Puzzle games have really upped the ante in recent years to add challenge and tension to the gaming experience. Time limits, move limits, stars to earn, and points to accrue all say, "Sure you can win, but can you win the best"" There's nothing inherently wrong with these mechanics. When employed well?and not just to sell packs of hints?they can make puzzle games more fun. Sometimes, however, you don't want to worry about moves and stars and points and how long it takes you. This is where minimalist puzzle games find their niche. They set aside the quest to find the very best solution and challenge you to find any solution. This week's freshly released Neo Angle [$0.99] is a minimalist puzzle game and well worth a look.
Neo Angle is the latest title from indie developer Dropout Games, the makers of Blyss [$0.99], which still owns a well-earned place in my iPhone's puzzle folder. Their new offering is once again a simple and intuitive, yet challenging puzzler. In it you flip a bright neon triangle?seriously, it's bright, you won't miss it?through a maze of squares and seek to disarm roadblocks and traps, travel through portals (I assume through both time and space), swing around on a rotating square, and grab a number of rotating pyramids before ending up at your final destination. Makes total sense, right" Ok, it is a bit abstract and such games are tough to put into words, so check out this GIF and I'll spare you another thousand of them trying to expl...