# Small Town Murders: Match 3 — user reviews > 357 indexed App Store user reviews of Small Town Murders by Rovio Entertainment Oyj, rated 4.60/5 from 35,624 ratings. - Source: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/small-town-murders-match-3/id1479036032/reviews - App overview in markdown: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/small-town-murders-match-3/id1479036032.md - Rating breakdown: 5★ 26,908 · 4★ 5,063 · 3★ 2,261 · 2★ 639 · 1★ 753 ## What do users think of Small Town Murders? Overall sentiment: negative **Pros** - 🤩 Engaging story and characters - 👍 Relaxing and satisfying gameplay - 🎨 Great graphics and visuals **Cons** - 🤯 Levels become impossible to complete - 💰 Game mechanics designed to encourage in-app purchases - 🐛 Frequent crashes and bugs - 🕰️ Slow progress due to limited lives/moves **Commonly reported bugs** - Levels stuck at 15 pink items required - Inability to reduce pink item counter - Game resets player progress after updates **Most requested features** - Option to skip difficult levels - More generous power-up system - Improved responsiveness of power-ups - Better indication of level difficulty ## Newest reviews (14 of 357) ### 2/5 — Difficult *2026-08-27, version 2.13.1* Some of the levels that aren’t even marked as hard are nearly impossible. Level 28 took me 15 tries and I didn’t do anything special on the 15th try either. Beating that board was just pure RNG luck. Level 52 was the end of the road for me though. The number of moves provided is so far away from what’s needed that by the end I still have like 3/4ths of the objectives left. And then they want 900 coins for 5 more moves which still wouldn’t be enough. I enjoy the visuals and the little storyline. It’s a cute concept for a match 3. But clearly some of the board designs are poorly implemented and/or specifically engineered to make you spend to pass them. ### 4/5 — So many glitches *2026-07-22, version 2.13.1* I love the game, but hate how glitching the ads are. Why does the ad have to hold for so long, after you’ve watched it? Sometimes, it kicks you out even after you’ve watched it, so you don’t get your extra plays. ### 2/5 — Disappointing *2026-05-07, version 2.13.1* Now I find that I’m stuck on a level with no boosters and no coins. I find that unless you beat the levels you lose lives and it doesn’t take long to run out of lives. I won’t pay to play. I also find that I accidentally use coins because the button is where I would have played. This is frustrating because I love playing. ### 4/5 — Not enough turns *2026-02-21, version 2.13.1* When you play this game you don’t get enough turns. And it is sometimes boring. ### 3/5 — I have couldn’t get on my previous account after getting a new phone. Very frustrating. *2026-01-29, version 2.13.1* I couldn’t get on my previous account after getting a new phone. Very frustrating! ### 4/5 — Are you kidding me? *2026-01-10, version 2.13.1* I have played this game through to what seems to be the end…a cliffhanger! Dirty pool, Rovio. Finish the story! ### 3/5 — Not as Fun *2025-10-31, version 2.13.1* I used to play this game every day, sometimes several times a day. Anymore, I visit the game maybe once a week. It’s became drudgery to log in, play five times (the number of lives at a time), log out and wait till you get full lives and repeat, for a week. The “extra” things you can win or purchase don’t really help and they are too expensive. I’ve been staying out for over a week just to get some free time with “goodies”. The story really, really drags now. Imagine reading a really good book and you have to put it down for over 4 months. You can’t go back a re-read it, you just have to move forward. ### 2/5 — Need to fix *2025-09-28, version 2.13.1* Game would be more enjoyable if it didn’t freeze up all the time. I have high speed Wi-Fi. So I know my connection is not the problem. It’s very annoying when you have almost completed the puzzle and the game freezes up and then kicks out a move that you didn’t make costing you the puzzle and making you start over. ### 4/5 — Teams, PLEASE *2025-09-04, version 2.13.1* My favorite games, and the only ones I go to most days, are those that give me the opportunity to be on a team. They offer challenges and support. I find it boring not to be and if it wasn’t for the witty chatter and the interesting puzzles, I wouldn’t play. Now, I play maybe 3x/month because there isn’t enough to draw me. There is practically no way to gain tools. I don’t mind buying some occasionally but I get so little that it isn’t worth it. It could be my favorite game if I could be a part of a team. Get on it! ### 4/5 — AMAZING BUT YOU ROVIO *2025-08-03, version 2.13.1* This game is the best ever! It is always challenging you and the characters are absolutely amazing. The cases are genuinely interesting and it keeps me invested. BUT ROVIO STOPPED MAKING IT!!! ROVIO needs to go back and finish what they started because this is amazing and they can’t end on a cliffhanger!!! ### 2/5 — Ditch the balloons ! *2025-07-10, version 2.13.1* My favorite match 3 game now with a snag. Balloons are SO SLOW to remove—unlike usual fast paced chain-reaction explosions.explosions Edit: I’m embarrassed to admit I’ve played more than 4 years and found this the most fun yet frustrating game. As others note, the power up planes are trash & do not take out that last obstacle. However: I found a glitch/hack? If I can’t complete a level, I ditch the game for 72+ hours. When I return, I’m awarded 1 hour of all 3 power ups! ### 4/5 — Love Game, but AI Powerup’s is awful *2025-04-13, version 2.13.1* I’ve been playing at least a year and have advanced far enough that I feel I can make this assessment about the game’s powerup’s AI. I estimate it makes the right choice only about 45% of the time and has caused me to lose many levels because it made a choice that had nothing to do with the requirements to advance. For example, I’ll have one play left and need the paper airplane to hit the one remaining jewel, but it will strike a random space. Need the planes to hit electrical boxes or exploding boxes in order to open up the puzzle for more play? Nope, it hits a space contained within in the electrical field. Those are just two examples. Please fix this! ### 3/5 — Ease up I'm trying to relax *2025-03-20, version 2.13.1* Why is every puzzle now really super hard?Give me a win every once in a while. I don't even see a plausible strategy on these. I get enough no- win situations at work. ### 1/5 — Too hard to play without money *2025-03-01, version 2.13.1* This game gives you dead end puzzles over and over unless you are willing to spend money for bonus tools. Don’t waste your time. ## Most critical reviews (10 lowest-rated) ### 1/5 — It would be fun, but…… *2026-05-09, version 2.13.1* The constant reminders onscreen on how to play are unnecessary and annoying most people who down load games know how to play ### 1/5 — Lame *2026-04-16, version 2.13.1* Lame. The End ### 1/5 — Not happy *2026-01-30, version 2.13.1* I used to love this game but once the levels stopped and the story line became almost nonexistent, it has just lost any sense entertainment! ### 1/5 — Boring! *2026-01-25, version 2.13.1* Slow and plodding with nothing to bring you back to the game ### 1/5 — New Levels are NOT coming soon or AT ALL *2025-09-18, version 2.13.1* Use to really like this game. I finished the main game (30 levels) over a year ago. Game said “new levels coming soon!). But that was well over a year ago. Don’t bother starting this one ### 1/5 — I finished the main story 3 years ago *2025-08-17, version 2.13.1* I finished the main story like three years ago but still played it as a time waster or while watching tv etc. the last 9 months or so I really didn’t play but opened it the other day to find that you guys have really dialed up the Israel BEEH, money grab on it since the last time I played. This is yet another example why the world is catching on the wej tactics of stealing money from people. ### 1/5 — Fake *2025-05-22, version 2.13.1* Na descrição diz que tem em português mas é mentira é apenas inglês. Propaganda enganosa. In the description it says it’s in Portuguese but it’s a lie it’s only English. Misleading advertisement ### 1/5 — Is the game gonna get an update or is that it when finish the all levels available *2025-04-16, version 2.13.1* Would like to know if the game is getting updated no update for over a year disappointed message support no reply 🤷‍♀️ ### 1/5 — Annoying *2025-04-07, version 2.13.1* Every time you upgrade your phone the games start all over again and can not get help I played for 5 yrs and switch phone to start all over again when all you should have to do is reconnect to Facebook well that didn’t happen I wasn’t at the highest case level ### 1/5 — Was excellent…and now it’s not. *2025-03-09, version 2.13.1* Enjoyed the storyline and game play. It’s a shame the game came to a long boring game of basically nothing. The noted update hasn’t happened in years. It was great…until it wasn’t. ## Most praised reviews (10 highest-rated) ### 5/5 — I love it *2026-02-02, version 2.13.1* Great ### 5/5 — King of the Demons And the queen demons Mysterious demons *2025-10-10, version 2.13.1* I love this game ### 5/5 — Good game shame about what comes next *2025-06-29, version 2.13.1* Loved the game and finished small town murders never spent a penny but moved on to small town secrets and it’s dreadful, boring, repetitive and for nothing, come on folks you can do better than this ### 5/5 — Go back to the old story format *2025-06-03, version 2.13.1* I’ve played this game for several years. It’s been one of my favorites; however, when I reached what was apparently the last level, they went to a format where you have to win several levels to remove a block to reveal part of a clue. You have to remove over 15 blocks just to get the info/clue that you used to get by winning one level. If you like the story aspect of the game, it now takes forever to accomplish. ### 5/5 — Love it but where are the story updates? *2025-03-17, version 2.13.1* Am I mistaken or did we have the promise of a new story a long time ago? There’s so much to love about this… beautiful writing, no ads unless you choose to get more hearts, achievable levels, free… but we need an updated story now! ### 5/5 — Only play if you don’t mind being abandoned with a cliffhanger! *2025-02-22, version 2.13.1* The game deserves five stars. The developers do not. This was the best game EVER, hands down. The match three was nothing special, but the storyline and characters were the best!!! I played it daily and even spent money on it occasionally. Then three years ago, Rovio dropped case 30, ended it on a cliffhanger, promised there would be more eventually, and crickets…. They walked away and abandoned the game and even developed a NEW game. Newsflash: people don’t like it when stories (whether TV, books, games, whatever) end on a cliffhanger. It’s rude and just plain mean to get people invested in characters not give closure. These characters deserved an ending, and so did the users. No it wasn’t as big a money maker as the Angry Birds multitude of games, but they never even gave it a chance. They let it run for just two years before abandoning it. This is why I no longer play any Rovio games. Instead I moved to Lily’s Garden by Tactile which has been putting out new content for over five years, pretty much weekly. Now Tactile gets my money. Shame on you Rovio for abandoning your users like you did! ### 5/5 — 80s references are awesome *2025-01-25, version 2.13.1* Game play is typical match 3 but the stories are more interesting than the typical stuff. And I don’t know what 80s nerd you have working for you but good job, dude. Spivey Point? Love it. ### 5/5 — Small town rocks *2024-12-24, version 2.13.1* I just finished the game and I loved it I just wish there were more chapters. The game is pricey but it’s very good and the storyline is was kept me going. When are more chapters coming out because to end like this was so so because you want more with Nora and Mike and rest of the characters so please give us more ### 5/5 — Nur auf Englisch *2024-12-15* Eigentlich ein schönes Spiel,leider ist die Story nach dem aktuellen Update nur noch auf Englisch und nicht mehr auf deutsch ### 5/5 — Disgruntled *2024-11-29, version 2.13.1* Do y’all ever plan to continue with the story line? You left us hanging for years now!! I’ve played the game twice and really dislike small town secrets!! --- *Data collected daily from the US App Store and indexed by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/). User reviews are verbatim App Store reviews. Ratings, prices and chart positions refresh continuously; this snapshot is from 2026-09-15.*