Spirit Swap: Lofi Beats to Match-3 To

Moving on from my previous review on Citizen Sleeper 2: Starward Vector, a bit of whiplash was to be expected when first trying my hand at Spirit Swap: Lofi Beats to Match-3 To (which I will abbreviate to just Spirit Swap in the rest of the article for the sake of brevity). Gone is the darkness of space; in comes the most colourful game you will probably see all year. And the fun thing is: while I kept raving about the human aspect of Citizen Sleeper 2, I could basically do that all over again for Spirit Swap.

But first: yes, this is a match-3 game. It’s a really, really good match-3 game, to be more precise. It introduces its own limitations and possibilities, with you only able to swap your tiles—or spirits, as they are called here—sideways while having the opportunity to use spells to clear your board a bit quicker. These spells are inherent to your character, as you are a witch whose job it is to rid your hometown of these spirits. But as you’ll quickly find out, your friends—who you battle in match-3 games in the story mode as you try to team up to get rid of the spirits—have spells of their own. However, since they’re your friends, they will gladly let you use their spells after defeating them, giving you a really interesting roster of spells to play with.

You won’t be able to use all of these spells at the same time, though. You can select up to three of them, with each of them used on a different collection of spirits. For one spell, you need four of the same spirits to fit in a square, for example. These mechanics add a surprisingly deep layer of strategy to Spirit Swap, which you might not always find in a typical App Store/Play Store match-3 game. With gameplay this solid, it would be worth the price of admission already. Outside of the story mode, you have an endless mode, which you can alter to your own specifications, and there’s even a two-player mode if you can’t get enough of the battles within the story mode.

But yes, there is a story mode. And this is where Spirit Swap shines the brightest. Welcome to the city of Demashq. You play as Samar, a young witch who is assigned to keep the town safe from wild spirits, which can cross over from another dimension into this world. Usually, there’s not too much work for Samar, as Demashq is protected by a bigger power, but right on the eve of a concert by the world’s bestest band, spirits are leaking into town once again! It’s up to you and your friends to assure that the best gig of the year doesn’t get crashed by unwanted guests.

But of course, where there are people, there is drama. As you go to work, you’re also trying to be there for your friends when they need you, whether it’s comforting them after a rough breakup or helping them find value in life outside of just their job. Most of the game is voice-acted—well, the entire game that’s available before you roll credits and a big part of the post-credit gameplay as well—and these actors all do an astounding job. What at first seems like a very colourful and warm match-3 game turns into something much more thanks to their performances.

This is a game all about warmth. It’s not just the colours or even the gentle lofi beats that form an excellent soundtrack to a game that can get a little competitive at times. It’s the connections between all of these people, whether they be witches or angels or anything else. The town of Demashq is part of a world where people genuinely care about one another and will act out of love rather than fear. Is it perfect? Hell no, of course not. They’re still people. People can act in unexpected ways, and relationships get messy. And Spirit Swap isn’t afraid to show that. What sets these characters apart from regular old humans, however, is that they don’t back away from the tough conversations. Take Samar’s bestie, Mo. She has just dumped her partner and feels terrible because of it. But a little later in the game, you find out that she was the one who assumed things about their partner without actually just… asking them. So she and her ex have a conversation about it, proving that without clear communication, a relationship doesn’t really work. It’s refreshing to see this kind of take and to see these characters treat each other in such non-toxic ways without the game feeling preachy.

Something that is a little surprising is how soon into the game you get to roll credits. I think it took me all of 90 minutes to get to that point, although I did manage to win all of my match-3 battles at the first try, so that might have sped up my playthrough. Luckily, rolling credits is far from the end of the game. There are still some plot elements that need to be resolved later on, but not just that: you can also become closer with your friends! Romancing one—or multiple—of them is an option, but only if you want to do that. Apparently more story beats are still on the way, so I’m really looking forward to those. And once you’ve maxed out your relations with all of your friends, you can still invite them over for more match-3 battles as well.

There’s a neat decorating aspect to the game as well, which sees you play interior designer for your own apartment. It’s a lovely touch that sees you unlocking more and more decorations the more you play the game. If I have to be critical, though, I spent too little time in my own place to really appreciate the different touches.

Finally, I just want to give a big shout out to the inclusivity on show here. Spirit Swap is infused with different cultures, but also shows a big array of body types, skin colours, gender identities, and sexualities. There’s even a polycule involved, which I LOVE (even if I had preferred for them not to be seen as one entity). The inclusivity also stretches out to the accessibility of the game, with all kinds of settings to fiddle with, the ability to just click a button to win a battle and advance the story, and even mentions of what certain parts of the game include, like if there’s a battle there and whether there’s voice acting or not. All of this just feels so nice. Gaming is for everyone, and it’s nice to have it feel that way for once.

Verdict

5/5

Spirit Swap is an absolute joy of a game. It’s accessible to just about anyone, and its story beats are open to one and all. Its visual novel storytelling combined with the really addictive match-3 gameplay is worked out so incredibly well that I’ll be coming back to it time and time again. With future updates on the horizon, it seems like we’re only starting to see what Spirit Swap might truly become, but the base game is already a triumph. If this doesn’t become your go-to match-3 game, I don’t know what will. Come for the vibes, stay for the heart.

Release Date
03rd February 2025
Platforms
PC, XBOX Series S/X
Developer
Soft, Not Weak
Publisher
Soft, Not Weak
Accessibility
Increasing/decreasing difficulty and speed, toggle autoplay on/off for dialogue, one-button battle victories, lots of information on character selection screen (voiced or not, battle or not, etc.)

Many thanks to the publisher for the review copy.