[app url=”https://itunes.apple.com/app/ten-sum/id963510211″]
Intro
Since the release of good old Tetris way back in the day there have been countless variations on the game released on nearly every platform. From Candy Crush Saga to Dr. Mario, the genre seems like an inexhaustible source of inspiration for puzzle game developers and designers alike. Now I know not all these games are exactly the same (else we would be done quite fast, wouldn’t we) but there certainly seems to be a core mechanic that can be revived with just the most subtle change.
Ten Sum by Marc Sockel is the latest game I’ve played that offers such a variation on the three-in-a-row, Tetris-ish concept and I am happy to write a review on it for the folks here at Tapscape.
When math equals fun
In Ten Sum the player is confronted with what seems like a simple task; match two or more squares together to equal the amount of ten. When all blocks in a level have been solved, you progress. It was kind of funny how much I sucked at it at first, but with all good things in life you grow accustomed to it and start becoming a pro.
Ten Sum features over 80 of levels and the blocks keep stacking up further down the road. Obviously the blocks come in numbers of 1-9 and blocks must be stacked next to each other if you want to use them together. After you complete a level you progress to the next, there is nothing more and nothing less to the game but not being interrupted by a new interface or ad every few levels is a refreshing experience and well worth the price of a single dollar.
Our conclusion and verdict
The only really problem I had with this game is the exaggerated simplicity. Next to a simple menu at the beginning of the game there are almost no colors next to the squares themselves, the levels don’t change look-wise and the looped music (although done just fine) becomes a little bit irritating after so many levels.
While at first the game was kind of difficult to get in to for a beginner, the game doesn’t seem to have any kind of difficulty curve as well. This resulted in me playing through the entire game in just under an hour and believe me, I am not the most keen puzzler out there. Ten Sum is just worth its price with a quick hour or two of fun but just don’t expect to much when purchasing it.