Christmas Puzzle cover

Puzzle game

Christmas Puzzle

Holiday-themed timed match-three where large clears return seconds to the clock.

Difficulty
Easy to moderate
Compatibility
See device support below

Game overview

Christmas Puzzle wraps a timed match-three board in holiday decoration, matching festive figures instead of gems. Three or more of the same figure in a line clears them and adds to your total, while bigger clears feed time back onto the counter. That trade is the whole rhythm of the game: small matches keep you moving, but only large ones buy the seconds you need to keep the board alive.

This title is best suited to players who want a festive match-three run scored against a clock.

How to play Christmas Puzzle

  1. Find two festive figures that a single swap would line up
  2. Swap them to place three or more identical figures together
  3. Aim for clears of five or more to earn extra time
  4. Use the refilled board to chain a follow-on match
  5. Keep the counter alive as long as you can

Controls

  • Mouse or tap: swap two neighbouring figures to form a line

Objectives and failure conditions

Objectives

  • Keep clearing festive figures, and score as high as possible before the clock empties.

The run ends or fails when

  • The time counter running out ends the run.

Gameplay mechanics

  • Swap-adjacent match-three clearing with figures falling in to refill the grid.
  • Clears of five or more return time, turning big matches into survival rather than just score.
  • The board refills continuously, so the run ends on the clock rather than on a fixed level.

Device compatibility

Desktop browsers

Mouse or trackpad: Christmas Puzzle loads straight into the page on desktop Chrome, Edge, Firefox and Safari with no download or plugin. Controls used: Mouse or tap.

Phones and tablets

Touch controls: Christmas Puzzle is driven by pointer input, which maps to tap and drag on a touch screen.

Tips for Christmas Puzzle

  • Hunt for four and five clears rather than taking every three you spot
  • Watch the columns that refill after a clear; they often hand you a free chain
  • When the counter dips, take any match at all to stay moving

What worked well and what did not

Pros

  • The time-back rule gives large matches a real purpose
  • Seasonal art is cheerful and the figures read clearly
  • Starts instantly with no tutorial to sit through

Cons

  • Very close to countless other match-three boards
  • The holiday theme narrows its appeal outside December

Player comments

No published comments yet.