Fiz: free puzzle app game for iphone, ipad

     

Nozomu Suzuki is the author of Fiz, a free puzzle app game for the iphone, ipad. The objective is to get all the discs to be either red or blue by jumping over each other. Look at the second image. See the red disc in the top right? Slide it toward the left - over the two blue discs. They will turn red.  Then slide the third red disc on the second row to the right.
An alternate solution is to turn everything blue.


What makes Fiz interesting is that you never know whether it's easier to get a red solution or a blue solution. For the harder levels, only 1 solution exists.


There are 50 levels and I'm stuck on level 45, which I'm convinced is impossible. I believe that I've tried every combination of moves. If you manage to solve 45 - send me the solution please.
https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/fiz/id902142288?mt=8


8/26/14 Update: Andrew Juell,recently sent me the solution to level 45. Thanks! And now I've completed all 50 levels. I liked Fiz, but also feel relieved that there weren't too many levels. I like the sense of accomplishment.

21 Dice: point scoring puzzle app game for iphone, ipad

 

21 Dice is a point scoring puzzle app that involves a little luck. The object is to score 21 on each of the dice. The more times you do it, the higher your score.
The first time a die reaches 21, you get 1 point. The next time, you will score 2. You get the idea.
Pay attention: suppose a die has reached 21 for the 10th time. That die will not go back to zero, it will now start at 10.
I was skeptical about this game. But I think it's pretty good. I've played it about 20 times now. My high score on the classic mode is 577. Which I think is pretty good. Right now there's no leaderboard.
https://itunes.apple.com/app/21-dice/id903927447?mt=8
http://www.bitstern.com/

TAPES - Simple & minimal, beautiful puzzle: free puzzle for iphone, ipad

  

I got an email yesterday from my fellow puzzle app blogger Nicola Salmoria. He alerted me to this little masterpiece called 'Tapes - Simple & Minimal...' I dropped the other puzzle apps to focus on this one.

Yohei Sato is the author and he gives no rules or explanations. The pictures tell the whole story: stretch & bend the ribbons to cover all the squares. The number on each ribbon indicates how many other squares it can cover.
There are 72 levels and I solved them all. Tapes is reminiscent of Colorbind from 2010. Colorbind had a different objective and could be insanely difficult. But the ribbon concept first appeared there.
Tapes has some easy levels; others are really tough.
Without a doubt, Tapes makes it on to the List of Best Puzzle Apps of 2014.  Reminder: that list will be published in December. Great job Yohei!
https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/id904554578
http://qudan.net/game/

Paths of Light: puzzle app game for iphone, ipad

The folks at http://ninemagics.com/ made Blockswipe last year, which I positively loved.


Recently they contacted me about their new game Paths of Light.

                                  

Paths of Light is a topology puzzle app game. You must swipe all the white tiles without lifting your finger. Start at the purple square and end on the yellow square. As you go over the white squares, they will turn blue.  The red squares are portals.

We've seen many puzzle apps like this before. What's different? The pink tile will shift back and forth when you land on it.  A green tile allows you to land on it repeatedly.

There are exactly 100 levels and I did them all in about 1 hour. (I've done so many of these in the past.)

There's another element to this app: remember the puzzle 100 Floors? There's something similar here. I got nowhere on the first set of doors!

Bottom Line: I like Paths of Light. But not as much as Blockswipe.

https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/paths-of-light/id889656045?mt=8

ilabyrinthe: free puzzle app game for iphone, ipad

ilabyrinte, also known as Le Labyrinthe, is a series of mazes. Your task is to get to the exit. However, at each intersection, your movements are restricted.

There was another game very similar. It had a tank theme. This game has a lot of ads.

https://itunes.apple.com/app/ilabyrinth/id380886785?mt=8

Flip Puzzle Game: free puzzle app game for iphone, ipad

 

Flip Puzzle Game reminds me of the coins in a line bar bet. For example, suppose you have 3 nickels & 3 quarters: can you get all the nickels to one side by moving 2 coins at a time?
Flip Puzzle Game is very similar. You must match the image on top by rotating - as a group - any number of sticks.
For example, in the image shown above, the solution is to grab the 2 leftmost sticks and rotate them.
The puzzles get tough.
There are 100 levels and I've only done the first 21. It's a great concept, but, like the coins in a line, I don't feel compelled to solve them all.
https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/flip-puzzle-game/id870785684?mt=8

Tentaizu: free puzzle app game for iphone, ipad

Tentaizu is very similar to Minesweeper. The objective is to find all 10 stars. Naturally, if you see a Zero, tap all the cells around it once. If you can prove that there's a star, tap twice.


I have not played Tentaizu much. The easy & normal levels are easy if you've already done hundreds of minesweepers before. The Hard levels - whoa - I think there's some guessing involved.


https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/tentaizu/id531679066?mt=8

Rubpix: free puzzle app game for iphone, ipad

 

Rubpix is another sliding tile puzzle. You must slide the rows & columns to match the image at the very top center.
There are 150 levels ranging from 3x3 grids to 8x8. The concept is not original. We've seen this type of puzzle app at least 2 dozen other times. Nevertheless, the graphics are good and young puzzlers should enjoy this.
https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/rubpix/id865212593?mt=8

Paper & Light: free puzzle app game for iphone, ipad

 

Paper & Light has 80 semi-dark mazes. Your task is to find the exit. You will have to use your firefly to look around. At no time can you see the whole board at once.  In addition, there is a sokoban element where you will have to move boxes out of the way. Unlike sokoban, you are permitted to move more than 1 box. 
Of the 80 levels, I've done 6 of them. Interesting concept.
https://itunes.apple.com/app/id755390888?mt=8

Stroke!: puzzle app game for iphone, ipad

Puzzle app players: you know that I like topology type puzzle apps. Nicola Salmoria alerted me to Stroke! The object is to make one stroke (swipe) through the entire grid so that the colors match the sequence on top. Stroke! is similar to Chemin and Mortal Coil. It's tough!
Look at the tiny squares on top. The first 5 are: red, blue, yellow, green, yellow. Now look at the big grid. See those red squares that are outlined? You do NOT have to start your sequence in them. However, those two must be red.
There are 162 puzzle levels. They start out very simple with 2x2 grids. Some of the 3x3 grids get tough. There are 2 other modes in the game. Look at the second image. See the arrow? When you pass over that square, your next move is up.  See the yellow/pink curved arrows? That means that when you pass over that square, the pink & yellow outlined squares will switch to the other.



At first, I thought that the Curved Arrows mode was a gimmick just to remember that to do the opposite. However, some of the puzzles have multiple Curved Arrows like this: blue/yellow and yellow/red. In this situation, a red could become just a yellow, and it could then become a blue - depending on the sequence. Extremely hard.
Each puzzle can be solved with a hint: if you choose, the first and last square will be revealed.
I really like Stroke! Stroke! is definitely one of the Best Puzzle Apps of 2014.
For some reason, nobody is playing it. I guess the $.99 is just too prohibitive for some folks. The author is Ryo Takanezawa. He's got some other games too. Must investigate. Fortunately, they do not have titles like Heart Attack! or Cancer!
https://itunes.apple.com/app/id890725690?mt=8
Read Nicola Salmoria's review

Swipe Dash!: free game for iphone, ipad

Swipe Dash! tests your reflexes. Swipe as fast as you can in 3 different game modes. Great for warding off Alzheimer's.
https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/swipe-dash!/id880482693?mt=8

Fraud Tycoon: crazy puzzle app for iphone, ipad

 

I had trouble sleeping the other night and started playing Fraud Tycoon. It's a Tetris type game. I've never liked Tetris, so I don't like this either. In fact, the graphics are too old-school.


However, I really enjoyed reading what the game was about. 'Fraud Tycoon asks players to step into the shoes of a criminal and compete for the fake currency "Bytecash" to purchase stolen credit cards and actual fraud-enabling tools to build your criminal enterprise.'
https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/fraud-tycoon/id883389908?mt=8

Folt: update

 

It's taken me a while, but I have finally finished all 175 levels of FOLT. This game is not for everybody because there's an element of luck involved. Regarding my high score on the Endless mode, others have surpassed me and now I'm down to 12th place or so.
Read my previous post.
https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/folt/id823039529?mt=8

Two Dots: puzzle app game for iphone, ipad

 

If you look at the first image of TwoDots by Betaworks One, you'll think like I did: another connect the dots point scoring game.  Not exactly.
Look at the second image. If you can get 4 yellow dots to form a square, that will knock out all the yellow squares on the board. 
The object of the game is to solve the 130 levels. Each level will have a slightly different objective. For example, you may be given 20 moves to somehow eliminate 15 yellow dots and 15 red dots. The key strategy, almost always, is to get those square chains, which can be difficult.
At the moment, I'm on level 105 or thereabouts.
Is there a Candy Crush element to TwoDots? Yes, but because there is a lot of randomness and invitations to purchase more lives.
When I run out of lives on TwoDots, I switch to Folt, until I run out of lives on that game.
Both games have a much better than Candy Crush.
TwoDots is fun!
https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/twodots/id880178264?mt=8
http://weplaydots.com/

International Puzzle Party

I've received a bunch of emails regarding The International Puzzle Party. Here's the deal: it's a semi-secret organization that meets once a year. I'm going. I cannot reveal the dates or the location.


If you wish to become a member......well, that's a puzzle in itself. Can you figure out how to get an invitation?

Monsters: Survival of the Fittest: online puzzle game

A couple of years ago I played/solved all of the Cannibal Monsters challenge levels. It's a bit like peg solitaire where one Monster must be left.


In Cannibal Monsters - the physical game, and now Monsters Survival of the Fittest, the objective is the same. The rules of how one monster eats another is based on colors. A bit too awkward to explain without images. The last few days BlogSpot has been giving me a hard time with this.


Suffice it to say, just about everything Raf Peeters does at Smart Games, is challenging and fun!  Last month I reviewed their update of Titanic.


http://www.smartgameslive.com/en/games/monsters/starter
http://www.smartgames.eu/en/smartgames/cannibal-monsters

Sword & Penguin

 

 Louis-Nicolas Dozois recently contacted me about his action puzzle app game Sword & Penguin.
As a puzzle game, you must move blocks around a la sokoban. Some blocks must be pushed onto blue buttons to maneuver the blue walls downward. Same for the red & green buttons/walls.


Other puzzles: you will need to push ice blocks onto the squares that have fire.  I should mention: the object is to first collect the key, then collect the egg. Other obstacles: the electric grid which must be turned off.  Some electric fields toggle on/off every second or so. So you must time your penguin accordingly.


Other features: some squares have cracks. You can traverse over them once, after that, you will fall to your death. Igloos: be careful bumping into them because polar bears will emerge very quickly.


The action part is the polar bear who roams around. You must avoid him. He walks randomly. Sometimes he throws snowballs at you across the grid.
Level 2-10 has a very Pac-Man feel to it. Since I was never good at that game, I skipped that level.
Once you get to level 33, which is Chapter 3, level 1, you will want to get finally pick up the sword in order to kill off the bears.


There's a lot to like about Sword & Penguin. Puzzle-wise, they're not very difficult. But the action element adds to the fun. There are 160 levels.


https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/sword-penguin/id788767327?mt=8
http://www.northernbytes.ca/sp/

Kindly Colors: puzzle app game for iphone, ipad

 

Yan Fauriat contacted me recently about his point scoring puzzle app game Kindly Colors.
The object is to group adjacent colors by themselves or in pairs of colors to get points.


Look at the second image How to Play: you may group purple with red or purple with blue, but never all three at the same time.

See green plus in the third image? If you can group that with some green/blue or green/yellow, then it will eat up all the cells in the column and row.  Now, do you see the red vertical line just under it? Getting that will only eat up the column.


This took me a while to get: if you swipe the longest possible chain on the board, one of the new tiles will be a plus sign. 


My top score is 3900 which puts me in the top 20% of players on the Game Center. When your game ends, you can buy more moves. Which means that you can buy your way to the top.


Still, I like Kindly Colors and will play it some more.


https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/kindly-colors/id879126322?mt=8


Update 7/25/14:
A note from Yan: Just as a precision regarding the quote: "When your game ends, you can buy more moves. Which means that you can buy your way to the top."

Since the update 1.0.1, the "continue/more moves" option is free. Meaning the scoring competition is perfectly fair.


From me: I keep playing this game and cannot top my high score!

Hexxy: board game for iphone, ipad

Tim Derebenskiy contacted me, not recently, but a while ago about his board game Hexxy. It's very similar to an old game whose name escapes me.  The object is to acquire more spaces than your opponent.  There's an Othello feel to the game.

Here's what I particularly like about Hexxy: there are different board shapes. Also, you can play against somebody, or you can play against the computer.


Tim is still in high school!


https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/hexxy/id854750386?mt=8
http://timryanedrees.wix.com/hexxy

G.O.A.T. - Mow it up: free puzzle app game for iphone, ipad

 

Lena from Yellow Dot Mobile recently contacted me about their new puzzle app game G.O.A.T. - Mow it up.


It's a topology type game. Your goal is to draw a path of carrots on the grid so that the goat will cover the whole field.


We've seen this type of puzzle app game numerous times. Here's what's new and very good: The final square will be one of 4 objects: a boot, sandal, tire or fish bone.


There are over 200 levels. I did the 40 Easy Summertime levels pretty quickly. But I did get stumped a few times. G.O.A.T. is a good game!
https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/g.o.a.t.-mow-it-up/id883590463?mt=8

Numberino: free puzzle app game for iphone, ipad

 

Mikhail Mitrofanov is the author of Numberio, a puzzle app game that looks a bit like Thress! and 2048. It's different.


The object is to slide numbers up/down/right/left and combine them with each other and then match the number in the white square.


Look at the third image. See the instructions in English? When I downloaded the game, my instructions came in Russian. No matter, the pictorial rules are straight forward.


You must slide the tiles and combine them to enter the white square. You can slide in all directions. However, the value of the tile which you are sliding will decrease in value. Look at the fourth image. See the 4? If you slide it down, it will become a 2, because it went down 2 squares.

 



I did the first 25 levels. They get hard!


https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/numberino/id884974344?mt=8

SpinIn: puzzle app game

David Tzur recently contacted me about his new puzzle app game SpinIn. I actually play tested this game 4 years ago: http://gottasolveit.blogspot.com/2010/05/spinin-iphone-puzzle-app.html  when I had my ipod touch device. David says that this is an improved version. I thought the old version was terrific.

The object of SpinIn is to tilt/swipe the pieces in 4 directions until the gem can find the exit. It's sometimes possible that another piece will slide out the exit first. This may be advantageous. It may also make it impossible to get your man out.

These puzzles are extremely well designed and quite challenging. Right now I've solved the first 60 levels.


Let's talk money. You can play the first 24 levels for free. After that, you must either wait a certain amount of time, or pay to get instant access.  This will happen every 12 levels. Very similar to the Candy Crush model. I am all for ios game developers asking for money! My sense is that it should be a one time shot of $1.99. Just my opinion.


Without a doubt, SpinIn is one of the best puzzle apps of 2014.



http://spininapp.com/
https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/spinin/id345302029


Update 7/25/2014


I have solved up to level 70. Stuck on 71.


David sent me an image of level 90, which I can't upload. It's a 4x3 grid and the minimum number of moves to solve it is 30.

Stickets: update

Good news and bad news about the point scoring puzzle app game Stickets.


You may recall that I became the second highest scorer of Stickets.


My first blog entry: http://gottasolveit.blogspot.com/2013/07/stickets-puzzle-app-game-for-iphone-ipad.html


Second: http://gottasolveit.blogspot.com/2013/09/stickets-update-on-puzzle-app-game.html


Third: http://gottasolveit.blogspot.com/2014/03/recent-twitter-conversation.html


I showed the game to my father last year and he's been hooked. He plays the game very slowly and super carefully.  When he's in a jam, he puts it down for a few days until he's got 100% concentration.


About 5 months ago, my father got a good start. He's been on that 1 game, still alive and kicking, all this time.  A few days ago he overtook me and became the #2 high scorer.  Would he overtake the #1 scorer? 


Tragedy struck: while recharging his ipad, the program did not save his game. Very mysterious and unfortunate.


I told him to download Folt and give it a try.

Colors Mix: free puzzle app game for iphone, ipad

Colors Mix is a very hard game. Your task is to clear the board of all colors. 


When the game starts, the 4x4 grid will be partly covered with primary colors only: cyan, yellow and magenta. You may move a color to an adjacent  white cell. Or you may combine it with a like colored adjacent cell. That's good. Or you can combine it with a different color to get a secondary color.


See the blue squares with asterisks? The asterisk signifies that it's a secondary color. If you combine them, they get annihilated. Only secondary colors get annihilated. That's how to achieve your objective.


After you make two moves, a new primary color will pop up some place. Hopefully to your advantage. I played 1 game for over 30 minutes and got nowhere! Why? Because you can line up your colors just right, but that new color pops up exactly where you don't want it.


Finally, today, I solved it!  It took 268 moves and just over 6 minutes.  I'm very happy!


Oh yes, I should also mention that that was the easiest of 3 levels. The other 2 levels are basically the same, just harder.


Give Colors Mix a try. I need your opinion as to whether it should join the list of Best Puzzle Apps of 2014.


http://games4mind.com/colorsmix
https://itunes.apple.com/app/it/colors-mix/id893928314

Digits: free puzzle app game for iphone, ipad

 

Here's a description of Digits direct from the iTunes store. My comments are at the bottom:


"Digits is a hypnotic new numbers game.
Clear the board by decreasing all numbers to zero. Tap to decrease a number and the numbers around it. Be careful though because numbers in isolation cannot be decreased. Order of operations matters. (Yes, just like in school!)
And, you'll be solving puzzles along with a soundtrack entirely composed by one of Simple Machine's favorite artists, Mokhov.
Play the first 100 levels for free!
Then challenge yourself further by landing on the star tile.
If you like it, there are 500 more levels available as in-app purchases"

My comments
1. The game is similar in theme to Lights Out. Which is a great and fun concept.
2. Digits is almost the exact reverse of Logisquares http://gottasolveit.blogspot.com/2013/06/logisquares-puzzle-app-game-for-iphone.html which I reviewed last year.
3. I solved the first 15 levels in about 5 minutes. I think these puzzles are too easy. But that's because I really got into Logisquares which is harder for one significant reason, which I won't get into here.
4. The bigger grid sizes are harder, but they're still easy. My task was to solve all 100 puzzles as fast as possible. Altogether, I solved them all in about 25 minutes. Once you solve all the puzzles, you can redo them and try to get a star. A star will appear on a certain square and you will earn it if you make that square the last tap on the board.  Nice concept, but why not put that at the beginning?
5. I don't know who Mokhov is. I always turn the sounds off and listen to my own selections.
6. Give Digits a try. Then go to Logisquares.


http://simplemachine.co/
https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/digits/id740593142?mt=8

Exodus Free! - Unique 2D Puzzle Game

  

Puzzle app friends: I am behind in my reviews. Exodus Free is a perfect example. I thought I blogged about it 2 months ago. An oversight.


Exodus Free is a 'slide your man until he hits a wall' maze puzzle game app. You must get the golden balls. Avoid the spikes. Use the wormholes.


You may recall another puzzle app game: Woodhead. It's very similar. Although Woodhead had some genuine good humor.  There are sticky squares that will halt your progress mid grid. Some blocking squares can be shifted right/left or up/down as many times as you like.

 

Here's what I think is new and original in this concept: the squares that have numbers.  Look at the third image and you will see a 7 & a 6. Those squares can be moved 7 times & 6 times.


I have 1 minor qualm with these puzzles: you must swipe the arrow itself, as opposed to any place on the grid.


If you've enjoyed Quell, you will certainly like this game.  It's almost identical.  If you pass over a red dot, it will turn into an obstacle.
There are 80 levels. I was stuck on 42 for a long time and then forgot about this puzzle app. Right now I'm stuck on level 49 because it won't let me swipe in the direction I want. I believe there's a design flaw here.
https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/exodus-free!-unique-2d-puzzle/id870049714?mt=8


http://theinnovativedev.wix.com/exodus

Hedgehog Gardens: puzzle app game for iphone, ipad

 

Andrea Sabbatini recently contacted me about his new puzzle app game Hedgehog Gardens. This is a very original concept. There are 5 different versions and all of the images about the rules are referring to the easiest version called Back Garden. 

 

The hedgehog rotates from quadrant to quadrant going clockwise and always traveling in a linear direction.  Simply fill the numbers from 1-36.  It takes a few minutes to fully understand the controls, but one you get the hang of it, these go pretty fast.

The Orchard Garden is a little tougher. The hedgehog can randomly go counterclockwise, if he feels like it and then go clockwise.

The Forest is similar but now there are 9 garden squares.

The City allows the hedgehog to take a subway and travel to a diagonal garden, but he must land on a corresponding square. For example, if he's currently in the upper left corner, he will land on the upper left corner of that other garden.

Nitty Gritty: The Back Garden is way too easy. But I solved 40 or so levels, so I got into it.  The harder gardens are more difficult and I've spent 10 minutes solving just 1 level. Hedgehog Gardens will be loved by young puzzlers. But even accomplished puzzlers will find these to be fun.

There are some 1200 levels altogether.

https://itunes.apple.com/au/app/hedgehog-gardens/id870483485?mt=8



Escape the Room article

http://gamasutra.com/view/news/219711/Designing_a_reallife_Escape_the_Room_experience.php


Thanks to Nicola Salmoria for sending me this article.  Escape the Rooms are popping up all over the place.