It is easier to write reviews of these "simpler" games than what it was for my more serious collection of games. First, it takes less time to objectively assess each game, which means that I should make my way through even more games this calendar year when compared to my performance for the last few years.
That means that there is light at the end of the tunnel for gaming backlog. Currently, standing in the way, is
Fractal: Make Blooms not War which is on the surface, a simple game about maximising the number of hexagons on a grid of the same colour to clear the board.
When the board is cleared, more things emerge and join the board, and the objective is to clear away as many hexagons as possible until you have reached the goal. The goal is constantly changing from level to level, and gains complexity as you work your way through the levels, with additional combinations of colour added, and tougher, more imposing restrictions on what you can do to manipulate the gameplay board.
It goes from being a happy fun clicking everywhere and watching the shiny colours game to a "I better carefully consider my next move".
Thus, it plays as a combination of 2048, and probably something like Peggle, while simultaneously reminding me of the brick breaking games of the early 90s that dominated the world of "oh, you have a mouse now?" gaming.
But, would I go out of my way to obtain this game, cherish it and play it daily? The answer is no, and my motivations are that I feel as though I would be far better engaged doing physical puzzles, or other brain-teaser games.
The soundtrack is pretty remarkable, as it changes the game as you play, with you being rewarded for awesome combos by having better music, that is more upbeat, while as the door closes on you, you are distinctly, and audibly reminded that you made a mistake, you suck, and you'll have to do something better next time.
The difficulty spikes up and down as you play the game, but with lots of things, you're purely a victim of your past actions.
The reality is that this game began as a flash game, and managed to make its way onto Steam. That's amazing. How it ended up in my collection? I'm not quite sure - but it isn't something that I would miss if it were no longer present in my game library.
Want more content from me?
Witness my futile efforts to play my Steam Game collection in alphabetical order.
Are you aware that I love photography? Check out my work in a collection.
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If you prefer sleeping in your designated time zone, go watch replays on YouTube.