The “puzzle” category has become one of mobile stores’ most innovative spaces for gaming. While mobile app developers have come a long way in their ability to craft games that resemble console or PC quality experiences, there’s something about the simplicity of a puzzle game that still seems ideally suited for smart phones and tablets. They’re easy to control on touchscreens, they can work with all different kinds of visuals, and the variety of different levels and challenges are only limited by a developer’s creativity.
For these reasons the category has become very expansive and showcases a huge variety of great games. But in the few years there’s been one style of mobile puzzle game that’s started to provide some consistency. It was developed by Square Enix, and at least in the iOS store it’s now labelled as the “GO Collection.”
The collection got started with Hitman GO, which was, at the time, a pretty bizarre mobile twist on the console franchise of the same name. As fans will know, the series consists of assassination missions conducted by the mysterious and deadly Agent 47. Traditionally, the console games have used different variations of a sandbox world (though there have been a few exceptions), with level-based progression and a combination of stealth and combat gaming. Hitman GO isn’t the only mobile extension of the franchise, given that the full lineup of mobile titles from Square Enix Montreal also includes Hitman: Sniper (which, as it sounds like, is a point-and-click sniper game). But Hitman GO introduced something original. It looked almost like an animated, mechanical table game of sorts, with Agent 47 essentially a figurine who could move along a board or grid, turn-by-turn. The objective was to get through each level by reaching an assassination target without being detected by enemies. Visually, the game is surprisingly barebones, but the gameplay itself is excellent, and legitimately challenging.
The follow-up to Hitman GO was a similar title based on the Tomb Raider franchise, called Lara Croft GO (and also developed by Square Enix Montreal). This, too, was not an entirely new concept given that there have been other spinoffs of the Lara Croft games as well — most notably on casino platforms. If you’re familiar with this type of gaming you’ve likely come across slot machines based on Marvel and DC comics characters and films, but if you look into the featured games at mainstream sites you’ll also find that a Lara Croft slot game is out there. But Lara Croft GO was the first meaningful extension to mobile app stores, and works in much the same way Hitman GO does. The difference is that Square Enix made some pretty clear improvements in the visual quality and general style in between the two games. Lara Croft GO is a beautiful game, a little more active than Hitman GO and wholly satisfying not just as a puzzle game but as an extension of the franchise.
Just recently, Square Enix Montreal has extended the so-called “GO Collection” with another title in line with these previous two, solidifying this as one of the better gaming series in app stores. Deus Ex GO came out in time to line up with the release of Deux Ex: Mankind Divided on major consoles, and is another spectacular puzzle game. Arguably the best-looking one of the bunch, it captures the Deus Ex aesthetic in a unique and intriguing way, and its brain-teasing levels can keep you occupied for quite some time. One review made the point that this series of mobile games has thrived by subverting the themes (or just sense of importance) of the larger console editions, and that’s not as much the case with Deus Ex. That’s a fair point, but it also doesn’t feel like a criticism to say Deus Ex GO has a little more story to it than the previous two apps. It’s a very complete game.
Considering these three apps together, it now seems justifiable to say that Square Enix has put together a bundle that amounts to the best puzzle experiences in mobile stores.
Leave a Reply