The goal is simple: connect same-colored dots vertically and horizontally to win points. Make a square to win even more! Dots has three modes to satisfy every type of player. Race against the clock in Timed Mode, think strategically in Moves Mode, or sit back and relax in Endless Mode. Stockpile dots along the way to gain power-ups.
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The cooler Candy Crush, although I actually started playing this before Candy Crush came out. Very aesthetically pleasing UI, and trying to get squares was fun.
Years ago, back when I wanted to break into the game industry, I found a job listing for Playdots. It seemed poor form to send in an application when I wasn't familiar with their work, so - since it was free - I downloaded Dots to acquaint myself. I never did hear back from Playdots (so it went with most companies to which I applied), but I've spent the last 8 years since playing their game on and off.
I'll get to why I'm "abandoning" this rather than "completing" it, but I'll go ahead and say upfront that the game ain't bad. It's about as simple as you can get for a "falling blocks" puzzler - string together two or more dots of the same color to clear 'em, make a square to clear all of that particular color, shoot for a high score in either a certain amount of moves or a certain amount of time. Apart from a couple power-ups, that's pretty much it. It's as minimalist and barebones as they come, but that's precisely what they're going for, and it's still satisfying to see all them dots go away all at once. Of interest to me, there's a color blind mode that adds symbols to the dots; removes some of the simplicity, but I certainly appreciate that the option's there.
So that's all well and good, but what's the incentive to keep coming back for 8 years? That would be the game's achievements. There are only 32 of 'em - nothing super complicated, just li'l incentives to challenge yourself and keep going, getting a little better so you can nail those high score achievos, or maybe try to nail those achievements to clear more dots with squares...
Now let's talk strategy. As mentioned, you have two different modes to work with, Time and Moves. Right away, you can forget about getting high scores with Time, because unless the RNG is in your favor and, like, you train up on this extremely specific skill of seeing and swiping dots, you're fighting a losing battle. You're much better off trying for it in Moves, since you can take your time to strategize and maximize your pulls. If you're good, you can pretty consistently rack up over 200 points (one for each dot cleared) in the allotted 30 moves.
The highest score-based achievement requires a game of 500 or more. You'd have to average almost 17 dots a move. You're likely to have a string of just 3 dot moves, so... that's not happening.
But wait, there are those power-ups. You pay for them with the points you've earned in each game. One gives you extra time (i.e. 5 extra moves), one expels all dots of a given color, and one will "shrink" a single dot and remove it from play (more useful than you'd think - you get a lot of cases where a square is broken by a single misplaced dot). Sure, the first two of those are limited to one per game, but that'll still help you get more of the way there...
The highest score I've managed to achieve was 397. I'm sure I could get a 400 game if I had another lucky streak where the falling dots matched up nicely, but I don't think I'm ever getting 500, nevermind the sheer luck required to fill the full 6x6 grid with the same color.
You have two options for how you're SUPPOSED to get those last few achievements. One, you buy the "Double Dots" power-up for $5. This does what you'd expect. Two, you buy the third "Endless" mode for $2. This also does what you'd expect.
I am making an assumption on all this, since I have never bought either of these things. I do not buy microtransactions as a rule. Not because I'm opposed to them or anything like that, but because I know my limits. I have an addictive personality, and I know, once I cross that threshold, it'll be hard for me to rein myself in. Same reason I don't drink or smoke or anything like that. So even in a case here, where $7 would permanently unlock features that would easily let me finish the game, I dare not shell out the money.
As you might surmise, I played this game for 8 years because I wanted to see if I could beat it without paying for things in-game. After all this time, and in particular after spending a flight doing nothing but trying to grind out those achievements, I've decided I cannot. Not without ridiculously good luck or mastery of skills I am not interested in mastering.
Dots is not a bad game, but it is a bad game to go achievement hunting for. It's worth the free download, it's worth playing if you need something zen to center yourself, and honestly, it might be worth it to you to reward the developers $7 for putting together such a nice li'l game. But it's not worth it to me to give the developers $7 so I can finally put this game to bed. I did as good as I'm gonna do, and I can live with that.
I'll get to why I'm "abandoning" this rather than "completing" it, but I'll go ahead and say upfront that the game ain't bad. It's about as simple as you can get for a "falling blocks" puzzler - string together two or more dots of the same color to clear 'em, make a square to clear all of that particular color, shoot for a high score in either a certain amount of moves or a certain amount of time. Apart from a couple power-ups, that's pretty much it. It's as minimalist and barebones as they come, but that's precisely what they're going for, and it's still satisfying to see all them dots go away all at once. Of interest to me, there's a color blind mode that adds symbols to the dots; removes some of the simplicity, but I certainly appreciate that the option's there.
So that's all well and good, but what's the incentive to keep coming back for 8 years? That would be the game's achievements. There are only 32 of 'em - nothing super complicated, just li'l incentives to challenge yourself and keep going, getting a little better so you can nail those high score achievos, or maybe try to nail those achievements to clear more dots with squares...
Now let's talk strategy. As mentioned, you have two different modes to work with, Time and Moves. Right away, you can forget about getting high scores with Time, because unless the RNG is in your favor and, like, you train up on this extremely specific skill of seeing and swiping dots, you're fighting a losing battle. You're much better off trying for it in Moves, since you can take your time to strategize and maximize your pulls. If you're good, you can pretty consistently rack up over 200 points (one for each dot cleared) in the allotted 30 moves.
The highest score-based achievement requires a game of 500 or more. You'd have to average almost 17 dots a move. You're likely to have a string of just 3 dot moves, so... that's not happening.
But wait, there are those power-ups. You pay for them with the points you've earned in each game. One gives you extra time (i.e. 5 extra moves), one expels all dots of a given color, and one will "shrink" a single dot and remove it from play (more useful than you'd think - you get a lot of cases where a square is broken by a single misplaced dot). Sure, the first two of those are limited to one per game, but that'll still help you get more of the way there...
The highest score I've managed to achieve was 397. I'm sure I could get a 400 game if I had another lucky streak where the falling dots matched up nicely, but I don't think I'm ever getting 500, nevermind the sheer luck required to fill the full 6x6 grid with the same color.
You have two options for how you're SUPPOSED to get those last few achievements. One, you buy the "Double Dots" power-up for $5. This does what you'd expect. Two, you buy the third "Endless" mode for $2. This also does what you'd expect.
I am making an assumption on all this, since I have never bought either of these things. I do not buy microtransactions as a rule. Not because I'm opposed to them or anything like that, but because I know my limits. I have an addictive personality, and I know, once I cross that threshold, it'll be hard for me to rein myself in. Same reason I don't drink or smoke or anything like that. So even in a case here, where $7 would permanently unlock features that would easily let me finish the game, I dare not shell out the money.
As you might surmise, I played this game for 8 years because I wanted to see if I could beat it without paying for things in-game. After all this time, and in particular after spending a flight doing nothing but trying to grind out those achievements, I've decided I cannot. Not without ridiculously good luck or mastery of skills I am not interested in mastering.
Dots is not a bad game, but it is a bad game to go achievement hunting for. It's worth the free download, it's worth playing if you need something zen to center yourself, and honestly, it might be worth it to you to reward the developers $7 for putting together such a nice li'l game. But it's not worth it to me to give the developers $7 so I can finally put this game to bed. I did as good as I'm gonna do, and I can live with that.
While the only mode I really enjoy is the endless mode without the constraints of a timer or a move limit, I still enjoy this game a whole lot. Even without any real challenge, finding opportunities to make squares idly endlessly is really satisfying. Whenever you do the game makes a little rumble, and all dots of matching color vanish. This can often lead to chains of squares as things fall into place, which is even more gratifying. It feels really really good!
I lost interest the moment I realized that the only available game modes are arcade puzzle types, scoring your performance on random boards under restricted time or number of moves. There could very well have been thoughtful, satisfying logic puzzles requiring the player to think carefully and plan ahead, but that was apparently beyond the very limited scope of this game.