DIYgamer

No, I Insist…’LetsTans’ [Review]

Sometimes, for DIYgamer, I step outside of my comfort zone and tackle games I normally wouldn’t play. You see, for as much as an indie fan as I am, puzzle games haven’t ever been my favorite by any means. I have always been more of an RPG/action/adventure kind of guy. I also love indie platformers, but sometimes when the going gets tough, I get the fuck out. I know I’m not the only one. After all, when there are so many games out there vying for our attention, getting frustrated is not exactly the best gameplay mechanic (although I suppose Team Meat would disagree with me on that one).

Likewise, I’ve never been a fan of puzzles in general. Jigsaw? Eh. Rubik’s Cube? Nah. Crossword? Interesting, but no. I had never even heard of Tangram puzzles, which are ancient Chinese dissection puzzles involving seven flat shapes referred to as “tans.” When I initially downloaded LetsTans on my iPhone, you can imagine how doomed I felt and, to be honest…still do. However, when thought of in terms of a game, Grabarchuk’s puzzler can get as addictive as any other puzzle game such as Tetris or Sudoku or any match-3 puzzler. But is LetsTans welcoming enough to any gamer or does it simply appeal to a very specific type of gaming fan?

Gameplay

The first thing to note is that LetsTans contains a hefty load of puzzles. Originally, the game came with 210 total. This was a result of having 70 shapes through three different game modes: “Classic,” “Replica,” and “Arcade.” But the latest update of the game provides a fourth game mode filled with 140 puzzles of its own, “Checkered” mode. Unfortunately, the “Checkered” game mode costs $0.99 to download as Grabarchuk has chosen to use FreeAppADay.com as a marketing agent. While their decision to do so is actually not a bad idea, the game itself should be worth $0.99 rather than the update alone. Fortunately, however, if you’re trying to decide whether to purchase the downloadable content, you can try it out for free. Anyhow, the point is, with the downloadable content you’ve got yourself a hefty 350 puzzles to take care of.

Now, this may sound like a lot to any gamer not used to puzzle games, especially Tangrams. But when you start playing, you’ll understand that the stages pass by quickly. LetsTans isn’t exactly the easiest game as the puzzles will have you…well…puzzled. However, Grabarchuk remedies the situation by providing you with a “hint” feature (which can be preset to help you as much as you deem acceptable, e.g. 1-7 hints). If you’re generally adept at puzzle games, you should be able to breeze through LetsTans in a couple of hours. But for gamers like me, the puzzles take a bit more time and planning–especially considering the different game modes. “Classic” is the ideal Tangram puzzle as you fit seven tans together to complete the Tangram shape. In “Replica” mode, the player must filter through the screen full of tans and tap out the shapes that form the shape desired. Finally, the “Arcade” mode requires players to drag the shaped mask and fully capture seven different color tans. The downloadable mode, “Checkered” mode, challenges players to do the same thing they would do in “Classic” mode, but with checkered tans.

There’s a couple of negative things that can be said about the gameplay, but they’re mainly affected by your point of view on this type of game. If you’re a puzzle lover, especially a Tangram lover, the only issue you’ll have is that the game contains the same 70 shapes through the first three game modes. If you’re not a puzzle lover, you’ll be frustrated by the gameplay at times when you can’t figure it out. This can easily be fixed by the “hint” function, but sometimes gamers grow impatient very easily. App lovers may also be particularly scrutinous with the way the game sneaks the paid “Checkered” mode in there, but this shouldn’t be too big of a problem considering the first 210 puzzles that are available.

Style

While LetsTans’s style is very straightforward, its presentation is more than sufficiently done. The app flows very smoothly and has rarely glitched since the 2.0 update. The user interface is extremely responsive and the colors are bright and beautiful.

Story

None.

Everything Else

The game’s sound effects and music are nothing extraordinary but they really don’t have to be. For a puzzle game, LetsTans is one of the best options on the iPhone/iPod Touch. Its presentation is user-friendly and it supplies an ample amount of content for puzzle-lovers and newcomers alike.

[DIYgamer obtained a free code for the game for review purposes. This in no way affected the outcome of the review.]