Review Date: February 9, 2010
Developer: Starfruit Games
Price: Free (Publisher's Site)
Platform: Browser
Genre: Puzzle
Score: 4/5
Imagine if you took Jenga, added some differently shaped pieces, and made the entire thing almost unbearably cute. You'd probably end up with something that looks a lot like Tumbledrop. This physics based puzzle game is challenging, adorable, and a refreshing take on a well-worn genre.
Take A Block From The Bottom
Each stage of the game starts the same: you have a pile of blocks with a pink star on top. The blocks are situated on a piece of land surrounded by water, and it's your job to get the pink star to the bottom of the pile without it getting wet. You can remove any block simply by clicking on it, and the rest of the pile moves accordingly. Take the wrong piece out and the entire structure will crumble. But remove them carefully and the little star will make it to the bottom safe and sound.
There are, of course, a few twists along the way. Some stages feature blocks that can't be removed, forcing you to alter your strategy. The game also forces a delay in between each piece you remove, so you can't simply click every block out of the way. And as you progress through the game's 20 stages, the difficulty gradually ramps up, as the block structures become more and more complex, forcing you to really think about each move you make.
Fortunately, the game doesn't really punish you for making mistakes. If your pink star gets wet, you can simply start the stage over again, which helps encourage experimentation. If you get stuck on a particular level you can simply try your luck by removing random pieces and seeing what happens.
Pretty But Quiet
But even though Tumbledrop has some solid and addictive puzzle gameplay, the first thing that will probably grab you is the game's style. It's simply adorable. Each of the blocks has a tiny face that smiles when you win and grimaces when they fall. The color palette is bright and bold, filled with lots of pinks and yellows and blues. And when you beat a stage a rainbow fills the sky and confetti is shot into the air. It's almost enough to make you feel guilty for letting the little blocks fall into the water.
Playing Tumbledrop is a pretty quiet affair though. You'll hear blocks as they splash into the water, and a chime sounds whenever you remove one from the pile. But aside from a short jingle that plays at the end of each level, there's no actual music.
The game also doesn't last particularly long. The 20 stages can be easily completed in under an hour, even if you get stuck a couple of times. There is a longer version of the game available, however it's exclusive to the iPhone/iPod Touch. This version features more stages, as well as a lot more variety in terms of level design. If the browser version only whet your appetite, purchasing the iPhone edition could be the next step in satiating your Tumbledrop desire.
The Bottom Line
Even with its short length, Tumbledrop is still a rare find: an incredibly polished and addictive puzzle game that's absolutely dripping with delightful charm. It also introduces a unique puzzle mechanic that will come as a breath of fresh air to those who play a steady diet of falling block or match three games. It will lure you in with its good looks and then hook you with its engrossing gameplay.