Gridland - Walkthrough, Tips, Review (2024)

• Currently 4.3/5
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Platform: Javascript

Categories: browser, doublespeakgames, free, game, javascript, linux, mac, match-3, puzzle, rating-g, rpg, simulation, strategy, turnbased, windows

Comments (52) | Views (58,214)

Gridland is from Doublespeak Games, creators of A Dark Room, which as you know means that a) it's a really clever and interesting game, and b) I can't really say too much as to why and how without spoiling it for you because of the way the game slowly changes as you play. Superficially, it looks like a simple match-3 puzzle game. Click on two adjacent tiles to swap them, and if they match, the resources they represent will be collected. The game is turn-based, and while time marches on, it only moves when you make a turn, so plan you moves to get the most "cascade" matches possible as other tiles drop to replace the ones you removed. Initially, it seems both too easy, and, well, weird. You'll need to figure out on your own what's happening and how you figure into it, since the game offers no help or direction whatsoever. During nights, planning your matches becomes even more important, and the thing to remember is that while everything else happens automatically you don't need to rush, and in fact frantically making matches will work against you. You'll need to experiment and really choose your moves carefully... especially when the sun goes down...

Gridland is so drastically different from A Dark Room that it's likely to get a bit of a rough reception from fans who were hoping Doublespeak Games' next title was a sequel, or even just another game with the same gameplay. There's no real narrative, and it seems a little shallow at first blush, which, combined with the the lack of explanation as to the game's mechanics, may make it less immediately engaging than its predecessor, especially since it doesn't "play itself". Taken purely on its own, however, Gridland offers its fair share of surprises, even if it's slow about revealing them. Discovering how the game evolves as you successfully complete days and nights, and more structures, is an effective hook. The downside is that your little avatar moves painfully slowly, and if you make a match that changes day to night (or vice-versa) while your character is in the middle of something, like picking something up, that gets overridden by the change of times, so you can actually lose items when night turns to day if your character hasn't picked them up yet. Gridland is a slow-paced game that requires a lot of experimentation and patience, and a game that's still in the process of being tweaked and balanced, but it'll appeal to fans of more strategic match-3 games who have been looking for some different... which Gridland decidedly is.

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