Be Fast and Match the Puzzling Sequences in Linia
November 08, 2016 by macjeff
Linia ($1.99) by Yari D'areglia is a colorful puzzle game that’s all about finding sequences and being in rhythm. If you enjoyed other recent games like Polyforge and The Little Fox, then Linia is another game that is right up your alley.
While it seems that a lot of my gaming lately involves hunting (either Pokémon Go or Monster Hunter Generations on my 3DS), sometimes I just want to take a break from both and relax but challenge myself at the same time. This is when I like to turn to the many puzzle games I have on my iPhone. Even though it seems like I have almost every puzzle game out on the App Store, I’m always looking for new ones to check out, especially if they have gameplay mechanics that differentiate themselves from the crowd. So when I laid my eyes on Linia on the App Store, I had to try it for myself.
In terms of visuals, Linia is rather stunning with the clean, minimalistic style. Everything you see will be flat and 2-D, but the animations are buttery smooth and rather hypnotic at times. The game is rather colorful with hues that range from soft pastels to bright and vibrant tones. Linia has an atmospheric and ambient background track that helps you relax, despite the rather unforgiving gameplay. The game also has some whimsical sound effects that serve as nice audible feedback when you correctly get the sequence or not, so I recommend playing the game with the sound on, as well as a good pair of headphones if you truly want to immerse yourself.
Linia, like many other puzzle games, is level based, and you’re going to have to go through them one-by-one in order to move forward. However, the goal is simple enough that anyone can understand it: match the color sequences that you see at the top by tracing a line through colored shapes. Easy peasy, right? Well yeah, the game starts out with shapes that stay put right where they are, but then you’ll find more colors, more shapes, rotating and moving shapes, shapes that change colors, shapes that fade in and out, and much more. The puzzles become much more intricate, complex, and harder to solve. Fortunately, though, there are no time limits or move restrictions, so you can take as long as you want on a stage. And if you make mistakes, you don’t get penalized — you just restart and try again. In a time where so many games seem to impose limits on you to solve puzzles, it’s nice to see more lenient ones like Linia, though the game itself is rather challenging.
Controls in Linia are straightforward — connect the colored shapes together by drawing a line through them, with the intent to match the sequence that is displayed at the top of the screen. However, you have to think fast while memorizing the pattern because as things start moving around and changing colors, things get tricky. When the line is drawn, you’ll see circles that magnify the colors that the line touched, indicating whether or not you matched the correct sequence. Checkmarks also tell you when you’ve matched something, while X’s show mistakes, also meaning you’ll have to try again. And if there are two blocks of the same color consecutively, it counts as one part of the sequence, so keep that in mind.
I am not too far into Linia, but I’m enjoying it so far, despite the increasing difficulty levels. The game starts out simple enough, but once you have changing colors, fading in and out, and rotating shapes, you truly have to pay attention and be on your toes to get the sequences correct. Focus is super important, because you’ll want to learn the movement patterns and then get into the rhythm of things before you try to connect. It’s a relaxing game but still stimulating, plus the minimalistic aesthetics and ambient music is a great touch. I did get a bit flustered at some levels at times, but through persistence, I managed to persevere.
I recommend checking out Linia if you’re into challenging puzzle games with a twist. Linia can be found on the App Store as a universal download for your iPhone and iPad for just $1.99. There are no in-app purchases.
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Uncover Dark Secrets of 1939 Germany With Albert & Otto
November 08, 2016 by macjeff
Albert & Otto ($0.99) by Mokuni LLC is a stylish and haunting puzzle platformer that is reminiscent of the cult classic LIMBO. If you’re a fan of eerie black-and-white platformer worlds that make you think, then you will probably enjoy Albert & Otto as well.
When I was growing up, I remember I put in a ton of hours on classic platformers like the original Super Mario Bros. As a kid, I didn’t really think too much about strategy and how to solve things, because hey, I was a kid and liked to just push buttons and see what would happen on the screen. But as I grew older, I learned about some strategies and how to actually solve those puzzles I always ended up getting stuck on. So I’ve grown to love platformers even more as time passed, and now I just can’t get enough of them. When LIMBO first came out, I was in awe with the style, and let’s face it — the challenging puzzles were fun too, and quite rewarding once you figure them out. Since LIMBO originally came out, there have been many other games that follow in its footsteps, with some being up to par and others not so much. When I saw Albert & Otto on the App Store, I was intrigued enough to check it out myself.
In terms of visuals, Albert & Otto falls in line with the black-and-white silhouette style of LIMBO and other similar games. However, unlike LIMBO, Albert & Otto has much sharper graphics, since it isn’t a “dreamscape” environment that you’re in. In fact, the game carries a somewhat minimalistic design, as everything is flat and sharp, with some rough shading on elements in the setting. The backdrop is rather nice with the black silhouettes set against the dark gray background, and the foreground is full of beautifully designed architecture and obstacles that contrast nicely with the gloom-and-doom of the backdrop. Since the game is like LIMBO, you’ll only find shades of black, gray, and white in the game, with the occasional splash of blood red due to Otto the bunny and shards of drawings that you will need to collect. To top things off, the game has an atmospheric and haunting soundtrack that truly immerses you in the game world, so I recommend using your favorite pair of headphones while playing. There are also some fun and grisly sound effects, which I don’t recommend if you’re squeamish, though everything is in good fun.
Albert & Otto is a rather interesting game. The story takes place in a creepy, 1939 Germany where the focus is placed on a mysterious girl with bunny ears, who also appropriately has a red bunny companion named Otto. You’ll want to find out who this girl is, and the only help you’ll have is from Otto, who you eventually find as you set out on the journey with Albert. As you venture out into the eerie Germany setting, you’ll find clues about who the girl is through painting shards and letters in mailboxes that contain child-like drawings. And while the game features chapters, there’s a seamless transition between each level so that you’re never abruptly interrupted. It all flows together flawlessly, and the only time you know you’re in a new level is when the chapter title reveals itself in the beginning. You can also go back and replay specific chapters you’ve completed with the Chapter Select screen. The game also has plenty of checkpoints, so you don’t have to go back very far if you end up dying while solving a tough puzzle or encounter a difficult boss battle.
The controls in Albert & Otto are simple and straightforward, though some actions take a bit of getting used to. To move left and right, you’ll use the virtual joystick in the bottom left corner, thought it “floats” to wherever your thumb is. To jump, you’ll press on the jump button in the bottom right corner. The ability to do a double jump is gained once you find Otto the Rabbit, who you can also drop, pick up, and remotely control with a touch of a button. Albert is also equipped with a pistol, which you can use to shoot down crows and other enemies by placing your finger on the right side of the screen, drag to aim, and then release to shoot. You can also go in and out of buildings with the button that shows up as you’re in front of a door, or interact with switches in a similar fashion. Pushing objects is done by just going up to them and moving forward, and eventually you gain the ability to levitate objects (like sheep) with Otto. Sometimes obstacles that you need to progress can be shot at with your gun as well, so make sure to keep an eye out for things on ropes that can be shot and the like.
Like I said, the controls are simple enough, but I think they could be better optimized. I found the sensitivity for aiming to be a bit too sensitive, as sometimes it was hard to get the line to line up correctly with where I wanted to shoot. I also felt that the joystick wasn’t sensitive enough, so I would really have to push my thumb in one direction to make Albert move as fast as he could. It would be nice to see some sensitivity adjustment options in the future.
I’m pretty early on in the game still because the puzzles themselves are rather challenging, and some of the platforming will take all of your skill to get through. I just think the game would be better if the control sensitivity was improved a tad, but it is still manageable in its current state, as long as you have a little patience. I am in love with the dark and eerie visuals and music, though, and will be coming back to this one. At the moment, Albert & Otto only has one episode, but more are coming in the future. If you don’t mind cliffhangers at the end, then this game is worth a look.
I recommend Albert & Otto if you enjoy creepy, but fun, puzzle platformers with an engaging story. You can find the first episode of Albert & Otto on the App Store as a universal download for your iPhone and iPad for just $0.99.
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Dash Towards Freedom in the Twitch Platformer Action of Blitz Breaker
November 08, 2016 by macjeff
Blitz Breaker ($2.99) by Reece Kelly is a twitch reflex platformer about a robot trying to escape the factory that they were built in. If you love fun and accessible games with some awesome retro pixel art (like in Peter Panic and Downwell), then Blitz Breaker is one that is worthy of your attention.
As a kid who grew up in the late ‘80s and ‘90s, I am a huge fan of the vintage 8-bit and 16-bit visuals that were popular back in the golden age of gaming. I had my SNES and Sega Genesis systems with a few games each (just whatever my parents bought or found for us), but I spent hours back in the day just playing a single game until I got tired of it and needed a break. Platformers were a huge deal back then, since we have classics like Super Mario Bros., and seems to have remained popular even to this day. Of course, while the tried-and-true platformer formula holds up extremely well, sometimes you just want to experiment and try something new. That’s why Blitz Breaker is such a gem among the platformer genre.
In terms of visuals, anyone who grew up in the ‘80s will appreciate the amazing pixel art style. The game looks and feels like a blast from the past, which is totally welcome in my books. Despite the pixelated style, I still found the game to be incredibly detailed, with correct textures in the right places. The game’s limited color palette of pale pink with splashes of vibrant hues makes me think of the days when I played games on my Game Boy Color back in the day, so the nostalgia factor is a key thing here. Animations in Blitz Breaker are smooth and fluid, so I experienced no lag on my iPhone 6s Plus. There’s also a fantastic chiptune soundtrack by Fat Bard that ties up the retro aspect, along with fun sound effects as you play. As a big fan of the old-school stuff, I love what the developer has created for the world of Blitz Breaker.
The story of Blitz Breaker is pretty simple: Blitz is a robot who is just trying to escape out of the factory that he was built in. Naturally, it’s easier said than done to accomplish this task, since everything in the factory is trying to break you, but you have the help of Chip, the computer helper who is totally your friend (maybe). But there is one problem: Blitz can’t run, so he can only jump and do air dashes. This is where you come in, player.
Blitz Breaker features two game modes: Story and Arcade. The Story mode lets players go through each area and corresponding levels (101 total) without having to worry about a high score and just earning a star if you can get perfect performance, though just reaching the end portal without dying is also enough. If you die, you just have to try again — there’s no set amount of lives, so feel free to take your time unless you really want the star. Arcade Mode is more of a test to see how many stages you can get through as fast as you can with a set amount of lives. You start out with three, but you can find extra lives or earn them by collecting enough coins. The areas and levels in both modes are the same, though, so it’s a good idea to get through the Story Mode first before Arcade, since it can serve as practice for your speed runs. On top of it all, Blitz Breaker does have four challenging boss battles that you’ll have to conquer, so you have to make sure your skills are top notch.
Since Blitz is unable to run, how is he supposed to get out of the factory? It’s pretty simple. Since he can jump and air dash, it’s up to you to help guide him to the green escape portal (sometimes keys are needed to reach them) on each level. To do this, just tap on the screen to make Blitz jump. To perform an air dash, just swipe on the screen in the direction you want Blitz to go (up, down, left, right). The great thing is that Blitz can do another dash after colliding with an object that doesn’t break you. It’s simple but difficult to master, especially as you start to encounter the dangerous hazards like spikes, spinning saw blades, lasers, and other crazy things. So as you dash into a wall and then start to fall, you’ll want to wait until the right moment to squeeze through a tight passage or just get right above spikes to collect those precious coins sitting on top of it. The game is all about timing and precision with the intuitive controls and accessible gameplay.
While you can make progress without earning stars on stages in Story Mode, you’ll want to get those stars if you want to unlock heads (think hats) for Blitz. These are just for aesthetics and the collector in you, so don’t expect Blitz to gain some new godly power just because of a new head. Additionally, there are even some heads that are even more awesome but harder to find and collect, so make sure to explore everything as you go. Plus, there are secret warp zones, which just make things even more fun.
I’m still in the early stages of Blitz Breaker, but I’m truly loving the game so far. The nostalgic graphics warm my heart, the music is amazing, and the controls are super accessible so you can play the game from anywhere at anytime. The unique platformer mechanics breathe new life into the platformer genre, and while it starts off easy enough, the gradual difficulty increase is rewarding in the end. All-in-all, Blitz Breaker is a solid choice for those who want a new platformer game in their life.
I recommend checking out Blitz Breaker if you’re a fan of twitchy reflex and platformer games. You can find Blitz Breaker on the App Store as a universal download for your iPhone and iPad for just $2.99. There are no in-app purchases, and the game is well worth the admission price.
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Get To The Throne in This Charming and Challenging Retro Puzzler
November 08, 2016 by macjeff
To The Throne ($1.99) by Raredrop Games Ltd is a retro-inspired minimalist puzzle game that is full of royal challenges. If you like games that make you think and are full of charm, then To The Throne is definitely one that you should be picking up this week.
Since I grew up as a ‘90s kid, one of the things that I always carried around with me was my Game Boy handheld system. Those things were durable, ran on easy-to-replace disposable batteries, and gave me hours of entertainment every day as I played whatever games were available to me at the time. So even with all the advances in modern video game graphics, I will always have a place in my heart for the classic retro pixel art style and even the monotonous green color palettes before the colored Game Boys arrived. Of course, when I saw To The Throne on the App Store, I knew I had to check it out because it looks like a total blast from the past (like the recent Blitz Breaker) that I always welcome, and it’s a puzzle game — seriously, how can I resist?
Visuals in To The Throne are completely vintage and delightful, taking me back to my childhood. The game features super simple pixel art designs that make you feel like you’re in the ‘90s again, but are still detailed enough to be modern. The color palette of bright and deep, dark greens screams retro, though it is a bit bolder than what I remember from the golden days of gaming. There are also different designs in the background that represent the areas that you’ll be going through as you help guide a young king to his true throne. To top everything off, To The Throne has an awesome medieval chiptune soundtrack that is an absolute treat to listen to, so I recommend getting your earbuds for this game. Raredrop Games did a great job in recreating the classic Game Boy-esque style into a challenging puzzle game.
Since To The Throne falls into the puzzle game category, it is level-based as you’d expect from the genre. At the moment, there are 52 stages spread out across six different areas. To The Throne tells the story of a young king, King Kingsly, who must overcome difficult trials in order to earn the right to his true throne with the help of his royal advisor, Bitsworth. The game starts out simple enough, but as you advance through the puzzles, you’ll find that things get pretty tricky as you go.
The objective in each stage is to reach the throne, as well as collect any pieces of the shattered Royal Emblem that you come across. However, getting to the throne is difficult, as it is usually perched up on some unmovable blocks (the X indicates this). However, King Kingsly can pick up other blocks and move them to a different spot to create pathways to the throne. To move or turn left or right, just tap on the directional buttons in the bottom left section of the screen. To pick up a block, tap on the button in the bottom right corner. When Bitsworth speaks, you can continue the dialogue (he gives you some tips) by tapping on the speech bubble button, or skip it with the decline button.
While it sounds easy enough (you’re just picking up and moving blocks), it’s not always what it seems. You start with white blocks that can be picked up and then just put down right in front of you, even if there is nothing underneath (magical floating blocks). But then you’ll find black blocks that are not able to be placed in midair, clear blocks, and much more. As each new type of block is introduced, you’ll have to tinker around with it before you can figure out how to solve the puzzle. It forces you to think carefully and plan out your moves, because who knows? Some blocks may only be used once, or something along those lines.
To make things even more of a challenge, each level will show a timer at the top as well as how many moves you’ve made so far. In this game, moves only includes the number of times you’ve interacted with blocks, not when you just move your character left or right. When you complete the stage, you will be awarded up to three stars depending on how many moves you made — the fewer the better. You can also strive to solve a level as fast as possible, or use as few moves as possible, since these are two separate factors in the final score. The puzzles can be solved through trial-and-error, and there is a good amount of replay value since you will want to improve your time or use fewer moves than before. I recommend taking your time on the first attempt to learn the solution, then just do it quicker the next time around.
My only issue with the game so far is the fact that the timer starts counting down as soon as you see the next stage. Personally, I don’t think this is fair and the timer should countdown after you start moving the King around. But I suppose with the timer starting as soon as the level loads, it makes you act quickly and not just sit around.
While I’m still pretty early on in To The Throne, I’m enjoying it so far. The visuals are great, though the colors are a bit more vibrant than actual Game Boy tones, the medieval chiptunes are rad, and the controls are simple to pick up but difficult to master, of course. My only qualm with the game is the immediate startup of the timer, so maybe the developer can change that in the future. But other than that, I love the challenge that To The Throne offers.
I recommend checking out To The Throne if you’re a fan of retro-inspired puzzle games that are a great homage to the days of the Game Boy. To The Throne is on the iPhone App Store for just $1.99. There are no in-app purchases.
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Fulfill the Prophecy as the Warrior of Light in Mobius Final Fantasy
November 08, 2016 by macjeff
MOBIUS FINAL FANTASY (Free) by SQUARE ENIX INC is the latest free-to-play Final Fantasy title from the company, with the other recent one being Final Fantasy Brave Exvius. If you can’t get enough Final Fantasy in your life and don’t mind the free and social RPG aspects, then Mobius is a decent addition for your collection.
Even though Final Fantasy originated back in 1987, I did not start playing the games until they began to make Game Boy remakes of the classics, from the original Final Fantasy to Final Fantasy VI. These Game Boy remakes came out while I was in high school, and I’ve been a big fan of the franchise since then, though I have been rather disappointed with the newer series of games, such as Final Fantasy XIII and even what I’ve tried of the FFXV demo. Despite recent let downs, I am still eager when I hear or see any new Final Fantasy game coming to the App Store, so I had to check out Mobius. Plus, it’s been on my watch list for a long time, ever since it was first announced.
While previous mobile Final Fantasy stuck with the familiar pixel art sprites and visuals, Mobius goes with the more modern, 3-D graphics that the Final Fantasy games are known for these days. The game features beautiful animated cutscenes that explain the plot as you go, and there is full voice dialogue in it too. Even though some of the lines are rather cheesy, I thought the voicing was well done. However, while the graphics for the cutscenes are superb, the visuals for moving forward to the next battle are kind of rough. Of course, we are dealing with a mobile Final Fantasy game and not a PlayStation 4, so I am just nitpicking. If you can get past the fact that the graphics are not optimal to console standards, then it’s still fine for a mobile game. All of the characters are dressed outlandishly in typical Final Fantasy fashion, and enemies have their unique appearances. Animations are fairly smooth, especially during battle, but I did experience some choppiness every now and then but it didn’t interfere with the game too much. The soundtrack and sound effects are familiar Final Fantasy fare, so if you’ve played the games before, the victory battle fanfare tune will bring a smile to your face.
Unlike traditional Final Fantasy games, don’t expect any world exploration in Mobius. This is a bit disappointing, because I love the exploration aspect of the older Final Fantasy games, so I was hoping to see it here, but I guess we can’t always get what we want. Instead, Mobius has a world map and players go through the game one stage at a time, as long as you have enough stamina (energy system) to do so. Each level features several different waves of enemies that you’ll have to overcome in order to progress. Sometimes the level will just contain many small monsters, other times there will be a mix, or there may just be one big boss battle. No matter what, though, you’ll just be running headlong into the fight, and there isn’t any exploration factors in Mobius whatsoever. It reminded me of how the first 15 to 20 hours of FFXIII was, which I hated and couldn’t get past.
The combat system in Mobius is based on decks of special ability cards that you can create for each type of job that you unlock. The jobs follow in the old-school Final Fantasy class system, and you can freely change jobs as often as you feel like it, though you do have to level each one up individually. The cards that you obtain as rewards from battle represent a unique spell or skill that you can use in combat, and some can only be used with certain jobs, so make sure to keep an eye out for compatible cards. You can have up to five cards for each job, and cards can be upgraded or fused for more potent effects.
During battle, just tap on the screen to do a basic attack on your foes. You can just attack the enemies in the order that the combat system picks, or you can manually select your target to take out bigger threats first. For each of your turns, you can chain up to three attacks together, whether they’re basic or special attacks. You will be able to pick up elemental orbs from enemies after each hit, which fill up the gauge for your special ability cards. Once a skill is ready to be used, you can tap on the buttons on the side of the screen to activate it. The orbs you collect can also fill up your elemental drive gauge, which is the circle at the bottom. When this is full, you can activate an elemental drive, which lets you absorb an element to become resistant to it, and there is also a healing drive for when you’re in a pinch.
If you don’t feel like doing the work yourself, there is also an Auto-Battle button that you can toggle, which can be turned off at any time by tapping on the screen. And you can choose whether to be in Defense or Attack mode, which affects how much damage you take when the enemies have their turn to attack. It’s important to note that enemies have a standard HP bar, but there is also a bar underneath their health that indicates their limit break — once the red bar is depleted, you’ve broken their defense and they’re vulnerable, so take advantage of that for devastating attacks.
While one may think that the battle system is pretty easy, it’s also a test of strategy. That’s because before you start each stage, the level detail box tells you the element of the enemies, as well as what the boss battle contains. You’ll want to pay attention to this bit of information so that you can equip cards that use an element that it is weak against, rather than resistant to (fire is weak to water, for example). Each job also specializes in certain types of orbs, so you want to make sure that you have skills that can be filled up quickly enough so you can do enough damage in a short amount of time.
After battles, you’ll earn gil and experience points for both the job you are using and the cards in your deck. Items like Phoenix Downs can revive you if you fall in battle, and Elixirs can restore all of your stamina. Bosses will leave behind chests full of valuable loot that you can use, including special tickets. However, there is also a shop in the game where you can buy Magicite (premium currency) through in-app purchases, and the Magicite is what you use to buy more special items and cards. Gil is used for fusions and upgrading cards.
So far, I’m enjoying Mobius Final Fantasy because it’s an intuitive and fun mobile Final Fantasy game. The graphics are gorgeous, the music and voice acting is spot on for the franchise. However, there were some things that annoyed me. First, the tutorial, while it is necessary to explain the basics, is a bit too long for my tastes. And there is no option to skip the beginning parts of the tutorial either, and it forces you to use abilities and cards when you don’t necessarily want to. Everything also feels a bit convoluted since there is so much going on in terms of game menus and different options and configurations, so it’s rather confusing at first. I also wish that the graphics were a bit more optimized in the actual game, because the cutscenes look better if you look closely enough. And finally, the game never warns you that you’ll have to download a bunch of updates and game files before you can even start playing, and it requires a constant connection (Wi-Fi recommended) to play, which may be a problem for some people who don’t have a lot of cellular data to spare.
I recommend giving Mobius Final Fantasy a try if you have an itch for a mobile Final Fantasy game right now and just want something to hold you off until Final Fantasy XV comes out in the fall. And even if you aren’t usually into free-to-play social RPGs, Mobius is still unique enough to try, even for a little bit.
Mobius Final Fantasy is available on the App Store as a universal download for your iPhone and iPad for free with in-app purchases. It is recommended for iPhone 5 or later, iPad 3rd gen or later, iPad mini 2 or later, and 6th generation iPod touch or later with at least iOS 7.0 and above.
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