Restoring the Hanging Gardens of Babylon

Most of us were taught about the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World at some point during our school careers and we may even still remember that the Egyptian Pyramids are the only ones that remain standing today. Well, you now have the opportunity to restore one of the Seven Wonders that collapsed so many years ago.

Head over to the ancient civilization of Babylon and learn about the wrath of the goddess Ishtar. She became displeased with King Nebuchadnezzar and shook the kingdom to its knees with massive earthquakes, destroying the Hanging Gardens of Babylon in the process. Through some appeasement, you can bring the Hanging Gardens back to their former glory.

Deceptively Simple Gameplay

Many people will see Babylonia and assume it is just like any other match-three style puzzle game out there. That's what it looks like on the surface, replacing what may be gems or jewels in other titles with colorful blossoms and flowers. And that would only be the tip of the iceberg... or the first brick in the Hanging Gardens, as the case may be.

The goal for each stage is to first clear all the blue marble tiles from the screen by making matching rows or columns of three blossoms above them. You can swap two adjacent blossoms to make these matching sets and then new blossoms come in to fill the void. After all the blue tiles are cleared, a special amulet appears and this must be transported to the bottom of the screen by removing the blossoms beneath it. That's the basic concept.

However, this title does a terrific job of gradually introducing new and interesting features and facets into the gameplay. Soon, you'll encounter dusty tiles that must be hit twice to clear. You'll find blossoms that have been chained down. You'll encounter magic spells to unlock and more powerful hammers to clear difficult tiles. This really makes the game fresh and new with each successive stage.

Tending to the Flower Bed

Going through each of the over 150 levels in the game, you will also see coins randomly appear at different times. Clicking on these add the cash to your bank and this money can then be spent in the shop to buy additional building pieces for the Hanging Gardens, as well as new flowers for the flower bed.

Along with the coins, it is also possible to find pots of water and pest repellent and these will be need to tend to the flower garden. Just like real flowers, they cannot simply be planted and forgotten! In between each stage, you have the opportunity to buy more flowers, but you will also need to tend to the flowers as well, managing their water levels and actively removing the pests.

This added management mini-game is rewarding and it adds a great deal to the overall appeal of this game as well.

Bringing Love and Harmony Back to the Land

The goddess Ishtar was not pleased with the King of Babylon, but you can restore the ancient kingdom back to its former glory with the right flowers and the reconstruction of the Hanging Gardens. It can be done, one group of blossoms at a time.