Playing comfortably
Telling gems apart: colour vision, shape cues and contrast
Around one man in twelve cannot reliably separate red from green. Gem boards are built almost entirely out of that distinction.
Last checked · 8 min readGem board notes · Wellington
Gem boards, and everything bolted on top of them
Orbikvantex is about the jewel-coloured corner of mobile puzzles, which turns out to be broader than it looks. Some of these boards are pure matching, some carry a whole role-playing game above them, and all of them make demands on your eyes, your battery and your patience that nobody writes down.
What this site does and does not do
Three commitments. They decide most of what appears here and most of what does not.
Tested, not assumed
A rule appears here after it has been seen behaving the same way repeatedly. Where behaviour differs between platforms or between updates, that is stated rather than smoothed over into one confident sentence.
Official listings only
Every game link opens the developer's own New Zealand store page. Nothing is hosted here and no modified client is linked from any page, whatever it claims to offer.
No currency, no accounts, no giveaways
Orbikvantex cannot add gems, gold or lives to any game and does not pretend otherwise. One PDF written here is for sale; every guide on the site is free and stays free.
Start here
Telling gems apart: colour vision, shape cues and contrast
A jewel board asks you to separate six saturated colours at speed, under time pressure, on a screen the size of a hand. For a substantial share of players two of those colours are effectively the same colour, and the fix is not skill. This guide covers the settings that help, the shape cues worth learning, and how to judge a game before you install it.
All guides
Four guides. Two about playing comfortably, two about what the games do around the board.
Playing comfortably
Session length, battery drain and a warm phone
A board of coloured tiles should be trivial to render. The reason your phone gets warm is almost never the puzzle.
Last checked · 7 min read
Hybrid boards
When a match board is carrying a whole role-playing game
Above a certain point in these games, matching well stops being what decides a fight.
Last checked · 8 min read
Updates
Reading patch notes, and noticing what they leave out
Balance changes rarely appear in the update text. The board changes anyway, and it is worth knowing how to tell.
Last checked · 6 min readGames covered in these guides
All free to install in New Zealand, all with optional purchases inside the game. Links open the developer's official listing.
| Game | Studio | What the board asks for | Board style | Official listing |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 Gems of War |
505 Games | Match to charge ability meters while an opponent does the same | Square grid, alternating turns | Google Play App Store |
 Empires & Puzzles |
Small Giant Games | Match colours to power heroes through a battle | Square grid, party-based battles | Google Play App Store |
 Bubble Witch 3 Saga |
King | Fire at a hanging cluster until the goal comes down | Hanging cluster, aim and shoot | Google Play App Store |
 Royal Match |
Dream Games | Clear layered obstacles to reach the stated goal | Square grid, swap two neighbours | Google Play App Store |
Ratings, download counts and prices change too often to be worth reprinting. The linked listing always shows the current values for New Zealand.
Written in Wellington · NZ$18
The Gem Board Companion
The four board families on this site in one PDF, with the contrast reference pages, the turn-order material worked through properly, and a battery and session checklist. Requested by form, paid by transfer away from the site, delivered by email.
Common questions
Is Orbikvantex run by any of these studios?
No. It is an independent site written by one person in Wellington, with no connection to King, Dream Games, 505 Games, Small Giant Games, Apple or Google, and no ability to affect anything inside a game.
Can you send me gems, gold or lives?
No. Those exist only inside the games and only the games issue them. Any site promising them in return for an account login is attempting to take the account.
Why is there no rating column in the table?
Because ratings change weekly. A figure written here would be stale within a month, and a stale number that looks current is worse than none at all.
Do these guides apply to both app stores?
Yes for the board rules, which behave identically. Interface layout, event schedules and purchase flows can differ between platforms, and the guides flag it when that matters.
Are the games free in New Zealand?
All four are free to download and each sells optional extras. Some also carry advertising. Both facts are stated on the store listing before you install.
What is the companion you sell?
A PDF I wrote, NZ$18, requested through a form and emailed after a bank transfer. It is the only thing sold from this site, and it contains writing rather than anything that exists inside a game.