How do I clear Candy Crush Level 158?

You can say a lot of bad things about Candy Crush (go ahead, take a minute, get it out of your system) - but one thing I give them credit for is that they continue to add new content and new mechanics to keep the game fresh and keep presenting new interesting challenges to the players. Despite their best efforts though, sometimes you will find a level that reminds you a lot of one of the previous tough ones you've been through. It is hard to forget the suffering. Well Candy Crush Level 158 is one of these levels. To me it bears a significant similarity to Level 70, which was quite challenging in its own right. If you hated that level, you'll hate this one - but hopefully we can help you out with some quick tips below.

A tale of two sh... crappy situations

Much like a lot of levels with the teleporter mechanic, Candy Crush Level 158 has got two areas to manage. The goal of the left area is to get the Ingredient to the bottom and manufacture Special Candies. The goal of the right area is just to keep downward movement (which also involves breaking some Licorice). If your device supports it, I recommend rerolling the level till you've got some good matches on the right side, ideally breaking at least one of the Licorice cages. Even after those early moves though, you should almost always prioritize moves on the right to both keep the Chocolate at bay and to keep the Ingredient moving down.

Pro Tip Surgical use of horizontal Striped Candies from the left side can really help your chances. At some point Chocolate, Licorice, or just bad matches will probably jam up the right side. Horizontal Striped Candies can help with that, but try and position them at a row where they will make other matches possible after activation.

Sealing the deal

It is possible to win Candy Crush Level 158 with simple block and tackle candy matching, with a focus on vertical matches - but it is tough. More than likely, a Special Candy Combo is going to be needed to get you the win. Pretty much any Striped combo can make a huge difference, if not win you the level. Keep an eye out for combos, even if they are on the left side.

Pro Tip It is not possible to make vertical Striped Candies on the right side, but Striped + Striped will net you a vertical explosion even if you match two horizontal Striped Candies. This can win you the game once the Ingredient has made it to the right side.

Pro Tip A very effective strategy is to create Special Candies and Special Candy Combos on the left side, and then use simple matches on the right to drag them across to the right side. You'll get much more bang for your buck when you use them on the right.