I played Jewel over 200 times this year, but never played beyond level 1

A regular ritual for a fewer measly points. What americium I doing with my life?

In my Game of the Year 2022 nonfiction and video I said thing on the lines of “Vampire Survivors is my astir played crippled of the year.” I deliberation that mightiness person been a lie. I didn’t see that I’ve been playing 1 classical crippled astir regular for the full year. While this mightiness not beryllium the crippled I’ve enactment the astir clip into, I’ve surely ‘booted’ Jewel much than immoderate different crippled this year. But why? And wherefore person I ne'er played beyond the archetypal level? Sadly, this is simply a alternatively boring communicative of however I discarded my beingness to gain tiny amounts of money.

This communicative begins galore years ago, mode earlier the Xbox Series X was released. Microsoft runs a rewards programme successful which you tin gain points by completing tasks. Some of these are web-based, specified arsenic searching connected Bing, taking portion successful polls, oregon completing abbreviated quizzes. There’s besides an Xbox broadside to it, with points being fixed for completing challenges successful acceptable Game Pass titles, earning achievements successful definite games, and more. As Meghan Trainor astir said, I became all astir the points.

In the years starring up to the merchandise of the Xbox Series X, I had go a point-earning machine. I’d bash each I could, activating bonuses and completing each the other activities to magnitude a integer upland of this peculiar integer currency. Long communicative short, I ended up utilizing them each connected Microsoft Store credit, which resulted successful being capable to bargain an Xbox Series X for astir £50. Despite the regular grind I felt similar I’d reached into Microsoft’s pouch and stolen the caller console.

These points, the bane of my life.

But the constituent comedown was a batch to take. I’d wiped myself retired and was starting again from scratch. It besides seemed arsenic though points were becoming harder to earn, avenues to get them drying up. That is until I discovered the Xbox app, which fto maine gain astir 300 points a day. Most of these were done playing PC games (this nonfiction could easy person been titled: “I played Forza Horizon 5 implicit 200 times this year, but ne'er drove a car”), but there’s 1 tiny constituent earner tied to finishing a azygous level of Jewel. So I played Jewel. I played Jewel a lot.

Jewel is launched from wrong the Xbox app connected my phone. As soon arsenic you decorativeness level 1 you person the notification that you’ve earned immoderate points, truthful I click it and adhd them to my stash. I’ve done that astir days this year. When I don’t bash it, I consciousness a consciousness of regret. I americium beholden to Microsoft and its reward points scheme. I person adjacent got my lad progressive and tin regularly beryllium heard asking him if he’s “done his searches,” arsenic if checking connected the presumption of his homework. He often hasn’t, but I fto him drawback immoderate Minecoins present and again anyway. I’m benignant similar that.

I adjacent managed to get a Steam Deck for astir £100 done the alternatively analyzable way of converting reward points into Curry’s PC World vouchers, buying Steam recognition connected carnal cards, past utilizing that to wage disconnected a ample chunk of the Deck’s cost.

The constituent is, though, that I’m present apt a pro gamer astatine Jewel, but lone for Level 1. For each I cognize the crippled wholly changes from level 2 onwards. I’ve not seen it beyond the surface that says Level 2. Maybe they present a caller colour jewel, oregon the jewels alteration shape, oregon they commencement moving connected their ain arsenic if possessed by a shade that likes to play awesome colour-match games during its downtime. I don’t know, and I’m not definite if I should beryllium blessed astir that oregon not.

Level 2? What the caller hellhole is this?

On 1 manus I’ve spent hours of my beingness this twelvemonth playing a crippled I person nary tendency to play (and countless much hours earning points implicit the past 5 oregon truthful years), but connected the different manus it’s escaped money. Maybe I’d person earned much wealth with that clip by penning a publication astir stealth games oregon something, but anyone could bash that. How galore radical tin accidental they are arsenic bully arsenic I americium astatine Jewel Level 1?

With astir six years to spell until the adjacent Xbox releases, probably, that’s different 1200 games of Jewel Level 1 to play. What a amusive beingness I lead.