My Week Unwrapped: November 19, 2021 – Moncage, Rob Riches, quadline, Jumanji, Sole Light and More

Hi everyone, and welcome back to My Week Unwrapped, where I discuss all the games I’ve been playing over the last seven days. This week has been quite an exciting one, with both a game and a DLC I’d been looking forward to for a long time. There were also a few pleasant surprises. I also caught up on some Sky content while Genshin Impact has been quiet. Overall, it was a pretty strong week for mobile games and there’s a lot to discuss, so let’s get to it.

Moncage

I had been looking forward to Moncage ever since it was first announced and it surpassed all my expectations. It’s a game that takes place on the sides of a cube and all the puzzles have you messing with perspective. Everything about it is so polished and it blew my mind over and over. It’s easily my Game of the Week and possibly even of the year. I have a full review already so I’ll let you read that instead of repeating myself. But this is a must-play for any puzzle fans.

Rob Riches

Rob Riches is a turn-based Sokoban puzzler in which you hunt for treasure in trap-filled temples. I finished the first world so far and I’m impressed with the variety of obstacles and different mechanics. In each level, you have to collect all the coins and then make it to the exit. It starts off with weak tiles that break after you step on them, but soon enough you’re pushing blocks around, jumping on trampolines, evading arrows, and avoiding fire-breathing dragon heads. There doesn’t seem to be a lot of filler, either, as most puzzles so far have offered their own challenge. There’s also an undo button so you don’t have to restart if you mess up — that is, unless you die. I do wish it worked like Snakebird and let you just go back to your last move if you die. I’m also not a fan of the move counter because the game doesn’t tell you what par is for each level. I’m not really interested in guessing, so I just play with the move counter hidden. But it’s hard to ignore it when it’s visible on the level select screen. I wouldn’t mind the move counter if it felt more meaningful, but as is it’s more of a distraction than anything else. It’s a small complaint, though, with an otherwise solid game. I’m also doing a giveaway right now for three codes for the iOS version of the game. The drawing is tomorrow, so if you want a chance to win make sure to enter here.

quadline

quadline is a new puzzle game from Ivan Kovalov, the developer of G30. It’s very minimalistic, but still super stylish. I like how there’s no tutorial, as the controls and goals basically speak for themselves. Each level is made up of a grid of squares with symbols on them that are easy to understand. You tap the symbol to activate it. For instance, if there’s a circular arrow in the middle of a square, tapping it will rotate the square. Tapping on a small arrow will push any black lines on that row in the direction the arrow is pointing. The goal is to get the black lines onto the white lines using these different controls. It gets more complicated as new mechanics are added, but since there’s no timer or move counter, you can just work it out at your own pace without any pressure. The animations between levels and chapters are slick and the soundtrack has a great beat to it without being distracting. I still have a good amount to play through, but I’ve enjoyed my time with it so far and would recommend it to anyone looking for a new puzzle game to play. You can also watch some of my videos below to see what it’s like in action.

Jumanji: The Curse Returns

I was intrigued by the idea of a digital board game designed in the spirit of the original Jumanji. It’s also by the same developers as the Monopoly app, so I was optimistic about Jumanji: The Curse Returns. Unfortunately, I was ready to be done with it after just a few minutes and only stuck with it for a full game so I could show it in my video. Basically, you have up to four players, but can also play solo with the AI. Each player takes turns rolling the dice and then moves their piece along the path, trying to get to the center first. Each turn, the center of the board reveals a sort of riddle that results either in a monster battle or some bonus that helps you out in those battles. The battles themselves are co-op. All four players work together to take down the enemies. The way this is done is that random objects are offered to you. You cycle through them with a tap. But if you find one that can be used as a weapon against an enemy, you drag it to them to attack. That’s the gist of it, but there are things that get in your way like vines. It seemed interesting for about five minutes and then I was over it. It didn’t help at all that the game is incredibly slow. Everything you do involves a ton of waiting. I wouldn’t want to spend that much time waiting for a game that I enjoy, so the fact that the gameplay itself was lacking made it that much harder to bear. I don’t think this game would be fun even with friends and I can’t recommend it.

Sole Light: Cool Puzzle Game

This week is just full of puzzle games and this time it’s Sole Light, which I started last week but finished since then. I had some frustrations due to the lack of a proper undo button, but in the end I enjoyed it and was glad I stuck it through to the end. I have a proper review here, though, so I’ll let you read that. I also made a walkthrough if you need help with any of the puzzles.

Kingdom Two Crowns: Norse Lands

Back when it first released on iOS, I spent more hours than I can count playing the original three campaigns in Kingdom Two Crowns. So I was obviously looking forward to the first paid DLC, Norse Lands. As with the earlier campaigns, I had planned to play for an hour, maybe two. Then 3.5 hours later I had to force myself to stop and take a break. The new campaign is basically more of the same, but some things have changed and I’m still discovering what that is. I did unlock a new mount, which is a carriage led by two cats. I was especially excited about it when I learned that it attracted stray cats to me and they would follow me around. I even got a cat house, though I’m not entirely sure how. I still suck at the game but can’t get enough of it. I died once already and am about to die again but I’m just using this playthrough to learn more about the new mounts and other mechanics so I know what to spend on next time. I do wish there were more than three save slots, though. I had to delete my completed game to make room for this one and now if I want to start another one I’ll have to either delete this or one of my other two games I’m in middle of. With four different campaigns, I wish they’d add more save slots. Other than that, I don’t really have any complaints. More Kingdom Two Crowns is always a good thing in my book.

Stranger Things: Puzzle Tales

Last week, I swore I was quitting Stranger Things: Puzzle Tales because progress kept stalling. I still can’t level my characters past 100 but I’ve been using equipment I earn to make them stronger. That together with new character I earn — and a hefty amount of luck — has allowed me to make some more progress in the story. It’s still going slow, so on most days I just do the Portal and collect my idle earnings so that when I do attempt the story levels again I’m a bit stronger. I’m not sure I would recommend getting invested in the game, but now that I am I can’t seem to quit it.

Genshin Impact

Again, there isn’t much going on in Genshin Impact right now. I’ve mostly been doing ley lines and some spiral abyss while waiting for 2.3 to come.

Sky: Children of the Light

This week, there was an update for Sky that brought winter to the Home space in preparation for the Days of Feast event. I took this opportunity to also catch up on the Wind Paths quests, which you can see here.

And that’s everything I’ve been up to this week! I also finished watching Maid, which turned out to be pretty good. I liked it more knowing it was based on a true story. I also just started Squid Game, though I only finished the first episode. I’m finding it a lot funnier than I expected and even laughed out loud when the bodies started piling up. I expected to be more disturbed by it but it’s a bit too ridiculous to take serious. I’m still enjoying it but it’s not really what I thought it would be. Anyway, let me know in the comments section which games you’re playing and I’ll see you back here next time with more of My Week Unwrapped!

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