The landscape for mobile games is more competitive than ever and new companies are releasing games for both iOS and Android almost every week. The indie game space is no different with various startup studios battling for recognition and market share. With so many options, parents of young children can find themselves in a bind. How do you know you can trust these brands? How do you know these games won’t show your kids something you don’t want them to see? Ignis Studios, a maverick in the game development industry, understands these concerns and that’s why they’ve developed ‘Hoplite Hero’ – an addictive match-3 puzzle game appropriate (and fun) for all ages.

The match-3 puzzle genre is a casual game style where players try to match three similar items in a row on a square game board. Match-3 puzzle games go back decades (remember Tetris?) but became a phenomenon with the release of Candy Crush Saga for Facebook in 2012. Since then, match-3 games have barreled their way onto our mobile phones with entrants like Bejeweled and Toy Blast. In fact, 7 of the top 10 grossing games in the Apple App Store are match-3 puzzle games. Talk about dominance.

Hoplite Hero from Ignis Studios, available now in the Apple App Store or Google Play Store, brings the match-3 concept back centuries, letting you control (and destroy) ancient mythical creatures in a variety of gameplay options.  To complete each level, you must clear enough of the board to gain the required number of points (or stars), but you only have a set number of moves per level.  For example, the first level requires three stars for completion (about 9000 points), but you only have 14 moves to get there. You get extra points for combos greater than three and have boosters to help if you get stuck. Connect horizontally, vertically, diagonally, or a combination of all three to match creatures. Each level has a different number of moves allowed and points required, and the board size changes each time. And there’s 100 total levels.  Yes, 100 levels (with more on the way).

Parents can be happy their kids are playing something mind-engaging without worrying about them seeing anything explicit. The game is free to download and optional in-game purchases can be turned off to prevent any unexpected credit card charges (we’ve all heard the story of the kid who spent thousands on an XBox on eBay). With numerous gameplay options like timed levels, Bomb Mode, and Icebreaker mode, there are limitless opportunities for fun here. You can even compete with your friends on Facebook and compare scores.

Hoplite Hero has only been out a few months but is already getting loads of five-star reviews. Over 80% of reviews on the Google Play Store awarded the game five stars and the Apple App Store was no different, with over 200 of 251 ratings at the five-star level. The match-3 puzzle game genre has a new competitor for the top tier. Download now for iOS and Android and see what all the excitement is about.