[b]My playtime:[/b] 5.9h (based on steam, 100% achievement)
[b]Grindy Achievement(s):[/b] No.
[b]Optional Achievement(s):[/b] No.
[b]Difficult Achievement(s):[/b] No.
[h1]Intro[/h1]
[i]Merri Puzzle[/i] is a puzzle game where you have to move an object to a goal. The game has ~144 levels with a checkpoint in every ~6 levels.
[b]Pros:[/b]
- ~144 levels
- Hotkeys
- You can solve most levels in any way that you want
[b]Cons:[/b]
- You need to read the hint to learn how to play the game and the hint button is hidden well
- No confirmation button on exiting the game and it's easy to click the button by accident
- Some levels look similar
- Options are reset when you save manually
[h1]Should you buy this game?[/h1]
[b]No.[/b]
[i]There are better games out there. Don't bother buying this game.[/i]
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[h1]In-Depth Review[/h1]
[h1]Graphics[/h1]
The presentation of this game is horrible. It's clear that art isn't the dev's strong point and he doesn't even bother to hide it; every object is there for the sake of functionality without any consideration of artistic value. Even the hint button, which is vital in learning how to play the game, is represented as a "?" button that is placed beside a lot of other buttons, making it harder to locate.
[h1]The game[/h1]
[b]Gameplay[/b]
The core of the gameplay is simple; you need to move an object to the goal. Early levels have a ball as an object although there will be more objects that will be introduced later on. Some object behaves differently from each other; there is a triangle that moves around haphazardly, a ball that can duplicate itself infinitely, and many more. However, despite the hint saying that a ball with certain color behaves in a certain way, sometimes the next few levels break that rule by removing it or changing its rule to something else.
Blocks are available to help you finish the levels. You can summon a block by pressing the "Block" button or B button on your keyboard and your mouse's right-click button can be used to toggle visibility with the object. Moving the object with the block is often the solution to finish the levels. However, some levels have a limited amount of block that you can use and most of the blocks in later levels are not reusable, meaning you must place your blocks carefully.
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2246613408
The game introduces a concept of gravity later on; you can press the "-" button to move the center of gravity to the north and the "+" to reverse the center of gravity. Other obstacles such as "red" and "green" blocks will also be introduced at later levels, giving more variation to the levels. However, the last obstacle, the invisible wall, is just plain annoying and feels like a cheap addition to the game.
[b]Levels[/b]
The game has 3 modes in total: easy, normal, and expert. The game starts in easy mode and you can play other modes after you finish all of the levels in that mode. Easy mode has ~90 levels, normal mode has ~18 levels, while expert mode has ~42 levels. Saving can only be done at checkpoints, which is only available on every ~6 levels. However, saving manually by pressing the "Save" button will reset all options in the game, including fullscreen and music, which is toggled off by default.
To be honest, I didn't know how to play the game at the start. The game doesn't give any information at first glance and you need to hold the "?" button, which is located near a lot of buttons, to show the hint to understand how the game works. To be fair, there are 5+ buttons placed on top of the screen at once and it's overwhelming for first-timers to read all of them. The "exit to the main menu" button is also included in one of those buttons and the game has no confirmation button when you press it by accident.
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2246613349
The early levels are brain-numbing and time-consuming with pushing an object with blocks as its main point. The game also tends to glitch by resetting the whole level or removing all blocks when you put a block on top of each other. It becomes more challenging after the gravity concept is introduced, although it soon becomes repetitive, especially when the game doesn't allow you to toggle the block's invisibility. Trial-and-error becomes the new trend since you need to put the blocks or toggle the gravity at the right time to finish the levels.
Some levels are also very similar. There are times where I had to make sure whether I solved the last level or the game glitched out and restarted the whole level. It might also because the game doesn't have a congratulation screen after you finish a level - it just redirects you to the next level in a blink.
[b]Length[/b]
I finished the easy mode in 2.5h, the hard mode in ~1.8h, and the expert mode in ~1.6h. All levels except for one level in hard mode are easy to beat, even in the expert mode - the last few levels in easy mode is even way harder than those.
[b]Problem[/b]
The game slowed down a bit whenever a ball that is duplicating itself is involved. It also crashes when you save manually after you finished the easy mode.
[h1]Specs[/h1]
Intel Core i5-3317U 1.7GHz, 4GB RAM, Intel HD Graphics 4000
[h1]Conclusion[/h1]
It's a boring puzzle game that has some annoying levels because you need trial-and-error to finish. Most puzzles are easy and the game can be finished in a short time.
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