No More Moves
No More Moves (abbreviated as NMM) is a situation in Bejeweled series where the player can't make any matches no matter how the player makes their next move. It is mainly used to mark the end of a game of Classic mode. Apart from Classic mode, there are many other game modes where NMM is possible (may or may not end the game), while there are also many game modes where game mechanics can guarantee an "Always Have Moves" (abbreviated as AHM) situation if the player doesn't abuse glitches or modifications.
In Bejeweled
Bejeweled doesn't feature AHM mechanics and NMM is possible in both Normal and Time Trial modes. In Normal mode, the game ends if there are no more moves. In Time Trial mode, when there are no more moves, instead of ending the game, the board will be refreshed with a new set of gems, then the game continues.
In Bejeweled 2
Bejeweled 2 is the first game of Bejeweled series to introduce AHM mechanics.
In Classic, Twilight and Original modes, NMM is possible. The game ends when there are no more moves.
In Action, Hyper and Endless modes, the game can guarantee AHM. Finity mode can try to guarantee AHM but it sometimes fails because of Rocks and Bombs; in this case, the board will be refreshed with a new set of gems, like in Time Trial mode of Bejeweled. This also happens when the player achieves NMM in Action and Hyper modes by hacking.
In Puzzle and Cognito modes, when there are no more moves, the player fails to solve the current puzzle. The player has to undo their previous move or restart the puzzle.
In Bejeweled Twist
In Bejeweled Twist, matches are made by spinning gems in a 2×2 square instead of swapping two adjacent gems, and the game allows matchless moves. Therefore, the player can still continue their game when they can't make matches in their next move. Despite this, the game still features AHM mechanics to allow the player to keep their chain, but this sometimes fails in Classic and Zen modes due to unknown reasons. Also, in Classic mode, when the Bonus Challenge or the Disarm Spinner clears a Bomb Gem, AHM might be impossible to guarantee.
There might be some situations where making matches is impossible even with the help of matchless moves:
- There are too many pieces of Coal and the remaining gems aren't enough to make matches
- There are so many Locked Gems and Doom Gems that every position is locked
- The board is shorter than 3 rows or narrower than 3 columns
In these cases, the game doesn't end immediately, but the player has to abandon the current game as they can't make any progress. Note that all these situations are impossible in vanilla Bejeweled Twist and they can be met only by hacking or modding.
In Bejeweled Blitz
Bejeweled Blitz features the AHM mechanics so that players can keep playing until time runs out. However, there's still an extremely slim chance of NMM, after which "The Voice" says "TIME UP", the Ignition Meter and Blazing Speed resets, and Last Hurrah begins. The timer still runs as normal, and the player can make moves after Last Hurrah ends.
In Bejeweled 3
In Bejeweled 3, without hacking or exploitation of glitches, NMM is possible only in Classic, and all other modes feature the AHM mechanics. In Classic mode, the game ends when there are no more moves. In Diamond Mine mode, if digging down makes it impossible to make matches from remaining gems, a Hypercube will replace a random normal gem; while the drills are not digging down, AHM is guaranteed.
In Lightning, like in Bejeweled Blitz, "The Voice" will say "TIME UP" and immediately trigger the Last Hurrah and detonating all special gems (if any on the board), but the timer still runs. Everything will take place until the game returns to normal before the timer expires, in with causes the Igniton Meter and Blazing Speed will reset.
In Quest and all of the mini-quests, the game's voice will say "GAME OVER" instead of "NO MORE MOVES" and immediately ends, similar when the player fails to reach a goal or the timer expires.
In Bejeweled Stars
Like Bejeweled, Bejeweled Stars doesn't feature AHM mechanics and NMM is possible in every level. When there are no more moves, the game will randomly scramble the board (only moving normal gems). Scrambling doesn't guarantee AHM; if there are no more moves again, the game will repeat scrambling.
If the remaining gems aren't enough to make any matches, the game immediately ends without a chance to add moves by spending coins.