By Tina Lam

Ever wonder what it would feel like to be royalty? That’s exactly the kind of situation that Titanium Court puts you in, not even 10 minutes after starting the game.

Titanium Court starts off simple enough: you’re walking through a forest, but then, out of nowhere, you’re suddenly pulled into another realm. The forest seems to double in size, and there’s only one thing on your mind: Where am I??  

That’s when you spot a castle (what the game calls a “court”) nearby. The game provides basic instructions on how to get closer to that court. It’s a simple match three puzzle game. You match three of the same pieces in the same row or column to get them to collapse into each other and get you closer to the court. If you’ve ever played Candy Crush, you would absolutely crush this game. 

Once you finally reach the court, you meet the steward, Puck. He doesn’t seem that trustworthy. But he’s the only one telling you information, so you just take his word for it. Then, suddenly, an announcement pops up on the screen telling you that a war has started! Enemy courts start pouring into the forest and it’s your job to defend against them!

No pressure, right? Things go south fast. You lose your first battle, and instead of questioning your leadership, the people of the court decide to declare you as their Queen?! Come on, all you want to do is get home, or at least back to the forest!

From here, the gameplay is split into two main parts.

The first is the puzzle phase, or High Tide. This is where you match three puzzle pieces with the same symbol on them into the same row/column to clear them from the board. The catch is you are trying to get your enemy courts closer to you. Yes, you heard me right, you are trying to arrange the field to make it so that the enemy courts are within an attackable distance from you. This part of the game is quite easy. When you match three of the same symbols, the court gets more supplies. You can see how much of each item you have on the left side of your screen. Also there is  your health battery (measured by the number of hearts you have). 

The second portion is the battle phase, or Low Tide. This is where you actually get the chance to exchange the supplies you got from matching the puzzle pieces together with mini soldiers, while also receiving information about incoming waves and battle conditions. The more tiles you match, the more units you can deploy to protect your court. 

Make sure you deploy a good amount, so when you finally commence the battle, your soldiers can band together to defeat the enemy courts. This is why I said you want the enemy courts to be a close distance from your court. The closer the opposing courts are, the less time that it takes for your mini soldiers to walk across the field and take the other sides out. This is especially important because there is a timer/bar going down on the left side of your screen. When the bar depletes, that signifies that the battle has ended. 

With that being said, it’s obvious that Titanium Court’s gameplay isn’t the only interesting thing about the game. The plot of Titanium Court honestly reminds me of a mix of the “Alice in Wonderland” and “The Wonderful Wizard of Oz” movies. It’s compelling, straight to the point, and also provides a mystical aspect that keeps you curious. 

The colors of Titanium Court are a nice touch too. They’re not too flashy, but not too dull. The art gives off a vintage type of feel, which I especially like because it adds some charm and helps it stand out from more modern looking puzzle games. 

I think the only real negative critique I have is the music. This might just be my own personal preference, but I felt like the soundtrack didn’t always match the vibe of the game. During High Tide, I felt like I couldn’t even focus on the game at all. All I could hear were these freakishly unsettling tunes that made the game feel haunted. I swear I actually felt my body freeze the first time I heard those sounds. 

One time, I was playing the game while doing homework on the side and forgot that I had the game open. Just as I was about to rip my hair out while studying for my upcoming test, I slowly turned to the side when I heard these chilling tunes come out of my computer. And guess what I did? Like the respectable person I am, I took my things and bolted right out of my room. Yep, I did all that over the irritating game music. But I swear I didn’t know the music was coming from the Court. I genuinely thought my computer was hacked and some ghost was out to get me. 

 I just don’t know why the game mixes upbeat tracks with shaky melodies during the Low Tide. That part felt a bit inconsistent to me. Like a true gamer, I prefer to play games until really late at night, but those melodies gave the game such an uneasy and uncomfortable feeling that they honestly made me want to call it a night early for once. 

I don’t want to deter you from playing this game just because I can’t handle some creepy music. Who knows? Just like the famous saying: there’s someone out there for everyone, I like to think the same for everything in life. So yes, I guess you could also say that there’s music out there for everyone. 

After reading the description about this game, I thought it would be way harder to understand. I was prepared to spend at least an hour trying to figure out how everything worked. But, surprisingly, it was a breeze to pick up. I think the key to mastering this game, just like any other game, is patience and time. Don’t get me wrong, the mechanics can feel confusing at first. But once it clicks, it really clicks. And once you get it, you’ll just start swiping at the tiles like a maniac on autopilot, just like me!

Overall, Titanium Court is a creative game that cleverly combines elements from modern match-three games with a bit of strategy and planning, proving that even a simple concept like matching three tiles in a row can feel fresh, satisfying, and oddly addictive. 

Tina Lam, one of the Circle’s newest interns, is a sophomore at Baruch College Campus High School.

---