Perimetros Review

There’s an old adage, build a better mousetrap and the world will beat a path to your door. But in the gaming community you could swap mousetrap for Tetris game and you’d probably have the same thing. There are very few games that have taken over the hours of mobile time like the Russian import.

There have been a lot of developers who have tried to find a way to milk that cash cow, and mostly they’ve come across as complete rip-offs or garbled messes. Only an occasional few find a way to make the experience something new, and yet fun.

Tiptoe Games is the latest to step up to the plate and try to swing for the fences with Perimetros. So, will the world be knocking on their door with this one? Let’s take a look.

You’ll find some very similar themes between Tetris and Perimetros. Both games have the same figures that fall, can be re-aliened to face different directions, and both games have you trying to create lines that disappear when complete. Basically you’ve got Tetris.

But the difference in this game is that you don’t create lines… you have to create an entire perimeter (now the name makes sense doesn’t it). In the center of the screen, where the pieces originate from, is a small box. All you have to do is create a perimeter around it. This can be a square or rectangle. As long as it’s complete it will go away and you’ll get the points, and, more importantly, stay alive longer.

What makes this game really stand out in a sea of Tetris clones is the way you’re working on all four sides of the playfield. The pieces are affected by gravity so you will tilt your device all around to make sure that your blocks go where you need them to go. This is a nice little twist and I’ve fooled around with both turning my device around (like I’m playing Blue Defense) and just tilting it in the various directions while I hold it flat. Both versions work well so it’s up to you as to which way you go. A simple tap on the screen will change the orientation of the piece.

The game does allow for plenty of “slide time” so you can move your piece into position when needed. Though I did find a problem with the movement of the pieces. Sometimes it’s hard to get your piece where it needs to be. Every little movement will have your block go a bit too far sometimes and you have to keep going back and forth to get it in place. Seems like a simple fix could help with this slight control issue.

Another slight problem is that the playfield is large so it will take you a long time to get your first perimeter. It’s easy to get frustrated as you spend time getting one side all done, only to realize that you’ve got three more sides to finish before you’ve got one box done.

It does help that you can swipe the piece with your finger, but it will take awhile to get over the frustration (but you’ll get over it). The finger swipe also works to “fling” a piece. A couple of times a piece wasn’t near where I wanted it and I just flicked it back into the air to start again.

The game has 20 different levels, each picking up the pace of your falling blocks. What would be great is if the levels had something really different about them. For instance, it would be challenging to have obstacles on the playfield that you have to surround before they’ll go away. Or maybe make a level where you can only make rectangles. Things like this would help the replay factor of the game and make it really stand out from the crowd.

Graphically the game is nice and clear. It is a Tetris type game we’re talking about so graphics aren’t the most important things. As long as you can see the piece, you’re good.

And don’t expect the familiar Russian music with this game, in fact, don’t expect any music with this game. But if you want, you can hum the Tetris music while you play.

The game does keep a few statistics, though nothing much. Like many games I’ve reviewed lately, this one is missing a high score ranking. I’m not sure why games just think you want to see only the highest score. Since many will want to play the game, it’s always good to know where you stand. Put in a scoreboard and life is always better. Then go the extra mile and make it a global scoreboard.

Perimetros is a game that all Tetris fans ill want to try out. It takes the familiar game and gives it a nice turn… or several turns. If Tetris is your type of game, you may have just found a new, and maybe better, mousetrap.

The Good
———————————–

New update to familiar genre
Addictive game play
20 Levels

The Bad
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No sound
Needs a better high score rating.
Levels aren’t really all that different

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Tags: Puzzle Game, Tetris

Category: Games