Zynga has officially announced that it's working on a Harry Potter match-3 game for mobile. This game is called Harry Potter: Puzzles & Spells, and of course, Zynga has yet to share a single screenshot or video of the title. Paradoxically Zynga has noted that the game is already available as a soft-launch release in the Philippines, which means the studio is already publicly testing the title, which begs the question as to why there are zero screenshots or videos shared with today's announcement. Could it be that Harry Potter: Puzzles & Spells is such a shallow cash grab that it's in the developer's best interest to hide what the game looks like before an official worldwide release?

Typically I would share a gameplay video where this text is, but so far, Zynga is perfectly happy building up hype for the eventual release of Harry Potter: Puzzles & Spells without offering a single glimpse of what the game looks like. This lack of useful information is matched by the PR released today that goes into excruciating detail about all of the fanservice included in the title, though a description of the gameplay loop is conveniently absent. So too is any information about the title's planned monetization or release date. As it stands, all we know is that the game will offer user-made characters that will get to unlock Wizarding World elements by discovering new spells and brewing potions. We also know brain teasers and other puzzle-inspired play will be included. These few details, of course, do not actually explain how the game will ultimately work, but since it's a match-3 title, it's probably safe to assume it will play just like the rest.

As you would expect, Zynga is looking to build up hype for what is clearly a licensed cash grab slapped onto the shallowest of casual games, a match-3 title. This is why today's PR strategically avoids any and all subjects that would actually inform the potential player base about what's actually to be expected from the game. Of course, since Harry Potter: Puzzles & Spells was soft-launched in the Philippines recently, I'm sure gameplay videos will start to pop up online, whether Zynga likes it or not. So at the very least interested parties won't be left in the dark for long.

PRESS RELEASE

Source: Twitter

UPDATE: 2020/05/15 6:40am PDT BY MATTHEW SHOLTZ

Zynga releases Harry Potter: Puzzles & Spells teaser trailer

It would appear that development for Harry Potter: Puzzles & Spells is moving along, and so Zynga just released the first teaser trailer for the match-3 title. As you would expect, very little actual gameplay is shown, but since we already know this game will serve as a reskin of Zynga's many Candy Crush clones, it would appear that those already testing the game have pointed to the same pitfalls found in similar titles, such as an inability to progress after a certain level without paying for powerups. So yeah, Zynga is up to its old tricks, and so Harry Potter: Puzzles & Spells is already shaping up to be a blatant cash-grab. I suppose this is why Zynga hasn't bothered to show much of the title's gameplay in the above trailer, because honestly, who can get excited for yet another branded piece of garbage?

Oh, and if you thought Zynga would take the time to announce a release date in the above teaser trailer, think again. We still don't know when the game will arrive, though one thing is for sure, Harry Potter: Puzzles & Spells is already filled with in-app purchases that range all the way up to .99 per item.

Source: YouTube, Twitter

UPDATE: 2020/07/30 7:21am PDT BY MATTHEW SHOLTZ

Harry Potter: Puzzles & Spells lands on the Play Store in early access

The last we heard about Harry Potter: Puzzles & Spells was back in May when Zynga released a teaser trailer that conspicuously didn't show a lick of gameplay. Well, as of this morning, the title finally popped up on the Play Store, and it's already available in early access. Oddly enough, the new Play Store listing doesn't contain a gameplay video either, almost as if Zynga doesn't want people to see how the game plays, thus forcing curious parties to install the title to see what's actually on offer.

Surprise surprise, the title plays just like every other match-3 game from Zynga, and so you'll hit a grind-wall once you reach a certain level since the game pretty much requires powerups to advance through its buggy puzzles. Of course, since this is an early access release, bugs and a lack of polish are expected, though it's not like the game's lackluster state has stopped Zynga from stuffing the title with in-app purchases, which conveniently range up to $99.99 per item. Zynga's priorities are clear with this release, not that this greed should come as a surprise to anyone.

So if for some reason you have a hankering to play the latest match-3 cash-grab from Zynga, or simply want to explore how the studio has capitalized on the Harry Potter license, you can grab the early access install for Harry Potter: Puzzles & Spells at the bottom of the page.

UPDATE: 2020/09/23 7:11am PDT BY MATTHEW SHOLTZ

Zynga's at it again with another lazy cash grab

Zynga is probably best known for Words with Friends and Farmville, but this studio also has a penchant for gambling games, which are somehow all rated Teen despite the fact many offer in-app purchases that range up to 9.99 per item. So if you were wondering what kind of developer Zynga is, now you know.

This is why it's hard to get excited for Harry Potter: Puzzles & Spells, the latest match-3 title released by the studio. Despite the fact the game wasn't very well received during it early access in July (2020), seeing that it was rated at 3.4 stars two months ago, it sure seems odd that the game's listing is now filled with hundreds of 5-star reviews on the day it's published, bringing the game's score to a lofty 4.7, coincidentally replacing all of the negative reviews that used to exist on the landing page. While this sure looks fishy, I suppose the popular license could explain why people are blindly rating the game at 5-stars, though you'd think this would have been true during the title's early access as well.

As you would expect, this free-to-play match-3 games plays just like all of the rest, gating progression behind RNG that somehow always results in grinding unless you purchase one of the game's many cheats powerups. This is why the title offers in-app purchases that range up to $99.99 per item, and while that's slightly better than Zynga's many gambling games, it's hard to ignore the fact the developer is clearly trying to cash-in on the lucrative Harry Potter license with a braindead casual game that's still filled with bugs.

While I highly recommend that people stay far away from Zynga and Harry Potter: Puzzles & Spells, I suppose if you're a die-hard Harry Potter fan, you may enjoy the art, music, and story, which all offer much more polish than the title's gameplay (if you can even call it that). So if you'd like to check out Harry Potter: Puzzles & Spells for yourself, you can grab the free install from the Play Store widget at the bottom of the page.

Harry Potter: Puzzles & Spells Developer: Zynga
Price: Free
4.8
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