I just found this game, at both http://www.popcap.com and at the MSN gaming site and am addicted, but I’m not very good yet. It’s definitely my kind of game.
I usually get myself backed into a corner, with four different runes of different colors in a square, around a blank square, and end up having to discard three in a row, and then losing. I’m starting to get a big lump on my forehead from beating it against the monitor in frustration.
Can anyone give me any tips or hints to help?
Thanks!
(I have to go to work now, but I’ll be back later. Thanks!)
I play Alchemy all the time (when I’m not at work, of course )
The highest rank I’ve reached is Alchemist 2d class.
One thing that helps me a lot is that once I’ve reached Wizard 2d class, I choose three colors and stick with them as much as possible. Don’t try to play too many colors or you end up with too few places to put stuff.
Clear lines whenever possible, but don’t clear so many you don’t have anything to build off.
Don’t be afraid to discard. I haven’t payed super close attention, but I don’t think you suffer at all for discarding.
Does that help at all?
Also, does anyone find it disturbing that the rank above Wizard 1st Class is “Grand Wizard?” Am I mistaken, or is that a Klan term?
Whoops! My name is Jason Kapalka, I’m the designer of Alchemy from PopCap games… I noticed the link to popcap from this site, came to check it out…
Anyway, the “Grand Wizard” rank isn’t meant as a KKK reference… though now that it’s been mentioned, maybe we should change that to something less potentially offensive.
JasonK, Thanks for buzzing in. I wasn’t exactly offended by it, but I was weirded out by it. It was one of those “do my eyes deceive me?” moments.
Great game, by the way. Very addictive. My boyfriend was at the msn site and accidentally chose Alchemy instead of Asheron’s Call. He started playing it, I saw him, and now I am mildly addicted. My boyfriend would say more than mildly. If it ever disappears I’ll be frantic. So if that ever happens, contact me, I’d pay actual money for it.
It is one of only two sites I actually have in my IE Links folder, so I can access it quickly whenever the need strikes. It has for now replaced an old shareware game as my most time-consuming Sunday activity.
JasonK and others - I did not want you to think I was accusing the creators of the game of making any references to the Klan. I never for one minute believed it was an intentional thing, just an accident. Am I stressing too much about this?
Ok, this may be a real “duh” question, but I’m not completely computer/internet literate. I know the basics, but I’m no computer wiz. I don’t have my own website, so it’s not a given that I would know it…
[exposing ignorance] How did he know I had linked to his site?
[/exposing ignorance]
Yes, an interesting and addictive game. Over on MSN, Bejeweled (aka Diamond Mine on the popcap site) is much more popular than Alchemy. They’re both good games.
No, I’m not worried about the KKK picking Alchemy as their official game or anything… I figured most people would realize the “Grand Wizard” thing was just a mistake (or the sort of thing you come up with when you’re trying to make up 20 increasingly-nice ways to say “magical guy”).
As for how I knew we were linked from here, our tracking software (Hitbox.com) supplies a list of all the sites PopCap has been linked from every day… I like to check out new ones sometimes.
As for tips… I think an earlier poster had some good ones… don’t be afraid to discard, especially when your Forge is empty… you’re not penalized for doing so. And it is often a good idea to try to keep the number of colors you’re working with down to as small a number as possible.
Ok So you’re the one responsible for my new-found addiction? Just wait right there while I try to figure out how to conjure something up to pay you back. This game is so addicting. I play alchemy till I get frustrated cause I can’t get past the 8th board then I go play Bejeweled for a while-- it is a bit easier but just as addicting.
I’ve never reached Grand Wizard–Yet. Something tells me it’s what lies on the other side of board 8.
Ooohhh Faraway but so close.
Congrats on a cool game.
What’s the highest level others here have gotten to?
)