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LVL ($1.99) by Ertan Unver of SquareCube is a minimal puzzle game that blends 3-D and 2-D into a seamless experience. If you’re the type of person who enjoys solving things like a Rubik’s Cube and need a bit of de-stress time from the hectic pre-holiday rush, then LVL is definitely one that you should add to your mobile game collection.

While the holidays are upon us and the year is coming to an end, I don’t think there’s ever a time that is as stressful as the pre-Christmas rush. It’s been a crazy past few months for me, but honestly I couldn’t be happier. After braving the crowds at the mall several times in the past week and completing my first semester back to school after five years, I’ve been diving into plenty of video games as a way to relax lately, especially on my PlayStation 4. However, because I can’t take my PS4 with me everywhere I go, I still enjoy having my iPhone and 3DS with me at all times. And as an iOS gamer, I mostly like to sit back with a good puzzle game every now and then to unwind. Even though I feel like I’ve played almost every puzzle game out on the App Store, I can’t help but check out what’s new, and LVL certainly is one that caught my attention in the past week. Needless to say, if you love a good, minimal puzzle game, then LVL is worth checking out.

Visually speaking, LVL is gorgeous with the minimalistic design aesthetic. The game is an exquisite blend of both 3-D and 2-D elements in one, and this unique mix brings a unique perspective to what you know about traditional puzzle games. In LVL, you’ll be welcomed with a grayish-white background that provides nice, stark contrast with the thick, inky black lines and the bright and vibrant hues of the puzzle pieces themselves. And if you’re into typography design at all, LVL uses a nice sans serif typeface that fits in well with the overall modern representation. Animations in LVL are smooth and fluid on my iPhone 7, so I had no lag or choppiness while playing. There is also an atmospheric and ambient soundtrack that I found rather soothing, and it should help players calm their minds and focus on the puzzles at hand. In the end, the developers have done an excellent job with LVL in terms of the graphics and audio department.

Like every other puzzle game, LVL is level-based. While there are no different “chapters” in the game, there are 50 levels that are available and players must go through them one-by-one in linear order. However, sometimes clearing one puzzle will reveal a path that splits up and opens up two more stages instead of one, so you get a little bit of leeway when it comes to choosing which puzzles to play first after you get going. The objective in LVL is simple: fill each side of the cube with color using the pieces, which are fittingly shaped liked tetrominos. However, since you are trying to fill a side (2-D) of the cube (3-D) with color, you will have to rotate the cube around in order to see the whole picture and each twist and moved piece can bring new complications to the puzzle itself. It sounds easy at first, but things do get much more intricate and complex as you get further along in the game.

Controls in LVL are a simple affair. To rotate the cube, just drag your finger across the screen in the direction that you want to spin it towards. As you twist the cube around, you will see the colored pieces on each side (like-colors are always opposite of each other), and ones that are available to move will have a white border around them and be a tad brighter than normal. To move these pieces, just drag-and-drop them where you want them to go. In order to fill a side, you’ll have to go back and forth between those two sides in order to fit all of the pieces together so that there are no empty spaces left. Once that is done, the game does a nice little animation that solidifies the color blocks on that side and they’ll become locked in place so you can’t mess it up further. When you’ve done that with all of the colors, then the stage is complete and you can move on to the next level or see what becomes available to you next.

While 50 levels may not seem like a lot, technically the game has about 150 puzzles to solve, since each stage features three colors that act as their own puzzle. In the App Store description, the developers have calculated that the game will provide more than five hours of gameplay if you go from start to finish, which I think is reasonable for the price of entry.

Even though I’m mostly on my PS4 these days, I still like to take a break every now and then and just chill out with a puzzle game on my phone. I’m glad that I discovered LVL on the App Store, because the game itself is downright beautiful with the minimalist look and feel, the music is calming, controls are simple and intuitive, and the combination of 2-D and 3-D into one brings a fresh new experience to the puzzle genre. This is certainly a game I’m going to be keeping on my iPhone for those moments when I just want to take it easy with my gaming time.

I highly recommend checking out LVL if you are looking for a distinctive, challenging, and relaxing puzzle game to pass some time with. You can find LVL on the App Store as a universal download for your iPhone and iPad for just $1.99. There are no in-app purchases.

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Super Mario Run (Free) by Nintendo Co., Ltd. is the latest mobile craze to hit the App Store before the end of the year, and is the second major Nintendo franchise to officially have a mobile game, the other being Pokémon Go. If you’re a huge Nintendo and Mario fan, then it’s needless to say that this is a no-brainer.

As someone who grew up in the late ‘80s into the ‘90s, I have incredibly fond memories of having a Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) back in the day, and playing whatever Super Mario Bros. games I had been given to me by my parents. No matter which game it was that I played, I would spend a good chunk of my carefree childhood days on it, trying to get as far as I could and beating my previous records. To me, there was nothing better than hearing the original Super Mario Bros. chiptune theme song and hearing Mario with his classic “It’s a me, Mario!” line. As I got older and earned my own money to buy video games, I’ve always had a soft spot for Nintendo, getting their consoles whenever I can (though I skipped out on the Wii U but eager to get a Switch). Heck, I even managed to snag an NES Classic Edition this year to fulfill my nostalgia needs. Like everyone else on the planet, I’ve been wanting Nintendo to release mobile versions of their classic games, like Super Mario Bros., The Legend of Zelda, Pokémon, and many others. This year, so far we’ve gotten Miitomo (kind of dead at this point), Pokémon Go, and now Super Mario Run. If you were expecting a full-on port of Super Mario Bros., sorry to disappoint, but they won’t be doing that for certain reasons. Still, if you’ve been craving any kind of Mario game on mobile, then Super Mario Run will fulfill that yearning.

In terms of visuals, Super Mario Run is beautiful and truly feels like a Nintendo game. If you played Mario games before, then everything will feel right at home for you. The 3-D character models for Mario, Princess Peach, Bowser, the Goombas, Koopas, and everything else are delightful and bouncing with personality and charm, just as one would expect from Nintendo. The Mushroom Kingdom is as bright and colorful as ever, and the various environments that all of the stages take place in will bring back a sense of nostalgia for many, myself included. And if you could never get enough of the Mario font from more recent titles, then the typography here will delight you. While most of the graphics are incredibly sharp and crisp for Retina displays, I did notice that some parts of the levels, such as the green leaves on the ground, were a bit fuzzier than the rest, as if they were not optimized for Retina screens. Not a terribly big issue, but consistency would be nice. Still, it’s just a nitpicky detail. Animations in Super Mario Run are smooth and fluid, and I had no lag on my iPhone 7 while I was playing. The sound effects and music stay true to their roots and will bring a smile to all gamers.

There are two game modes in Super Mario Run: World Tour and Rally. The World Tour is essentially the story mode, and contains six worlds that have four stages each. You know how the story goes: everything is peachy in the Mushroom Kingdom until Princess Peach is taken away from Mario once again in the clutches of Bowser. You’ll have to help Mario navigate through all of the stages to eventually reach the goal pole at the end, while collecting coins (including pink and secret black coins) and avoiding or eliminating as many foes as you can along the way.

Rally mode is a battle mode that you need “Rally Tickets” for (not too hard to obtain) and you can compete with other players to impress Toads with style and flair as you run and jump to collect the most coins and squash more enemies. The more Toads that you impress, the more Toads you will gain for your kingdom that you’re trying to rebuild after Bowser’s wrath. When you want to customize your kingdom, just choose the “Build” option to purchase decorations, buildings, and special items. From there, you can customize the positions of each item in your collection or put them away if you don’t want to use them at the moment. I’m not too big of a fan of these kinds of building sims, so I don’t think I’m going to spend a lot of time with this aspect of Super Mario Run. However, a bonus to the Kingdom Builder is the fact that you can have buildings that provide extra bonus games, which are more opportunities to get Rally Tickets. The other method is by clearing worlds.

As I mentioned earlier, if you were wanting a Mario game that is like the originals, then you should stop reading. In Super Mario Run, Mario runs forward automatically, and the game even prevents him from running too far back too, so timing is everything in this game. Rather than have the players control the direction that Mario runs in, all players have to do is tap anywhere on the screen to have Mario jump. You can just do a light tap for a small jump, or hold your thumb down for a longer jump. He can also do a small jump automatically to avoid simple obstacles and enemies that are directly in front of him. Mario has different behaviors that occur depending on the timing of your jumps, so it’s important to learn what he does when and how, and take advantage of that during Rally trials especially, as it’s the best way to impress the Toads when you have some panache. Even though this is a Mario game that can technically be played with just one hand, there is actual skill involved if you want to be good at the game — I’m still trying to get the hang of it, honestly.

The only caveats to the Super Mario Run that I can think of right now is the fact that the game does require an always-on Internet connection to run, and the fact that you only get the first three levels in the free download. If you want to play stage 1–4 and beyond, then you’ll have to get the $9.99 in-app purchase. While I don’t have a problem with this (gamers pay $60 for most console games nowadays anyway), I can see why many others may have an issue with it. But to that I say — it’s a Mario game for mobile, what do you honestly expect?

I’ve been waiting a long time for a Mario game on iOS, and it still feels a bit weird that the day has finally arrived. Honestly though, it took me a bit of warming up to the fact that this is not the traditional Mario platformer where you have complete control over Mario, but the more I play it, the more I’m enjoying it for what it is: a one-handed Mario platformer for mobile. The modernized graphics are gorgeous on Retina screens (albeit have some minor flaws with textures), the sounds and music just make me smile, and the controls are intuitive and responsive. While this is not the classic Mario games that I remember growing up with, it’s not a problem — that’s what my NES Classic Edition is for.

I recommend giving Super Mario Run a try if you’re a Nintendo and Mario fan in any way, shape, or form. It’s not your traditional Mario game, but it’s a great option for getting your Mario fix on-the-go without a 3DS.

Super Mario Run is on the App Store as an initial free universal download for your iPhone and iPad. An in-app purchase of $9.99 unlocks all levels after the first three.

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