Recent reviews by MashPotato

If you're looking for a game with brain-burning, story-based puzzles, this is not the game for you. However, if you like "room escape" type games, this is a very good one. The puzzles are clear (you may not know WHY you're doing something, but WHAT you have to do is easy to decipher) and varied, ranging from moving sliders and pushing buttons to some simple logic problems; the game overall is on the "easy" side. However, I think the main puzzle the game is really putting together the pieces of the story, and that's where the game shines: its eerie atmosphere, macabre humour, and interesting (and non-explicit) narrative that had me finish it all in one sitting. I think this game is an improvement over Rusty Lake Hotel (which also has its positivies), and I'll definitely be keeping an eye on this dev in the future!

Hexcells Plus is Hexcells, but tougher. There's nothing more to say! If you liked the first game, get this one too :)

My review for the first one: http://steamcommunity.com/id/mashpotato/recommended/265890/

This is a lovely logic game that I would describe as a mix between Minesweeper and Picross, but, thankfully, with none of the "guessing" that's needed in the former. It's presented very nicely with spare but pretty visuals, an ambient soundtrack, and little touches like your actions creating different sounds (so if you solve the puzzle quickly enough, it sounds like you make little songs). It's not very long or very hard (it took me ~100 minutes to finish with 99% hexes--my only mistakes being when I accidently clicked the wrong button), but it's sweet while it lasts :)

Abalone is a strategy game with very simple rules (the tutorial will take about a minute of your time), but is pretty tricky to play. I've never played the physical boardgame before, but this digital version seems solid enough, and in addition to the requisite multiplayer options, has many single-player scenarios to teach you the basics and progressively tougher strategies (I've only played SP so far).

See those screenshots on the store page? That's exactly what the game looks like--no bells and whistles here. I've encountered only one music track so far, and it loops pretty fast, but I just turn it off and play my own music... or have silence if I need to concentrate, which is most of the time ;) The controls are very simple, and there are easy ways to backtrack if you accidentally click on the wrong piece. However, you can really tell this is a port of a game that had touch controls; small things like having to move your cursor all the way to the bottom right corner to finish your turn could have been a bit more streamlined for the PC version.

The big question for single players is: is the AI good? As of now, I'm working through the scenarios to learn the game and the AI is still at the Easy level, but as a complete newbie I find there's still a fair amount of challenge to be had and I'm improving and making steady progress. Would a veteran Abalone player be challenged at more difficult levels? I'm not good enough to judge properly! But for a beginner, the difficulty seems accurate so far.

Just a note for achievement hunters that this game does have achievements, but they appear to be broken.

Abalone is straightforward strategy game that wears its boardgame origins on its sleeve, and has a good amount of content for the Single Player. It may not have any flash, but it's solid.

They Breathe is a short game in which you play a frog that dives into the water of a drowned world, encountering strange creatures and uncovering eerie secrets as you descend into the dark depths.

Controls are simple, using just the directional pad and one button. Gameplay involves capturing oxygen bubbles to keep yourself alive, and also using those bubbles for some other things, but considering the length of the game I don't want to spoil any gameplay elements that are meant to be figured out by the player :) This is a very short game (~30 min to play through), and pretty easy to finish with frequent checkpoints (although if you're an achievement hunter, you'll be quite challenged to get some of them).

However, I don't think challenge is really the point of this game; it's more the atmosphere and the creepy secret you discover, and the gameplay is meant to add to just add to that feeling and not get in the way. While I wouldn't call this game "horror" like some other reviews, it is a bit unsettling at times. The slightly naive-looking art style fits the game well in this respect, although if you're a gamer who demands high production in art, sound, etc., this is not the game for you.

They Breathe is a strange little game that may lack polish, but uses what it does have to good effect. For me it was a game that I'll likely not play again, but for $2 you get an eerie experience that doesn't overstay its welcome, and is in my opinion, worth it.

Numba Deluxe is a casual puzzle game in which you highlight groups of number by type (eg. 1 1 1 1), order (1 2 3 4), addition (1 3 5 7) or multiplication (1 2 4 8), causing them to disappear and numbers from above to fall. There are three modes: Classic, Timeless, and Puzzle. I bought this for the puzzle mode, in which I've spent about 95% of my playing time, so that's what I'm reviewing.

This is very much a game of what you see is what you get: watch the video on the store page and you'll know whether this is your type of game or not. That might be kind of lazy of me to say in a review, but it's true ;) Visuals are clean but unspectacular, music is cheery but non-descript--there are no bells and whistles here. The same background is used throughout all the menus/games, the same sound effect is used every.single.time. you clear blocks (and you will hear it a LOT).

That said, is the gameplay itself solid? I would say so. The puzzles, in which you must clear all the blocks from the level, are generally on the easy side so far (I'm at level 60-something out of 84, in about 1.5 hours), but once in a while there's some curveballs thrown your way via different block types to keep it varied. (eg. a fire block needs to fall on an ice block to melt it).

However, so far it's a good thing that levels are easy, because the puzzles appear sequentially, and there's no way to skip to a different puzzle without solving the one you're on. The scoring system seems rather pointless as well, as every time you restart the game you begin at 0, and there's no score recorded for individual puzzles, so the highscore table is really just a matter of how long you played rather than how well/fast you solved the puzzles (there's also no timer, btw).

On a technical note, there are no resolution options.

I realize I'm sounding rather negative, but that's only because I'm mentioning things that are small annoyances. The positives are all in the video: it's a simple, straightforward game that can be easily picked up and sometimes makes you put on your thinking cap. I have no regrets about my $3.

Oknytt is a lovely point-and-click adventure game in which you play a small creature trying to fine help for his friend, a wingless alva (a fairly-like being). Along the way, the two of you encounter many creatures from Swedish folklore, ranging from the dark and dangerous to the gentle and friendly.

I love fairytales and folklore, and I have to say this game really nailed the feeling of being told a story. Much credit for this goes to the writing and the voicework done by the narrator, but is also due to smaller details in the game design. For example, instead of the standard adventure response "that won't work" when you try something, the narrator says "no, that's not what happened." It's a story, and if you try something that makes sense and it doesn't work, it's not that you're wrong, it's simply not what happened. On the other hand, the game does use fairy tale logic in its puzzle design. To explain: while the puzzles themselves make sense, the reason *why* you're doing them are not always clear. Like a hero in a fairy tale, just help out the creatures and rest assured that you will be helped out in turn, or at least advance the story.

Gameplay is adventure-standard, with cursors to examine, interact, and speak. Interestingly, if the object cannot be spoken to, the player character instead makes a comment about the object from its point of view, while the examine acts more as an objective description. In addition to the standard controls are runes at the bottom of the screen, which cause the environment to change in some way. Note that the character does not change the environment with the runes, but rather you're changing the setting around the character. Both of these design choices add to the feeling of storytelling.

Some miscellany: The art is a little sketchy in places, but it does capture the feeling of old paintings one might find in a book. It's a bit on the dark side, but play in a darkish room (which is fitting anyway) and you'll be alright. The narrator was great, and changed his voice for the different characters (as all good storytellers should!). The player walks incredibly slowly, but make use of double-clicking to travel between areas and this becomes only a minor quibble. The game took me about 6 hours to complete, so it's not very long, but not short either.

Parents: the game is appropriate for older children (minimal violence, no bad language), but just be aware that some of the creatures from folklore sometimes have darkish characteristics (eg. leading travellers astray, etc.) and some have visual designs that may be frightening to some children.

If you've read this far, you should know by now whether this game is for you. I hope it is!

Unmechanical is a physics-based puzzle platformer (hoverer?) in which you play an adorable robot trying to escape from a subterrainean complex, using only the power of your tractor beam. Charming visuals and simple, good controls make this a solid and enjoyable game.

As a puzzler, the most important part of the game is, well, the puzzles, and Unmechanical does it well with a variety of different kinds, including pattern recognition, memory, physics-based, and a few arcade-y bits. The difficulty is on the easy side, but not annoyingly so--I would make steady progress until I would get stuck, exit, and the next time I played I would generally solve it right away. There are no in-game instructions, but they aren't needed; just go and explore, observe your surroundings, and you'll figure out what to do. (There is an in-game hint system, but I never used it so I can't comment on its helpfulness). It took me just under 4 hours to finish, but would be quicker for some folks.

But why rush through the world? Unmechanical has a cool visuals, including rundown industrial areas mixed with oddly organic environments, not to mention the previously noted adorable main character. The simple controls also let you relax and enjoy the atmosphere: use arrows to fly, and hold down one button to use your tractor beam. I found the controls worked very well, and when picking up objects they felt appropriately "weighty".

My only complaints are that controllers are not fully supported--they can be used in-game, but the menus require a mouse--not a big deal, but a little annoying as I usually use a tablet and so my mouse isn't always handy. I would also have liked to see more of the underground robots to make the world a bit more alive, but that's just my own personal preference.

Overall, I recommend this game if you're not looking for a big challenge, but rather a nice world to explore while putting on your thinking cap :)

I like card games, but as I prefer single-player, don't want to spend money on extra cards, prefer simplicity, and like to take my time, there aren't too many games that fit the bill... but Card City Nights does!

CCN's gameplay is straightforward, with cards having defensive, attack, or neutral effects, as well a number of arrows. You have 5 cards in your hand at one time, and take turns with your opponent to place a card done on a grid. Create combos of 3 or more by connecting arrows between cards. Place them carefully, as when you run out of spaces you'll lose the round. Since HP is capped at 10 and there are penalties for running out of cards, each round goes fairly fast and you won't get into stalemate situations. It may not be as strategically deep as other card games where you have to manage resources etc., but it's easy to pick up, and fun.

In between card battles, you can organize your card decks, buy cards to augment your decks using virtual money (you can also get booster packs by battling, and there are no IAPs) and go around town to talk to other characters. The storyline is rather silly (but are you really playing a card game for the story?) and humourous. The charmingly cartoony art fits the game well, as does the cheerful music.

My only drawback is that the AI appears to be on the easy side so far, but as I've not gotten too far yet this may be something that fixes itself later on.

Card City Nights may not be a super-challenging card game, but it's good for a breezy time of card-battling fun. For casual fans of the trading card genre, this could well hit the spot.

EDIT: as I've progressed, the game has indeed become a little more tricky. The developers have also released a patch that should make the AI stronger, so consider me a happy camper :)

Looking at the screenshots for this game, you might expect an brainless, match-3 type of puzzle game (I know I did)... but it's NOT SO! Surprisingly tricky, and with a multitude of ways to play, Clickr is a bargain for those who enjoy puzzle games.

Clickr belongs to the "connecting squares of the same colour to form bigger squares" genre, but gives it an interesting spin (literally) by incorporating 90 degree rotations of the board. Create a combo via rotating and you'll get a "Magic Turn", which will give you big bonuses... and you'll need them, as you'll need big scores in short amounts of time to advance in Puzzle mode (the first available mode).

In addition to Puzzle Mode (which also includes other modes in itself), there is also Battle, Push, IQ, and Multiplayer. These are unlocked either by accumulating cubes earned by passing levels or by playing matches, or by getting certain achievements.

Battle and Push are both speed-based action modes. In Battle, monsters are sent to your side of the screen, and by creating combos you send out little monsters of your own to stop them, and attack. In Push, you play against the AI; creating combos of a colour pushes a giant block toward onto your opponents side, if they don't create their own combos of the same colour to push back, it will fall on their side--if enough blocks fall, they lose. Of course, all the while you're pushing blocks on their side, they're pushing blocks on you. Even on Easy, I found both of these modes quite hard!

IQ (my favourite mode) requires you to clear the board without clicking on any non-combo squares. I prefer the slow pace!

I haven't tried the Multiplayer option yet, but I've read in the discussion forum that there is a bug in which you cannot directly rematch an opponent, but have to exit and re-enter the game. That's unfortunate, as judging from my brief experience with the Push mode against the AI, an MP-version would be quite fun.

As frosting, the art is quite cute and the presentation of menus, UI, etc is simple, but very slick. There are also different skins to unlock. The music is happy with a retro sort of feel to it; in fact, with its cutesy voices, happy sound effects, and overall look, the general presentation reminds me a bit of Chu Chu Rocket.

Clickr may not have the deepest gameplay ever (my spatial judgment is not great, so the game may be harder for me than it would be for others), but it incorporates enough different features in gameplay to make it fresh. For $5 or less, you get a lot of bang for your buck, and puzzle fans should find a lot to enjoy.