iPhone Review: Numeri
by Dave PitchforthPublisher/Developer: Marta Sales
Genre: Puzzle
Price: $0.99
Verdict: A decent puzzle game which offers plenty of challenge
Pros: Challenging with plenty of puzzles
Cons: Presentation isn’t great, no music, control scheme not ideal
I love puzzle games, always have done. I love the challenge they represent, especially when I know there’s always a solution to a problem. I’ve always been a logical thinking kinda guy, so when I was offered the chance to review Numeri, an iPhone re-invention of the Slitherlink game found on the Internet, I jumped at the chance. What I found was an enjoyable, challenging game that has a questionable control scheme and could really do with some extra presentational shine.
For those of you that aren’t familiar with Slitherlink, here’s a brief synopsis. You’re presented with a simple grid in which you will have various numbers, ranging from 0-3. Within the grid you have to draw single lines which form a loop around the numbers. Each number corresponds to the right number of lines that must surround it. This obviously means that any square with the number 3 in it must have 3 of the 4 sides covered by the final loop. This sounds easy in theory, but when you have the numbers close together it can cause you to really scratch your head for some time while you try and retry to figure out how to make sure the correct number of lines surround each number, while not affecting any close by squares that are already correct.
As you start each different puzzle, you’ll notice that each number on the grid is coloured red, showing you that you still have to solve that particular square. As you start to draw your lines and loops, you’ll notice the numbers turn white as the correct number of lines surround each number. This isn’t to say you’ve got the correct line around each number, merely that you have the correct number of lines. You’ll very often find yourself going back and redrawing sections of your loop as you realise that the way you’ve currently done it means the puzzle is impossible to solve. Solvable it always will be, though sometimes you will really struggle to find the right way of doing it, as each puzzle only has one correct solution to it.
The controls used in Numeri are different than the ones Slitherlink veterans will be used to, and I’m not sure they’re better than the old ones. When you play the game online, you simple click on a line, and it will become active, letting you draw your loop one line at a time. In Numeri, pressing a square will active all the lines, and you then have to pull and drag your loop around the screen. It’s not the most intuitive of control methods and it’s not always as easy as it could be to simply move lines around. If you’ve never played Slitherlink however I’m sure the controls will feel just fine.
One area where Numeri falls over is in the presentation stakes. You screenshots you see in this review really are as good as it gets for the game, though you could make the argument that a puzzle game like this doesn’t need much more. A main screen that shows just how many puzzles there are, and how many you’ve completed wouldn’t go amiss though, and I’m sure could be easily implemented in future updates.
At the bottom of each puzzle you’ll see a couple of arrows, with the left arrow resetting your current puzzle, while a single press of the right button will reveal the solution, while pressing it again will move on to the next puzzle. You can also hold the iPhone/iPod with the face down, and extra numbers will appear which will let you know exactly how many lines there should be in each and every grid.
The game also suffers from a complete lack of anything but the most basic sounds. You get a little noise when moving between puzzles and resetting them for example, but there’s no in game music at all. This does have the advantage of keeping the app size very small (it’s less than 400KB in size), but a little music would be nice. You can always play your own music over the top of it though.
Numeri is one of those games that is quite hard to put a proper score to. It’s a pretty enjoyable puzzle game, due to the challenge of each puzzle. If you’re easily frustrated or just not a fan of difficult puzzle games then I’d recommend you pass this one by. If you enjoy tough games then this could certainly be one to take a look at, and for $0.99 it’s not going to cost you the earth to see whether you like it. It’s definitely a game for those who like a challenge.
