Explore a timeline of retired Gardenscapes elements, including Match-3 mechanics that were removed, replaced, redesigned, or phased out from 2017 to 2026.
Gardenscapes has changed dramatically since 2016. New Match-3 elements are introduced on a regular basis, but the opposite process is much less visible: some older elements stop appearing, others change names or designs, and a few are replaced by newer mechanics that serve almost the same purpose.
This timeline does more than list old elements. It separates what was actually removed, what was replaced or redesigned, and what remains officially active but has nearly disappeared from modern levels. That distinction matters because a veteran player can go years without seeing an element even though Playrix has never formally removed it from the game.
The gradual disappearance of certain mechanics also ties into the broader question of why Gardenscapes removes certain objectives and elements, especially as the game has to accommodate an ever-growing number of mechanics across thousands of levels.
What Does “Retired Element” Actually Mean?
There is more than one way for an element to disappear from modern Gardenscapes. Looking back through the game's history, at least three different situations stand out.
- Removed: the element is effectively taken out of the game.
- Replaced or reworked: the underlying mechanic survives, but its name, appearance, or presentation changes.
- Phased out: the element still appears to exist officially, but it is rarely or no longer used in newer levels.
That is why elements such as Honeycombs or Muddy Pieces should not automatically be labeled retired simply because high-level players may go a very long time without encountering them.
2017 – Swan Statues
In May 2017, old Gardenscapes update notes stated that players could create Swan Statues directly on the Match-3 board.
That version no longer exists in the form seen at the time. The mechanic evolved and was later associated with Statues and Frogs/Froglings, making this look more like an evolution of the original concept than a complete disappearance of the gameplay idea itself.
Status: Reworked / original visual identity retired.
2018 – Gas Cylinders
Gas Cylinders are, so far, the clearest example of a genuinely retired Gardenscapes element.
They appeared from around Level 507 and used a distinctive timer mechanic. Each cylinder displayed a number of remaining moves. If the player failed to remove it before the counter reached zero, the level was lost.
That made Gas Cylinders different from most modern obstacles. They did not simply make the board harder to clear; they introduced a separate failure condition.
Historical records on the Gardenscapes Wiki state that Gas Cylinders were officially removed from the game in early 2023.
Status: Confirmed removed.
2019 – Garden Hose
The Garden Hose was introduced alongside Rope Bridges in a 2019 update. It stretched across several tiles, and players had to gradually roll it up by making matches or using power-ups in the right positions.
What makes this case especially interesting is that the official Playrix Help Center continued to list the Hose among its Match-3 elements well into 2026, yet it no longer appears in the latest central list.
That is not, by itself, official proof that the Hose has been removed from every level in the game. It is, however, a strong sign that the element has at least fallen out of active rotation and may be in the process of being phased out.
Status: Likely phased out / retirement not officially confirmed.
2019 – Rope Bridges → Brick Wall
Rope Bridges were announced in the same update as the Garden Hose.
The original version of the mechanic is no longer used under that identity. Later records connect the concept to today's Brick Wall, which separates sections of the board and restricts how pieces on opposite sides can interact.
So the idea itself did not disappear. Instead, the older presentation was retired and the underlying mechanic continued in a newer form.
Status: Replaced / redesigned.
2020 – Mailbox
The Mailbox officially appeared in 2020. Version 4.8.0 update notes introduced it as a new element, with players using power-ups near the Mailbox to collect Letters.
The Mailbox is especially interesting in the history of retired elements because it was a fully documented Playrix mechanic, yet it no longer appears in the current central Match-3 elements list.
Until Playrix explicitly confirms that it was removed, it is safer not to call the Mailbox “officially retired.” Still, the available evidence strongly suggests that it is no longer part of the game's active modern progression.
Status: Strong retirement / phase-out candidate.
Old Chest → Tackle Boxes
The Old Chest is another clear example of a mechanic whose identity changed without the underlying gameplay concept necessarily disappearing.
Later descriptions of Tackle Boxes identify them as an element that was previously known as Chests.
The mechanic and presentation evolved, while the old Chest stopped existing as a separate modern element.
Status: Replaced / renamed.
Old Chest: A Forgotten Gardenscapes Element
One of the easiest old Gardenscapes elements to forget may be the original Chest. Many long-time players will probably remember the newer mechanics far more clearly, which makes this video a useful visual reference for how some older elements looked before they were redesigned, renamed, or phased out.
For players who joined Gardenscapes later, this kind of footage helps document a part of the game that has largely disappeared from modern levels. It is also a reminder that retired elements do not always vanish overnight; sometimes their mechanics survive while the original design quietly fades into Gardenscapes history.
Books → Colored Light Bulbs
Another significant change involves the old Shelf with Books. Today, the corresponding element appears as Colored Light Bulbs.
The current official Playrix Help page explains that players must make matches next to the bulbs using pieces of the corresponding color or use power-ups. Once all the bulbs are cleared, the shelf disappears as well.
So today's Shelf with Light Bulbs is not retired. What belongs to Gardenscapes history is the earlier Books version.
Status: Books retired as the old form → mechanic survives as Colored Light Bulbs.
Carrot → Carrot Patch
The Carrot is a different case.
We do not treat it as a separate element from today's Carrot Patch. It belongs to the same basic element and mechanic family.
What remains unclear is whether the Carrot still behaves exactly as it did in its earlier form.
There is therefore no strong reason to place it on the list of removed elements. It is better understood as an example of an element that may have gone through a redesign or mechanical adjustment.
Status: Active / possibly reworked.
Lanterns
Lanterns appeared in Gardenscapes progression at least as early as Level 15666, where the game itself displayed a tutorial instructing players to make matches of the same color next to the Lanterns to remove them.
That older Lantern design is no longer used. Later levels introduced a different design that looked more like a Lighthouse, while Playrix now uses the name Lighthouse in its Match-3 elements list.
The available evidence points more toward a redesign of the same concept than the complete disappearance of the mechanic. What can be described with greater confidence as retired is the original visual version of the Lanterns.
Status: Original Lantern design retired / later redesigned as Lighthouse.
Donuts
Donuts appeared much later in the progression, and a Playrix Help page still exists explaining how they are collected from boxes on the board.
Even so, Donuts do not appear in Playrix's latest central Match-3 elements list.
That is noteworthy, but it is not enough to call the element removed. Donuts may be limited to a particular stretch of the progression, may belong to older content that is no longer being added to new levels, or may simply be affected by the way Playrix currently organizes its Help Center.
The same pattern can be seen with older elements that gradually disappear from high-level play even though some of them may still remain elsewhere in the progression.
Status: Possible phase-out / not confirmed retired.
Honeycombs – Old, but Not Retired
Honeycombs are a good example of why the word retired needs to be used carefully.
They were already in the game by 2017, and an endgame player may go years without seeing them regularly.
Playrix, however, still maintains an active official Help page for Honeycombs, explaining that they produce honey every second move when there is available space.
Status: Active, but rare on modern high-level boards.
Muddy Pieces – Still Active as Well
The same is true of Muddy Pieces.
The official Playrix Help Center still lists them normally. A Muddy Piece must be cleared with a power-up or Rainbow Blast before the piece can be used normally toward the level objective.
Its presence may have dropped significantly on newer boards, but there is currently no solid basis for describing it as retired.
Status: Active.
2026 – Frogs → Piñata?
The most interesting possible change may be happening right now.
At Level 20502, two different versions of the same board were recorded. The Android version featured Frogs, while the Microsoft Store version featured Piñatas.
The board had the same 25 moves and the same basic layout. In that particular level, both the Frogs and the Piñata also required five power-up hits.
That means one element could be substituted for the other without requiring any meaningful redesign of the level.
We still do not know whether Frogs will disappear completely from the game or continue to exist in older levels. For that reason, they should not yet be described as confirmed retired.
Status: Possible active replacement in 2026.
Timeline at a Glance
| Period | Element | What Happened | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 | Swan Statues | The old form evolved into later Statue/Frog mechanics | Reworked |
| 2018–2023 | Gas Cylinders | The timer mechanic was removed from the game | Confirmed removed |
| 2019 | Garden Hose | No longer appears in the current central Playrix list | Likely phased out |
| 2019 | Rope Bridges | The old form was replaced by a newer Brick Wall-style mechanic | Replaced / redesigned |
| 2020 | Mailbox | An older official element that no longer appears in today's central list | Strong retirement candidate |
| 2021–2022 | Old Chest | Evolved into Tackle Boxes | Replaced |
| Unknown period | Books | The old shelf design was replaced by Colored Light Bulbs | Old form retired |
| 2024–2025 | Lanterns | The original Lantern design disappeared and was replaced by a newer Lighthouse-style design | Original design retired / redesigned |
| Modern era | Carrot / Carrot Patch | Same element, possibly with changes to its properties | Active / reworked |
| Modern era | Donuts | A Help page still exists, but the element is absent from the current central list | Possible phase-out |
| 2026 | Frogs | Recorded being replaced by Piñata on the same Level 20502 | Possible replacement |
Elements That Should Not Yet Be Called Retired
Honeycombs, Muddy Pieces, and Colored Light Bulbs still have active official Playrix Help pages. Likewise, the absence of an element from the newest levels does not prove that it has been removed from the entire game.
This distinction matters even more in a game with more than 20,000 levels. An element can disappear from the endgame while remaining active across thousands of older levels that newer accounts still have to play.
The same caution applies to current changes, because the two versions of Level 20502 with Frogs and Piñatas show that different versions of the same board can coexist across platforms without proving that one element has already been removed from the game entirely.
Conclusion
The history of Gardenscapes elements is not a straight line in which every new obstacle is simply added to everything that came before it. Over the years, Playrix has removed mechanics, redesigned them, carried older ideas into new elements, and gradually reduced the use of others.
Gas Cylinders remain the clearest confirmed retirement. Mailbox and Garden Hose are among the strongest candidates for elements that have been retired or phased out. Books, Old Chest, Rope Bridges, and Swan Statues followed a different path: the underlying mechanic survived, but the original form disappeared.
And in 2026, we may be watching that same process unfold again with Frogs and Piñata. If future weekly levels stop using Frogs while Piñatas continue to appear, Level 20502 could eventually become one of the clearest documented transition points between two eras of Gardenscapes.
For now, a few question marks still remain on the retired-elements list. In Gardenscapes, apparently even an obstacle can disappear without handing in its resignation.
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