Back in 2007, a company called Reflexive Entertainment released a little game called Airport Mania. For me, the game sucked away many hours of otherwise productive time that I didn’t really miss. It was that good of a game. I’ve kept an eye on them, waiting to see what they’d release next. The result was Simplz: Zoo.
Simplz: Zoo is a dual game of Match-3 puzzles and a zoo simulation. It starts off quick with a letter saying you’ve inherited a zoo from your grandfather and a lofty goal : to make it the top zoo in the world. You’ve got your work cut out for you.
The core of the game is the Match-3 puzzles. It’s pretty simple – match 3 (or more) tokens in a row which allows that row to collapse in a Tetris-like fashion. It might seem that completing puzzles would get tiresome and repetitious, but that’s not the case in Simplz: Zoo. Reflexive solved this by merging the puzzles with the expansion and upkeep of your zoo. Each month, your zoo requires a certain amount of Food and Personnel to operate. This is based on the number of animals you have and the buildings you maintain. In order to meet your needs, you have a goal of Food and Personnel matches in the puzzle. Anything above that earns you extra money or lumber, which can be used to purchase more animals or different buildings to expand your zoo.
Match!
Each new building, in turn, grants you a perk to use in the puzzle. Adding the Research Center causes a new token to appear in the puzzle – a question mark that when matched grants you research points which are used to research new animals. Collecting multiple matches repeatedly in a short amount of time earns you Conservation Points. These are put towards ‘purchasing’ rare animals to use in your exhibits. More animals means more visitors, and a higher zoo ranking.
As the game progresses, more goals are added such as collecting decorations, paths, or freeing animals that can be added to your zoo. Obstacles are thrown in your way as well, but I won’t give away too much. If the puzzle isn’t challenging enough, you’re given the option of turning on a timer.
Spending a day at the zoo.
Building the zoo is quite a bit of fun as well. Laying it out, planning it, and watching people walk through it with little bubbles over their heads telling me their impressions and thoughts was enjoyable. At the same time, the lack of interaction on this level was disappointing. I wanted to do more than just build a zoo and stare at it. I wanted to see my employees walking through the park, feeding animals, or maybe fixing problems that pop up.
The graphics are clean and crisp with a touch of cuteness and the music is light enough that it fades into the background. It didn’t become annoying or too repetitious, though there is an option to disable it.
Overall, Simplz: Zoo is a great game that can be played by anyone in the family. It’s addictive, light hearted, and good for plenty of hours of fun. For only ten bucks, it’s worth picking up.
|
|||||||
|
Puzzles are fun and challenging with enough variation to keep going. Building the zoo is a good break from the puzzles.
No multiplayer in the game, thus the 0 rating. |
||||||
Game: Simplz: Zoo | Developer: Reflexive Inc