Genius Block: free puzzle app for iphone, ipad

Genius Block is a puzzle app for kids. There are 45 levels to remove the big red block down the hole.

I've done 12 of them. Strictly for kids. But that's okay.

ComboFlame: puzzle game app for iphone, ipad

ComboFlame comes from Jerome Lulling. The object is to set all the wooden tiles on fire.

To start, tap on any wooden tile to ignite it. Then choose the next one that is connected either verically, horizontally or diagonally. Note: the flame cannot cross over empty spaces.

I have played 1 set of 20 puzzles. After that, a new, randomly generated set of 20 puzzles is created that matches the same difficulty level.

I play-tested this on the ipad. The top level is a bit cut off. I'm guessing this problem does not exist for the iphone or ipod.

The Maestosities: The Coolest Band Ever

http://www.maestrosities.com/

This past Saturday night, I attended the premiere showing of a tv pilot starring the band The Maestrosities. My friend Rod Kimball is in it. He's the nerdy one playing the trumpet.

About 2 months ago, The Maestrosities sent me an email via Kickstarter. I kicked in $25 which got me a t-shirt of the band and the VIP screening.

The 25 minute tv show was FABULOUS. After the screening, the band performed for about 30 minutes.

See this band!

Enneaglyphs: sudoku variation puzzle app for iphone, ipad

Enneaglyphs is a version of sudoku. As the line zigzags, the numbers 1 - 9 follow in the correct sequence. However, you can't tell which is the head & which is the tail.  Of course the middle # must be 5.

I've gotten tired of sudoku - even the variations. But maybe you have not.

Enneaglyphs is a free puzzle app. Try it.

Lookout Blizzard: iphone, ipad puzzle game

Danielle Cervantes recently contacted me from The App Company to tell me about their puzzle game app Lookout Blizzard. Lookout Blizzard is a dexterity maze puzzle game.  The object is to tilt the snowball to the exit, while picking up snowflakes. On some levels, the object is just to not get hit for 30 seconds or 60 seconds.

Seems easy and typical. It's not! First, you must avoid the barnfires - obviously bad for a snowball. Then you have to avoid the shooting comets that can come from any direction. Water balls also fly across the screen; they slow you down temporarily if they hit you. Same for the flying dirtballs. 

There are 60 levels. At the moment I've done the first 47 levels. This is surprisingly fun. My only qualm is when you die: the screen image shakes violently.

Yesterday, when I woke up, the first thing I did was play this game. High praise indeed.

Lookout Blizzard quite possibly makes it onto the list of Best Puzzle Apps of 2012. That list will be revealed on New Year's Eve.

 

 

Shift 2: free puzzle app for iphone, ipad

Shift 2 is an inversion maze puzzle. There are 120 levels. It came out July of last year, and somehow I missed it. Shift 2 has been downloaded over 1,000,000 times.

I've spent about 45 minutes and got through levels 1 - 8. Considering the price, it's pretty good value.

This game/puzzle may not be free forever, so download it soon.

Slant Puzzle Free

Slant Puzzle Free comes from WiseGuy Sharp LLC. He/they has/have come out with 6 or 7 new puzzle apps all at once.

Tap on every square to make one diagonal line - either a positive or a negative slope. Each circled number must have that many diagonals touching it.

Simple concept, fun stuff. I've done a whole bunch of these at the 5x5 Easy & Hard levels. The 12x10 feels  like the squares are  bit too small even on the ipad. I have not experimented with the custom levels.

This game needs a timer and a leaderboard. I particularly like doing the 5x5 easy & hard levels as quickly as possible.

Super Numbers: puzzle app for iphone ipad

The Object of Super Numbers is to tap on some tiles that add up to the number on top.  Keep doing this until the board is empty.

My first impression: too simple and easy. My second impression: the game gets harder and the time seems to go faster.

Right now my high score is 75,100 which places me in 11th place. LaurenSSD is in first place with 286,200.

I have a feeling that I'll be playing this again.

Everybody: this game is surprisingly fun. And it's free. So download it.

Qallamath: free puzzle app for iphone, ipad

Quallamath is a math puzzle that will appeal to younger puzzlers. I'm thinking middle & high school students.

The object is to get the answer quickly.  Nothing terribly hard.

The hardest part is finding the next number in a sequence.

Hey, it's free. So give it a shot.

Fan Mail

LinkedIn

Anne Cole has sent you a message.

Date: 10/05/2012

Subject: Puzzle master of the modern age

Hi Tom,
Somehow linkedin decided that we should be "linked". How this happened I have no idea, BUT my husband, David who refuses all frivolities such as facebook, etc. has talked about you for the last few months as being his idol. He faithfully reads your blog, he checks out all your recommendations and he tells me that you are one of the smartest people around. Even I, a violinmaker who has no time for puzzles, is at the moment addicted to Beecells. David looks forward to your Blog every day and admires your abilities and work ethic from afar. David thinks of you as his friend and I am sure lots of other folks do as well! Keep it up!!
Anne Cole

 

Anne & I have since exchanged emails and compared high scores in BeeCells. Mine is 452, Anne's is 757 and David has cracked 1500. Reality check: I think Anne & David have proven to be much smarter than I.

Check out Anne's website: http://annecoleviolinmaker.com/

Update 10/9: my new high score for BeeCells is 484.

Crazy Unblock My Car: free ripoff of Rush Hour

It's almost impossible to keep track of all the ripoffs of Rush Hour. This one is the latest.  The puzzles are good.

The company's website has a very cool set of graphics.

Sudoku Revolution: fee puzzle app for iphone, ipad

Sudoku Revolution is extremely well designed. In terms of the puzzles: there are the traditional sudokus, and the jigsaw sudokus (see the image on the left). And of course the X versions where the diagonals have that same sudoku property.

Here's what I particularly like about Sudoku Revolution: the chart at the bottom left indicates how many 7's & 9's etc are already on the board. If you tap on that chart  - let's say 1 - all the 1's on the board get circled.

Did I mention that Sukoku Revolution is free?

SudoFeud: free puzzle app game for ipad, iphone

 

SudoFeud is point scoring game that you must play against an opponent.

It's very difficult to describe. I recommend that you watch this video.

In short, SudoFeud works a bit like Scrabble. Especially with double & triple scoring points. This is a very sophisticated.

I have not play tested this. Sorry, I'm just too busy. Also, I need to play against a 'friend'. Which I have none of! That's what happens when you spend your whole existence play testing puzzle apps for a blog that nobody reads. So: download this, send me an email and we can schedule a time to play-test this.

Roel Griffioen is the author of SudoFeud. He also made a great puzzle app called Jump! about 2 years ago.

Casland Games: part II of the review

Check out this image. Two weeks I wrote about the mechanical version of this bead sliding puzzle.
There is another mechanical version shaped with these 2 loops.

 

 

Look up: Moeraki Games on the app store. There are three different versions. One is the Lite version. Another is $.99.  The best of course is the full version at $2.99.  Check out how intricate those puzzles are.

As my mechanical puzzle collection grows. I often wonder: do I need every version of a puzzle concept. And which is better: to own the mechanical version or the virtual version.

In the case of Casland Games' Moeraki puzzles: I want them all!

One more thing: when you buy the mechanical version, it will come with a DVD that will install the game on your computer.

200,000 hits

Puzzle App fans: this blog is going to get its 200,000th hit today. If you're the one, take a screen shot, send it to me and win a prize.

Thanks for making this blog a success.

Double Maze: free puzzle app for iphone, ipad

Double Maze is a series of 40 maze puzzles. As you can see, the object is to get both orange balls to the white target at the same time.

Notice the yellow lines? That enables you to move one ball while the other ball is held in place.

Double Maze is not terribly hard. I've solved all of the levels. #40 was very difficult.

You have the option to create your own levels and share them. I have not explored this too much. But I have noticed that some people created levels that were humorously too easy.

Gary at Bouncing Ball Games tells me that the ads will be removed next month.

Gemibears: point scoring puzzle app

Gemibears is a point scoring puzzle app. Tap on 2 bears that have opposite colored halves to make 1 whole bear. The bears must be adjacent.

Also, you may slide rows across and columns up and down in order to get 2 specific gemibears next to each other.

Gemibears is a fun game - for kids.  Right now I'm more interested in this company's true puzzle app, which I'll write about later.

ManyMoves: free puzzle app for iphone ipad

My friend Sjaak Griffioen from the Netherlands created ManyMoves - an interesting puzzle app that is free for the iphone & ipad.

At first, I thought it was similar to some other puzzle apps: slide the rows & columns to make a pattern. That's been done at least 10 other times.

However, ManyMoves gets much harder. Tap on the edge of 2 neighboring pieces and they stay in place, but flip 180 degrees.

Tap on the corner intersection of 4 pieces and they rotate.

I have played ManyMoves at the easy level - it's easy.  At the hard level - I got stuck with 3 pieces that had to be flipped, rotated and swapped. Crazy hard!

ManyMoves is definitely worth downloading.

Eleminis: free puzzle app for iphone, ipad

Eleminis is a game that is very similar to Rock, Paper, Scissors. The difference: this game has 5 Elements.  Look at the tutorial.

You are given an element to play, one at a time. Swap it with something weaker. When you get all 5 elements in a row, that row will turn yellow.

The object is to get the whole board to be yellow.

This is a very interesting, great concept. The only problem is trying to memorize which element beats which. You can always click on the i icon for that chart.

I found that to really play this game, you'd need another screen. Or copy the rules on some paper.

There is a Lite version. Give it a try.

Eleminis is better known as a card game.

iCell The Game: free puzzle app for iphone, ipad

The object of iCell is to solve a series of different types of puzzles by moving your cell that resembles a sperm cell.

The first objective is to get it food, then to fertilize an egg, then to protect the zygote from predators.  The next level is to avoid sliding bars.

The tricky thing is to manipulate the cell. That's a bit tricky.

This game/puzzle is very weird. Perfect for somebody in a mental ward.

SquareA Free: free puzzle app for iphone, ipad

SquareA is a point scoring puzzle app from Smileypop.  You are given 3 tiles at a time and must place them in the grid to match tiles already on the board.  All tiles have just 2 colors. Except for the center tile which has 4 tiles. The game starts with that tile.

In terms of scoring, if you can get a large area to match, it creates a large scoring combination.

I've played SquareA about 5 times. I have not analyzed the game completely. For example, I'm still unsure about the scoring rules. Also, I'm not sure if there is an equal distribution of colored tile combinations.

SquareA is a free puzzle app. Give it a shot!

Casland Games: mechanical puzzle review

Casland Games has produced two terrific sequential movement bead puzzles.

Many years ago I got the Hungarian Rings, which I believe was the first bead sliding puzzle. Fun. Rubik's Rings was identical but incorporated a twist so that the rings, instead of being flat, were almost perpendicular. Essentially the same puzzle.

One of my favorites of this genre is The Orb. Great mechanism.

Enough history.

I just got Casland Games' 3 intersecting rings. It consists of 3 colors and some clear beads that must settle in the middle. First of all, the puzzle is big. The beads are big. They slide perfectly. 

I have the version of 3 intersecting rings. I've solved it several times.

I'll write more about this next Friday.

Deja Vu HD: free puzzle app for iphone, ipad

Check out this eyeball. Great artwork.

Deja Vu HD is a super fast version of that old card game I played when I was 5: Concentration.  I didn't think I'd like this version.  But I  do.  Here's why: the tiles turn over very briefly. Maybe .3 seconds.  The object is to find all the matches within the given time.

I've solved all the free levels - 16 of them. After that you can pay for the next 64 levels.

Deja Vu HD is surprisingly fun.

Lab Mice Puzzles: in NYC

Kidding Around is a fabulous toy store that now sells Lab Mice Puzzles. Their store on 15th St off 6th avenue carries it.  Unfortunately, their other store at Grand Central Terminal does not.

Lab Mice Puzzles used to be sold in a cardboard box, but it's now sold in a fancy tin.

Pile: puzzle app for iphone, ipad

Pile comes from the makers of SEQ, which is a terrific, fun puzzle app.

Pile is quite different. The object is to drag tiles down, in groups of two, down to the grid. Try to get 3 of the same color in a row or column to score points.

You only have a certain amount of time, so hurry!

Click here to see a 1 minute video demonstration.

Dedale: puzzle app for iphone, ipad Review

Dedale is a series of challenging maze topology puzzles. The object is to turn the white squares into a color by tracing a path over each square exactly once.

Harder levels: some squares must be passed over twice.

Interesting element: some of the tiles are rectangles.

I've played different versions of this type of puzzle before: Numeric Paranoia comes to mind. Dedale has 100 levels. Right now I'm stuck on level 49.

The most important thing: Dedale is fun and challenging.

Sergey Mohov is the developer. Click here.

World's Largest Hand-Drawn Maze

Today's Wall Street Journal has this interesting article.

The journalist had the good sense to interview Adrian Fisher who is one of the world's most prolific maze designers.

Charaku: free puzzle app for iphone, ipad

Matthew Laird recently contacted me about his puzzle app Charaku. It is essentially sudoku. Instead of numbers or letters, you get colored Characters. Can you figure out how Matthew came up with the name?

Perhaps you're teaching your son or daughter to play sudoku....they might prefer this version.

The easy levels are super easy. The hard levels appear hard. Though I have not play tested them.

Charaku is a free puzzle app, so give it a shot.

Click here for his website.

How dedicated a puzzler are you?

One of my 'followers' is Matt Hastings. He sometimes emails me to alert me to puzzle apps I may have overlooked. Such was the case recently when he told me about a puzzle app called Nightjar, which is only available in the UK.

Matt has set up Apple accounts in the USA, Australia and the UK, to ensure that he can get every good puzzle app.

At first, I felt bad that I couldn't download Nightjar. Then I remembered that there are about 225 new puzzle apps every week and I don't have enough time to scrutinize them all - though I try.

Matt's stragegy: 'I originally set up my US account so that I could download the Scrabble app, which wasn't available in the UK. I had to put in a full address including ZIP code, but as I've never been to the US I had to make one up so put my address as 1 Hollywood Boulevard, LA 90210! I had to include a phone number too so just googled the ZIP code and used the first business number that came up. I've no idea if this is legal or not, but as I'm not using it to stream TV or anything, I can't imagine I would get into much trouble for it!'

SeeWhatIC

This eyeball is awesome!

The object of the puzzle is to use some of the letters to form a common phrase.
The solution to the puzzle on the left: cliff hanger.

SeeWhatIC is good word/picture puzzle.

World's Hardest Game 2: free puzzle app for iphone, ipad

The World's Hardest Game 2 is a coordination dexterity maze. As you move the solid blue square to its home, the solid red square will move in the opposite direction.

Pick up the purple stars. Avoid the red lines which are stationary or moving back and forth or up and down.

There are 72 levels. I've done the first 15.

Click here for the web page. Note: if you're trying to find this on the app store, do a search for 17th pixel.

This puzzle app is just plain fun!

Color Pop Pro: free puzzle app for ipad, iphone

Color Pop Pro is a point scoring puzzle app. Click on a square that connects horizontally & vertically to same-colored balls. They will disappear, you will score points and you are given a strict time limit.

My high score after playing for about 45 minutes is 4152. I'm in the top 5%. However, the high score is 24,000.

Color Pop Pro is a free and fun puzzle app.

Vubu: puzzle app for iphone, ipad Review

Vubu is interesting and tough! The object is to move the tiles onto the blue square.

Sliding 1 tile in any direction will make all the other tiles do the same.

Those are the regular 'Nomad' tiles. The 'Blind Man' tile won't move unless a Nomad is next to him. The 'Wise Man' will not fall off the grid. The 'Stone Man' and 'Dragon Man' have their own rules.

Vubu has a lite version that includes just 10 levels. You will be challenged.

I bought the full version for $1.99. Right now I'm stuck on levels 13 & 14. I am humbled.

Does Vubu make it onto the list of Best Puzzle Apps of the year? I think so.