Directional Takes Block-Clearing And Color-Matching To A Whole New Direction
May 18, 2012
You are no doubt familiar with iOS puzzle games that require clearing blocks. Usually, blocks in these games are grouped by color, and all you have to do is to tap groups of blocks of the same color to get them off the board. Easy, right? And boring for the most part. Thankfully, Codename.co is set to clear a great deal of boredom out of block-clearing puzzles with its first ever App Store release, Directional.
What's so special about Directional? The answer, as it happens, lies in the game's name. Directional adds a new dimension to block-clearing, and that dimension is something called direction. The game involves color matching, to be sure, but each color is associated with a certain direction. Green blocks have up arrows in them, orange ones have down arrows, blue blocks go right, and pink ones go left. In order to get rid of blocks of the same color, not only do you have to tap them, but you also have to swipe them off in the direction they indicate.
If you can't see the videos embedded above, please click here and here.
Directional has two game modes, which the two videos above sufficiently demonstrate. Both played under time pressure, the two modes are differentiated only by the direction from which new blocks are formed. In Classic Mode, new blocks are sent forth from only one direction, while in Expert Mode, new blocks come from a random corner of the screen. I imagine you have to think quickly before you tap a group of blocks in the latter mode if you really want to maximize your score within the time limit. How's that? Well, as is customary for the genre, the more blocks cleared at a time, the bigger the score.
Directional supports Game Center leaderboards and achievements, sharing of scores via Twitter and Facebook, and iPhone Retina display. The game is free to download in the App Store, but it comes with a 30-second mode only. If you want to unlock the game's 60-second and 120-second modes, you can get the full version of Directional via a $0.99 in-app purchase.
If you had any sense of direction, you'd have downloaded this free game by now.