This definitely doesn't live up to the quality of the first game. The storyline is dull, and the graphics surrounding each "chapter" aren't nearly as "fun" as in the first game. There's little incentive to try to "win" these hands as it's very difficult to actually lose. It's not at all clear what is required to "win" - in the previous game, you had to clear all the "marked" cards but in this one, you don't. The ice-covered cards (those used to be something you had to smash open but not here) are never explained. Couldn't make sense of the snowball fights so I just turned those off. The extra games - match pairs, etc. - are definitely a nice addition and I often find myself just zoning out with "three peaks". This isn't a game I'd play over and over, as I've done with the first one. Let's hope that the next game gets back into the "Christmas Spirit."
Looks to me like a lot of people complained that Fairy Jewels was too hard (it IS hard) - and so we got this dumbed down version as a sequel. I'm on level 70-something and have only felt challenged in ONE, count them, ONE level. The storyline is pathetic; who writes this stuff? (And please, someone, give them a dictionary and a spellchecker...) The music is far less appealing than in the first game, and the sound effects worthless - in the first game, bombs going off gave a nice satisfying blast). The cannon feels more like a squirt gun. There are all sorts of new gimmicks in this game, but none of them really add any meaningful challenge, nor are the more helpful aspects really all that helpful! One needs to collect coins to restore the fairy village along the way - big whoop. I intend to finish the game just to get through it but I don't expect to ever go back to it, whereas I've already played Fairy Jewels 1 about five times and look forward to playing it again. If you folks come out with a #3, take a look at the STRENGTHS of the first one and build on that - wipe out a few of the glitches that it did have, and create something worth playing.
This is definitely a challenging game. At first it seems simplistic, but as the levels advance, it puts one's hand-eye coordination to the test. You CAN make it all the way through - it just may not seem that way the first time around! In terms of programming, the game has some flaws - you never know what level you're on when you're on it, and it's never clear how to get "specials." They just happen, and in some of the upper levels, if you don't get them, you don't stand much of a chance. The storyline is silly, but nowhere near as banal as the sequel. THIS game keeps challenging you even after you've gone through it once; Fairy Jewels 2 is just... silly. I'll play this one again and again.
This game seemed incredibly short. It sets up a scenario that is never, so far as I can tell, finished. Just as the boards start getting challenging, the game is finished. I couldn't believe it had just ENDED - I was expecting more chapters and higher levels of difficulty. It was definitely fun while it lasted, but it didn't go nearly far enough. On the plus side, at least I could stand going through the story line; the last game I just dispensed with because it was too annoying. Couldn't you folks come up with something comparable to "Jewel Quest Heritage" for those of us who want the boards? Hidden Object games are a dime a dozen; give us something different!
I actually picked this up at a thrift shop, and certainly felt I got my money's worth. There's no story line or "quest" to follow - just HOG, but very challenging. The silhouette function is extremely helpful, as sometimes you're wondering just what an item is supposed to look like. Unlike some games the objects are complex and assume you have a brain to identify the item. I would have liked to see an "unlimited" option after the game is complete, so that you could go back and find all the objects, instead of having to replay the game if you want a different HOG selection. (As another reviewer noted, the non-HOG "puzzles" are so simple as to be useless.)