4 Elements #2 and Puzzler's Wrath

    Hey, global neighbors. I am listening to some oldies as I type this. Rockin' Pneumonia and the Boogie Woogie Flu by the great Johnny Rivers is playing at the momento. Today I need to give some love to the puzzle lovers. One of the great puzzle games that I have played is 4 Elements. But, like many sequels, 4 Elements 2 is making some people mad.
I have actually done a review of the original game so I guess I won't go through the whole gameplay mechanic. Suffice it to say that you are trying to assist a faerie in her desire to get stuff that appears to be lava from point A to point B. This is done primarily by running your finger over like-colored stones and causing them to melt out of your way. Sometimes you must shift some pipes so that flow can go through them. That is different from the original, by the way. It is a fun game and cool as a moose. There are mini-puzzles as well, in which you must find hidden objects or play I-Spy, or whatever. I usually get Carley to do that stuff for me. She loves those things and I loathe them. Ha, ha. But hey, if she needs a zombie executed, she knows who to call.
     The sequel, just released, is more colorful and has 64 levels like the original. It is a 131 MB file. Playrix, the maker of the game, has seriously P.O.'d a bunch of folks. I went over to the app store and read the reviews for the game. The story is one of love/hate. The game is very good, but the price has been raised to $6.99 on this sequel.
     Puzzle games are normally a little cheaper than games like Nova 3 and Modern Combat. They went up on the game like 28% and told everybody that the game was free. Well, the first 5 levels are free. Then you must pay to play. This doesn't bother me because I never get upset about puzzle games. But puzzledom is surely ready to storm the Playrix castle and dethrone the king. I understand their frustration. Just say, up front, what the game costs. Sounds simple.
     I also noticed some confusion over the fact that the titles were very alike and one guy seemed to think he had paid $4.99 for the game and then they wanted another $6.99. I think the original 4 Elements was $4.99, so I figure that he bought one, then tried to play the other. I know that Carley played Cover Orange all the way through. Then she bought Cover Orange HD when it came out, thinking it was a whole new game. Wow! The hot place has no fury like a puzzler shortchanged.
     What shall we see in the future? Can we make a soap opera out of this situation? What shall we call it? As the Lava Flows or perhaps, As the Puzzle Turns.
     From the spokesman for unhappy puzzlers everywhere, CE Wills.

Comments

Shadowgun: Crushing The Driller On Level 4

Hey, everyone. Let's talk about the game called Shadowgun, the I-Pad game with which I have a love-hate relationship. Most of you who made it past the evil Cyber Lobster are doubtless locked in a death struggle with the Driller at the end of level 4. At this point you have been in the cave for a long time. The Driller breaks through the rock wall and chases you through the tunnel as you try to shoot out the green lights which slows the Driller down. If you are slick enough to shoot out all the lights and emerge from the cave, a rolling door crashes on the Driller and crushes his aggravating carcass. I have tried and failed to beat the Driller at least 250 times. I hate the Driller to the heights and depths my soul can reach. I hate it like a plague. I hate it with intensity of feeling. I hate it like a rich man hates taxes. Excuse me, I got carried away. We had a big dinner here at the green retreat and my friend Trevor was ...

You're Aiming the Missile Where?

Hey, everyone, out there in game-land. The number 1 game on the friendly neighborhood app store is Call of Duty: Strike Team . No wonder, because it is a terrific game. The farther I play, the cooler it gets. But before I get to that, what are all these numbers indicating on my gun? Has to be some sort of ammo indicator for the clips, I guess. either that or some of my compadres has trouble doing his math homework. Whatever. Hey. Check out the picture of me hitching a ride on an enemy truck so that my team can infiltrate a missile silo. Do you like the face mask? I bought it at a store called Fashions by Bane. Ha, ha. (Batman Reference) On this mission, my team was assisted by a Russian Spetsnaz squad. How's that for detente, comrade? These Spetsnaz guys make everything fun. What I mean is this. We shoot bunches of enemies and get into the bowels of the silo. We get to the gantry where the missile is (Pictured above) and we see that the rad...

Shadowgun: Killing The Windbreaker

Hey, everyone. I thought it might be a good time for a bit of an update on the riveting game called Shadowgun. Consider this your spoiler alert and tune out if you want to. Once you get past the dreaded Driller, things get better but you are certainly not out of the woods. You will want to make sure you keep a full clip in your gun as you stroll through the realm of the evil and crazy Dr. Simon. But hey, you're John Slade, the Shadowgun, and wherever you set your foot is the place to which your authority extends. I love the way that some of the barriers disintegrate under the impact of bullets. I didn't learn this at my mother's knee but I darn sure know it now. I have learned that there are certain places it is good to plan on using the rocket launcher. Keep your stock of those filled. There are these transporter guys who are aggressive punks. The only way they respect you is if you kill them, so that's the way I roll. As...

CE Wills

Search This Blog