5 Weird Tips and Tricks for Pet Rescue Saga

Sure, the tips and tricks in this Pet Rescue Saga guide might sound weird, but can they actually help you win Pet Rescue Saga? Read on to find out!

Usually before I start in on writing guides to individual levels for one of these games, I do a sort of "high level strategy" guide that goes over general tips and tricks for a game like Pet Rescue Saga. However, I've been really struggling with an introductory or beginner's guide to Pet Rescue Saga. It's a really tough game to give snippets of advice about! I've finally decided to embrace the weirdness and contradictions in the strategies I've been using, and try to do a good job of explaining the best way to play Pet Rescue Saga.

5. Make Big Matches, Except Where Small is Better!

There are certainly advantages to making big matches whenever you can in Pet Rescue Saga. They clear a lot of blocks, which helps charge your rocket (or "column blaster" in the official terminology). They also score much higher than smaller matches. Thus, you might be tempted to always prioritize the largest matches you can. And you'd be correct, in some situations.

If you're playing a level that has a high score target, absolutely try for large matches. This is especially true on levels where your moves are limited the blocks just keep coming. These matches are about the only way to hit the score targets - there's no way you're going to get there with 2-block matches.

However, if you're on a level where the objective is to save a bunch of pets or clear a percentage of the blocks, making the biggest matches possible is often a terrible idea. On these levels, you should focus on clearing every block by working carefully through the blocks on the screen.

Before you make a match, you want to see how the blocks are going to fall afterwards. Are more colors going to be aligned, or less? Blocks always move from top to bottom, and if there are no blocks to the left they will move to the left and down. If you plan ahead, you can often find the right order to clear blocks in order to get them all to disappear. Clearing almost all the blocks is the key to winning the vast majority of Pet Rescue Saga levels.

When in doubt, start at the upper right of the Pet Rescue Saga level and work your way to the left and down!

4. Use Your Rocket Boost Frequently, But Make Sure You Save It!

The rocket or "column blaster" boost is one Pet Rescue Saga boost you can count on... sort of. It isn't in every level, but when it is, it can be a useful way to get yourself out of trouble. It charges relatively quickly, and once charged you stop earning towards another one. Thus, it pays to use the rocket boost when it's charged. The sooner you use it, the sooner you're going to get another one, right?

There are times, though, when it's a bad idea to use your rocket boost. There are also times when it's bad to save it. Here are a few things I consider when trying to decide if I should use my rocket boost in Pet Rescue Saga:

I might not use my rocket boost immediately in a Pet Rescue Saga level it if:

3. Those Free Boosts Will Cost You!

Whenever you encounter a boost for the first time, you get a set of 3 for free. Yay, right? That's awesome, free boosts!

But think about this for a bit - why do they give you some for free? You might think "Oh, they're being nice" or "They want me to learn how to use them" but the reality is far more insidious. Much like a drug dealer, the first hit is free.

Boosts are drugs, in case you missed that metaphor. They're a way to cheat the system, as it were. King makes money when you use boosts - thus, it's in their best interest to get you hooked. And nothing hooks quicker than a freebie. If you get in the rhythm of using boosts when you're stuck, you're far more likely to use them frequently and therefore buy more.

That doesn't mean you shouldn't use them at all, but I would suggest two things to consider:

  1. Can I win the level without it? If you think you're close enough that a boost will put you over the edge, chances are you're close to figuring the level out, and it's just a bit of random luck that has you stuck. Spending another (free) life instead of one of your precious boosts is often a better idea.
  2. Can I lose the level with it? Nothing sucks worse than popping a boost and then losing the level even with its help. One key thing to check is - am I going to meet the score goal? Sometimes you might get so caught up in rescuing enough pets or clearing enough blocks that you fail to meet the score goal, and that stinks!

You might be tempted to use a bunch of boosts in a given level - after all, once you've spent one, you should probably keep using them to make your initial boost "count," right? Otherwise, you wasted that boost! However, this is false! This mistaken belief even has a name - the Sunk Cost Fallacy.

Boosts are precious, and free boosts doubly so. Keep this in mind and you can ward off the "free to play" psychology at work here.

2. Break Carriers and Glass Blocks Quickly, Except When You Shouldn't!

Pets in Pet Rescue Saga are often stuck in Carriers, which are like blocks in that they must be matched with other blocks or carriers of the same color in order to break them. On some levels, it's to your advantage to match them early, but on other levels not so much.

If the level is just about saving a bunch of pets within a certain number of turns, break carriers ASAP! When the pet breaks out of the carrier, they jump to the top of the unmatched blocks in a column. If you move the carrier to the bottom of the screen first, chances are you're going to then have to move the pet down again, which is a waste of moves.

However, if you're playing on a level with a constant amount of blocks, it's sometimes better to leave the carrier intact. On these levels, as the screen scrolls downward, you will lose whatever's on top - this means your pets are at high risk. In fact, often times you'll play an entire level with your pets shaking at the top of the screen.

Similarly, glass blocks must land on certain types of block (notably, floor and "locked" blocks count) in order to break the glass. Breaking these seems like a no-brainer. Obviously, you can't use these items until the glass is gone, so break the glass early, right? Not always!

A bomb or a key counts as a move if you're on a level that scrolls and you're otherwise out of moves. This can be a really bad thing if you are forced to use a key you need later in the level! Try to keep track of what's coming, and only break glass when you're ready.

1. Always Play Mystery Quests, Unless It's a Bad Idea!

Mystery Quests in Pet Rescue Saga are awesome. Mystery Quests allow you to bypass those spots where you have to pay without paying OR bugging your friends!

Related Guide If you're not aware of Mystery Quests, you should check out our Mystery Quest Guide to get the full scoop!

The only downside to doing a Mystery Quest is that there's a chance you'll lose stockpiled lives that your Facebook friends have given you. Thus, if you've got a bunch of friends who are helping out, it's a much better idea to ask them for tickets. If not, carry on with Mystery Questing!

Conclusion

Well, those were some odd, contradictory tips in this Pet Rescue Saga guide, weren't they? But in the end, I hope you were able to make sense of them. Now you should have a better idea how best to employ your moves and boosts to clear levels and continue to make progress.

Got a weird tip of your own? Share it in the comments!