Team Artichoke's Mythmatch blends the familiar match-three puzzle genre with a rich narrative set in ancient Greece. Players take on the role of Artemis, daughter of Zeus, who seeks the title of God of the Hunt but must first prove herself to a council of deities through puzzle-based tasks. The game cleverly incorporates elements from other puzzle games, such as Plants vs Zombies and Overcooked, within its match-three framework.
After being cast out of Olympus, Artemis lands in the mortal town of Ithaca, where the men have gone with Odysseus. Here, the gameplay shifts to a rural life simulator, where players help villagers by matching items to create new ones. This system creates an evolving hierarchy of objects, from simple shells to more complex materials, used to build structures and solve the locals' problems. The cycle of the game alternates between aiding mortals during the day and tackling Olympian challenges at night, with belief earned from mortals providing experience points to ease the divine puzzles.
The visual style is gentle and cartoonish, and the characters are well-drawn, blending ancient myths with relatable issues like unrequited love and social anxiety. The game also tackles themes such as corporate greed and the transactional nature of worship. Notably, combining three beetles creates a raccoon that scavenges rubbish for plastic, adding a humorous touch. The interlocking systems and pleasing pace make Mythmatch a hypnotic experience, expertly crafted to reward players with both narrative depth and compulsive puzzle-solving.
