Why so many "match-3" clones?!?!

[Muzozavr]

This. I just need this to be explained to me. WHY ARE THERE SO MANY MATCH-3 REHASHES?

I mean, seriously, most of these match-3 games don't even provide ANYTHING new or more complex. Come on guys, at least give the old concept a new spin or something?! Or are they just fighting over who has the greatest graphics?

It's like, you've played one match-3 game, you've played nearly all of them.

I know there's a lot of rehashes anyway, but match-3 is the KING of rehashes, rehashes in the old and stale formula, rehashes with nothing interesting. It hurts when you think "Oh that seems cool", click on a detailed review, and find out it's a bog-standard match-3... OVER AND OVER AGAIN.

WHY?!

[icycalm]

Yeah, like all those Chess rehashes which people have been releasing for centuries.

Listen, dude. You are among the top three people in this forum as regards the number of your posts I've had to edit or delete. I can see that you do not mean to make rubbish posts, and neither do they, which is why I have not banned any of you yet. But give me a fuckin' break and scale back your posting please. You are creating work for me, and that defeats the point of posting -- because the point is to lessen my workload, to contribute to this site, not to create work for me.

So hang back, chill out, and read and learn. Make as few posts as possible. Perhaps in a few years' time, once you've played many more games, and understood many more things, you'll be able to post stuff that do not make me hit the roof and automatically delete them. Until then, like I said, give me a fuckin' break.

Besides, I get the feeling you are too young to be posting here anyway (and so do the other guys I mentioned, actually).

[Molloy]

The people buying these haven't played any videogames before so they wouldn't realise they're rehashes. They're quick and easy to develop. If you're making them for the iPhone there's potentially silly amounts of money to be made. Casual gamers find anything different intimidating and will gravitate towards familiar products. The games don't require a large time investment.

The music industry is doing much the same sort of thing at the moment. They've realised trying to make hip and/or progressive music is a waste of time. The audience for that is niche and will probably just dowload a copy. The real money is to be made from non-music fans who might buy one or two CDs a year. The best selling albums in the last year (in Ireland/UK) have been cover collections of stodgy old favourites released on public holidays, or for Mothers Day and other Hallmark holidays. The Priests, Il Divo, Ronan Keating, Michael Spillane and that mini-skirt violin playing group I forget the name of are all coining it in doing this kind of thing.

That's where I see the majority of games going. It'll all be rehashes of existing games, executed in a bland and flimsy way like a bad tribute band.

[icycalm]

The people buying these haven't played any videogames before so they wouldn't realise they're rehashes. They're quick and easy to develop. If you're making them for the iPhone there's potentially silly amounts of money to be made.

All of this can also be said about Chess or Monopoly or whatever similar videogames, and yet no one is screaming their heads off about "lack of innovation".

I know nothing about this match-3 business, I had to google it, and I still don't know what the fuck it is -- but what I DO know is that this so-called "innovation" is a myth, and a stupid one at that. If people are "rehashing" a videogame it's for the same reason they are "rehashing" a sport year after year -- because they want to keep playing it. If the game sucks just say it sucks and never touch it again -- if a game rocks then say it rocks and just keep playing it (including its "rehashes"). And why is the latest Chess game supposed to be any more of a "rehash" than the latest FPS, RTS, STG, FTG, etc. etc.? Will people never fucking grow up? Stay tuned for the answer.

[Molloy]

I'm surprised you weren't familiar with the match 3 phenomenon. Minor tweaks on the formula are absolutely everywhere. It's the most important genre in casual gaming. Zoo Keeper and Bejewelled are probably the most famous names. When I was talking about rehashes I was complaining about poorly executed copies. I'd rather play Zoo Keeper than the newer games like Bejewelled because the graphics make my eyes bleed.

These games are so popular they're starting to combine them with other genres like with platformer/puzzler mashup Henry Hatsworth.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ic1Fvexrfcw

There were the pipe puzzle hacking mini games in Bioshock as well of course.

[icycalm]

Oh, ok. I thought this "match-3" thing was a game. Of course I am familiar with the concept as a puzzle subgenre, but I wasn't aware it had a proper name.

When I was talking about rehashes I was complaining about poorly executed copies.

People also make crappy, cheapo Chess sets. Then there are countless neutered, half-baked versions of popular sports: Softball, five-a-side Football, you name it. Real men play the real sports; kids, cripples, old people, women and the retarded play the neutered versions.