Halloween Matching

The clock is the opponent here. Match three or more identical Halloween avatars and they explode; do it fast enough and you keep playing. What stops this from being a pure speed test is that the game pays you back in time: a match of four or more identical avatars adds seconds to the counter, so a well-chosen match is not just points, it is another stretch of play.

Two special pieces come out of the bigger lines. Four identical avatars in a row or column leave a bomb behind. Five leave a changing avatar, which destroys every identical avatar on the board and hands you extra time for each one it takes out — the single biggest swing available, and worth setting up deliberately rather than stumbling into.

Occasionally the board itself gives you a lucky bonus of extra time, which is a reminder that the game is more generous than its countdown looks. Play it as a chain of small investments in the clock and the runs get long.

1. Swap two adjacent avatars to line up three or more of the same face.
2. Prefer a line of four or more — it adds time as well as clearing the board.
3. Match four in a row or column to leave a bomb; match five to leave a changing avatar.
4. Set the changing avatar off on whichever face is most common on the board.

Never take a three when a four is one swap away. Threes cost you time; fours and fives buy it back, and a run here ends the moment you start settling for the cheapest match on the board.