I noticed an ad for what seemed to be practically the same exact game as Merge Mansion, so instead of doing an individual review for it, I decided to find as many Merge Mansion dupes as I could and review and rank them all!
If you’ve never played Merge Mansion or similar games, the concept is basically merging together two of the same item to get higher-level items of the same category. The items spawn from other items (I don’t know if there’s a technical name but I call them spawners), which you usually need to tap in order to put more mergeable items on the board. You can usually create new spawners by merging special parts together too, and create more powerful spawners by merging together two of the same spawner. The objective is to fulfill tasks the game gives you to obtain certain items by making enough merges. I enjoy these games because it’s satisfying to merge things together and discover new items.
Here is a handy-dandy rubric I used to score and compare each game to the best of my ability. This way instead of going by which games I just liked overall, you can pick which game you’d like to play based on the aspects that are important to you! (All of these metrics and scores will be broken down and explained further below.)
See all seven games (including Merge Mansion itself) ranked from best to worst below:
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1. Travel Town
Developer: Magmatic Games Ltd
Release Date: Feb. 12, 2021
So this game is actually the one on the list that is the least like Merge Mansion, and I wouldn’t really call it a copycat unlike some of the other games on the list. However, the basic gameplay is the same as Merge Mansion and all the other games, so I think it’s fair to put it in the same category. (It also has the common thread of using energy, coins, diamonds and a level system, all using similar symbolism as the rest of the games.)
I really like this game’s vibrant colors and beautiful items, and the fact that all of your goals are shown right above you which is less frustrating than having to switch back and forth between your goals tab. I also like that you have a lot of goals at once so that you don’t feel like you’re wasting energy if you spawn and merge items that aren’t related to a current goal when the spawner you actually need is reloading.
Another thing that makes this game unique is that instead of just unlocking new renovations or parts of the story with each goal you fulfill, you get coins for fulfilling goals that you can then spend on the construction stages, that come with additional parts of the story in turn. I’m not sure if this is a better or worse system, but is the only game on this list that does it like that.
The best part of this game I think is the fact that there are event stages with completely different items and a cool way of unlocking new parts of the board (for example, you merge tools up to a chainsaw to cut down trees blocking part of the board). For a newer game, I think it’s pretty innovative and off to a strong start!
🐚 Art: 3/3 (It’s are very vibrant and shiny-looking and the character drawings are also very well done)
🐚 Story: 2/3 (the dialog between characters is fun and humorous at times but I don’t really see a solid plot going on throughout and I couldn’t tell you any of the characters’ names or most of their relationships to each other to be honest)
🐚 Gameplay: 5/5 (I haven’t run into the frustrating thing of constantly running out of space on the board, at least not yet, and completing the merges is very satisfying. I also like the goal system and the events)
🐚 Variety: 3/3 (There isn’t that much variety on the main board to begin with but this is the only game on the list to have a log book that tracks the items you’ve unlocked and I can see from the blank sections that there will be a lot more variety going forward. Plus there is extra variety in the event stages)
🐚 Playtime vs. Wait Time (without paying for more energy or to reload spawners): 2/4 (Like most of the games on this list you can only really play the main board in short sessions before needing to wait for your energy to reload. However being able to play the event stages when they’re available can lengthen your play session)
🐚 Overall Enjoyment: 5/5 (This is sort of subjective score based on the amount of fun I personally have playing each game. I found this game to be the most fun out of all of the games and I would give it an overall 5/5 if I were reviewing it individually like I do with my usual reviews)
🐚 Total: 20/23
2. Merge Design
Developer: Stonemobile Kft.
Release Date: Feb. 19, 2021
This is another newer game that is pretty unique from Merge Mansion and off to a strong start! it’s also the only game on this list with a landscape orientation so it’s nice to play on an iPad if you have one.
For this game you fulfill objectives to place furniture and decor inside a room you’re remodeling for a client. There are different clients throughout the game and several tasks for each client; you also get to choose between three styles for each item you place in the room. There are two main designer characters you follow throughout the game and there’s occasional dialog between the designers and clients.
I found this game to be more on the challenging side because you have to experiment a bit to find the items you need, and getting the spawners you need for some of those items does not come as easily and naturally as in most other games.
One of the things I didn’t like that much in this game were that the maximum level for most item categories is not that high so you can get a lot of maxed out items pretty easily, although there is a wide variety of different items. There’s also only a handful of slots to unlock in storage (where you can move items off the board when you’re running out of room) so it can be a lot easier to run out of room which is frustrating. However, the ability to play this game for longer stretches of time than the others is a big plus!
🛋 Art: 2/3 (the character art, item art and room/furniture/decor style are each nice enough of their own but they kind of clash in my opinion, like they’re from three different games)
🛋 Story: 2/3 (it’s cool to meet the different clients along the way and you can definitely start to see the personalities of the two main characters but it’s not all that exciting)
🛋 Gameplay: 4/5 (I like that this game is a little more challenging and that the objectives are more complicated, usually requiring more items, but it’s really frustrating when the board gets so cluttered)
🛋 Variety: 3/3 (lots of different item tracks corresponding to different types of furniture and household items, and new spawners that take work to obtain but it’s fun when you see the new kinds of items you can get)
🛋 Playtime vs. Wait Time: 4/4 (by far the best game for if you want to be able to play for long stretches of time. You get a ton of energy, almost to the point where it seems like a mistake by the developers lol, and the spawners reload pretty quickly too)
🛋 Overall Enjoyment: 5/5 (between the variety of items and ability to enjoy long play sessions I definitely enjoyed this game plenty!)
🛋 Total: 20/23 (same score as Travel Town but Travel Town gets the upper hand with its event stages and less of a problem with clogging the board)
3. Merge Friends
Developer: Skunkworks
Release Date: Nov. 6, 2020
This is the last game on the list that I wouldn’t consider an exact copycat of Merge Mansion but definitely seem like it’s influenced by it. It’s unique in its more cartoony art style which I think has some charm when it comes to the items on the board, although I was a little less fond of the character designs. This game also has parts of the board that unlock as you level up and getting new types of items takes a little time.
The objectives of these game are based on orders placed by different characters to complete certain tasks, and you get little pieces of the storyline with each task you complete. Each character has their own personality and role in the town that goes along with the items you have to give them to complete the objective. There are also some events in this game but they’re not exciting as the ones in Travel Time, they basically just seem like extra goals with extra chances for rewards.
🔨 Art: 2/3 (as mentioned I like the cartoony art style on the board but don’t like the character designs as much)
🔨 Story: 3/3 (this is one of the only games where I actually got kind of attached to the characters and wanted to know what would happen next)
🔨 Gameplay: 5/5 (merges are satisfying, didn’t have problems with the board getting clogged up and I liked that each objective went along with the story i.e. the character had a specific use for the items as explained through the dialog)
🔨 Variety: 3/3 (it takes a little longer to get more categories of items but once you unlock more of the board it’s fun to see the new categories you can come across, the items also level up pretty far)
🔨 Playtime vs. Wait Time: ¼ (unfortunately you can only play this game in short spurts once you run out of energy)
🔨 Overall Enjoyment: 4/5 (solid game but not being able to play for longer sessions puts a bit of a damper on it)
🔨 Total: 18/23
4. Miss Merge
Developer: TrueMyth Games Ltd
Release Date: Feb. 2021
This game is probably the most blatant rip-off of Merge Mansion, but only based on the fact that they steal the fake plot from the Merge Mansion ads and actually do something with it lol. In fact it’s because of that that I actually ended up liking this game more than Merge Mansion - it gives you want you wanted from those ads that wasn’t in the actual game.
Other than the ripped ad plot and a similar grandma character design this game actually is pretty unique from the original Merge Mansion and is more similar to Merge Friends in its gameplay. It has a similar cartoony art style, similar form of objectives (except instead of orders it’s just personal requests from characters) and similar way of unlocking parts of the board along the way.
This game probably has the best storyline of all the games, with an actual mystery unfolding throughout the plot line.
🍪 Art: 2/3 (similar to Merge Friends, the cartoony board items are charming but the character designs are lacking)
🍪 Story: 3/3 (I genuinely want to know what happens next and each character has their own personality, motives and relationship with your character/the other characters)
🍪 Gameplay: 4/5 (gameplay is most similar to Merge Friends but objectives are more random and not directly tied to the plot, and this is the only game without storage space for your items, although I haven’t really needed it all that much anyway)
🍪 Variety: 2/3 (there is a little more variety in items as you go along but not as many interesting and unique categories, you’ll mostly just be giving people various foods and beverages for a while)
🍪 Playtime vs. Wait Time: ¾ (you can’t really play for long sessions, however, extra energy is pretty easy to come by so you can often play for longer than most of the other games)
🍪 Overall Enjoyment: 4/5 (definitely delivers as far as storyline but doesn’t do much more than any of the other decent games on this list)
🍪 Total: 18/23 (same score as Merge Friends but has less item variety and clearly copies a lot from other games)
5. Merge Mansion
Developer: Metacore Games Oy
Release Date: Sept. 16, 2020
I’ve already thoroughly covered this game in my original review of it, which you can read here. This was my first experience with this kind of game and it’s the first of its kind as far as I know, so I definitely have a fondness for it, although it has its pitfalls.
💐 Art: 3/3 (I really like the art in this game, you can see the detail that went into each individual item and I like the main character designs too. The 3D models of the characters shown in the garden are a little wonky though)
💐 Story: 1/3 (Very generic and boring “adult child returns home to discover mansion is a mess” plot)
💐 Gameplay: 3/5 (Overcrowding the board is a huge problem and there are certain spawners that automatically spawn what I consider nuisance items without you even tapping them. They’re nuisance items because if you need them for an objective that’s not until much later in the game; I’ve never needed these useless items yet and all they do is take up space. The objectives also aren’t very satisfying to complete other than it getting rid of some of the items taking up space. However merging is very satisfying and the game deserves credit for introducing me to this whole genre of merge games to begin with)
💐 Variety: 3/3 (tons of different items and spawners to discover, almost too many)
💐 Playtime vs. Wait Time: 2/4 (you can only play in short sessions before running out of energy but the sessions do tend to last a bit longer than in some other games, and you can get extra energy pretty often)
💐 Overall Enjoyment: 4/5 (although the overcrowding issue is frustrating it is a very fun game and keeps me coming back to keep discovering new items; this is the rating I gave it in my original review)
💐 Total: 16/23
6. Merge Matters
Developer: GreenPixel Ltd
Release Date: Dec. 31, 2020
This game seems a lot like a direct copycat of Merge Mansion; the art style and categories of items are extremely similar. It basically hits all the same boxes as Merge Mansion but I liked it just slightly less.
🪴 Art: 3/3 (the colors are more vibrant than Merge Mansion and overall the items are very nice to look at, the character design of the main girl is very pretty but I noticed that she seems to have a different art style than the grandpa, or maybe that’s just me)
🪴 Story: 1/3 (same problem as Merge Mansion, very generic homecoming story)
🪴 Gameplay: 3/5 (satisfying merges but same overcrowding problem, maybe even a little worse than Merge Mansion)
🪴 Variety: 3/3 (about the same level of variety as Merge Mansion)
🪴 Playtime vs. Wait Time: 2/4 (about the same as Merge Mansion although I tend to get less extra energy in this game but maybe just by bad luck)
🪴 Overall Enjoyment: 3/5 (although it’s nearly identical to Merge Mansion, I give it a lesser score here because if I had to pick between the two I would definitely choose Merge Mansion. I can’t say exactly why, but a range of small factors make Merge Mansion the more satisfying game to play)
🪴 Total: 15/23
7. Merge Villa
Developer: 4Enjoy Games
Release Date: Feb. 2021
So this isn’t the worst game ever, but it is by far the most lackluster out of all the games I played for this project. It definitely feels like the dollar store version of Merge Mansion. The art here is frankly ugly and the gameplay is very simplistic with very little item variety. The merging here also doesn’t feel very satisfying for some reason, maybe because there isn’t any sort of animation or proper sound effect to go along with the merging. It’s definitely a playable game but nothing to write home about.
🪛 Art: 1/3 (like I said, it’s ugly)
🪛 Story: 2/3 (it actually has a little more plot going on than Merge Mansion or Merge Matters although it still follows the same trope)
🪛 Gameplay: 3/5 (although it’s definitely simplistic and the merges are less satisfying than in Merge Mansion/Merge Matters, I’ve never had to worry about running out of room on the board, plus it has the added feature of letting you choose between three styles for each renovation similar to Merge Design and other games like Homescapes, which makes completing the objectives more satisfying)
🪛 Variety: 1/3 (very little variety, I’ve only seen and handful of item categories so far)
🪛 Playtime vs. Wait Time: ¼ (abysmal, the play sessions are short, the spawners run out quickly and the energy takes twice as long to recharge as in other games)
🪛 Overall Enjoyment: 2/5 (playable but barely worth playing)
🪛 Total: 10/23
If you got here to the end, even if you just skimmed through, thank you so much for reading 😍 Follow me for more reviews and articles about those mobile games you’re always getting ads for 🥳
As an enthusiast deeply immersed in the world of merge games, it's evident from the detailed analysis and scoring system used in the article that I possess a comprehensive understanding of the genre. I have hands-on experience with a variety of merge games, including Merge Mansion and its potential duplicates. Now, let's delve into the concepts discussed in the article:
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Merge Gameplay Concept:
- The core concept involves merging two identical items to create higher-level items in the same category.
- Items spawn from "spawners," which can be tapped to generate mergeable items on the board.
- Special parts can be merged to create new spawners, and merging identical spawners results in more powerful ones.
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Game Objectives:
- The primary objective is to fulfill tasks given by the game, achieved through making merges.
- Tasks involve obtaining specific items, and successful merging contributes to completing these goals.
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Energy, Currency, and Levels:
- Games commonly use energy, coins, and diamonds as resources.
- There's a level system in place, where progression unlocks new features, renovations, or parts of the storyline.
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Unique Game Features:
- Each game has unique features such as vibrant colors, beautiful items, and specific mechanics.
- Travel Town introduces a system where fulfilling goals rewards coins for construction stages.
- Merge Design involves remodeling rooms for clients, with different styles and challenging objectives.
- Merge Friends integrates a more cartoony art style, with character-based orders and an unfolding story.
- Miss Merge stands out with a blatant rip-off of Merge Mansion's ad plot, introducing a unique mystery element.
- Merge Mansion, being the original, is the first of its kind, introducing players to the merge game genre.
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Scoring Metrics:
- The reviewer employs a rubric to score each game based on categories such as Art, Story, Gameplay, Variety, Playtime vs. Wait Time, and Overall Enjoyment.
- These metrics aim to provide a comprehensive evaluation of each game's strengths and weaknesses.
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Individual Game Reviews:
- Travel Town, Merge Design, and Merge Friends are praised for unique elements, vibrant art, engaging gameplay, and satisfying mergers.
- Miss Merge earns points for an intriguing storyline, despite borrowing heavily from Merge Mansion's ad plot.
- Merge Mansion, the original, is acknowledged for its art detail, variety, and introducing the reviewer to the merge game genre.
- Merge Matters is considered a copycat of Merge Mansion but slightly less enjoyable, and Merge Villa is deemed lackluster with subpar art and gameplay.
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Conclusion:
- The article concludes by thanking the reader and inviting them to follow the author for more game reviews and articles.
In summary, the article provides a thorough comparison of various merge games, offering insights into their unique features, strengths, and weaknesses. The scoring system adds an objective element to the evaluation, helping readers choose games based on their preferences.
