Strategies:

You'll play better if you warm up first, so if you're playing a tournament game, like on WorldWinner or King, you'll want to play some of the free games first to get your eyes and brain working before playing a game for cash. You'll probably also play better if you turn the music off. The music and sounds really distract me, particularly the pulsing sound when the timer is almost out.

If you're losing repeatedly, or not scoring as high as you'd like, walk away. Random computer generation changes, and it is proven that sometimes the game seems stuck in a mode that favors or doesn't favor you and coming back at a different time can change that. On WorldWinner or King or other sites like that, you are matched with other players, so if you're losing frequently, it may mean there is a batch of other players doing better than you and coming back later might match you with a different group of players.

If you're playing on WorldWinner or King, never play down your entire account balance in one session. Always leave enough to come back and play one more game in a new session.

Play other games in between playing Bejeweled, Bejeweled 2, or Bejewled Blitz. Sometimes, the break another game gives your eyes and brain, using different strategies, can actually refresh your skills on the BJ game of choice.

Lastly, remember it's just a game, and score isn't as important as entertainment value, unless you're trying to make a living out of playing Bejeweled (and there are those who do!). Enjoy, have fun, but don't take it too seriously or you'll lose what makes playing online games a blast--the entertainment!