Puzzle to the Center of the Earth is a Blast

Foursaken Media has really knocked it out of the park with its new match-three title, Puzzle to the Center of the Earth. Hopefully you didn't stop reading when you saw the words "match-three," because this game really breathes new life into the tired genre. First of all, Puzzle to the Center of the Earth is a platform game where you use match-three elements to dig your way to the center of the Earth. The goal of the game is to dig your way through colored blocks while looking for certain items. You do this by drawing a line with your finger to connect blocks of the same color to make them explode. This allows you to move and explore the caverns by swiping your finger on the gamepad located at the bottom of your display.

The main goal of each level is to dig your way down to the next level, but each cavern also has one gold star and secret switch that you can find. This is what gives the game its high replay value. Not only are there 80 levels to solve, but you will want to go back and try to uncover all the hidden items. This is easier said then done because you only have a certain amount of energy per level. And trust me when I tell you there is nothing more frustrating than finally finding the secret switch in a cavern to only run out of energy because you took too long!

There are also gold coins, artifacts and extra energy that you can find by breaking blocks, and you can earn red crystals that allow you to perform special combinations such as creating huge explosions. The gold coins can be used at "Camp" to unlock new characters and buy other items such as bombs or new formulas to use with the red crystals. There is so much packed into this game that it is hard to remember everything.
.

Puzzle to the Center of the Earth is free to play, which means it does have timers and in-app purchases, but they do not affect the experience of the game. You can of course buy more energy when you run out or spend real cash instead of in-game gold on items at Camp. The most annoying part is having to wait for more lives if you die or have to "give up" in a cavern because you wasted all your energy.

The game is available now on the App Store. It supports all devices running iOS 5.0 or later, and it is highly recommended to anyone who enjoys puzzle / strategy and platform games.