Twirl! Brings A New Twist On Your Typical iOS Puzzle Game
Twirl! ($0.99) by Appduction Studios is a refreshing twist on your standard puzzle fare.
I love puzzle games, and I think that the iOS platform is definitely one of the best for these types of games (and I’m pretty sure it’s been proven with all the great games out there). However, more and more games are ending up the same nowadays, so where is the fun in that? Fortunately, Twirl is here to save you from boredom.
The gameplay of Twirl is extremely simple – you get a screen filled with squares, and you move these squares by rotating them around a center square. Since there has to be a center square, you can only do this with a cluster of nine squares – no more, no less. The squares can be rotated left or right by tapping (make sure you pick the direction in the bottom corner) or swiping in the direction you want to go. An undo button is there for your convenience if the move does not work (but you can only undo one move, so be careful).
There are three game modes in Twirl, so there’s plenty to do in the game.
Classic will give you a choice of 50, 100, or 200 twirls to use, and the objective is to make as many 3x3 squares of one color as you can. The number of points you get for each complete square will vary, depending on how many moves it took you to make it. Once you are out of twirls, the game ends.
Survival is like Classic, except you start with 10 twirls. As you complete squares, you will gain more twirls (as well as points), depending on how well you did the last one; the game ends when you run out of twirls.
Separator will test your ability to be able to actually separate the colors from each other, without any disruptions. You can take as many twirls as you’d like, but your final score is determined by the total number of moves you make. So of course, less is better. This mode is definitely the most challenging (or frustrating for some), and it’s a nice change as it really makes you think (not enough games do that anymore).
In addition to these game modes, there is a nice surprise on the main title screen – a mini-game of sorts. Make sure to try touching the “Twirl!” logo and watching it. Or better yet, tap the “Spin” button and see where that leads.
Game Center is supported for leaderboards and achievements. If you care about achievements, I’d recommend taking a look at what they are first, because some can be pretty specific (“The Juicer” achievement, for example).
I’ve had Twirl on my iPhone for a while now, but didn’t have a chance to take a look at it until now. I have to admit, I was a bit confused when I first started (since I had it for a while, I didn’t really look at the app description), and was a bit surprised that there wasn’t any sort of tutorial. However, I quickly caught on after a few turns, so I will say that the game is easy to learn (but difficult to master).
The visual elements of the game look great, especially on the Retina display of my iPhone 4S. Oh, and props to the developers for the music – I found it extremely nice and calming, which is great for a puzzle game such as this one.
It is important to note, though, that the game is currently not compatible with the new iPad (but it will work on older models) and it requires at least iOS 4.3. According to the app description, a fix is on the way. Regardless, if you love puzzle games and are looking for something new to tickle your brain, give Twirl! a try. You won’t be disappointed by this little gem.
