Patchword (iOS) Review

In Patchword, the player is given a board of letters. There's a checkerboard visual effect, as half the letters are on orange patches, and the other half are blue. The objective is to turn all of the tiles to one colour. This is performed by making words out of the jumbled letters, with a slight catch.

Blue tiled letters can only be matched with other blue tiled letters, and vice versa. Save a piece in the middle that goes both ways, one must figure out how to not only make the board one colour, but to build up a good score as one clears off the board. Points are delivered in very small doses, so high score fiends need not worry about reaching absurd numeric values. Also, the game restricts using the same word twice, which adds a bit of depth to the player's strategy.

In its defence, Patchword does some things that are definitely good. Currently, there are two modes available: Zen, which is basically just a play 'til you're bored style, and Turns, which gives the player 10 turns to clear the board. They are rewarded with extra turns every time the board is cleared and replaced. There are moments where Patchword works well enough. When one letter has to be analysed, and one has to think about future words they could integrate that letter into, it's at the very least an interesting and strategic experience.

The problem is that there's not a lot of depth to the experience. After a few turns, it can become frustrating trying to figure out a good path forward. There appear to be other modes coming soon, but for now, the two basic modes really aren't enough to keep someone coming back again and again. Even worse, the whole thing feels a bit overwhelming, and even in the ironically named Zen mode, it can feel like there's no way forward available.