What it is
Royal Match is free to download. You play short puzzle levels for a king repairing a castle. Lives run out. Boosters and limited-time offers are how the game makes money. The offers are designed to appear when a level has just gone badly.
What it costs if a card is saved: repeated small amounts that do not feel big on the screen. What it costs without a card: nothing. They wait for lives, or they stop.
What to look out for
- Pop-up offers after a failed level.
- A “starter pack” or a pass you do not remember buying.
- Play that only continues if someone pays.
Ways to stay safe
These steps are for Royal Match. The house rules still apply on every app.
- Do not put your card details on their device. Not in the App Store, Google Play, the game, or PayPal. If you choose to pay, type the card in yourself for that purchase, then remove it.
- Treat every offer as a no unless you have talked about it first.
- In-app purchases off. Card off the device.
- If they are upset because a level is stuck, the answer can be “stop for today”, not “buy the booster”.
In the news
Published reports you can read yourself. A headline is the proof, not a set of instructions, and this page does not repeat graphic detail.
- Top-selling mobile games breaking rules on loot boxes The BBC check is of the top phone games and their shops. It does not name Royal Match. Royal Match uses the same lives, boosters, and offers.
A way to start the conversation
You can say: "When the offer pops up, that is the game trying to sell you something. You close it. You do not need my card to keep playing tomorrow."
Video
Parent briefing
A short video for this guide can be added by an editor. Until then, the written briefing above is the one to use.