It's a Small, Dangerous World in Tales of the Tiny Planet

Visually, Tales of the Tiny Planet sports a rather cute and minimal artistic approach. Everything is rendered in 2D, though there are subtle yet gorgeous backgrounds that add some depth overall. The foreground remains focused and sharp, and there's plenty of basic geometric shapes everywhere, yet the planets are oddly adorable. The colors range from soft pastels to muted, earthy tones to more vibrant shades, so it all meshes together well and is appealing on the eyes. Animations are smooth and fluid, with no lag on my iPhone 7. The soundtrack is rather whimsical, and the sound effects are delightful. Overall, Pixelsplit did a fantastic job with the visual and audio design of Tales of the Tiny Planet.

Like other puzzle games, Tales of the Tiny Planet is level-based. At the moment, there are five chapters, with 12 stages in each, so there's 60 puzzles for you to solve with the initial download. However, the developers have put a "Coming Soon" marker, indicating more stages will arrive in a future update.

The goal of each level is pretty straightforward: guide the planet along the stage and reach the portal to move on to the next area and reunite with friends. However, it's easier said than done, of course, especially when you throw in spikes, enemies, and other dangers into the mix. Players are able to earn up to three stars on each stage, depending on how fast they complete it. There's also a time limit, as shown in the upper left, so you'd better be fast.

The controls in Tales of the Tiny Planet are as simple as they come. On each stage, players are in charge of all of the moving parts, which activate all at once with a long-press. You have to figure out the movement patters and time everything perfectly in order to get the planet character to the portal. And with the countdown, timing is critical, especially if you're a perfectionist and need three stars for every level.

While Tales of the Tiny Planet looks easy, it's rather challenging. There isn't much time on each stage, so you have to learn the patterns and then be quick on your toes. There will be a lot of replays to do if you're going for three stars, and it instills that "just one more go" mentality, so there's a bit of replay value.

Tales of the Tiny Planet is a cute game that is enjoyable for anyone. The graphics are colorful and endearing, with a charming soundtrack to listen to as you play. The controls are perfect and optimized for touch screens, requiring just one touch. Despite the cutesy appearance, Tales of the Tiny Planet is challenging, even for seasoned puzzle fans, because of the limited amount of time you have to finish a stage. There's plenty of content for the initial price, so it's a decent enough value.

While Tales of the Tiny Planet is overall a great little game, it can get a bit frustrating. If you are not the type of person who wants to replay a single stage multiple times in an attempt to meet the three star requirement, then it may be too difficult.

Even though I only started with Tales of the Tiny Planet earlier today, it's been quite enjoyable so far. I am a sucker for physics puzzle games, so I knew that I had to get this one, and I'm not disappointed! The planets are lovely, and the game mechanics are fun and challenging. This is definitely one I'll be returning to time and time again, and I eagerly await more levels in the future.

I highly recommend Tales of the Tiny Planet to anyone who appreciates a good physics-based puzzle game. Tales of the Tiny Planet is available on the App Store as a universal download for your iPhone and iPad for just $1.99. There are no in-app purchases.