|
Neko Puzzle (or Cat Puzzle if you want to translate Japanese into English) is a fun shareware underdog from Lexaloffle Games. The game is similar to Zen Puzzle Garden in that the only 'user interface' is the arrow keys: player movement is the only thing required to complete puzzles. But unlike Zen Puzzle Garden, Neko Puzzle has a time limit, which gives the game an additional constraint. As a cute cartoony cat, you must jump around the screen to pick up all the objects before time runs out. To make things harder and more interesting, you can only jump straight up, down, left or right, so it is possible to trap yourself if you get items in the wrong order. There are 3 difficulty levels in the game, with "hard" being very well deserved of the name (I must confess that I got stuck even in "normal" mode after the first few ten levels or so). As an added bonus, you can play with a friend in hot-seat splitscreen mode: whoever finishes the level first is the winner. One thing I like most about the game is that all puzzles are randomly generated, so you get a fresh new batch of puzzles every time you play. The game also comes with a puzzle solver: if you get stuck, a robotic cat will appear to show you the solution. If you enjoy fun brainteasers with a bit of time pressure, Neko Puzzle is well worth your time and the price for the registered version. With virtually unlimited number of puzzles guaranteed by the randomizer, nice graphics and animation, and very intuitive gameplay, this is one shareware gem that I would come back to again and again. Two thumbs up, and help support quality shareware developers today by buying their games! :) Reviewed by: Underdogs | 
Neko Puzzle 
