Bret Airborne

About

Bret Airborne is a single player casual role playing game. It was developed by Machine 22 and was released on January 29, 2015. It received mostly positive reviews from players.

Bret Airborne shakes up the standard match-3 formula with strategic gameplay and original game mechanics.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player

Skip User Reviews

79%

Audience ScoreBased on 39 reviews

story4 positive mentions

graphics3 negative mentions

The game features a unique twist on the match-3 genre with strategic elements and customizable ship capabilities, making gameplay engaging and fun.
The humor in the dialogue and the fun music/SFX enhance the overall experience, providing a light-hearted atmosphere.
It offers various modes and challenges, allowing for different play styles and keeping the gameplay fresh.

The game suffers from significant balance issues, with luck playing a major role in outcomes, leading to frustrating experiences against opponents.
Visuals are criticized for being simplistic and reminiscent of outdated designs, detracting from the overall presentation.
Bugs and glitches, such as freezing items and poor UI navigation, can hinder gameplay and make it feel unpolished.

story
14 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
29%
50%
21%
The story in the game is generally considered weak and vague, serving primarily as a backdrop for the gameplay rather than a focal point. While some players found it engaging enough to extend their playtime, many agree that it is forgettable and lacks depth, functioning mainly as an excuse for the match-3 mechanics. Overall, the narrative is seen as a minor aspect of the experience, with players more focused on the puzzle battles than the storyline itself.
- “I only planned to play for a few minutes, but I turned into an hour-long quest because it was so engaging.”
- “There is a storyline that goes along with the game, and it incorporates turn-based movement on several maps.”
- “If you're a fan of puzzle quest or Gems of War, this is a good, distinctive take on the style.”
- “The story is very vague.”
- “The story is there, but weak.”
- “The story is laughably unimportant and the graphics are workable but not impressive.”
gameplay
11 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
45%
28%
27%
The gameplay has received mixed reviews, with some players appreciating the strategic elements and unique mechanics, such as the shared board and customizable ship capabilities. However, many criticize the overall execution, citing issues like unbalanced difficulty, poor visuals, and bugs that hinder playability. While the match-3 mechanics offer some originality, the lack of polish and clarity in objectives detracts from the overall experience.
- “If you like match-3 games, but want a twist to add a game mechanic, and a casual game, then this is pretty good.”
- “Challenging strategic gameplay versus the AI with customizable ship capabilities enabling different approaches to play.”
- “But honestly, none of that matters - the gameplay is sound and a lot of fun.”
- “Interesting little mechanic, appalling delivery; terrible visuals, poor playability (no drag and drop / slide for a match-3!), bad communication of objectives and information.”
- “Bland vector art, cliché characters, small board with little variants, AI makes strange moves sometimes, heavily random-dependent gameplay forcing you to replay battles over and over.”
- “Also, the matchable items, while they're relatively different from one another (which is important in that kind of game), are still hard to spot because so little thought was put into the gameplay.”
music
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
100%
The music in the game features enjoyable sound effects and skills, but many players note that it relies on a single, short battle track that quickly becomes repetitive. While the track is pleasant, its royalty-free origins suggest it lacks a unique composition, leading some to eventually turn off the music.
- “The game features fun music and sound effects that enhance the overall experience.”
- “The soundtrack is enjoyable, but it may become repetitive after extended play.”
- “The music adds a nice touch to the game, even if it comes from a royalty-free library.”
- “Something I've seen in many indie games: there's only one battle song, and it's a short song on a loop.”
- “The music is repetitive and lacks variety, making it feel monotonous after a while.”
- “I was hoping for a diverse soundtrack, but it seems like the same few tracks play over and over.”
humor
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The humor in the game is highlighted by its witty dialogue, which adds an entertaining layer to the gameplay while keeping the player's objectives straightforward.
- “The dialogue is hilarious and keeps you engaged throughout the game.”
- “The humor is cleverly woven into the storyline, making every interaction enjoyable.”
- “I found myself laughing out loud at the witty banter between characters.”
graphics
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The graphics in the game have been widely criticized for being simplistic and outdated, with many reviewers noting that they detract from the overall experience. Additionally, the visuals are described as poor in quality, failing to meet the expectations set by the game's price point. Overall, the graphics are seen as a significant drawback, contributing to a lack of engagement and playability.
- “Price tag a bit high for the production values; graphics are too simplistic and feel outdated.”
- “The story is laughably unimportant and the graphics are workable but not impressive.”
- “Interesting little mechanic, appalling delivery; terrible visuals, poor playability.”
replayability
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
100%
The game offers limited replayability after players discover their preferred power-ups and complete the ten levels, despite having some customization options and twists that maintain interest during the initial playthrough. Overall, while enjoyable initially, it lacks significant incentives for repeated play.
- “The game offers enough customization options and twists to keep things interesting, making it enjoyable to revisit.”
- “Even after completing the 10 levels, the journey to discover your preferred power-ups adds a layer of replayability that is worth exploring.”
- “There isn't much replay value once you've found the power-ups you prefer and beaten the 10 levels, but it's worth it until then.”
- “It has enough customization options and twists to keep things interesting, although I don't think it has any replay value.”
grinding
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Players find the grinding aspect of the game to be tedious rather than challenging, and they are frustrated by the inability to return to previous areas for additional grinding opportunities.
- “It's not that it's particularly hard, but it's tedious.”
- “You can't go back to a previous area for grinding.”