A Time-Tested Puzzle with a New Twist
It can be a genuine challenge to write a review for a sequel to a game, especially after a fair amount of time has passed since the original.
There’s a process of re-familiarisation that has to happen. You have to actively remind yourself of the previous game, trying to recall the specific things that you loved and the elements that you didn’t like so much. You then have to ask yourself: has this new game significantly changed the way I think about the franchise as a whole? For example, when recently reviewing EA FC 26, I had to consciously focus on the significant changes the game had made over the previous year, rather than just relying on my inherent love for the series.
However, when a developer produces a sequel just a few months after the first game, the challenge becomes even harder, albeit in a different way. Welcome to the world of Hanoi Puzzles: Flip Match.
Core Concepts
If you haven’t read my review of the first game in this series, Hanoi Puzzles: Solid Match, you might not know what Hanoi puzzles are. So let me illuminate you.
The original, analogue version of this puzzle first appeared in the late 19th century and was designed by the French mathematician Édouard Anatole Lucas. It was called the Tower of Hanoi, and its physical form consists of a simple wooden base with three wooden poles. A series of circular discs in various sizes are placed on one of the poles, and the aim is to move the entire stack over to another pole. The rules are elegantly simple: you can only move one disc at a time, and you can never place a larger disc on top of a smaller one.
Hanoi Puzzles: Flip Match uses the same core principle, but there isn’t any narrative to speak of, without any cutscenes or even any tutorials to guide you.
The Flip Match Mechanic
The game features 50 levels, just like the last one. The first five levels act as an intuitive, silent tutorial, teaching you how to play the game without any on-screen instructions or a voice-over guiding your hand.
In each level, you are presented with a 2D hexagonal grid upon which coloured hexagonal discs of various sizes are placed. The objective is to stack these coloured discs on top of each other in the correct size order – largest at the bottom, smallest at the top – using the fewest moves possible. Again, if you are familiar with the last game, then this all sounds very familiar. So, what does this sequel do to offer a different challenge? The primary answer is right there in the title: Flip Match.
In this game, each of the tiles has a front-facing colour; you might have a red, cyan, or blue tile, for example. However, when that tile moves one space, it flips over to reveal another colour on its reverse side, so a red tile becomes a yellow one, and a blue tile becomes a green one. When you move that same tile another space on the grid, it flips back again to its original colour.
So, the trick of the game – and what makes it a completely different proposition from its predecessor – is that you really need to plan all your moves out in your head before you even make the first one. It feels like solving a complex mathematical equation at times, or like planning an intricate attack several moves ahead in a game of chess.
Hexagonal Challenges and the Par Score System
Flip Match, of course, adds more colours and more towers to build as you progress further into the levels. Near the end of the 50 levels, the screen is awash with a rainbow of different colours and numerous tiles that you need to move across the board. Below the grid, the target number of moves for completing the level is displayed. You are still able to complete the level if you go over that amount, but you won’t get the deep satisfaction of a perfect run, nor will you unlock the achievements on offer.
If you feel that you have made a mistake, you can use a lifeline and go back one move, but that can only be used once per level. Or, if you’ve really painted yourself into a corner, you can press a button to restart the entire level and try again from the beginning.
I like the simple design of the game’s UI and the look as a whole. Its colours are pleasing and calming to the eyes, and although the game isn’t going to be pushing for any “graphics of the year” awards, it does a good job of what it intends to do. The same can be said about the sound score and effects. The soundtrack is subliminal and soothing, making it the perfect antidote to the brain-squeezing you will be doing while working out the levels. The effects are simple, with a little trill to let you know you’ve completed a tower.
A Clever Twist Worth the Price
There is certainly an argument to be had that Hanoi Puzzles: Flip Match could have been added as an expansion to Solid Puzzles, combining the two into a single, larger package. However, with a low price point, it feels completely reasonable to pay that small price for a whole new set of puzzles.
If you like puzzle games, Hanoi Puzzles: Flip Match does a great job of carrying on from the first game, albeit with an interesting new twist. And if you’re in it for the achievements and Gamerscore, it is quite easy to fill your boots within a few hours.
Important Links
The Classic Puzzle Gets a New TWIST in Hanoi Puzzles: Flip Match – https://www.thexboxhub.com/the-classic-puzzle-gets-a-new-twist-in-hanoi-puzzles-flip-match/
Buy Flip Match from the Xbox Store – https://www.xbox.com/en-gb/games/store/hanoi-puzzles-flip-match/9np8s4c4b4jk
