iPhone App: Touch Magic

September 16th, 2009

= 4 stars

Spin around a cloud of pixels to form a pretty picture.

The Good

• Amazingly simple concept. You’re presented with a pixelated picture, that is actually a three-dimensional mess, that only forms said picture when viewed at a certain angle. Your job is to basically rotate the pixel blob — using the iPhone’s multitouch controls — until it’s at the proper angle to see the original picture. Swipe in any direction to rotate the blob, and use two fingers to rotate clockwise or counter clockwise. You get some help by the pixel colors and the blob taking up less space (getting warmer).
• The puzzles are a variety of colorful, fun objects like fruits, household items, and animals. Bonus points for a few cats.
• After you complete a puzzle, there’s a satisfying transition animation of it going away. The pixels dissolve, flit off in different directions, etc. Simple, subtle, yet satisfying. And a brand new puzzle presents itself, begging you to start another round.

The Bad

• Not much variety, although the simple, well-executed concept mostly wins out.

Conclusion

A well-executed concept and simple gameplay results in a freaking addicting game — after the first three puzzles I was hooked. I can’t stop playing this simple, nearly silly game. Meow.

iTunes App Store Link: