WordBubbles!

Generally I love it, but I had an earlier version before and recently downloaded a fresh version for my new phone discovering some changes I don’t like. The ads are even more annoying now, loud and video-style like TV commercials, but I know that can be removed. What frustrates me most is that after solving a puzzle a new celebratory sequence plays, which is screamingly loud compared to the rest of the game’s volume levels, outright painful if you have earbuds in. And the game originally appealed to me for its sophistication, which then included an equally nice but demure celebratory transition. The new trumpets transition is jarringly childish, as if ripped out of some other kids’ game and thoughtlessly dumped in. The combination of stylistic discord and painful volume make the transition very uncomfortable and unpleasant, something I wish I could avoid. But turning off sound effects doesn’t let me choose the sounds individually, so escaping the trumpets causes me to lose all the other cute sounds that made me love the game. I’m torn when I consider whether to play anymore. I wish we would be given an update that allows us to choose our celebratory transition type, or at least allows us to control the sound effects individually. Then I could enjoy it again without jolting or cringing.

The game is simple to learn, but as you advance it can become so challenging that it isn't fun. That's when I take a break for a few months to gather up free hints from the daily puzzles- because the hint packages for sale are ridiculously expensive. There are two major flaws that I see in this game, which keep me from giving it 5 stars. 1) You cannot pick the game difficulty that you want to play; you start at the very basic easy levels and work your way up. Sometimes, I want to focus in and work a devilishly challenging level, while other times I've got a few minutes to kill and want something easier to do. This game gets very boring when you get to the top levels and you're left with nothing but puzzles that will take you a long time to do. 2) There is no way to record the words you've found in the current puzzle you're working on. This is for the higher levels, where you've got multiple difficult words which have to be traced in a certain way or you risk not being able to complete the missing words. It isn't uncommon to have to restart a puzzle because you left a few straggling letters on the board that you can no longer connect. Unless you have written down your "known" words, or have a good memory for sometimes esoteric words, it's possible to forget those words when you restart. A Notes function within the game would be great!

I love this game! It's much more challenging than your typical word search. There might be more than one path to make a particular word but only one is the correct way to be able to connect the letters for the remaining words. One of the things I really like (especially in the lower levels) is that there are a lot of red herring words that make it even more challenging. If you're looking for a quick-fix game this might not be for you. I'm in the Grey Whale set of puzzles and it often takes me multiple sessions to solve. I must have bought the minimal hint package to remove the ads which was, what, $1.99? Knowing now how much I enjoy Word Bubbles, I would gladly have paid more—shhh! With the daily hints that I earn, this is way more than enough. Don't use hints, do stretch your brain, that's the fun of the challenge! I have not had any of the technical issues other reviewers have mentioned. Update: I’m now up to level 1126, have amassed hundreds of free hints by religiously playing the daily puzzles, continue to love the challenge even when it takes me multiple sessions to see the words and/or solve the correct paths, and stand by my 5-star rating!

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I have played this game for quite sometime - but I have always waited on the timeline for the free hint. I played when at the doctor’s office, waiting in the car, etc. - “free” time. I NEVER purchased hints (games are not that serious to me). I “assume” I accidentally hit purchase hints - which, again, I never have done. This app did not take me through a process where I could cancel the option (again, “assuming” I inadvertently hit the purchase option); it simply gave a check mark in a “done” circle with the words “your purchase was successful” and an “OK” to hit. I did not press “OK” and had to turn my phone off to get out of that screen. Then, after powering up, I selected the app to see if that purchase had been cancelled, since I did not press OK, but it had not been. How can hints be purchased without a purchaser providing financial info AND no option to cancel? What form of payment is being used? I will delete this app, and warn others against it, if unresolved. I DID NOT purchase hints and want to know what is being charged! Further, I order online frequently for clothing, home goods, etc., and legitimate sites (or sites with integrity) give an option to cancel a purchasing process AND gives a summary of the purchase including payment method. I did not receive such a thing and I never provided financial info on this app. I am very concerned.

I started playing Wordbubbles 4 years ago. I have intentionally played occasionally so I wouldn't run out of puzzles; I love the game so much, I didn't want to run out of puzzles. I was thrilled when they added more puzzles and even more impressed that they have added the weekly puzzle. The puzzles offer a good level of challenge by using words with 10 letters in the higher levels. Increasing the difficulty, solving the puzzles requires use of letters in a certain order, which can really frustrate the solving process. This is a solid, dependable app that does not crash, "go down" or, in general, do things many other apps do to frustrate players. The colors are fun and changeable by restarting the level. I like that levels can be restarted any number of times. I use hints sparingly. I think, compared to many other, similar apps that Wordbubbles is reasonable priced, if one chooses the ad free version. Wordbubbles can be played while standing in line, in short bursts, or when you have longer periods of time to play. I love Wordbubbles and hope they make additional levels.