Puzzle & Dragons X
Puzzle & Dragons is a free-to-play game that combines the environment of a
dungeon-crawler with a match-3 puzzle game, and the monster collection and
team assembly of Japanese card battle games. The player starts by choosing one
of three available creatures based on five elemental types: Fire, Water,
Light, Dark, or Plant. The game then presents different dungeons with multiple
floors unlocked gradually. There is no freedom of movement through the
dungeons, but a linear sequence of static screens with monster and boss
battles. Dungeons are organized on an easy Normal list and a more difficult
Special list.
The bottom half of the screen is filled with coloured orbs based on the
elemental types tied to the monsters. When three or more of the same colour
are lined up horizontally or vertically by swapping one horizontally or
vertically, in the style of Bejeweled but not limited to the nearest adjacent
position, they disappear and provide attack points for the player’s monsters
in the top part of the screen. Orbs can also be moved around without creating
a match, in order to prepare a combo for a next move. With each move the
attack timer of the enemy monsters counts down and they attack periodically.
Defeating monsters is rewarded with coins, the default currency. Stringing
together multiple matches provides combos. Lining up four gives a damage boost
and lining up five orbs in a single turn provides a mass attack. Health can be
refilled by lining up heart icons. Enemies can also be tapped to focus an
attack. Only a limited amount of moves are available per turn.
After a fight a completion screen shows the acquired coins and experience
points. The latter are used to level up the monsters. Sometimes defeated
enemies drop magic stones (the premium currency), or an egg that hatches and
provides a new monster. Ranking up provides points to organize monsters in a
team and extends stamina (amount of moves through a dungeon, recharged at a
rate of one point per ten minutes). Sometimes a helper is offered to join the
fight with pal points provided afterwards. The player can use the roster of
available monsters to edit the team. It consists of a leader with four
additional slots. Monsters have a different efficiency based on their
elemental type and specific statistics called ATK (attack), RCV (HP
restoration), general level, and cost to put a monster on the team. Some also
have a specific skill that can be activated during combat or a leader skill
with additional benefits. The game integrates friends where you can take along
one of their monsters in an additional slot.
The premium currency magic stones can also be bought separately with real
money and is used to fuse monsters. Power-up fusion fuses monsters to have
them gain experience, destroying the others in the process. Evo fusion
requires specific monsters to evolve one, similar to the Pokemon games. The
premium currency is used to extend room in the monster box, to restore stamina
to continue through a dungeon and to continue after dying. Monsters can be
sold as well. Pal points and magic stones can also be used in a bet on the egg
machine menu to get a chance at acquiring a rare monster. There are sometimes
fests organized where the chances to get them are raised. The game also does
many collaborations with other franchises.
Puzzle & Dragons X