Denki Blocks: puzzle app game for iphone, ipad Review

Recently I wrote about Tile'M All and Jelly Blocks. Both are rock solid challenging puzzle apps where the object is to get all the colored shapes together.

I've been told that the original concept was known as Denki Blocks.  It's not new. And it's a bit expensive at $4.99. But I think it's well worth it.  Most of the puzzles have 2 objectives: first to get all the colored shapes together. The second, more challenging goal is to make each final shape identical.

There are over 100 levels.  I have not solved them all. I've done about 70 of them.

There is a 'free' version. So give that a test spin. I'm pretty sure you will then get the full version.

Chemin: free puzzle app game for iphone, ipad Review

 Chemin is by Enrique Brandariz:  http://www.enriquebrandariz.com/chemin/CheminEN/Home.html

You are given numbered red squares - already fixed in the grid. Your task is to till the missing numbers so that there is a snake pattern from start to finish.  By the way, the word Chemin means road in French.

The grid sizes are 4x4, 5x5, 6x6 and 7x7.  25 levels per grid size. I raced through them and completed everything within 2 days.

The concept is not new. Marilyn vos Savant, supposedly the smartest person in the world, calls her version Numbrix. So I've been doing these for ages.

Chemin's user interface allows you to play this game very quickly. However, it does not allow you to place the higher numbers first. You must place the smallest numbers first.

Enrique Brandariz tells me that he's working on more levels and there will be an ipad version.

Did I mention that Chemin is free? Download this right away.

7 Planets: free puzzle app game for iphone, ipad - Review

7 Planets comes from Tomislav Puzak of  http://7planets.net
The object is to slide the balls by rows and columns so that all the violet balls are at the top, then the dark blue, blue, green, yellow, etc.

When you swipe, all the balls in that row will travel as far as possible.

It's not hard.  However, young puzzlers should definitely feel challenged. There is a leaderboard to compare your time with the world at large.

I have not played the harder levels that have wooden blocks that are fixed in random places. But I have played it 4 times.  Probably the most interesting thing is the move counter.  If the balls are all randomly placed at the start, what is the minimum # of moves that will solve it? 

I learned about 7 Planets from Apps Gone Free. I don't know how long it will be free, so give it a shot.

TapGem: free puzzle app game for iphone, ipad

TapGem is a very interesting puzzle app game.  The object is to place 4 gems on each colored region and ensure that each row and column has the correct number of gems as indicated. See the left margin and the row of numbers on the top. 

If a number is in black, then you have satisfied the correct number of gems in that row or column. You can then white out the other squares because they cannot have gems.

There are 60 free levels. I've done all the easy and medium levels.  Here's what I don't like: many of these puzzles have multiple solutions: 2, 4 or even more solutions! Major ugh.

When you open a level: some gems are already given to you.

This concept was done not too long ago in another app called 63 Logic Games. Which I don't see on the iTunes store anymore.

I recommend Twin Beams. Much better puzzle app for a variety of reasons. 1. No clues are given. 2. The rules make the puzzles more challenging. 3. ONLY 1 SOLUTION PER PUZZLE.  4. Graphics are much better. 5. Statistics indicate how fast you can solve the puzzles. 6. You get a lot more puzzles for your money. 7. Twin Beams has a button to undo multiple moves. 8. When a row or column or area is complete, it does the mop-up work for you so you can solve them faster.

Back to TapGem: I've been doing the hard levels. What I really like is that the colored areas are split. For example the orange squares are not necessarily connected to each other. I have done 5 of the 20 hard levels. They're good. But still, some of them have multiple solutions.

Here's another way to explain my frustration: have you ever solved a logic problem with clues and a grid?  They go something like this: 5 people live in 5 different houses in a row, and have different dogs.  Mr. Jones does not live on either end but he does own the Dalmatian.  For those kinds of logic problems, there is only 1 correct answer - always. It would be maddening otherwise.

So that's how I feel about TapGem. But I still like it.

Puzzle Blocks HD: free puzzle app game for iphone, ipad

Puzzle Blocks HD is maze type puzzle.  The object is to move your red dot along the black squares to get to the open red circle.  Along the way, pick up the yellow stars.

White squares: can be traversed twice. Black squares disappear after you pass over them.  The blue squares act as a single wormhole. 

There are 20 free puzzles.  I've done them all.  After that, each set costs $.99.

I like this puzzle app.

L-Game: free abstract strategy game for iphone, ipad

Edward de Bono created The L-Game in the 1960s. It's a very simple game to learn. Move your red L to any available spot on the board. You may rotate and flip your piece.  Then move either of the green pieces to another location so that your blue opponent cannot move.

Small board. Simple rules. This game can take a long time to play out. It's a great abstract strategy game for 2 people.

There was another version of this published on the app store. Check my blog from October 2012. That version has a better user interface.

IQ Epilogue: puzzle app game for iphone, ipad

IQ Epilogue comes from http://www.yummy-factory.com/.  This is the same people who made IQ Mission which had 7 or 8 sets of good puzzles.

You are given a map of 3 cities. Each has a set of unique puzzles. 

Look at the second image.  It's a very interesting maze. You are the coin and must get to the gold square. Notice the arrows? When you enter them, they will rotate.  Also the red tiles are connected. Anytime you rotate one red square, they all rotate.

There are 36 of these maze puzzles. Definitely challenging and fun. I'm stuck on level 13 or 14.

Century Puzzle: old time math puzzle, now an app.

Bakos Lucian recently contacted me about his new puzzle app game: Century Puzzle.  The object is to swivel the rings so that each column of numbers adds up to 100.

This is a very old type of puzzle. I have a paper version of this - it was hard to solve. But I did it. I'm not sure where it is, but I think it has 5 rings.

Century Puzzle has 6 rings - a lot more difficult!

There are 100 levels here. I don't expect this puzzle to gain popularity because once you've done 1, there's no urge to do 99 others.  Other shapes would add variety - triangles, maybe a Jewish star.

The graphics are really nice.

Abstract Free: puzzle game to test your speed

Abstract is a game to test your finger speed.  If you choose the color mode, your objective is to tap out all the blue shapes first, then the red, etc.

Alternatively, you could tap out the shapes first.

It's fun for a few minutes.  I think this would be good for old people trying to keep the mind sharp.

Hey, it's a free puzzle app.

Brain Twirler: puzzle app game for ipad, iphone

Nicola Salmoria recently contacted me about his new puzzle app: Brain Twirler. Nicola Salmoria came out with Twin Beams last year. Twin Beams made the prestigious list of Best Puzzles of 2012. Which I still play now and then.


Brain Twirler was inspired by Spin Mix by Ivan Vassilev. I reviewed that about a year ago.

The object is to swivel the rods around the white dots so that the red bar can get to the top. Puzzle 1 takes 1 move, puzzle 2 takes 2 moves... puzzle 50 takes 50 moves.  Puzzles are unlocked in progression, but there are always 4 puzzles unlocked, so if one gets stuck on a puzzle, they can try the next one.

It will be free with ads, with the option to buy hints through in-app
purchases.

Right now I've solved levels 1-25, but I've skipped 2 levels.  Level 25 I did in 87 moves - way over the minimum. This is a very challenging set of puzzles!

Brain Twirler comes out today on the App Store. Nicola sent me a demo version. One of the perks of being a world famous puzzle app blogger! Oh yeah.

Brain Twirler easily makes the List of Best Puzzle Apps of 2013!

KubeZ: free maze puzzle app game for iphone, ipad

KubeZ comes from Michael Scherwin. It's a series of 90 tilt maze puzzles. The object is to get the blue square to the blue arrow.

I did all 90 levels very quickly. Maybe 25 minutes. But I've been doing tilt mazes since forever.  This game is definitely good for young puzzlers.

Hey, it's a free puzzle app!

Troyis: free chess puzzle app game for iphone, ipad

Troyis is a Knight's Tour type of puzzle.  The object is to land on all the white squares as quickly as possible.  Other squares cannot be landed on.

Check out the image of the horse with an attitude.

Many years ago, while taking a boring course, I did the knight's tour for grids 5x5, 6x6, 7x7......14x4.

Troyis is a free puzzle app.

Mate in 3? Ok! - free chess puzzle app game for iphone, ipad

'Mate in 3? Ok!' is the title of this chess app.  The program has 210 problems. There are 10 free levels and I've done them all.  The next 200 levels cost $1.99. Which comes to 1 penny per puzzle.

I know lots of people are reluctant to make such a purchase but are perfectly happy to spend $4.50 on a cup of coffee that lasts 15 minutes.

Nun Attack: shoot 'em up game for ipad

Nun Attack is not a puzzle game app. However, I decided to download it to see what all the fuss was about.

I played the game for about 15 minutes and was able to lead my nuns to shoot and kill monsters.

It's not my cup of tea.  But I did like the concept of nuns toting guns. 2 of the nuns also have a certain sex appeal.  The whole thing is funny.  Reminds me of Grand Theft Auto 2.  I remember trying to steer my car correctly and discovered I got points for crashing into buildings, cars and people.

Tile'M All: free puzzle app game for iphone, ipad

Tile'M All is a free puzzle app game for the ipad and iphone.  It comes from
Dimitry Bogaevsky.  It is not easy!

Look at the first image. The object is to slide the squares around to unite the colors.  The solution to this is easy: slide the green up - it forms a rectangle immediately. Then slide the yellow left - there's another rectangle. Then slide the green left to form the L. Then slide the red up. 

The whole concept seems easy. But I've only been able to do 4 levels.

You can buy the 'hints' which will reveal the end picture.  I haven't done that yet.

If you've played Jelly Blocks or Denki Blocks - this is very similar.

You must give this a try.

Khalou: free puzzle app game for iphone, ipad

Khalou comes from Aurelien Wenger. The object is to turn all the stones white.  To do this, you may reverse the color by swiping a row. Or a column. Or a square 2x2 group.

Khalou is challenging. Hey, it's a free puzzle app game.  Give it a try.

The instructions are in French though.

Pentapuzzle: free puzzle app game for iphone, ipad

Morten Skrubbeltrang recently contacted me from Denmark about his new puzzle app game: Pentapuzzle. 

It's a packing puzzle: fit the pieces into the shape.  I must confess, I have not really play-tested this. But that's because I've done so many packing puzzles in the past.

Hey, it's free! You may enjoy it.

Cannibal Monsters: puzzle game of 48 challenges

Cannibal Monsters comes from the prolific puzzle inventor Raf Peeters of http://www.smartgamesandpuzzles.com/inventor/SmartGames.html
The object is to assemble the red, green and blue monsters onto the grid and then make the monsters eat each other up and end up with 1 big stack.

Scrutinize the feet of the red monsters and you will notice that they fit snugly only on the blue monsters. The blue monsters can fit on top of the green monsters. And to complete the cycle, the green monsters can eat the red monsters.

It's hard to describe. I would just say that Cannibal Monsters has more of a Lunar Lockour feel than a Sudoku feel. At the end you will end up with 1 big stack.  I've enjoyed analyzing the possibilities.  On some, it's possible to determine which monster will be at the bottom, which means he's the only one that never moves.

Of the 48 challenge cards, I've done the first 28. At the moment, I'm stuck on #29.

In recent years there has been a trend of publishing puzzles like this on the itunes store as puzzle apps.  I'm hoping that happens. Still, the tactile feel of these mechanical puzzles are fun!

Click here to purchase.

Polymer: puzzle app game for iphone, ipad

Polymer comes from Whitaker Blackall.  The object is to slide the rows and columns to form big, complete chains.  The bigger the chain, the more points you get. When your polymer is complete, tap on it to collect the points.

There is a speed mode: get the most pts until time runs out.

Polymer has a nice artistic feel to it. 

Signal to the Stars: free puzzle app game for ipad, iphone

Signal to the Stars is a free topology puzzle app game.

The scenario: an alien is stranded. He has a spaceship. Place him on the grid anywhere, then move him horizontally & vertially to cover the grid.  The result will be a weird crop circle that will signal his mothership.

Special features: arrows that determine your movement. Fences that cannot be crossed. Farmers who guard, usually, 3 squares. The farmers must be hit first to free up the other 3 squares.

There are 30 free levels.  After that $.99 for the next 90 levels and another novel feature: picking up a gadget that allows you to convert a bush into grass.

I've done almost all of the 120 levels.

Yowsa! This is a good puzzle app game.

Esi-Code Breakers:

Robert Hardman recently contacted me about his new puzzle app game: Esi-Code Breakers: "On the first level you have to arrange all 5 colours into the correct sequence in order to crack the code. The next level it becomes 6 etc.

By tapping on the screen, it tells you how many colours you have in the correct place, then you use logic/memory skills to work out which ones are correct and which ones you have to move before the timer runs out. The more colours you have in the correct place, the more points you score if the code is not cracked."

You must tap rapidly! I solved the first level.

Give it a try.

Trivia Death Match: Ken Jennings Puzzle Game App

About a month ago I watched Jeopard and was not happy. The topic was geometry and the answer was a triangle with sides 6, 8 & 10. The question from 1 contestant: what is a right triangle. Alex Trebek said 'no, what is a scalene triangle.' Ugh! I immediately switched channels.

A few days ago I got a promo code to play test Trivia Death Match which pits your skills against Ken Jennings.  Each quiz is 20 mulitple choice questions. You get 1000 points for each correct response plus a time bonus for answering quickly.

Ken Jennings took 50 of these quizzes. So you get to compare your score to Ken's.  I've played this 8 or 9 times......and I've lost every time. However, I was close on a few.

Trivia Death Match right now has 50 quizzes and I think they're going to add more.

Normally, this blog focuses on pure logical puzzle apps. However, Trivia Death Match is fun and worth your time!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HItIrFmvH2Y

Dreams of Spirit: Fire Gate - puzzle game app for iphone, ipad

Dani Ohayan from http://www.mercurymaze.com/ has released Dreams of Spirit: Fire Gate.

The best way to describe it: it's like Myst, the game from 1994.

You awake in the center room of a strange building.  You must wander around to find things and solve puzzles.  Hints are given freely if you keep playing.

Look at the second image that says Beautifully Addicting. The door has 3 circles on it.  To open that door, you must align the circles by rotating them. It has a certain Spirograph feel to it. That's an old toy from the 60's that creates artistic patterns.

I have not completed Fire Gate. I've been distracted with the flood of new puzzle apps.

Nevertheless, I really like Fire Gate. Solving 1 of the puzzles was particularly challenging

Islands Planet: puzzle app game for iphone, ipad

Guillaume Ortega & Eric Caginicolau recently contacted me about their new puzzle app game Islands Planet.

You may recall that Guillaume Ortega made Akari 3D last year. It made the prestigous list of Best Puzzle App in 2012.  Such an excellent puzzle app game!

Islands Planet: this is a spherical version of Nurikabe from Nikoli press in Japan.  Each square is either land or ocean. No two islands can touch each other. Diagonal touching is okay.  There cannot be a 2x2 grid that contains only ocean. Also, you cannot create a lake that is enclosed. See the second image for that.

Below is an image of a solved regular Nurikabe puzzle and its solution.

Essentially: each number indicates how many squares are on its island. Islands may touch each other diagonally, but not otherwise.  Now look at the solution: notice that there are no 4 black squares in a 2x2 grid.

That's it.

Islands Planet has exactly the right number of puzzle levels: 20 easy, 20 medium, 20 hard & 20 very hard.  I've done all of them! It took about 2 weeks. I definitely struggled on some of them and had to restart.

Islands Planet is absolutely one of the Best Puzzle App Games of 2013. The graphics are outstanding. Most importantly, the puzzles are fun!

Spinpossible: puzzle app game for iphone, ipad

Eric Kelsic, Alex Sheive and Alex Sutherland from ALX Games recently contacted me about their new puzzle app game: Spinpossible. 

The object is to grab sets of numbers and rotate them to restore order.  If you can grab the first 2 rows, then 1, 2, 3 will become 3, 2, 1 upside down on the second row.

Of course, you could also grab all the numbers 1-9. Or just a column. Or even a single cell.

I like Spinpossible. However, in order to advance, you must get 3 stars for each level.

Spinpossible is a serious puzzle app game. I particularly like the graphics. I have 1 qualm: the user should be allowed to play any and all levels and not have to earn his way step by step.  For example, on another puzzle app, I'm stuck on level 63 & 87. But I did have the opportunity to do #64 - 100.

Sequential Movement Fans: give Spinpossible a chance!

Ship Shuffle: latest ripoff of Rush Hour

Ship Shuffle is the latest ripoff of ThinkFun's Ship Shuffle.  I believe this is the 4th ripoff this year.

On another note, have you signed up as a follower?  Are you playing puzzle apps that I have not reviewed? Feel free to contact me.

nQubed: Rubik's Cube type puzzle app for iphone, ipad

nQubed comes from Gregory R Wathen. Practice your cube solving skills from a 2x2x2 to a 7x7x7 cube.

Want to get the orientation of the inner cubies right? The option is there for you. Me? I've always been content to solve all the faces - good enough for me.

Swapagon: free puzzle game app for iphone, ipad

Swapagon is an interesting puzzle app game. Timo Heister is the author.  The object: rearrange the squares on the grid so that the numbered tiles are next to that number of other tiles. 

 

 

Thus: a 4 needs to be surrounded on all sides by other tiles. Diagonal touching does not count.

 

 

We've seen this type of puzzle app game before. This is well done. And hey, it's free!

 

 

Is is one of the Best Puzzle Apps of 2013? Probably not.  Stay tuned. The awards will be announced at the end of the year.

Acuity Games: train your brain puzzles

Acuity Games has a mission: to train your brain to work fast to ward off Alzheimer's.

It's a good mission.

There are a number of games: Sudoku, Concentration, Mathematics, Edge Match. Play the games fast and improve your time. Get smarter!

If you know somebody with Alzheimer's, have them try these games. Perhaps it will help.

Rynglets: puzzle game for iphone, ipad

 

Ken Tylman recently sent me a promo code to play his new puzzle game app: Rynglets.  The object is to rotate each circle so that the rings will transfer to their matching circle.

 

The individual circles can also be flipped over via their horizontal line of symmetry or the vertical line of symmetry.

 

This is a very serious challenging puzzle app game!

 



Side note: on December 31, I will publish the list of Best Puzzle Apps of 2013. Stay tuned.

Pack A Puzzle: puzzle game app for iphone, ipad

Kasper Bøttcher recently contaced me about his new puzzle app game: Pack A Puzzle.

The object: fit the pieces into the grid.  We've seen this type of puzzle numerous times.

Here's what's cool: the rectangular grid will change sizes as you position the pieces. The final objective is to get them into a suitcase sized grid.  Very sleek.

Do you know the song I'm Leaving On A Jet Plane? John Denver wrote it and Peter Paul & Mary made it famous.  On the app store for Pack A Puzzle, they've changed the lyrics.

(I can't copy and paste from the app store. What's up with that?)

There is a Lite version of Pack A Puzzle. Give it a try.

Color Fill !!! free puzzle game app for iphone, ipad

'Color Fill !!!' is the name of this puzzle app game. The object it to color your map with just 4 colors or less so that no 2 neighboring countries have the same color.

We've seen this type of puzzle game app before: Just Four Colors and Quartzic come to mind. Hey, this is free. But it's not my favorite type of puzzle.

Does this puzzle app make it onto the prestigous list of Best Puzzle Apps of 2012?