Missing Sisters

Although the concept behind match-three games is fairly simple, the truth is that it can be very difficult to create a game that has all the required elements to keep you engaged for hours on end. The mechanics may be simple, but the games need to have a certain spark in order to keep you from getting bored after doing the same thing over and over again.

Missing Sisters is a colorful match-three game in which your only goal is to solve the levels before the time runs out. There are no revolutionary gameplay mechanics to blow you away, and the plot is nothing special either. Thus, you shouldn’t be surprised if you find yourself unable to continue after a few minutes, given the fact that boredom settles in rather quickly.

The story puts you in the role of a girl trying to find her sisters, who have disappeared after some unfortunate events. Thankfully, they left a trail of crystals behind, which can help you get to them if you move quickly enough. The journey takes you across multiple islands, but the actual levels never really change when it comes to layouts, so this is a bit of a letdown.

Unlike in a classic match-three game, you have the possibility to clear gems by simply dragging your mouse over as many connected cells as you wish, at least as long as the gems are of the same color. Diagonal matches are possible too, which makes things a bit easier to handle. However, the time limit is very restrictive, and it can actually be annoying sometimes, because there’s no way to relax or try new strategies.

Thankfully, at least there are a few power-ups that come to your aid when you need them the most, although they are mostly bombs that clear a portion of the board in the blink of an eye. The graphics are nothing to write home about either, although they rarely matter in the genre. In this case, the lack of addictive mechanics makes the simple visuals a lot more obvious.

In the end, Missing Sisters has nothing going for it, except maybe the challenge that may keep you coming back for more a couple of time. Other than that, the experience is very dull and repetitive, making it difficult to keep playing for very long.